If you would do one thing that will honestly alter the cause of your life for good, would you do that without minding the cost? Reading this piece would be one of those. A few days ago a friend called me and we got talking. I asked about how her life has been and she shared what would be the challenge of most if not all young people out there - "nothing seems to be working". What I will be sharing in the next few weeks stems out of my conversation with her and forgive my bias, this would be for young people. I will be writing letters to young people, it will be true, relatable, straightforward, and radically life-transforming. Please follow diligently. This will be an introductory piece. Dear young people,  Ours is a generation where life is hard, things are constantly on the move and everyone is in a hurry to make both ends meet. People cut corners to achieve certain set goals, people do all manner of things not minding the aftermath if only they can get what they want, pe

What I will share today concerns us all. I have been guilty, you have been guilty in one way or the other, we all have fallen prey to it as well in some ways. Don't feel confronted if this picks you out, the essence is to help us all overcome it and become better versions of ourselves.  Over the years, I have talked with many young people who came to me with one issue or another, and most of these conversations border on self-development and personal growth. What I have observed with most if not all of those young people is that they have made excuses to be their best ally in the journey of life.  So let's talk about excuses.  We live in a generation laced with the culture of young people not owning up to their choices, responsibilities, and/or irresponsibilities. The blame game is thriving, people are always finding a scapegoat for what they do or failed to do.   Excuses! Excuses!! Young people are always inventing excuses to not live as they should, to not take responsibility

  Within the week I was sharing my pains about some unhealthy needless demands, expectations, and practices emerging in our society (communities) relating to marriage with a friend. After an elaborate conversation, I told her, in the end, we will just have to all be the Lengdungs of our time. If you know this guy, you would be connecting the dots by now, but if you don't, permit me to try to describe him in a few sentences as a backdrop for what I want to share. Lengdung can be termed as a reformer of our time, a young guy obsessed with, knowledge, growth, and seeing the best in others, a challenger of the status quo of everything that is wrong with/in the society, a man who does all these and more pragmatically with his life. It would surprise you to know that he was among the few young men in Jos whose wedding went against the grain of culture and tradition.  Coming from one of the roughest ghettos in the Plateau State of Nigeria, characterized by high school dropouts and teenage

  Permit me to tell you a bit about Philip. I met Philip in our undergraduate days at the University of Jos. He was never late even though he usually comes from home. I tried several times to beat him in punctuality but I failed on several attempts. Philip was cheerful, full of life, and always the spark of the house.  Last week was a tough yet defining week for me, I lost Philip who has been a friend for 10 years. Did I see it coming? Certainly not. Was I anticipating it sooner? I doubt it. But will we all die? Of course yes.  This is not a tribute but be patient with me as I share with you the lessons I have learned at the cause of his demise this week. I have no doubt they will bless your heart. Philip lived well : I know people are often guilty of saying things about people who are gone that are not usually true, but with a deep sense of honesty, humility, and certitude, at 27, Philip lived well. This is no fallacy, this young man touched lives everywhere he went, if not with his s

  Over the last year, I have had quite a several job interviews, and one thing I kept in mind before those moments was "don't ever stop to be qualified for the job". The outcome of the interviews may not turn out to be what I wanted, but these interviews kept teaching me a great deal about life - to never stop being qualified for life.  I have engaged a lot of young people this year, and what I observed is alarming - young people want everything at no cost at all; they want to achieve their dreams on their beds, they detest getting out of their comfort zones. Sadly, it doesn't work like that.  What you want out of life determines the kind of effort, patience, doggedness, and preparation you give into it. You see, greatness comes at a price and it is not cheap at all. The truth is you don't get what you are not prepared for.  Dear young man/woman, who and where you will be tomorrow will not in any way be different from the preparation you are doing today. The great

  He looked me intently into the eyes, with humility and a great sense of urgency, and said: "young man, live your life now right, it is from its fruit you will eat tomorrow". You see, what you are doing with life now largely determines how your latter shall be, and who or what you are now is a reflection of what you have been doing with life. Life doesn't just happen, it is a deliberate venture. So after almost a year of writing and sharing, I had to take time out to refresh (oh how I enjoyed the break), I am glad I am back, so let's pick up from where we left, shall we? In my new year piece, I shared some random thoughts that I believed would be instrumental in our life's journey. I would like to recap them again to enable us to assess the progress of the first quarter of this year.  About making each day count : How intentional have you been in giving life your best shot every passing day? About being grateful : I learned that gratitude is a ladder, and on days

  I want to congratulate you for making it this new year, God has been faithful. Last year was tough, but we survived it, God kept us and we are here. We now have a clean slate of sheets, what we write on it determines how our lives will pan out at the end of the day/year. I want to share some random thoughts with you that I sense will help on your journey through this year and life entirely. I pray they mean something to you. Note: After today, the breakforth series will go on a break and will resume the first week of April. Thank you for following what we have done here hitherto.  So here we go... Make each day count - Who and what you are today is a cumulation of the decisions you have made every day of the past. Every new day, do your best to make meaningful decisions and be disciplined enough to follow through with them and you would have made the day count. Be thankful - Gratitude has a rippling effect; instead of complaining, be thankful, count your blessings, relish in the o