POSITIVE IMAGE AS A TOOL FOR EXCELLENCE
The world we live in today seems as if keeping a positive image is becoming difficult for people in all works of life because when we look around what we see is a world that is in conflict, terrorism, bad governance, greed, and the negative effect of technology. Humans are mean to their fellow men, and it seems it has become a war against mankind. We are supposed to help each other grow better and make the world a better place for ourselves and the unborn generation.
WHAT IS A POSITIVE IMAGE?
A positive self-image is having a good view of yourself; for example: Seeing yourself as God’s valuable creation that is created to make exploit an attractive and desirable person. Having an image of yourself as a smart and intelligent person. Seeing a happy, healthy person when you look in the mirror.
Let’s look at what the scripture says about Our Image.
Genesis 1:26 tells us that when God first created humans, He made them in His “image” and after His “likeness”.
“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness…So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”
Genesis 1:26-27 (NIV)
So, what does that mean? Does being “made in the image of God” mean we “look” like God? Well, no because John 4:24 tells us that God does not have a body because God is spirit.
Many suggested that to be made “in the image of God” means humanity is connected to God by having a personal, moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense of being, just like God.
For example:
• We are given intellectual ability far superior to that of any animal.
• We are given a mind capable of hearing and understanding God.
• We are given emotions capable of responding to God with love and devotion.
• We are given free will which enables us to choose whether or not to obey God.
Yet, while these are all true, I think the best understanding of what being “made in the image of God” means is; human beings are created with unique abilities absent from every other creature on the earth which mirrors the divine nature of God. With these in mind, achieving excellence is possible.
TOOLS OR APPROACHES THAT WILL ENABLE YOU TO ACHIEVE EXCELLENCE.
10 Approaches to Pursuing Excellence
By S. Renee Smith, Vivian Harte
Excellence is performing at your highest level. Whether it’s raising your self-esteem, doing well at your job, having satisfying relationships, or improving your physical body, engaging in excellence means you carefully think through your goal and make logical plans, you take the time to do your best, and you work hard at achieving what you desire.
Pursuing excellence begins with a decision you make, an ideal you envision. Once that vision is in place, you do whatever is necessary to make it a reality.
1. Take pleasure in what brings you satisfaction; Imagine reaching your full potential by becoming your best self. Imagine being happy and living the life of your dreams, growing and achieving in all aspects of your life. Striving for self-improvement and the desire to continue to grow and develop are often natural for people with healthy self-esteem.
2. Commit to doing what is required to excel; after you make a plan to reach your goal, your commitment to do everything that’s required to reach it is essential. This commitment involves having a high level of dedication and self-discipline.
Being committed is persevering through all the ups and downs that happen, persisting in the face of any obstacles that appear before you, and continuously striving to do your best.
3. Use your knowledge of yourself and your goal; personal excellence requires that you evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. Your strengths are those things that are easy for you to do and what you do best. They are your natural talents and skills. You may not even notice them because they’re so instinctive to you. Your strengths may or may not be what you like to do. They can be, but that’s not always the case.
4. Have enthusiastic feelings that lead to creativity; in order to achieve excellence, you need to have a keen interest in accomplishing what you desire. Without these deep feelings of enthusiasm, you won’t have much motivation and you’ll stop partway through without completing what you started.
Your enthusiasm about your goal engenders creativity, and this creativity then generates even more enthusiasm. As you inspire yourself and others to take the steps that are needed to reach your goals, your passion increases even more.
5. Maintain an upbeat attitude about yourself and your goal; to attain excellence now, remind yourself of past triumphs. Congratulate yourself on what you’ve accomplished and the good you’ve already done.
Remind yourself that any important goal takes a lot of work and that most things are possible if you try hard enough.
6. Stay focused on what you want; maintaining a constructive focus on your goal keeps you applying your efforts in a positive direction. If you get frustrated because your goal isn’t turning out as you first imagined, don’t let yourself fall into the trap of being a victim.
Think about exactly what has gone wrong and gain from it. Reflect on what you did well as well as how you can improve in the future. Concentrate on working on those particular points. Consider different options to overcome these obstacles and choose one or more that make the most sense.
7. Be willing to share your feelings with others; everyone experiences obstacles reaching goals, and these setbacks can lead to annoyance and frustration. Keeping these emotions inside can lead to stress and damage your physical well-being. Pent-up emotions can cause tension in your neck, back, shoulders, and jaw. They can also produce long-term problems like frequent headaches, high blood pressure, and stomach ulcers.
8. Accept people for who they are and look for the good in them; Although it’s important to speak up when your feelings have been hurt or you see a problem, it’s also essential to respect others. In order to live a life of excellence with more happiness, it’s better to accept people for who they are rather than try to change them. This includes people who are involved with you in meeting your goals.
The first step is to stop seeing the world in black and white, with you always being in the right and others as being in the wrong. It’s important to understand someone else’s point of view.
The second step is to turn the situation around. Ask yourself how you would feel if someone were judging you and refusing to accept your point of view.
9. Have flexibility and balance in your life; Don’t be a slave to your goal and feel that you have to accomplish it a certain way. Flexibility is having the willingness to adapt and try something different if something isn’t working as you thought it would. Be very aware of your environment and the people in it. If things aren’t going as you originally planned, make changes until you find what works.
Along with flexibility, it’s vital to have balance in your life to allow time for the other important people and activities in your life. Although you may need to devote extra time to your project, it’s best not to totally immerse yourself in one area of your life to the exclusion of all others.
10. Stick with your goal until it’s completed; To truly reach excellence, it’s crucial to persist with any project until it’s completed. Giving up halfway through will diminish your self-esteem quickly.
If you’re unsure which direction to go, spell out exactly what steps need to be taken to finish your goal and brainstorm all the possibilities you can think of to move you through these steps.
If you lose your motivation before the project is finished, make yourself accountable to another person. Take the steps you’ve created and write down what is required. Tell the other person exactly what you’ve to perform and the date and time by which you should complete it. Be open to being responsible to this person for accounting for each step you are to take.
As people created in Gods image we can only achieve excellence when we don’t depend on our own understanding
Prov.3 Verses 5 to 6
[5] Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
[6] In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths
Today I pray God will help us keep a positive image and make it our way of life so others will be encouraged by our way of life.
Article by; Ishaku Nenfort
10 Approaches to Pursuing Excellence By S. Renee Smith, Vivian Harte
Let Love and Peace Rule our hearts.
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Photo: Ben White
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