5Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?” 7The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” John 5:5-7.
One of the questions I have occupied myself finding answer to is why some people are successful and others are failures. The Pareto Principle says a lot about this phenomenon that 20% of people enjoy 80% of the resources of the world and the other 80% of people enjoy 20% of the resources. If people are not born successful, then what makes few become extreme achievers while many struggle in life? The cause is that what successful people habitually do, failures do not do. In John 5:1-5, there is a portrait of a failure and how he entangled himself in such conditions for so long. Here are the four reasons why people are caught in the web of failure.
They Live In Comfort Zone (v. 5): It’s impossible to change what you are comfortable with. Sick for 38-years, this man had remained unchanged. He represents a lot of people in our world today who settle for less in life. They are literally paralyzed by past experiences. American motivational speaker Les Brown said, “If you put yourself in a position where you have to stretch outside your comfort zone, then you are forced to expand your consciousness.” In other word, you cannot stretch in your comfort zone but only out of your comfort zone. Until you break loose from your comfort zone, you will not see your best life ever.
They Lack Personal Initiative (v. 7): Every entrepreneur knows that the first source of funding for a venture comes from their own savings. Your show of personal commitment by dipping into your savings instills confidence in other people who want to help you succeed. True entrepreneurs are not like the paralysed man who failed as a result of lack of personal initiative. He lacked initiative to jump into the water. Everything starts with personal decision and taking the first step. Like the old proverb says, “a journey of thousand miles begins with a step”. Failure to step out will cripple you for life.
They Lack Connections (v. 7): People who fail in life have the oft-spewed out excuse that they have no one to help them. The man forgot that if everyone else had complained about lack of connection, they would have remained where he was. God will never bring people to take the responsibility you have to take. What Jesus did was significant. He simply asked him to do what he had failed to do for so long. People are responsible to you not responsible for you. Connections are supposed to trigger personal actions. Get off the connection buzz and do something for yourself.
They Like Blaming Others (v. 7): Blame game betrays a state of irresponsibility. Successful people take 100% responsibility for what happens to their lives. Years ago, I was a candidate for blaming others. Like many Ghanaians, I liked to put everything at the doorstep of the government or politicians or someone else. I was never responsible for what happened to me. Instead of the sick man seeing others success as a motivation, he rather saw it as demotivation. Decide to take personal responsibility and turn blames into gains.
At every point in your life, the failure you have experienced is a cumulative effect of choices made. No undergraduate gets first class honours from the university who did not accumulate good grades in the four years of academic work. You reap what you sow. Do not loose heart if you have failed in an aspect of your life. Start making good choices such as breaking loose from your comfort zone, taking personal initiatives, positioning yourself well, and refuse to blame others. Refuse to fail!
© 2012 Eric Otchere
Email: eric.otchere@ymail.com
(The author is a Business Development Manager at
Kruger Brent Security. He is passionate about building
individual and corporate capacities through
knowledge-based products.)
