How to become an overnight success!

Image borrowed from Maryam Sohail on WordPress

There was a village of timber makers who used to make the best timber in the country; several people could travel from near and far to come and buy their timber. But they had only one challenge: the trees from which they made the timber were too hard for them to cut down using axes. It would take one man about 100 days to cut down just one tree. However, there was a strong wind that blew through the village every once in a while and could potentially blow down some of the trees.

Most villagers planted these trees and waited upon the strong wind to blow them down instead of them having to cut them down. They waited and wished as they sat down drinking and fantasizing about all the money they would get if the wind blew down their trees. Unfortunately, the wind only blew down a couple of trees in the entire village every time it came.

Mr. Kweza, one of the tree growers, picked his axe and decided to spend  his time trying to cut down a tree, after all he, like the rest of the villagers, was idle. Many of the fellow villagers made fun of him and his daily efforts of hitting the axe on the tree but barely leaving a mark. 

As he continued going about his work, he eventually got better at cutting the trees. Soon, he figured that if he would spend a few days on each tree, cutting it only quarter way into the base of the trunk, by the time the wind came, the trees would be weak enough to fall. His plan didn't yield much for the first couple of times because by the time the wind could come, it'd find when he'd only managed to touch just a few of the trees. But one day, when the strong wind came again, more than half of his trees were all blown down.

Not only did the entire village get to know about this rare happening, but the entire country got to know about Mr. Kweza's miracle. Some called it luck, some called it overnight success, while some called him a witch (because the wind could only blow a couple of trees in the entire village and now half a forest is down, and it all belongs to one man!)

But what does Mr. Kweza have to say? "It is indeed a miracle, because I didn't make the wind, but for the wind to bring your miracle, you have to be willing to keep putting the axe to the tree even when your effort seems worthless."

American national best-selling author and radio host, Dave Ramsey, says about his radio show, "After doing this for 30 years, you all of a sudden become an overnight success."

Because the media started noticing someone yesterday doesn't mean they started doing what they do yesterday.

As the saying goes, opportunity comes to those who are ready. A good example is the opportunity of "scientific weddings" that is upon us now; it is only being embraced by those who were ready before this COVID 19 period. You had to have a partner, some savings and a plan in order to partake of the opportunity.

The thing is, we ought to keep being faithful to what we are doing even when we don't see a miracle coming soon. We can't just sit, wait and wish, we have to put our axe to something. And as we keep doing it, we get better, we get more skills and tricks, we get innovative and creative with our work.

Whatever good you are doing right now, keep that axe at it, so that when the wind eventually blows, you are ready to receive, and even when it doesn't come, you will eventually break through.

A little drop of water every day eventually breaks a rock.

Proverbs 13:11 (NLT)

"Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time."

Not to say that overnight success doesn't happen, I am saying that it is very rare and even when it does happen, it might not happen the way we think it should.

Check out how long the people you look up to have been doing what they do and you will surely be encouraged to go through the moments when you feel your effort is not yielding much.

Proverbs 14:23 (BBE)

"In all hard work there is profit, but talk only makes a man poor."

Yet another wonderful Wednesday.

I can't wait to keep my axe at blogging next Wednesday, I hope we meet again.

God bless you!