When last did you receive really good news?

Some people do not watch the news on television, as there is so much bad news and it can be rather depressing. I love it when I do come across a good news story in the newspaper. When last did you receive some really good news?

During May 2020 I was in a very difficult situation and had no money to cover my monthly expenses. I actually had no work for more than 14 months because of covid, but a bit of miracle happened in May 2020. I was not aware of the fact that for more than 20 years, PPS had being paying me an annual bonus. They are a financial institution and I am a member. My broker shared the news with me that at age 65 the bonus can be paid out. I received enough money from them to cover my monthly expenses for 12 months. I was very emotional when I heard the news and I was not able to speak to my broker as the tears welled up in my eyes.

I spent more than 750 hours in 2020 developing AWG Online (www.alanglover.co.za) and it is a very time consuming project. The project is actually ongoing, as new courses and books will continually be added to the site. It takes time for people to become aware of new sites and new content needs to be continually added to a site in order to attract people to the site. Writing blogs, making videos and sharing news are some of the tools that can be used to attract more people to the site. The online world is experiencing massive growth and online development is going to become a reality for millions of people. I was in a meeting the other day that was focused on a famous private school that is developing an online school. Imagine going to a famous school, but you never actually put foot on the physical campus. The world is changing at an ever increasing rate and all of us have to adapt or die. I am 65 years old and change for older folk is always more difficult and challenging. I never ever dreamt that I would produce my own videos to place on my online site. I had to learn how to make the videos, transfer them to my portable hard drive, upload them and then share them. I love learning how to do new things. I cannot believe that only 6 years ago I was writing out my emails by hand and then getting my daughter to type them up. I had to learn how to type and I have actually typed a 80 000 word book and 14 shorter books. I always share with people that we need to be POSITIVE POSSIBILITY THINKERS.

After three postponements, I boarded the plane for Zambia on the 26th June 2021. I was meant to leave before Lockdown, but my trip was placed on hold till February 2021. First Quantum Minerals Limited in Zambia then only allowed essential services onto the mine, so my trip was once again postponed. In April I was laid low with covid, so once again my trip was postponed. Life is definitely not a walk in the park and the 7.8 billion people in our world, are most certainly been given a tough time. There is a famous book written by Scott Peck, called The Road Less Travelled. The first three words of the book read as follows – “Life is difficult!” The author shares that the sooner we accept that we will all face difficulties, the better off we will be. When difficulties arrive at our doorstep, we will not be caught by surprise. Travelling outside South Africa is rather stressful. Covid tests, delayed flights, missing luggage, eight hours a day in a small room with 12 participants and power failures add to the normal daily stresses. The 24 people that journeyed with me over a 3 week period, were great. I was so grateful to have work again after a 14 month drought. I worked with a bright group of graduates for two weeks and the other week was spent with a group of very pleasant folk from the Hygiene Department. Having another covid test two days before my departure date was stressful. After more than 100 hours in a room with 12 people, I was just praying for a negative test. When I received the news 30 hours later that my test was clear, I danced around the room with joy. I am so grateful for the amazing work in Zambia and my bank account also danced for joy when the Zambia money was deposited about three weeks ago. The focus of my work in Zambia was around Personal Mastery, Powerful Presentations, Problem Solving and The Power of Teamwork.

For the past four weeks we have been working very hard on marketing the new Brylin School Leavers Academy. Twelve years ago a dream popped into my head. The dream was to give grade 12s the opportunity to have an awesome Gap Year. Schools are not adequately equipping school leavers for the future world of work. The World Economic Forum conducted a research study called The Future of Jobs. Five critical skills were identified. They are….

Self-Management
Thinking
Communication
Research
Relationship Building

All of these skills, plus a variety of others will be offered at the Brylin School Leavers Academy. Brylin is a private school with a proud track record. Having a strong partner and spacious premises is a dream come true. I am not sure what percentage of grade 12s do not have a clear plan for 2022. I feel certain that there are thousands of school leavers who do not have a clear career path in mind. This morning I was playing golf with a gentleman who has a daughter at university. He shared with me that his daughter is not really enjoying her course and may not have made the right choice regarding her degree. At our academy we will help youngsters to discover their Purpose and Passion. We will also empower them with some very valuable life and career skills.