"One day I'm gunna play in the NBA!!" A statement commonly made by not only young American's but kids all across the world. Though popularized as an American sport it is played and enjoyed in countries across the globe. The Spanish have arguably the best national team after USA and have arguably the strongest professional league outside the NBA. The Chinese have spent millions developing and promoting the game of basketball and is easily the fastest growing sport in Asia generating large amounts of money. It doesn't stop there though the National Basketball Association (NBA)the biggest basketball league in the world now has over 80 international players, with countries like France producing an impressive 10 players currently making their trade in the NBA. Don't get it twisted either these guys aren't just sitting on the bench, international superstars like Dirk Nowitzski(Germany), Steve Nash(Canada), Tony Parker (France), Pau Gasol (Spain) and Yao Ming (China) are all perennial All Stars and are amongst the Best players in the world. So in short the International game has come a very long way and basketball can no longer just be classed as just an American sport.
This is not a view shared by the general British public though where the most widely played sports are Football, Rugby and Cricket. Though Basketball may be an afterthought to the majority of the British population the sport has come a very long way in the past few years, growing in participation and interest vastly in recent times. The crown jewel of basketball in Britain would be the newly established Great Britain men's basketball team, who led by NBA star Loul Deng performed exceptionally well by their standards in the recent Eurobasket competitions and cemented their place in the London 2012 Olympics. Loul Deng, Great Britain's most heralded player, Brixton's finest, Chicago Bulls Star and extremely talented player is a product of the British system and has provided Brits everywhere with hope that they can make it too. But right now not a lot of Brits do make it big. In actual fact other than Loul Deng there is only 1 other player (Pops Mensah-Bonsu of the Houston Rockets) who has a real British background is currently playing for NBA team. (Disregarding NBA players like Ben Gordon and Kellena Azubuike who both have British roots). Don't get me wrong Britain has produced many great players playing outside the NBA or have the potential to make it to make it to the NBA (can't name them all but there are a lot) but it is widespread opinion that there are many issues within the British game that are holding us back. Here are 10 popular arguments as to why we struggle to make it;
1. Like mentioned before Basketball is not one of the most popular sports in Britain. This of course leads to not a lot of interest by higher authorities investing money into the sport, meaning there are a lack of good facilities to help players develop their game. For example I'm a player in this winter period with no indoor court to freely go and play in. How am I supposed to develop my game??
2. Players in America for example are generally being developed and taught the game at much younger ages then we are in Britain so they automatically have the advantage of developing their game for longer periods of time
3. The popular myth is that players in America have a height advantage over us Brits. If this can be proved true then this obviously will make a difference. Most people also feel that people 6"6-6"7 who would be playing the center position in Britain would be guards in the NBA or playing against American Centers who are more likely to stand a 6"10 and upwards, so straight away there is a disadvantage. A good example of how this can hurt British players stem from British coaches have the tendency to coach only "Big Man" skills to relatively tall people in Britain who in America would not be seen as tall so they struggle to perform.
4. Not a lot of help/connections/guidance/exposure. With not a lot of the help or connections that players in other parts of the world have its a lot harder for Brits to have the same opportunities and links to make it
5. It is also popular opinion that coaches care more about winning games rather than developing players. For example some coaches are more concerned with star players helping their teams win rather than allowing them to move on and develop somewhere else.
6. The British game in its entirety lack organization
7. Not many Big British stars to look up to
8. British players not applying as much effort, drive, time to developing their own games. Not understanding what it takes to make it big. At times the ego of a player can be their biggest downfall
9. Lack of interest in the British game from the outside. In other words scouts and representatives of teams in America and Europe do not pay enough attention to the game in Britain
10. We're just not good enough!!
Of course this is just all based on the opinion of individuals, cannot be taken as facts and can easily be argued against but they still stand to pose issues as to why our game hasn't developed as far as it possibly could. At the same time though its all a process and the game of basketball has come in leaps and bounds in the past few years in this country so hopefully we continue to progress and develop to a stage where our poster boy will not just be Loul Deng but well have a whole team to be proud of!!
(Big thanks to Evelyn, Stephan, Nathan, Akin, Calum, Tashan, Kalil and Ryan for their input plus all the other people I've spent time arguing with about this lol)
Peace
BASKETBALL, LOVE, ART
Yo what's good people been away from the blog for a bit, I know uve missed me lol But I thought I share this poem written by my boy Poetic Sunshine about my wifey basketball, I think its big so hear it is
Basketball, Love and Art
Basketball’s my love, it’s what I do, it’s who I be
That’s why I spend time with my love at every chance I see!
Balling and love involve expressions just like modern art
There’s a knack to it and it comes straight from the heart
That’s why when I’m with Spalding that orange skin glows
I express my love on that hard surface like Picasso
Spalding and I have a pact, ‘til old age do us part
It’s like our bodies tessellate the curves fit in my palm
They say that it won’t last for long I’m just there for the rebound
Just yesterday my baby wondered to the neighbour’s compound
But that doesn’t faze me, I have absolute trust
Spalding’s my childhood sweetheart this is love this isn’t lust
You should see the pictures that we took at Studio London
After we won MVP and got some District funding
You’re trying to use your palates to distort my ideal painting
I’ve found my perfect landscape and you’re mad coz you’re still waiting
You just want Spalding for yourself but Sorry that can’t be
I’m ‘fighting for this love’ like Cheryl Cole and Ashley
Ain’t nothing gonna tear me apart
From
My Basketball....
My Love.....
My Art!
Poetic Sunshine -`O -
Hes got a lot of other BIG poems out there so check his blog http://selom-sunu.blogspot.com/ or holla at him on facebook "Selom Sunshine Sunu"
Basketball, Love and Art
Basketball’s my love, it’s what I do, it’s who I be
That’s why I spend time with my love at every chance I see!
Balling and love involve expressions just like modern art
There’s a knack to it and it comes straight from the heart
That’s why when I’m with Spalding that orange skin glows
I express my love on that hard surface like Picasso
Spalding and I have a pact, ‘til old age do us part
It’s like our bodies tessellate the curves fit in my palm
They say that it won’t last for long I’m just there for the rebound
Just yesterday my baby wondered to the neighbour’s compound
But that doesn’t faze me, I have absolute trust
Spalding’s my childhood sweetheart this is love this isn’t lust
You should see the pictures that we took at Studio London
After we won MVP and got some District funding
You’re trying to use your palates to distort my ideal painting
I’ve found my perfect landscape and you’re mad coz you’re still waiting
You just want Spalding for yourself but Sorry that can’t be
I’m ‘fighting for this love’ like Cheryl Cole and Ashley
Ain’t nothing gonna tear me apart
From
My Basketball....
My Love.....
My Art!
Poetic Sunshine -`O -
Hes got a lot of other BIG poems out there so check his blog http://selom-sunu.blogspot.com/ or holla at him on facebook "Selom Sunshine Sunu"
50 percent boy
Recently I have been reminded of a nickname my friend use to call me back in secondary school, "the 50 percent boy" lol. It had to due with the fact that almost every test that I had to do in class always ended up with a grade around the 50 percent mark. That was pretty much the story of my academic life. Ive always had the tendency to settle for average marks and average performances in academia and be happy with it. Not because I wasn't smart enough to do better, I now realise that I could easier have achieved higher grades and performed at a higher level then I had been. My parents might say its because I was too lazy and laid back and I didn't apply myself. My teacher's would tell me I talk to much in class and I didn't apply myself. My friends would call me 50 percent boy lol. All of that was probably true, however there was one other factor that I believe had a great effect on my performance in not just my performance in academics but a lot of other aspects of my life. I read a teachers report about me when I was in year 3 which said "Femi has a lot of potential and is a smart kid but sometimes lacks confidence in what he does" Reading that hit me hard, even though this was at a young age I could see now that even as I grew older at times I struggled with self belief and confidence. I believe in a lot of the things that I did growing up I settled for less because I believed that if I tried to be great at something I would fail, so id rather take the safe option and not try
We all have the ability to do whatever we set our mind to but a lot of the time we don't possess the belief or the confidence to do so. This is the wrong way to look at things. We need to have a strong sense of self belief because we are able to do all things we set our mind to. I've been told in he past that when you doubt your own abilities it is actually a form of pride, because doubting your abilities means that you believe that God is not working through you and you believe that your doing it all on your own.The bible text that people commonly use is "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" and that's true we can, but in order to really hack into what we are capable of we really need to understand what that verse means. Understand that nothing is impossible with God. Understand the gifts and talents that you have been blessed with. Understand that even when you fail at something you still have have the power to recover and learn from that failure.
So just wan't to encourage everyone to like my Dad would say "not settle for the less but be the best" and just be confident in everything you do because you can do it
Peace
P.S Happy 49th independence to all my Nigerians...Don't jealous us lool
We all have the ability to do whatever we set our mind to but a lot of the time we don't possess the belief or the confidence to do so. This is the wrong way to look at things. We need to have a strong sense of self belief because we are able to do all things we set our mind to. I've been told in he past that when you doubt your own abilities it is actually a form of pride, because doubting your abilities means that you believe that God is not working through you and you believe that your doing it all on your own.The bible text that people commonly use is "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" and that's true we can, but in order to really hack into what we are capable of we really need to understand what that verse means. Understand that nothing is impossible with God. Understand the gifts and talents that you have been blessed with. Understand that even when you fail at something you still have have the power to recover and learn from that failure.
So just wan't to encourage everyone to like my Dad would say "not settle for the less but be the best" and just be confident in everything you do because you can do it
Peace
P.S Happy 49th independence to all my Nigerians...Don't jealous us lool
LAWS OF EXCEPTION
I love to give praise and worship to my God,
except when the funky is on and im raving it out
I spend my time in prayer and bible study,
well except when im on facebook chat (pop)
I love my neighbor as myself
as long as they love me in the same way that is
Im slow to anger and have my temper in check,
but when that referee makes that wrong decision
I speak words of purity and encouragement,
thats until you refuse to pass me the ball
I give all I can to God with my tithes and offering,
unless i need a bit spare for chicken and chips
Im a good witness convincing all I can that nothing is greater than God,
except when im busy convincing people united is better than arsenal
I Usain Bolt away from sexual imorality,
but if a girl comes along and the bashment is on...its only a dance right?
Honestly im honest in everything I say.
except when I say (read line below)
I give my all, 100 percent to God,
except...
"I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one of the other. So because you are lukewarm neither hot or cold im about to spit you out my mouth" (Revelation 3:15-17)
Peace
except when the funky is on and im raving it out
I spend my time in prayer and bible study,
well except when im on facebook chat (pop)
I love my neighbor as myself
as long as they love me in the same way that is
Im slow to anger and have my temper in check,
but when that referee makes that wrong decision
I speak words of purity and encouragement,
thats until you refuse to pass me the ball
I give all I can to God with my tithes and offering,
unless i need a bit spare for chicken and chips
Im a good witness convincing all I can that nothing is greater than God,
except when im busy convincing people united is better than arsenal
I Usain Bolt away from sexual imorality,
but if a girl comes along and the bashment is on...its only a dance right?
Honestly im honest in everything I say.
except when I say (read line below)
I give my all, 100 percent to God,
except...
"I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one of the other. So because you are lukewarm neither hot or cold im about to spit you out my mouth" (Revelation 3:15-17)
Peace
Best Blog post of all time!!!
Firstly this "probably" isn't going to be the best blog post of all time but you may recognize that line from Kanye West's recent escapade at the VMA's. Kanye and some other controversial people have been big topics of conversation in the news(Facebook) recently and I would like to share my own views on them.
KANYE WEST vs TAYLOR SWIFT
Unless you have been living in an out of space bubble(i.e no access to facebook) you have probably heard the latest about Kanye West and what he did at the VMA's. If you still have no idea what i'm talking about check the video below
So Kanye being the guy he is stole the spotlight of a poor Taylor Swift who looked devastated and I'm sure deserved her award (Ive never actually seen her video but im sure its good lol). Now Firstly and most importantly I don't even think the single ladies video is all that. Secondly what on earth was going through Kanye's mind to do a nuts thing like that. He completely embarrassed a 19 year old in am attempt to boost the reputation of Beyonce a platinum selling artist who has won every award on the face of this earth (swear down she won footballer of the year).It makes no sense.Even in his apology you could tell that though he may be sorry for embarrassing the poor girl but wasn't sorry for what he said.Im not going to spend time bad mouthing the guy, he may be genuinely sorry for what he did but I do hope he understands the stupidity of some of his actions and realizes eventually he needs to grow up, amongst other things.
ADEBAYOR VS ARSENAL FANS AND VAN PERSIE
Another big topic of debate in the news is the actions of former arsenal star Adebayor whilst playing for Man City against his former club.The first action in the line of fire is his celebration which involved him making a Usain Bolt like dash towards the arsenal fans that looked like they wanted to kill him. Now personally as a neutral fan that has a strong dislike for both Arsenal and Man city I actually felt that the celebration was justified. He did get a large amount of abuse that game and had received a lot of abuse beforehand even when he was an Arsenal player.So he expressed his emotions towards that. Im not saying Adebayor is a saint, far from it, but I know a lot of players in his position would have done the same thing.Its the same way Wayne Rooney feels when Man united beat Everton after the fans have been calling him fat boy all game. At the same time though if I was an Arsenal fan I would be throwing chairs at him too.
The second action is the alleged deliberate stamp on Van Persie's face. I cant lie after seeing the replay about 10 times now I still cant see how that stamp could have been an accident and if it was deliberate it was not only a stupid move but a very dangerous one and shows a lack of class on Adebayor's part. Judge for yourself
I guess the only person that can truly know if he did it on purpose is Adebayor
Peace
KANYE WEST vs TAYLOR SWIFT
Unless you have been living in an out of space bubble(i.e no access to facebook) you have probably heard the latest about Kanye West and what he did at the VMA's. If you still have no idea what i'm talking about check the video below
So Kanye being the guy he is stole the spotlight of a poor Taylor Swift who looked devastated and I'm sure deserved her award (Ive never actually seen her video but im sure its good lol). Now Firstly and most importantly I don't even think the single ladies video is all that. Secondly what on earth was going through Kanye's mind to do a nuts thing like that. He completely embarrassed a 19 year old in am attempt to boost the reputation of Beyonce a platinum selling artist who has won every award on the face of this earth (swear down she won footballer of the year).It makes no sense.Even in his apology you could tell that though he may be sorry for embarrassing the poor girl but wasn't sorry for what he said.Im not going to spend time bad mouthing the guy, he may be genuinely sorry for what he did but I do hope he understands the stupidity of some of his actions and realizes eventually he needs to grow up, amongst other things.
ADEBAYOR VS ARSENAL FANS AND VAN PERSIE
Another big topic of debate in the news is the actions of former arsenal star Adebayor whilst playing for Man City against his former club.The first action in the line of fire is his celebration which involved him making a Usain Bolt like dash towards the arsenal fans that looked like they wanted to kill him. Now personally as a neutral fan that has a strong dislike for both Arsenal and Man city I actually felt that the celebration was justified. He did get a large amount of abuse that game and had received a lot of abuse beforehand even when he was an Arsenal player.So he expressed his emotions towards that. Im not saying Adebayor is a saint, far from it, but I know a lot of players in his position would have done the same thing.Its the same way Wayne Rooney feels when Man united beat Everton after the fans have been calling him fat boy all game. At the same time though if I was an Arsenal fan I would be throwing chairs at him too.
The second action is the alleged deliberate stamp on Van Persie's face. I cant lie after seeing the replay about 10 times now I still cant see how that stamp could have been an accident and if it was deliberate it was not only a stupid move but a very dangerous one and shows a lack of class on Adebayor's part. Judge for yourself
I guess the only person that can truly know if he did it on purpose is Adebayor
Peace
G.O.A.T
Micheal Jordan a name synonymous with Basketball, Sport and Celebrity was recntly giving the very prestigious and well deserved honour of being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. He is easily the best player to ever player the game, blessed with inhumane athleticism,fundamently sound and had a great basketball IQ. The most inspiring thing to me about Jordan was his competitiveness and his amazing desire to win which helped him along with his unbeleivable ability to win many team and individual awards and thats something I aspire to incorporate in my own game
So Big Shout out to The Greatest Of All Time Michael Jordan
Peace
So Big Shout out to The Greatest Of All Time Michael Jordan
Peace
That's R*^*#"Y funny
I know I havent updated this blog since my 1st post for a while and I would love to say its because Ive been busy doing something more important but I would be lying and I would like to shame the devil...In truth I just havent had anything to write about...but I do have something to rant about
In the past month a so Ive been to two very different fashion shows. The latter of the fashion shows I was invited to by a friend of mine who happened to be DJing at the event. This fashion show's aim was to not only display clothing from two fashion designers but also provide the platform for up and coming music artists and poets to showcase their talents and I cant lie talent was in abundance. The other fashion show was organized by christian clothing company "Jesus Loves Me" entitled "Finesse". This show was similar to the other fashion show in the sense that the show displayed clothing from up and coming designers but also showcased gospel music talent (Check out Rachel Kerr shes amazing) Both shows I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed
One element I took away from the two shows didnt have much to do with the fashion, the talent, the music or even the beautiful models (ok maybe a lil). What I like to focus on in shows like this is the hosting especially hosting with a comedic element. Like most people I love comedy, I love to laugh and if the host if of a show can successfully make me laugh to the state of almost tears then I believe its a successful show whatever else happens. I do alot of hosting myself and I know how important it is to get the crowd hype, make them laugh, and ensure they are enjoying the experience so I guess I could say I appreciate the craft. Similar in their craft but very dissimilar in the way of going about their craft were the hosts of these fashion shows however.
Before I go on I must say that both of these hosts at times had me laughing hysterically and without shame
The hosts of the first show I mentioned were very funny and did a seemingly good job in keeping the crowd entertained. One glaring fact about them were they were unbelievable offensive and vulgar in every sense of the words. They werent selective either they managed to throw offensive jokes about Sex, Religion, Race and Gender combined with all the swear words appropriate all into a 2 hour show...and of course I laughed, not at all the jokes but at most of them I laughed and so did everyone else. One woman did try and say something about how offensive one joke was and the host replied saying "What the over 18's are offended?" almost shocked as he said it. Why wouldnt he be shocked,offensive jokes have become popular in our society (prime example Family Guy one of the most popular shows on television being also probably the most offensive), offensive is the way to be funny and we have become so desensitized to this that we cant be offended by it anymore. So much so that a christian can hear a joke offensive to Christianity and still smile, snigger or even laugh. Sad but true. Lately this has been really bothering me even more because I have seen more and more comedians do shows and feel they have to swear, be vulgar or be offensive to be funny and its giving comedy a bad name
Thankfully there is hope, something I found out from the hosts of the other fashion show. The main host of this christian event goes by the name of Simply Andy one of the funniest Comedians I have EVER seen or heard, if you havent heard of him already Youtube him people. This guy is mad funny, mad talented and has all the characteristics of a great host. He just had his one man show and I heard it was BIG. He and his co-host Icie gave a brilliant performance as our masters of ceremony. Best thing about it...They managed to be funny and entertaining without any overly offensive or vulgar jokes and at the same time managed to promote positive messages...They even prayed for me to get a job in the middle of the show, I was embarrassed but I receive it lol. Comedians like Simply Andy and many others prove that you can be funny without being negative in the same way music artists like Guvna B prove that you can make good grime without talking about guns. So I just encourage everybody to look out for the positive in comedy because believe it or not it's out there
Check out the Simply Andy Myspace www.myspace.com/simplyandy
Rachel Kerr Myspace www.myspace.com/Rachelckerr
Peace
In the past month a so Ive been to two very different fashion shows. The latter of the fashion shows I was invited to by a friend of mine who happened to be DJing at the event. This fashion show's aim was to not only display clothing from two fashion designers but also provide the platform for up and coming music artists and poets to showcase their talents and I cant lie talent was in abundance. The other fashion show was organized by christian clothing company "Jesus Loves Me" entitled "Finesse". This show was similar to the other fashion show in the sense that the show displayed clothing from up and coming designers but also showcased gospel music talent (Check out Rachel Kerr shes amazing) Both shows I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed
One element I took away from the two shows didnt have much to do with the fashion, the talent, the music or even the beautiful models (ok maybe a lil). What I like to focus on in shows like this is the hosting especially hosting with a comedic element. Like most people I love comedy, I love to laugh and if the host if of a show can successfully make me laugh to the state of almost tears then I believe its a successful show whatever else happens. I do alot of hosting myself and I know how important it is to get the crowd hype, make them laugh, and ensure they are enjoying the experience so I guess I could say I appreciate the craft. Similar in their craft but very dissimilar in the way of going about their craft were the hosts of these fashion shows however.
Before I go on I must say that both of these hosts at times had me laughing hysterically and without shame
The hosts of the first show I mentioned were very funny and did a seemingly good job in keeping the crowd entertained. One glaring fact about them were they were unbelievable offensive and vulgar in every sense of the words. They werent selective either they managed to throw offensive jokes about Sex, Religion, Race and Gender combined with all the swear words appropriate all into a 2 hour show...and of course I laughed, not at all the jokes but at most of them I laughed and so did everyone else. One woman did try and say something about how offensive one joke was and the host replied saying "What the over 18's are offended?" almost shocked as he said it. Why wouldnt he be shocked,offensive jokes have become popular in our society (prime example Family Guy one of the most popular shows on television being also probably the most offensive), offensive is the way to be funny and we have become so desensitized to this that we cant be offended by it anymore. So much so that a christian can hear a joke offensive to Christianity and still smile, snigger or even laugh. Sad but true. Lately this has been really bothering me even more because I have seen more and more comedians do shows and feel they have to swear, be vulgar or be offensive to be funny and its giving comedy a bad name
Thankfully there is hope, something I found out from the hosts of the other fashion show. The main host of this christian event goes by the name of Simply Andy one of the funniest Comedians I have EVER seen or heard, if you havent heard of him already Youtube him people. This guy is mad funny, mad talented and has all the characteristics of a great host. He just had his one man show and I heard it was BIG. He and his co-host Icie gave a brilliant performance as our masters of ceremony. Best thing about it...They managed to be funny and entertaining without any overly offensive or vulgar jokes and at the same time managed to promote positive messages...They even prayed for me to get a job in the middle of the show, I was embarrassed but I receive it lol. Comedians like Simply Andy and many others prove that you can be funny without being negative in the same way music artists like Guvna B prove that you can make good grime without talking about guns. So I just encourage everybody to look out for the positive in comedy because believe it or not it's out there
Check out the Simply Andy Myspace www.myspace.com/simplyandy
Rachel Kerr Myspace www.myspace.com/Rachelckerr
Peace
Choose to make a difference
The reasoning behind me starting this blog is random and something I'm not sure even I quite understand myself I hope to find out before I finish this post lol. I have never really considered myself to be a writer or someone that even really reads or pays any attention to blogs like this so my sudden urge to embark on writing blog puzzled me at first. I dont even know if anyone will read this but heres hoping lol. I do know however when I got the idea.
I recently came back from a very interesting and inspirational trip with 20 other youth to Nigeria. Interesting in the sense that it was the first time I have been since I was little and I really got the opportunity to experience my home country, to see the many good things that the country possess, to meet the people, to eat the food, to drive and fear that there will be an occasion where there will be a pot hole that we cannot get out of, to buy things from guys on the road (thats the real hustle, you man in london think you know). I got a chance to see the beauty of Nigeria, the places, the views, the scenery that I never even knew existed in my country. I was able to gain a sense of pride in my country that maybe before I thought I had but never really did till I had this experience. Of course everything wasnt all roses and there were many things that we saw and experienced that a lot of people would see to be negative, (during an armed robber threat while we were driving me and my brother's 1st incline was to take our sim cards out of our phones) but we were inspired to view these problems as things that we as children of nigeria can help to solve.
The inspirational portion of our trip gives more insight into why I decided to start this blog. Inspirational because we had the opportunity to visit schools for the disabled, Inspirational because we got a chance to visit a school for children that had their parents killed over religious riots in the north, Inspirational because we saw poverty that we have not even come close to seeing in the comforts of England. We were also given the opportunity to listen to many people in high positions, including the king of Okeila and the king of the whole Yoruba tribe, we got a chance to listen to an 18 year old Phillipino C.E.O of a big company (yup I said 18) and many other people spoke to us inspiring us to be the Obama's of this world and to be all that we were meant to be
One person in particular that spoke to us left a big impact on me personally. His name is Seyi Wright and he is a motivational speaker. He gave our a group a seminar/workshop which was entitled "Choose to make a difference" At first I assumed it was going to be one of those OBAMA YES WE CAN speeches like we had received in the past but this was a lot more. US rapper Drake says in his song I just wanna be successful and gives a worldly view of what success is and we sing along. Seyi Wright's view on success was very different however. His view was basically that a lot of people who are deemed to be successful in the proffession based on maybe their salary, or the longevity of the work but have had no real impact on the lives of the people around them so are they really successful?. He spoke about people that may have worked in the same place for 50 years but have never made a positive difference and had left no Legacy. He told us that most of the time making a difference had nothing to do with all our Academic qualifications But had a lot to do with the gifts that God had blessed us with. He began th workshop telling us to list our acheivements and most people in our group's first incline was list all our academic exploits but he said no dont list anything to do with your studies, he then told us to list our strengths and weaknesses and I noticed that 80 percent of the youth in this seminar couldnt perform either of these tasks. They didnt feel they had acheived anything outside of education, they couldnt think of any strengths they had in their character but had less difficulty pointing out their weaknesses. This really saddened me because I knew the giftings and talents that a lot of these kids had. Seyi Wright picked up on this and told us that we are all blessed with gifts, that we all had strengths even if we didnt realise it, he inspired us to beleive in ourselves and our abilities and he told us that we were all destined to leave a legacy.
Me personally did not have too much trouble listing my acheivements, strengths and weaknesses but even as a 22 year old guy that had jus finished uni I had no idea what it meant or what it would take to leave a legacy and make a difference, it had not been something I had thought alot about previously all I have ever really thought about was getting a job in a field i probably wouldnt enjoy but get enough money for, paying off my student loan and being financial stable not giving much thought to leaving a Legacy, like I said I wasnt even sure what that was but then Seyi Wright asked a question that not only inspired me to start writing a blog but sent me on my way to discovering how I could embark on leaving my legacy on this world. He asked a seemingly simple question which was "What is your passion?". It seemed like a tough question at first but when i thought of it the question was not tough at all the answers were flowing. I knew I was passionate about a two things in particular Basketball, working with and the development of youth. Seyi Wright then advised us in closing to combine our strengths that we have found in our character with waht we feel we are passionate about and that would be the start of how our we can make a difference and how our legacy can be stamped on this world. This really hit me, something so seemingly simple but overwhelmingly meaningful allowed me to start developing ideas of how I can truly make a difference in this worl. I want to use this to encourage people espescially people that have just left uni and are going out into the "real world" To know that its not your degree, where you got your degree or what grade you got that defines you or defines the impact that you will make. Only God defines that and it is only when you understand what God has done in you and can do through you will you understand what you are capable of(Phillipians 4-13). It is also important to take time to study yourself, understand what your good at what your passionate about and discover how you can use that to not only better yourself but those around you
So Why the blog? Well for reasons that I still cant explain the idea popped in my head during the seminar to talk about some of my passions, my thoughts and my ideas in a blog. To be honest ill probably spend alot of time talking about random basketball stuff or trying to make you laugh, but whatever I talk about I hope in the long run it will help me make a difference!
Peace
I recently came back from a very interesting and inspirational trip with 20 other youth to Nigeria. Interesting in the sense that it was the first time I have been since I was little and I really got the opportunity to experience my home country, to see the many good things that the country possess, to meet the people, to eat the food, to drive and fear that there will be an occasion where there will be a pot hole that we cannot get out of, to buy things from guys on the road (thats the real hustle, you man in london think you know). I got a chance to see the beauty of Nigeria, the places, the views, the scenery that I never even knew existed in my country. I was able to gain a sense of pride in my country that maybe before I thought I had but never really did till I had this experience. Of course everything wasnt all roses and there were many things that we saw and experienced that a lot of people would see to be negative, (during an armed robber threat while we were driving me and my brother's 1st incline was to take our sim cards out of our phones) but we were inspired to view these problems as things that we as children of nigeria can help to solve.
The inspirational portion of our trip gives more insight into why I decided to start this blog. Inspirational because we had the opportunity to visit schools for the disabled, Inspirational because we got a chance to visit a school for children that had their parents killed over religious riots in the north, Inspirational because we saw poverty that we have not even come close to seeing in the comforts of England. We were also given the opportunity to listen to many people in high positions, including the king of Okeila and the king of the whole Yoruba tribe, we got a chance to listen to an 18 year old Phillipino C.E.O of a big company (yup I said 18) and many other people spoke to us inspiring us to be the Obama's of this world and to be all that we were meant to be
One person in particular that spoke to us left a big impact on me personally. His name is Seyi Wright and he is a motivational speaker. He gave our a group a seminar/workshop which was entitled "Choose to make a difference" At first I assumed it was going to be one of those OBAMA YES WE CAN speeches like we had received in the past but this was a lot more. US rapper Drake says in his song I just wanna be successful and gives a worldly view of what success is and we sing along. Seyi Wright's view on success was very different however. His view was basically that a lot of people who are deemed to be successful in the proffession based on maybe their salary, or the longevity of the work but have had no real impact on the lives of the people around them so are they really successful?. He spoke about people that may have worked in the same place for 50 years but have never made a positive difference and had left no Legacy. He told us that most of the time making a difference had nothing to do with all our Academic qualifications But had a lot to do with the gifts that God had blessed us with. He began th workshop telling us to list our acheivements and most people in our group's first incline was list all our academic exploits but he said no dont list anything to do with your studies, he then told us to list our strengths and weaknesses and I noticed that 80 percent of the youth in this seminar couldnt perform either of these tasks. They didnt feel they had acheived anything outside of education, they couldnt think of any strengths they had in their character but had less difficulty pointing out their weaknesses. This really saddened me because I knew the giftings and talents that a lot of these kids had. Seyi Wright picked up on this and told us that we are all blessed with gifts, that we all had strengths even if we didnt realise it, he inspired us to beleive in ourselves and our abilities and he told us that we were all destined to leave a legacy.
Me personally did not have too much trouble listing my acheivements, strengths and weaknesses but even as a 22 year old guy that had jus finished uni I had no idea what it meant or what it would take to leave a legacy and make a difference, it had not been something I had thought alot about previously all I have ever really thought about was getting a job in a field i probably wouldnt enjoy but get enough money for, paying off my student loan and being financial stable not giving much thought to leaving a Legacy, like I said I wasnt even sure what that was but then Seyi Wright asked a question that not only inspired me to start writing a blog but sent me on my way to discovering how I could embark on leaving my legacy on this world. He asked a seemingly simple question which was "What is your passion?". It seemed like a tough question at first but when i thought of it the question was not tough at all the answers were flowing. I knew I was passionate about a two things in particular Basketball, working with and the development of youth. Seyi Wright then advised us in closing to combine our strengths that we have found in our character with waht we feel we are passionate about and that would be the start of how our we can make a difference and how our legacy can be stamped on this world. This really hit me, something so seemingly simple but overwhelmingly meaningful allowed me to start developing ideas of how I can truly make a difference in this worl. I want to use this to encourage people espescially people that have just left uni and are going out into the "real world" To know that its not your degree, where you got your degree or what grade you got that defines you or defines the impact that you will make. Only God defines that and it is only when you understand what God has done in you and can do through you will you understand what you are capable of(Phillipians 4-13). It is also important to take time to study yourself, understand what your good at what your passionate about and discover how you can use that to not only better yourself but those around you
So Why the blog? Well for reasons that I still cant explain the idea popped in my head during the seminar to talk about some of my passions, my thoughts and my ideas in a blog. To be honest ill probably spend alot of time talking about random basketball stuff or trying to make you laugh, but whatever I talk about I hope in the long run it will help me make a difference!
Peace
