Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Take a Chance and Win by Wellington Manjengwa


This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Wellington Manjengwa will be awarding an autographed copy of Take a Chance and Win (US/international) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Formative Years

I was in my third year if secondary school when my mind was made up about which career I was going to follow. And my awesome choice was finance. Unfortunately, accounting was not one of my assigned subjects at school. My class had been assigned to the science subjects and not commercial subjects. The only option available was for me to study accounting on my own and I was so keen on the subject that I was up to the task. Fortunately, two of my friends, Emmanuel and Cephas, were also interested in the same subject and were in the same predicament. We teamed up and worked hard, encouraging, and supporting each other until we sat the exams and we all passed. That was the beginning of what has been my career and life in the world of finance. I went further and became a Chartered Certified Accountant and obtained a Masters degree.

Welcome to the rest of your life, Wellington

When I got into the world of work, I started out doing company secretarial work, which is small branch of the accounting profession. I learnt a lot from the owner of the company who was a Chartered accountant. Fast forward a few years later, equipped with finance training and company secretarial experience I found my way into the world of banking. I remember receiving a call from the employment agency where I was registered and being asked to come for a meeting the following day. On the day of the meeting, I found my way to a building called Pearl House in the center of Harare on to the 4th floor where I was met by a fine gentleman who introduced himself as Patrick. I recognized him because he was also a news anchor of the local TV and radio. Patrick welcomed me and ushered me into a small meeting room near the reception where we broke the good news with a beaming smile on his face, that I had been successful in my interview with Barclays Bank. He gave me a few words of advice for my career and told me to keep my friendly personality because in the professional world relationships are very important and your personality is what will draw people to you or repel them away from you. Finally Patrick said these words which I always remember “There you go Wellington, welcome to the rest of your career…” We said our goodbyes and he escorted me to the elevator and I was on my way. This happened in January of 2005, I went back to my employer at the time and wrote my resignation letter, served my one month notice and on the 1st of February 2005 I started work in a bank. As I write this, it is 2017 and it has been 12 years and I’m still a banker. I have ascended the corporate ladder and enjoyed the many opportunities I have been blessed with. I enjoy the world of finance and it diversity and dynamism.

Everyone is a risk taker

It was in banking that I first experienced risk management and understood how it relates to our lives. Because uncertainty is common in many of the daily decisions we make, I understood that while the notion of risk takers and risk averse people is quite common, it is not exactly accurate because in all truth everyone takes some level of risk at one time or another. It may be in love or finances, at school or at home; in business or at work; everywhere where there are decisions to be made. These situations may not need heavy statistical model or quantitative analysis techniques, with some reasonable qualitative considerations one can improve their chance of success, or should they fail as they often will (it’s part of the process), they will be able to minimize the impact of the failures on their emotional and physical lives. When everyone becomes their very own risk manager they will embrace and understand their relationship with uncertainty as they understand risk, accept risk, and appreciate the importance of utilizing the principles of risk management in their everyday decision making.

Risks are a part of life. What differentiates those who take a risk and succeed and those who don’t is how they manage that risk.
Tony Robins once said, “It is in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped.”

This book takes that philosophy and expands upon it. Grounded in the idea that how you approach decision making and risk management determines success or failure, Take A Chance And Win aims to teach you the tenets of success in all aspects of your life and shows you how to capitalize upon effective risk management for regular decision making.
Inside you’ll discover:

• Strategies to avoid making poor decisions
• How risk management and decision making go hand in hand
• Why risk management is the biggest ingredient for success
• Practical strategies to clear obstacles to success

Whether you’re just beginning your life’s journey or have already endured your share of failure, an opportunity to succeed still exists. Embrace the proven strategies laid out in this book and discover the power of moving forward strategically for maximum impact. Essentially this book shows you how to TAKE A CHANCE AND WIN at the game of life.

Read an excerpt:

Risk can be defined as the probability that things do not go according to plan. In other words, while your journey to stardom in your chosen field will sure be successful, with the right mindset and doing the right things, the journey itself may not always be straightforward. You may also discover along the way that you have taken the wrong path or you have taken off on a journey to the wrong place. I would like to suggest therefore that embarking on something that is of importance to you is in itself a risk because there are no assurances that you will get there. Things may not go according to plan.

Risk management, on the other hand, is about the decisions you make along the way and the actions you take to increase your chances of making it to the place of your success in whatever endeavour you embark on. It is all about gathering enough information to enable you make the right decisions and take the right course of action

Risk in a person’s life might be looked at through two lenses, i.e. Internal Risks and External Risks.

Internal Risks: These emanate from within the individual; things such as self-doubt, lack of confidence, self-sabotage, indiscipline lack of self-believe

External Risks: These are external occurrences that impact our chances of success. They are usually caused by things, people, and situations that happen around you.

It is no longer a secret that every individual exists for a purpose. There’s a why for your existence. You are not on this earth just to make up the numbers; there’s a specific purpose for you. It is very important for every individual on this earth to discover their purpose for living; it may be to serve in a particular area of life, industry or commerce, to make a difference in a particular part of the world, to live a mark in the field of education, etc. We are often called upon to take risks, that is to venture into a chosen endeavour without having all the answers to everything that might arise. It is in such moments, I would like to suggest, that we are called upon to be the ‘RISK MANAGERS’ of our own lives. We must make decisions, tackle the challenges, manage situations to ensure that we achieve the success that we seek.


About the Author:I don’t know if you do this as well, but I keep old notebooks in my drawers; some of them go way back. My drawers get really cluttered sometimes because I dump all kinds of papers with notes from books, speeches, workshops, ideas that just crop up, brainstorming etc.

One Sunday in 2008, I needed to do a bit of cleaning, which included my desk and drawers. So I got started throwing stuff away and cleaning up. I was determined to leave the place sparkling clean.

And then I came to my desk, happily throwing away papers, notes, and unwanted clutter, when I came across this diary. A nice, leather-bound diary I had used the previous year, with many inspirational quotes on every page. While thumbing through the diary and reliving the appointments and meetings in it, I noticed one interesting quote; Success is due to our stretching to the challenges of life. Failure comes when we shrink from them. I didn’t know who John Maxwell was but his words were immensely profound

Then I read one of John’s quotes from my old daily planner, which said: “Your thoughts will attract opportunities to you but it is your actions that will put money to that opportunity.”

This was at a time when my life was at crossroads. I was contemplating making a huge career move, which entailed me leaving my country and comfort zone. I had lost money through some speculative investments in the era of hyperinflation in my home country, Zimbabwe. I was running a small business which was my passion but it just wasn’t making enough money to make it reasonable to keep going, in fact I was sustaining it with my salary because it was just not doing well. John’s messages and quotes touched me at the very core and left me questioning every decision I had ever made about my life. I kept saying to myself, this is so painful, why isn’t there some guidance out there to help me make these decisions. I realised my limitations but I had no-one to turn to, no big brother to run to for advice. I was confused about life, I had many questions but no answers. I have always been quite ambitious and hungry for success but at this point I was really afraid. I had a family that depended on me for everything and I needed to make sure that whatever decision I made would enable me to be successful and be able to continue being the provider. There was no room for mistakes. Failure was just not an option. How was I going to make this happen?

EVERYONE IS A RISK TAKER

I have since gone through a long path of self-discovery and self-development that has led me to discover something:

One of the greatest challenges we face in life is DECISION MAKING. As you weigh the options for yourself or your company’s next step, how do you decide which way to turn? Successful outcomes can only be evaluated after the fact. But by the time the results are in, it’s normally too late to take corrective action. Often our decisions involve risk, and our big failures come from failing to manage the risk. Some people consider themselves risk-averse, while others consider themselves risk-takers. This drives their decision making and the strategies they implement to achieve what they want. The cold, hard truth is that everyone is a risk taker, what differs is the size, type, and amount of risk you take. The key element that distinguishes the successful from the unsuccessful is how we manage our risk. To take a risk is not the same as being careless. Many people confuse the two.

SO, WHO STARTED ALL THIS?

My name is Wellington, I was born and raised in one of the most populous townships in Harare, Zimbabwe. Yeah, you’ve heard of that country. Does one million percent inflation ring a bell for you?? At some point we were millionaires and billionaires but could barely afford a loaf of bread. I come from humble beginnings. No silver spoon in my mouth. I get that you don’t know me that well yet. Usually when you have a background like mine, you are not given much of a chance. But I have lived this one truth that has transformed my life forever: The battle for success is an internal battle. Great things always begin from your inside.

That is why I fell in love with learning expert, Jim Kwik’s saying the first time I saw it; “If an egg is broken from outside force, life ends, but if it is broken from inside, life begins.”

Failure to understand this is the reason one can be sitting on a treasure but be treating it like trash.

I have discovered an intensity and passion that has led me through a journey of self-discovery, adventure, conquering doubt, fear, and many limiting beliefs to establish the Well of Inspiration. My team and I work with individuals and companies providing them with information, ideas, and strategies that help to take their lives and businesses to their next level of success.

http://www.wellofinspiration.co
https://www.facebook.com/woinspiration
https://twitter.com/wellazm
https://plus.google.com/?pageId=112735209095596331331

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/TAKE-CHANCE-WIN-Management-Personal-ebook/dp/B072J993PG

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