INTRODUCTION
Being
good or bad is not necessarily in what we
do, but in who we are. Your
nature determines you actions. While your actions define your personality, your
nature defines your character. Personality can be faked; character cannot.
To
be a Super Star is to be a Christ-like example of happiness and success. To be
truly happy and successful in life, your personality and character must be in
harmony. This harmony of personality and character is what is referred to as
integrity. Therefore, Integrity is
when your thoughts, intentions, words and actions are in harmony with God’s
Principles and Purposes.
Integrity
is based on the awareness, understanding and living in the consciousness of
three (3) key things every moment of your life:
1.
Your Fountain
2.
Your Function
3.
Your Focus
YOUR FOUNTAIN
This is your source. This is where
you derive and draw your meaning, your very existence from. A tree-soil
relationship gives a good picture of this. The soil supports the tree; and the
soil remains whether or not the tree is planted in it. The tree gets its
nourishment from the soil; therefore, the quality of the soil determines the
quality of the tree. The deeper the tree penetrates the soil, the stronger the
tree, and the longer it grows. However, the
tree can get nothing from the soil unless it is planted.
-
Who
is your source of inspiration?
-
Where
do you get your energy from?
-
How
do you get renewed when you are down and dry?
-
How
do you regain your strength when you are wounded and weak?
-
From
where do you derive meaning for living?
He who lacks inspiration is set up for frustration.
What to do with your Fountain
i.
Spend
time with your fountain
ii.
Trust
your fountain
iii.
Tell
others about your fountain
The Significance of your Fountain
i.
Inspiration
Your source is to you energy as oxygen is to all life. Traversing through life daily is just enough to cause you heartbreaks and breakdowns. But being in tune with your source ensures that you are always spirited, spurred and sane.
ii.
Ideas
Your fountain imbues you with ideas that are beyond you. When you keep in touch with your source and focused on your purpose, you will tap into a realm of illumination that ordinarily you never would have believed you have the capacity to birth.
iii.
Intervention
Many issues of life are generally without the physical realm of existence. To rely on the physical alone is to set up yourself for failure and frustration. Your source comes in handy to offer you help. And by living in harmony with set laws, makes your external conditions sync with your thoughts.
iv.
Importunity
Your relationship with your source also gives you the energy and strength to persist and persevere as you navigate through the sea of life, despite all storms. With your source,
a. You have an encouragement to hold on
b. You'd have an assurance that all will be well
c. You'd have an unusual Peace of mind
v.
Invincibility
Your source gives you not just grace to persist but power to forge through. As you understand and lay hold of this power,
a. You develop courage
b. You gain coverage
c. You take charge
d. You fuel your passion
e. You become indispensable
vi.
Implication
Your source determines where and how you end your life. Every religion teaches that there is an afterlife. How you spend your afterlife - or bluntly put, your eternity - is all a function of whom or what you make your source. I will love to offer you the One and Only True Living God - The Creator of the Heavens and Earth.
vii.
Importance
As you relate with your source, each of your roles in life begin to unfold to you as you grow through life. Your relationship with your source will also determine the quality and extent of your understanding and fulfilling your specific roles in life. How you live in relation with your roles is largely dependent on the effectiveness of your relationship with your source.
Below are some of your relationships and roles in life:
RELATIONSHIP
|
ROLE
|
Spouse
|
Husband/Wife
|
Children
|
Father/Mother
|
Parents
|
Son/Daughter
|
Siblings
|
Brother/Sister
|
Employer
|
Employee
|
Subordinates
|
Boss
|
Equals
|
Colleagues
|
Church/Charity organization
|
Brethren
|
Source/Fountain
|
Son/Daughter
|
World
|
---Figure this out---
|
YOUR FUNCTION
Your function, as defined here, is
your unique role and distinctive purpose to the world. It is the unique problem
you are solving for humanity and that gives you the greatest fulfillment as a
person. At this point, too many people miss the mark. When we lose sight of or
are ignorant of our function, we become conditioned and controlled by events,
environment and expectations of others. Life becomes full of struggles and
sweats. We lose the joy of work, the sense of meaning, and the infinite store
of power that becomes realized and released when we focus all of our resources
on a major definite purpose.
Truths about your Function
When you realize your function, you'd have
i.
Inward
Peace
ii.
A
sense of fulfillment
iii.
A
willingness to sacrifice
Leading Questions to Discover your Unique Function
a. What issues, problems or needs
around you touches you most?
b. What do you do that gives you so
much sense of fulfillment?
c. What meaningful activity do you
often lose track of time doing?
d. Who are your role models?
e. If money were not an issue, what one
thing would you commit your entire life to?
f.
What
is your deepest and innermost desire?
g. What are your unique gifts, skills
or talents?
h. What do those closest to you say
about your uniqueness, personality and character?
i.
What
do you sense in your conscience or spirit that you are to be?
YOUR FOCUS
This
is your goal. This is what you are out to achieve. Your function defines who you are to be, your focus determines
what you are to do. It is useless
focusing your resources in achieving what you don’t intend to be. Do not pretend to be what you don’t intend
to be.
What is a goal?
-
It is something worthwhile you desire to
achieve.
-
It is a great status you yearn to attain.
-
It is a price possession to crave to acquire.
-
It is an enviable end you seek to arrive.
Benefits of Goals
a.
It helps you to clarify exactly what you want
amongst many alternatives
b.
It helps you to develop your willpower
c.
It helps you to focus all your resources only on
those things that are important to you
d.
It constrains you to set conducts and standards
for yourself and abide them
e.
It helps you to keep score of your progress
f.
It helps you to develop a heart of gratitude
g.
It infuses you with a sense of confidence and
competence
How to Set a Goal
1.
Be Selective
·
Set goals that are in line with your functions.
2.
Be Sensitive
·
Your goals should not contradict sound
principles and moral values.
3.
Be Specific
·
Set clear and concise goals
4.
Be Strategic
·
Set goals that you can measure. Give yourself
Performance Indicators.
5.
Be Sensible
·
Set goals that are both attainable and
realistic.
6.
Be Sequential
·
Set goals that can be broken down into bits.
7.
Be Spiritual
·
Set goals that would stretch your faith, and make
you rely on God for help.
Conclusion
We
are meant to be and to do all God wants us to be and do. But we must be
connected to God to understand fully what He wants us to be. And be committed
in taking practical steps to do what is necessary of us. To be continually
relevant, you must never, never disconnect from your source.
Your Connection Determines Your
Contribution.
For your speaking, writing and training needs, please call +2348064980357, +2348096001659 or send an email to deleayobankole@gmail.com
Ayo Bankole: An International Keynote Speaker, Insightful Preacher,
Creative Writer, Leadership and Productivity Coach, and Corporate MC. He has
spoken on several platforms - from schools, churches, business organizations to
gatherings of all classes. He is the President of
Barnabas
International, and Principal Coach,
SOAR Academy.
He designs websites for leisure. He is based in Lagos, Nigeria.
