ARE YOU PREPARING FOR YOUR OPPORTUNITIES? BY IDOWU OMISORE

The stage is set, but the atmosphere is tense. One hundred applicants. Two brand managers needed. Stunned by the stormy wave of applications to his desk, the Human Resource Director consulted with an associate professor, who accepted the challenge of ‘screening down’ the applicants from one hundred to two. The stage is still set. As the consultant mounted the podium, his eyes filtered through his anxious audience. He cleared his throat and said, ‘If you are here as an applicant for the position of a brand manager for our alcoholic brands, kindly put up your hand’. Expectedly, a hundred hands went up, piercing the air. ‘Ok, you are all welcome!’ he said, ‘please make yourselves comfortable’. Please take a bottle of any of our alcoholic brands and enjoy yourselves’. Some voices responded almost immediately: ‘I don’t take alcohol’. He asked them to leave the hall. The rest of the applicants had poured their drink into their glass cups on the tables. The consultant took a long, studious look around the hall and said, if your drink is foaming down the glass cup, kindly use the exit door. He carried on with his weird elimination methods until it remained only five people. He instructed them to keep drinking. Empty bottles increased significantly. The associate professor, who pretended to be drinking along with them, kept going to the restroom frequently to empty his glass cup. At a point, one of the applicants vomitted and was released out of the race. The remaining four continued the drinking spree. All of a sudden, almost simultaneously, two of the four voiced out; ‘Sir, I’ve reached my limit’. The consultant replied: you just got yourselves the job! The consultant then explained that the applicant that vomitted exceeded his limit – he broke a major rule: Never exceed your limit. My take from the scenario above – life will always give you opportunities directly or indirectly, but unfortunately many people are not ready with the capacity to cash in on the opportunities, so the obvious happens – they miss out. Secondly, opportunities attract too many people at the same time. Only the most prepared or the most discerning person gets the winning edge. All the applicants dreamed of becoming a brand manager but only a few of them were ready to bear the cost of the opportunity. That’s the third issue here; there are times a colourful opportunity shows up but coming with it is a heavy weight of responsibility. So it happens that some people cave in, back out or miss out for lack of capacity. What is an opportunity? It is a favourable situation that can be taken advantage of, to achieve one’s goal or fulfil a definite desire. In life, there are those who wait for opportunities. There are those who work for opportunities. There are those who win by maximizing opportunities. 2013 is a year to maximize opportunities and not miss them. In life, opportunities hardly come knocking at your door. You’ve got to buckle your shoes and set out. Opportunity is a door. Preparation is the key. With the keys of preparation in your hands, you can unlock the door of opportunity when it surfaces. The scenario I began with reveals that every opportunity has a cost. This reminds me of one of the fundamental concepts of Economics called Opportunity Cost. 2013 is a year of opportunities. That’s exciting to hear, but this places a great demand on us all to develop capacity, acquire resources (mental, financial) and prepare to pay prices of opportunities coming your way. I once read that ‘Talents are everywhere, but opportunities are scarce’. Opportunities are actually available but scarce, when placed against the teeming talented people out there – the more reason why you cannot afford to miss out this year. The year is still young. Take steps of preparation, starting from this week. I’ll love to get your emails, text messages, phone calls – let’s win together! You’ve got greatness in you! IDOWU OMISORE Speaker. Author. Talent Coach. Youth Consultant. Order for Idowu Omisore’s bestsellers; Invest Your Youthful Years, Dream and Achieve Greatness (Foreword was written by Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola [SAN]). Call now to book Idowu Omisore for your coming programs. He’s a fantastic Spirit-filled speaking sensation! 08059371461, 07045008591 idgreatness1210@gmail.com www.idgreatness.com www.idowuomisore.blogspot.com www.idowuomisore.wordpress.com Follow Idowu Omisore on Twitter @IDGreatness