CHASING IT WRONG?

Why chase when you can be chased?

“The world pays no attention to those who have nothing to offer”

— Bernard Kelvin Clive

Have you been chasing it wrong? Chasing the fruits over and over when the actual thing you should chase and grow is the seed? Millions of people around the world are making the same mistake.

Let's use the seed and fruit analogy further. When you keep going around trying to find fruits, from time to time, you would find them, but then again, there will be no rest, as you will stress your head, your mind and eventually your body trying to find the next place to get fruit.

Growing up, I used to love mango so much, like, it was an obsession. Not just me, but my siblings too. I think it's a family thing, because I'm pretty sure even my grandpa did too. Granddad loved mango before he passed, you know, before man eventually go. And so, during the fruit's season, we'd run around, expending our energy, trying to find the right fruits to buy. Many times, we'll find great mangoes, and many other times too, we'd buy mangoes that were sore, spoilt, or just hadn't been raised right, leaving us with upset stomachs. Those days.

We moved years later, into a really large compound, and dad decided to plant a mango. This is where the seed comes in. Deliberately, got the right seed. Just the perfect one he knew we loved to eat. In this part of the world, we call it the "Cherry Mango" seed. One of the best. He got the seed, found the right setting at the back of our compound and buried it into the ground, and even though we knew it would take years to eat mangoes off of it, we kept watering it, and kept the hope alive.

The progress of the tree was alarming. We were expecting the first fruits in about five years, but just three years later, we were eating satisfying, Cherry Mangoes off a large mango tree in our backyard. We never had to worry about going out, stressing from vendor to vendor trying to find the right mango. We had the right mango at our backyard, and we had it in abundance. Let me even tell you one better. We didn't have to always wait for its season anymore, as from time to time, even when it was out of season, the tree found a way to hang out sweet, cherry mangoes to our delight. What if we hadn't planted the tree? What if we hadn't gotten the seed and concentrated on the little bad fruits we got by going from place to place and spending money? What if we kept chasing it wrong?

Millions of individuals in this world today are chasing it wrong. We are chasing the fruits with our sweat, our time, our energy and our money, instead of getting the seed — very cheaply even — and planting it at our backyards. We'd wait some more years for us to eat the fruit out of it, then so what? Wouldn't you mind waiting a few years for an everlasting, stupendous reward? Only a fool wouldn't.

In case it isn't apparent yet, the seed in this analogy is value, and the fruit is money (and whatever else pleasure represents to you). Our mistake is, we aren't spending time creating value, developing value in ourselves, growing value in our backyards. What we are spending our lives doing is chasing the fruits of value. We will find them from time to time, but they won't be everlasting. We will find them at other people's terms, we will find them in sore, illegal ways that'd end up churning our stomach. If we don't spend time growing value, we won't live an abundant, wealthy life.

You must have heard. Money chases value. That's the truth. The same way fruits are offsprings of seeds, money, wealth, pleasure is an offspring of value. If you are chasing money instead of taking the time to plant the seed, to grow the value, then you are chasing it wrong. You're chasing the creature instead of seeking the creator. Stupid, don't you think? It's time to stop being stupid. It's high time you start chasing value.

Value can be the skill you need to spend time to develop right now. It can be the education you need to take right now. It can be the relationship you should be nurturing right now, or the platform you should be building right now. Truth is, none of this might produce fruit in an instant. If you plant a perennial seed that you hope will last for generations, you won't see the fruit on time. You won't see the fruit in the next two or even three years, but as long as you keep nurturing, keep plugging, keep applying yourself, keep your consistency, you will see the fruits down the line, and when it eventually starts, it won't stop. Never again.

Ask yourself right now. What seed(s) are you nurturing in this moment? If you can't point it out, then it is clear that you are chasing it wrong. Big time! You need to retrace your steps and find a seed.

Remember also, that you have to find the right seed. My dad was intentional about it. Find the right seed that you love, that you are certain you'd develop more passion in. Nurturing the wrong seed will be very frustrating, and you might end up with sore fruits. Find the right seed, plant it, and start nurturing. Don't expect the fruit any time soon. Just keep nurturing it. You will get it down the line. If you don't stop.

Action For The Week: Evaluate yourself. Identify one right seed you have planted and are nurturing. See how you can better nurture your the seed. Be more consistent with your watering and weeding. Take care of that seed and don't be in a haste. It's going to last many generations, so calm down.

If you realize you haven't a seed you are nurturing, now is the right time to find one! Not later. Not tomorrow. NOW! Let it be the next thing you do after reading this newsletter. Spend the week identifying potential right seeds, and I'll teach you how to plant.

Have a tremendous week!

To your growth,

Abiola Okunsanya,

Handzinspired.