Yesterday we had our regular New Nigeria Club sponsored Sunday seminar. We had two feature speakers, Niyi Adesanya and Kunle Awofolajin. Niyi Adesanya spoke about Public Speaking as a tool for financial empowerment, while Kunle Awofolajin spoke on Forex Trading as a tool for financial empowerment. These two presentations are a must hear. Somewhere in between introducing the two speakers, I had the opportunity of talking for 3 mins. I narrated a story that had been on my mind of late, and I think it’s good I share it with you as well. Once upon a time long ago, there was a rich widow. This widow was very rich but had no children. she had many maids, many employees and many friends, but few children. It so happened that it got to a time in her old age that she was diagnosed with an incurable disease. Everybody rallied around her and cared for her, until she became too much of a burden and one by one, they stopped showing up. It happened eventually that there was only one person left with her – an uneducated matron who loved the rich widow so much she was willing to dedicate her time to care for her until her death. In the weeks that followed, things deteriorated slowly until after a while, the rich widow could hardly speak. At this time, she knew that the end was near, and she decided to make signs to the matron and ultimately gave her something that seemed like a sheet of paper.
The old matron was touched by this feeling of love, her mistress gave her something out of appreciation. She was so touched. She couldn’t make anything of the content, but the gesture was well appreciated. She took the sheet of paper home, laminated it, and placed it in her living room. In time, she hoped, she’ll be able to showcase it to her visitors as something she recieved for doing good. After a while the widow died, and the matron organized a small funeral for her from her savings, and went back to her normal life. After some months, the matron had an economic crisis. This crisis, ended her career and emptied her account. She was broke as the old time church rat (church rat’s have plenty to eat these days). She moved from friend support, to family support to a point where things got so bad, that she couldn’t afford to eat even the basic necessities nor feed her family a balanced diet. Things were heading for a sure death by starvation.
Sometime around this junction, a young man came visiting, when he got into the house, the laminated peice caught his eyes, and he went and picked it up. He approached the fragile and dying matron with the peice and asked, “What is this and why is this here?”, the old matron smiled narrowly, too hungry to chuckle but obviously excited at telling the story – of how she had supported a life till death. The young man’s look did not cooperate with her story telling excitement. He was shocked. He stopped the woman abruptly and explained to her, that what she had laminated was a check of $100,000,000 and the authorization to pay that the rich woman had left her as her only deserving heir. Right there in her living room, she had the key to the solution to all her problems, but she had laminated it! She was a millionaire but her bank account didn’t reflect it. She was rich but lived like a pauper. She had it all, all she could ever desire, but she required a few more steps to turn it into cash, the first step of which was knowing. She didn’t despise the gift, now, she loved the gift, she cherished and adored it, but that’s seldom enough. I’m sure she looks ignorant and foolish to you, but hang on a minute, are you sure you haven’t laminated it? Let’s see.
1. Do you have anything that is of value that you are not using? Personal Initiative? Money saved up in the bank? Influential friends? Powerful relationships? Great Mentors? Fantastic Ideas? Anything that is valuable and unused is being laminated.
2. Do you have anything around you, that could have great potentials, that you do not fully understand? The Nigerian Stock Market? Global Stocks? Forex Trading? Public Speaking? Online Businesses? Blogging? That great idea e.t.c. Anything around you that could have great potentials if tapped into that you do not tap into is being laminated. Go for knowledge, go for information.
3. Have you read it? Have you read those books that you have? It’s becoming a growing sport to collect books. Every time someone talks about a great book you buy, but do you read? Do you know what great and liberating discoveries lie inbetween those two shiny covers? Do you know what ideas can be sparked up by reading that website that you have bookmarked but not read in a while? If you are not reading it, you are not better than the one that cannot read it. If you are not perusing it, you are laminating it.
4. Are you living a good life? Are you happy? Are you excited about tomorrow or does it seem as if life is winding down? Are you in control of your life or is someone else on the drivers seat. Are you living life at the peak or living way below your potentials? If life is not going the way you want it, if things are not looking bright and in multicolours, if you are not excited or living what you’ll consider a good life, then go check your walls, go and dig into your luggage, you’ll see the laminate. You won many awards back in the days, you were the best this, the fastest that, the most likeable e.t.c. Are those things anywhere near your realities today? Go dig it out, unlaminate it and put it to proper use.
After yesterday’s meeting, someone came to meet me and informed me – “I have laminated it, thank you so much for showing me”. I don’t know if you are like that one person today. I have one word for you, go get it out, and use it!
29 thoughts on “Did you Laminate it?”
thanks Deolu,
you just lifted myspirit.have been bugging my mind all this while thinking of wat to do,thinking i could not do anything but just got to realise that i had laminated it.thanks.your site has been my constant source of inspiration.I BET U,its just the beginning thanks. its never too late now.
Deolu, i have said it before that you are a genius. i thinkl i have to go through my self and everywhere around me top see if i have lamiinated any check without knowing it and posibbly do something about it.
NIce story line , HE who has ears, let him hear says THE GOOD OLD BOOK!!
Your excellency,
May the Good Lord never leave you alone until HE is through
with you.
Thank you for making yourself available.
When are you going to storm the FCT?
Hi Deolu,
You are such a bundle of inspiration, what an inspiring story and the break down points you listed is eye opening, i’ve got some more insight of things i’ve laminated for a while, it’s time to open them up and use them, i’m blessed, thanks a lot, cheers.
A D E O L U! well i thank God for you and he continue to replenish your wisdom. I have really learnt a lot from you and i’m proud of you. However, i think even commenting on this article is like LAMINATING IT. i better go ACT! now. Cheers!
you will be amazed to know that some of us have laminated more things than we even recall…..
its time we started ”un-laminating” and living the dream that God has placed in our hearts.
…’ but hang on a minute, are you sure you haven’t laminated it? Let’s see. Do you have anything that is of value that you are not using? Personal Initiative? Money saved up in the bank? Influential friends? Powerful relationships? Great Mentors? Fantastic Ideas? Anything that is valuable and unused is being laminated…’
I most say not staying in touch enough with u and some of my great friends for whatever reason(s) has waxed more ans more lamination on my treasures. Thanks for lifting the veil once again.
Great Story-teller.The story is actually a story which my Pastor(Pastor Chris) loves using when trying to illustrate the way humans are suffering despite all that our saviour has done for us to ensure that we have a glorious life.
Everyone of us has the seed of greatness in us,its hi-time for us to unveil what we’ve got and be the success that we really are.
Great Story-teller.The story is actually a story which my Pastor(Pastor Chris) loves using when trying to illustrate the way humans are suffering despite all that our saviour has done for us to ensure that we have a glorious life.
Everyone of us has the seed of greatness in us,its hi-time for us to unveil what we’ve got and be the success that we really are.The sky is the starting point
another thought provoking piece..we all have some form of leverage that could move us towards the realization of our dream but we seldom realize that it is there…success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal….thanks deolu.
My mentor…Good to read from after a long while. I knew you were going to come out better.
I’m trying to remove what i have laminated. I am 10% done. With your words, i can do better.
I promised to update you about my journal. I will sent it to your e-mail address.
Thanks
‘ve got uncountable stuffs laminated. God bless your soul for this timely piece ‘Deolu. There will sure be lots of breakthroughs …………
Many thanks!
Ms Bimbo
I must confess that i’ve laminated my bookmarks for long, in that i’ve not been checking your site for a very long time until now. God bless you man! I will check you later i have some unlamination to do…
Yeah I just broke the frame…….the lamination..
I am deeply touched by the story, and now all those thing that would help me certainly would come out now….
Again the lamination is broken.
Thanks
i m limitless from now on
breakin my bounds and frame and everything
many have not only laminated stuffs but have also put them in cases. think i’m one of them. but i’m breakig forth large.
Well spoken sir!!!
Truly inspiring. . .
http://www.folayemianifowoshe.wordpress.com
This is thought provoking.
Josh
http://www.joshadeyemi.blogspot.com
hmmmm…this is certainly going to put the lamination company out of business ,i only wonder how you get to have access to all these stories.Each time i listen or read from you it’s like meeting you for the first time again.You are a real blessing to this generation.God bless you.
Another eye opener!
God knows I have laminated quite a few things in my life and henceforth I am getting the laminations off and making good use of them.
Thanks Dee Baba.
good! good!! good!!! laminations off! but i keep wondering how i can maximise all i’v got… resouces, potentials, ideas, connections… but i know His grace is sufficient
Oga Deolu, you keep giving us home work, the last assignment am trying to keep up with it now u don bring another one, its a great piece, infact i have to unframe some before unlaminating it, all these traditions of elders wey don cement person mind, i beg keep the sledge hammer comming its breaking some stuffs.
Regards.
That’s a nice story with thought provoking insights.
http://www.ilemobadeoyedun.blogspot.com
Wow! Though this is my very first time of viewing and commenting…I am truly blessed.
I just discovered that I did laminate it.
Thanks, it will still get better.
Deolu,
this piece is a food for thought.
I think i better sit back and check because the cause for my lamentation might just be a solution i’ve been laminating all this while.
keep on keeping on bro.
Thanks a million for the article/blog entry.
The fact is lots of people have great ideas and dreams but they remain just that, dreams. Because they do not do anything about them….
I tell u this is cool good men. indeed we ‘ve Thinkers in this country. This will serve as a great lesson for us all. we should put our destiny off shelf and start maximasing it… as we trust God to help us.
Sir, you are doing a great job keep it up. God bless you.
bros D ignorance is bad o. someone living in penury yet doesnt know how wealthy she is. information is really crucial.had it been that the yooung man didnt come, the woman would have died poor. i love the story.
Information prevents deformation.
the only difference between the rich and the poor is their respective access to information. a similar story was told of a boarding student whose mother gave her a book to read when ever she felt like life was not making any meaning. she collected it but did not read it even when things went worse for her as a student in school. (asiko ogbe ‘le). on the day she thought it needful to educate her mummy over her then state, her mother laughed at her for a very long time and then uttered gently that she had placed some amount of money in the book she gave her that day.
no wonder someone once said if you want to hide a secret from and African man. keep it in a book.
thanks a million Baba DEE.