SUCCESS THROUGH THE AFRICAN EYES - Anthony IKE Otikpa

 

 

SUCCESS: This singular word happens to be what every individual on planet earth is pursuing however different everyone’s path or route is. Ultimately, everyone’s desire is to achieve the word "success".

However, popular the word might be, the true meaning has eluded mankind for centuries, its search as old as mankind.

The word success means different things to different people and it viewed through different lenses. A lot of books have also tried to state the meaning of this much coveted word though with little "success".

A lot of people believes that the word "success’ is relative but how can such an important word exist in relative terms?

I have tried to research the meaning of success using the best search engine the 21^{st　century technology has provided. I was only able to gather that success means attainment of fame, wealth and power or something that turns out well or achievement of intention.}

For ages, man has viewed success under the light of the above but does success represent the above definition?

Africans have been the worst casualty in the search of the true meaning of success. The meaning of success through the African eyes is closely related to the first meaning of the word which is the attainment of fame, wealth and power. For most Africans, this version of success represents its true meaning and it has been happily embraced.

For Africans, true success lies in the abundance of things one possesses. Success manifests itself in the numbers of rooms one’s mansion contains even though an individual can only sleep in one room at a time. Success also manifests itself in the number of cars packed in one’s garage and ultimately manifests itself in the volume of Naira deposits in one’s bank account even though an individual cannot guarantee his/her next breathe.

It is this misconception of the word that triggers needless accumulation of wealth, unwarranted quest for power and immature desire for fame.

Again,it is this misconception of the word success that leaves African leadership at the bottom of human achievements. Not until Africans see success differently, this continent will still remain at the lowest level of human development and her children living in the basest conditions of the human family.

Not until, Africans begin to see and define success as a state of usefulness rather than an end in itself, Africa will continue to degenerate into a fourth world continent. Success is a state of usefulness and not the accumulation of wealth or the attainment of fame or power.

Wherever one finds him/herself, be it at home, in the office, in the society, in your organization. The relevant question to ask is "am I useful"? You can be successful anywhere and at every level of life.　

Success is not material; it is intangible but can be seen in its manifestation. The proof of your success is the level of your usefulness in the scheme of things.

Anthony IKE Otikpa, Executive Director, Foundation for Youths in the Diaspora writes from Lagos, Nigeria