Be All You Can Be: A Journey to Success

By Ady Rugeruza

Be All You Can Be is a book written for people who want to be successful in business as entrepreneurs and business owners. In this book, Ady Rugeruza outlines ten steps you can easily follow to reach your full potential. The theme throughout this book is that everyone was meant to be successful.

Unfortunately, many people fail to find the purpose for their lives. They dont believe in themselves, they entrust their destiny into the hands of other people, and they live in fearfear of failure.

The author of this book strongly believes that you can be all you want to be if you have a vision, enjoy what you do, and work hard. He says that there are no secrets to success, only a few steps and principles to follow. He believes that you can be who you were meant to be, reach your full potential, and be successful.

If you passionately pursue success, you will find it. You can be all you want to be.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris UK
• Release date: Dec 22, 2016
• ISBN: 9781524597009

Ady Rugeruza

Ady Rugeruza has many passions, including art, photography, mountain trekking, reading good books, and eating good food. For the last ten years, Ady has travelled between Europe, Africa, and North America, speaking at various seminars on one topic that’s close to his heart: “Be who you can be, reach your full potential, and be successful.” The journey has not been easy for Ady; he’s had ups and downs, super highs and some really low lows. But he doesn’t regret what he’s been through; every time he gets knocked down, he gets up again, and keeps moving forward toward his destiny. His experience of ups and downs propels him to encourage other people to never give up on their dreams, ambitions, and visions. Wherever and whenever you can find him, he is always having a good laugh and encouraging other people to catch a vision, work hard, stay focused, have fun, and enjoy life. Ady strongly believes that if you enjoy what you do, and you work hard to become good at it, you will become successful. And you will be all you can be.

Book preview

Copyright © 2017 by ADY RUGERUZA.

ISBN:      Softcover   978-1-5245-9701-6

              eBook        978-1-5245-9700-9

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 12/22/2016

Xlibris

800-056-3182

www.Xlibrispublishing.co.uk

749174

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

STEP ONE GET A VISION

1.   Find the Purpose of Your Life

2.   Spell out the End Result

3.   Be Strategic

4.   Execute on Your Vision

STEP TWO START BELIEVING

1.   Create Yourself

2.   Keep Your Dream Alive

3.   Take Control of Your Destiny

4.   Invest in Yourself

STEP THREE STIR UP YOUR PASSION

1.   Have a Strong Desire

2.   Love What You Do

3.   Take Action

4.   Press On to the Future

STEP FOUR SEE THE BEST IN EVERYTHING

1.   Choose Your Attitude

2.   Take a Step Up

3.   Look On the Bright Side

4.   Achieve the Impossible

STEP FIVE DREAM BIG

1.   Deepen Your Vision

2.   Step Out of Your Comfort Zone

3.   Reach for the Stars

4.   Live Your Dream

STEP SIX SET GOALS

1.   Know Where You Are Going

2.   Prepare for Success

3.   Overcome Fear

4.   Set Small Goals but Aim High

5.   Keep On Keeping On

STEP SEVEN LET NOTHING STOP YOU

1.   Take the Hard Way

2.   Get Up Get Out and Get It

3.   Give It All You’ve Got

4.   Push Long and Hard

5.   Give Your Best Effort

STEP EIGHT STAY FOCUSED

1.   Live A Purpose-driven Life

2.   Commit to the End Result

3.   Pay the Price

4.   Keep the Score

STEP NINE KEEP LEARNING

1.   Have an Open Mind

2.   Accept Challenges

3.   Think in Depth and See Ahead

4.   Be Ready to Adapt

STEP TEN HAVE FUN

1.   Enjoy What You Do

2.   Have Standards

3.   Have a Sense of Humour

4.   Celebrate Success

CONCLUSION

DEDICATED

To Furaha Festus,

Your success story of getting a business off the ground in times of economic downturn, proves that anyone who has a dream, and works hard can map out their future. Your story always reminds me that winners never quit, and quitters never win.

To the young entrepreneurs of Kawangware – Nairobi,

Despite the lack of access to the finance you require to grow your businesses, you never give up pursuing your dreams; many of you are achieving much success already. You are true hustlers! It takes vision, dreams, courage and perseverance to achieve what many of you have already achieved. May you prosper and make your dreams come true.

To Mama Fildah Njoki,

This book is for you. Thanks for being there for me. And for delicious chapattis and ‘sukuma wiki’ you make! You bless my heart and my soul every day with the gift of faith. From you, I’ve learnt that all things are possible. You’ve helped me to understand and believe that after the storm comes the rainbow. You always remind me that there is a light at the end of every tunnel. You are my inspiration. I don’t know what I would do, or where I would be without you. You mean so much to me, and you bless my soul. All I am, I owe to you. You can take the place of all others, but no one else can take your place.

I love you!

INTRODUCTION

Many people wonder how success happens, and how some people become successful. Is there a secret to success? some people ask.

Thousands of books have been written, and hundreds of thousands of articles have been published about the secret of success. Yet I’m going to attempt to put together ten steps or principles that may help you be who you want to be, reach your full potential, and enjoy success.

Everybody I have ever known wants to be successful, and everybody wants to be associated with success. Every business owner and every entrepreneur wants their business to grow. Every sportsman and sportswoman wants to win trophies or medals, and be a champion. Everybody wants to be successful, yet, success is very hard to define. The simplest definition of success is this: To set out to do something, and achieving your goals. It doesn’t matter what, or how humble the undertaking is.

Success is a destiny that is found at the end of a very long journey. Like all journeys, the journey to success is made of thousands of small steps, and it starts with one step. If you are brave enough to start on that journey, and keep taking one step at a time, you will reach your destiny. At the appointed time, you will achieve success; you will see your dream become a reality.

Many people have dreams. We all dream about our future. But what is your dream? What’s your vision? It’s good to have a vision, and whatever your vision or dream is, you can achieve it. Yes, you can reach your full potential. Yes, you can be all you want to be, and who you were created to be.

In this book, I will seek to walk with you on this journey to success. I will use the word success to simply mean; reaching your goals, fulfilling your full potential, and becoming the person you want to be.

I have deliberately chosen to focus on success in business because of my own experience in the past, but also because I have a big vision for the future. I have a big dream, and I am following the same steps that I share with you in this book to make my dream become a reality.

In the last 20 years, I have helped to set up some projects and businesses, some of which have been successful and others not so successful. I have tasted success, and found that it’s good! But I have also experienced some terrible and serious setbacks and failures. They are also part of my own experience. I have made many mistakes, and I have learnt that it’s OK to make mistakes if you can learn from them, and you don’t make the same mistakes again.

I am still on this journey to success, and I’m enjoying it! I’m having fun! There is a Swahili proverb that says: Kuteleza sio kuanguka which, when translated into English means that slipping does not necessarily mean falling down. Making mistakes or experiencing setbacks doesn’t spell the end of life. As Les Brown would say, As long as I can look up I will get up.

I hope that as you read this book, you will feel encouraged, and lifted up. And if you have no vision or you’re feeling stuck, don’t lose heart; this book is written for you. It’s never too late to catch a vision, or dream big dreams. You can decide who you want to be, where you want to be, and what you want to do.

Wherever you are at on your journey to success, it’s my hope and prayer that you will enjoy reading this book. I hope you will find it useful, and it will inspire you to be all you can be. Be successful, and be blessed.

STEP ONE

GET A VISION

Live the life of your dream: Be brave enough to live the life of your dreams according to your vision and purpose instead of the expectations and opinions of others. Roy T. Bennett

The best way to succeed is to have a specific Intent, a clear Vision, a plan of Action, and the ability to maintain Clarity. Those are the Four Pillars of Success. It never fails! Steve Maraboli

A vision is a mental picture of the future for an individual, a group of people or a corporate body. People often ask if there is any difference between vision, purpose and mission. The simple answer is that there is a difference between those three words, but they go together, and they are interlinked. I am not going to give you long definitions of these three words but I am going to share with you what they mean to me, and I hope that you will be able to find out what they mean to you.

First of all, I want to tell you that your purpose, or my purpose never changes; it’s the same from the day you were born, and it will remain the same for the rest of your life. However, your vision and mission change depending on where you are, what the needs are, and what you can do in different circumstances.

PURPOSE is the reason you live. WHY are you here on Earth? WHY were you born? For what reason were you created?

VISION however, is WHAT you see with the eyes of mind. WHAT do you see when you look ahead in the future? How do you see yourself in five years’ time? You must use your imagination to see that picture in your mind.

A few months ago, I was in the city of Leeds, in England. I passed a demolition site where engineers were knocking down some old buildings. They were preparing the site for the development of a new shopping centre. They had put a big fence around the site for safety reason. All around the fence were displayed some pictures of what the new shopping centre would look like once the project is completed. A few months later I passed the same spot; this time there was no building site. The new shopping centre, Victoria Gate had been finished, and it had opened its doors for businesses. The finished shopping centre looks exactly like it was in the pictures that were displayed around the building site a few months before, that’s what I call vision; the ability to see the future before it happens.

MISSION is the assignment you’ve got to do to accomplish your vision. Mission is a specific task you must fulfil; it’s the work that you must do to bring that picture of the future to life, and fulfil your purpose.

Every project, big or small, requires a vision a leader with a vision. Every community, and every nation needs leaders with a vision. I am not talking about the ability to see with physical eyes, but the ability to see with the mind, and see things that are still invisible, with the objective to make them visible. Political leaders, business leaders and leaders of charitable and not-for-profit organisations need a vision. Without that ability to see ahead, visualise long-term and short-term goals, no progress would be made and no success would be achieved.

The average person doesn’t plan or think ahead; they live for now. When you ask them where they want to be in five years’ time, they say that they don’t know. They have no plans for tomorrow. On the other hand, you have successful people They are different; they have a clear vision of what they want to accomplish in their lives. They have long-term and short-term goals. Before they launch any project they already know what they want to accomplish. They have some expected outcomes written down; they know the results they are expecting to see.

Successful people always follow their vision. If you ask them where they want to be in 10 or 20 years’ time, they can give you a straight answer. They know what they want to achieve, and they are so determined to reach their full potential. They are so determined to accomplish their goals that they avoid any distraction at all cost. Of course, they know that things don’t always go as planned; they know that circumstances change. One of the traits of all successful people is adaptability; they can adapt to almost any circumstance. They don’t change their vision because circumstances have changed, but they adapt or readjust their goals to suit the circumstances.

Successful people become successful because they have a clear and concise vision of what they want to achieve. Their vision become almost an obsession; they talk about it all the time. Wherever they are, they think about it, and they work hard to achieve it.

You may have heard of James Irwin; he is one of the few people who have walked on the moon’s surface. Apparently, James caught his vision to become an astronaut when he was a small boy. It was bed time, when everything in the neighbourhood was quiet, and it was full moon. Jimmy had always been a good boy; when bedtime came that evening he went upstairs, and into his bedroom. He was very quiet. However, instead of slipping under the duvet cover, he went to lean on his bedroom window, looking up in the sky, and admiring the beauty of the full moon.

An hour later his mum came to check if everything was alright and to kiss him ‘good night’! Mum was surprised! The little boy Jimmy was not in bed yet; he was still looking up in the sky fascinated by the beauty of the moon.

His mum said: Jimmy, what are you doing by the window? You are supposed to be in bed by now! I’m looking at the moon, mum! the young boy replied. One day I will go to the moon! Jimmy went to bed that night with a vision in his mind, and a passion in his heart.

That vision became a reality 32 years after that full moon night when Jimmy leaned on his bedroom window to admire the beauty of the full moon in the sky.

All successful people have a clear mental picture of the future and things to come. They know what they want to achieve, where they want to be, and who they want to become in the future. They have a vision and a dream.

Find the Purpose of Your Life

We were all born for a reason. Everyone is unique, and everyone has a unique role to play in the world that no one else can play. That’s a purpose. Have you thought about your place in the whole universe? You were born for such a time as his. It is time for you to discover your purpose. You were not born by accident; you were created for a purpose.

Have you ever been in a crowd of people but you still felt lonely? It often happens when you go to a party, and when you arrive you realise that you don’t know many people there. People at that party seem to have a good time; they are enjoying themselves. The music is playing, the food and drinks are being served, but you find yourself standing in the corner on your own, with a drink in your hand, but no one comes to talk to you. You then start wandering around to see if you can find a familiar face, but there isn’t any. You start asking yourself, What am I doing here? Everyone is having fun, but I am not! If you’ve ever been in a similar situation, you know what it feels like when you find yourself in a place but you don’t know why you are there.

Now, imagine that you stay at that same party, and then after a few minutes, to your great relief you find a friend in the room, and you start chatting. Before long you will be smiling, telling jokes, laughing, and even dancing. You are happy because you have found a friend; you have a company. You are happy because you came to the party to have a good time, and now you are having a good time. No one goes to a party to stand in the corner on their own. You go to a party to have a good time, and not to be miserable and depressed. People go to a party, to enjoy themselves.

Life is like a perpetual party; it can be exciting, and it can be boring. You can have fun, or you can be miserable and depressed. You can find your purpose and the reason for being here, or you can feel lost and wasted. Life is good when you know your purpose here, and you have a vision that you want to achieve. When you don’t know your reason for living, and have no vision for your life, you lose motivation. It’s very sad that many people are not motivated for anything. Some people are in relationships or jobs that they hate; they are not having fun, and they have no passion for what they do. They do their jobs because they get paid at the end of the month, and not because they love what they do. That’s very sad.

You were born for a purpose, and that purpose doesn’t change. Your reason for living doesn’t change because you are experiencing difficult times or challenges in your life. Problems and trials of life are momentary, but your purpose in the world is eternal. The purpose of your life is engraved in your DNA; no one can change it, but it will not be fulfilled automatically; you must bring it to light. Only you can decide to fulfil your purpose. It may take time to see it, but if you are determined, and patient, and you work hard, your purpose will be fulfilled.

Once you have discovered the purpose for your life – by purpose for your life I mean the reason WHY you are here - you need to decide on WHAT you will do to fulfil that purpose. That’s your vision, which will much depend on your desire, ambition, dream, talents, skills, and passion. Your vision can be as big as you want it to be; it’s your dream. You are free to dream whatever you want, and whatever you can imagine. Some people fear dreaming big because they don’t have much self-confidence; they don’t believe in themselves, and they don’t believe in the power of vision. Self-confidence comes with a strong conviction that you can achieve your dream.

Believe in yourself, and believe in your vision. Nothing is impossible, and no vision or dream is beyond reach. A few years ago, no one would have believed that human beings could fly, and when planes were invented no one would think that we could break the sound barrier. We can say the same thing about the new technology and communication; about 30 years ago, no one could believe that you could hold a small device in the palm of your hand, a mobile phone, and have a conversation with someone on the other side of the planet earth. Today we run conference calls, and video calls with several people from different parts of the world simultaneously, using mobile phones.

It’s always good to remind ourselves of the reason why we are here, and why we do what we do. If you want to be an entrepreneur or a business owner, there are a few important questions you should ask yourself? Why do you want to own or run your own business? What kind of business do you want to start up? Where do you want to establish your business? When are you planning to open your business? How much will you need to start up your business in terms of financial resources, human resources, talents, skills, etc.? What do you want your business to look like once it’s up and running? What will give you a competitive edge, and distinguish your business from others? There is no wrong or correct answer to these questions; it all depends on your purpose, vision, dream and passion, talents and skills you have. But you must think about all those things and more. You must make sure that everything aligns with your vision.

Without a purpose, your life would be like a ship lost on high seas without a rudder, and no sails; it would be toasted in all directions by the waves. Vision gives a direction to your life, and to your business too. When you know where you want to go, you can decide on what to do to get there, and how you will reach your destination. But as you can imagine, owning and running a business without a clear vision is a dangerous think. You wouldn’t want to be on a ship without a rudder. I am sure you would never go to a bus or coach station, and jump on any bus or coach without knowing where it’s going, or where you want to go. Who on earth, and in the right mind, would board a plane, a train, or a coach without knowing where it’s going? That would be a bad gambling. If you can’t do such a thing, why would you start up a business without knowing where you want your business to go?

A vison for your business gives you that mental picture of what it should look like one day, and what you would achieve by owning a business. Your vision is invisible to other people, but it is ‘visible’ and almost ‘tangible’ to you who is carrying it. It’s a mental picture of what you want to achieve. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are, where you come from, where you’ve been before, or what you’ve done in the past; once you know your purpose, and you have a vision of what you want to do, you can set your sight on the product and results. Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t achieve your vision. Don’t listen to people who say that you can’t make your dream become a reality. Nobody! You should cherish your purpose, develop your vision, cultivate your passion, focus on your future, and dare to dream big.

Your vision motivates you. It gets you excited and gives you a reason to get up early in the morning, and go to bed late at night. If ‘success’ is a journey, then a vision is a road map that will lead you to your destination. It’s very important that your map is drawn with as