Starting From The Scratch…

The most difficult moment to move on is when you are down with nothing and that happens to be the most important moment to move on because it is a defining moment in life. I have taken time to conduct a research on some of the successful people we celebrate in the world today and I have come to discover that they seem to have something in common. Guess what? Almost all of them started from the scratch. To start from the scratch or bottom means to actually come from nothing. It is when most people see or feel no hope. It is when people feel they will never be able to amount to anything because of the situation they find themselves. That is the scratch or bottom; it means you have nothing to lose but everything to gain, i.e. if you know exactly what I mean. The stage I am talking about is the darkest part of the tunnel but fortunately, that darkest part of the tunnel is usually the end of the tunnel and towards the end of the tunnel, shines the very bright light. Starting from the bottom is all about creating something from nothing. Just look around you now! Virtually nothing around you came into existence by magic. Everything was created from nothing!

You do not need extraordinary thing to become an extraordinary person. You only need ordinary things to create extraordinary things that will always stand you out from the crowd. The number one thing you need is idea backed up with determination to bring it to fruition against all odds and of course, in ALL things, you need God.

Now, let’s look at these people.

Steve Jobs

 Steve Jobs gave birth to iPod, iPhone, iPad or your Macbook. The man behind all these gadgets that you love dearly was not an overnight success and didn’t have everything in his favor when he first started out. In fact, Jobs didn’t have an easy life at all; he was an orphan that was adopted by a poor family. He never finished college, dropping out after 18 months to take random, creative classes. He was dropping in on these classes and just grabbing as much knowledge as possible without actually getting a grade in them. During the course of that he slept on bare floor of friends’ dorm rooms, returning Coke bottles for food money, and getting weekly free meals at the local temple. Afterwards he made a decision that he would start the largest technology company on the planet in his parents’ garage. Jobs started Apple Computers in 1976 with his partner Steve Wolzniak. With almost no money, he started from the scratch. Jobs had a vision and an innovative idea to change the world. Jobs has been the brains behind Apple’s success and is one of the main reasons the company is so successful today. Remember, he started from the scratch!

Michael Dell
Dell founder Michael Dell started as a dishwasher in a Chinese restaurant for an incredible $2.30 per hour. During his high school years, Dell raked in $18,000 in Houston Post sales, which was enough to buy a car and three computer systems. Once in college Dell started PCs Limited in his dorm room. Before long the young company showed enough promise to inspire Dell to drop out of college at 19, taking a loan from his grandmother and re-naming the business to Dell Computer. Do not forget, He started from the scratch!
Someone out there may say, “well, they are men”. Now let’s talk about a black American woman whose determination and decision to succeed in life has been a great inspiration to me
Oprah Winfrey

Many of us know Oprah Winfrey show but not many know what the woman behind the show went through in life to get to this stage. Oprah rose from a life of hardship and adversity to become one of today’s most influential TV hosts and media moguls. The daughter of an unwed teenage mother from rural Mississippi, Winfrey had to overcome poverty, sexual abuse and her own teenage pregnancy. Today, she is considered one of the richest African Americans of the 20th century, and one of the most powerful celebrities in the world. In addition to publishing two magazines, she runs her own production company as well as the television network, Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) in collaboration with Discovery Communications.

I do not know where you are at the moment; probably you are at the stage I am talking about. Probably what you are experiencing at the moment gives you every reason to believe that life has nothing to offer. In Etty Hillesum words, I enjoin her to say that, “Despite everything, life is full of beauty and meaning.” You are at the most important stage of your life if your situation fits in to the description. Where you are now is the defining moment of your life. The choice you make today can only make or mar you. Rise up and make a decision to succeed in life against all odds. As long as you have a vision, a decision and determination to succeed, as long as you are rooted in God, nothing will stand on your way.

Enjoy every bit of your weekend as you reflect on this write up and make a decision to succeed in life. Shalom!