Keep Walking

This is a picture of Vimbai Mutinhiri a young , intelligent and successful lady flying the Zimbabwean flag high in Nigeria. Vimbai is a Tv Producer and Presenter.

I met Vimbai through a friend who at the time was one of my clients as well. I wanted to grow my clientele base in terms of my PR and Social Media offering. I pitched my services to Vimbai and she was interested. A few weeks later we met and discussed the plan in detail. She was happy and I was over the moon of course.

Unfortunately the project never took off. I was so disappointed and thought to myself maybe the pitch was not good enough. What was I thinking approaching someone that successful? I had identified an opportunity and after some conversations it was not coming together.

I let it go in the sense of knowing and appreciating that it was not time. I went into my pep talk element. This is when I am spiritually exhausted and I acknowledge that it is crucial to take a break and seek guidance. As a child of God I cannot walk this walk without my Father and the Holy Spirit. It is nearly impossible to achieve anything without them both. I had been in the industry for 1 year and all I wanted was a tangible and sustainable income from my skills. I had done so much networking and attended seminars to improve myself and my business. So it was not this one deal that had sent me into this state, they were others.

During these pep talk moments I seek the Lord’s guidance. I move from the ” I want to know why state , into the there is something you are telling me and I am willing to listen state” . I have observed that when I am frustrated go into venting mode, I just want to talk. I don’t want to listen. I call my girlfriends we talk about it, I text or calm my Mom and I cry about it. In this state nothing productive actually happens really and I am aware of that. It is just good for the heart coz I clear stuff out. When you seek the Lord, you best be prepared to listen. Clear out all the clutter and if you don’t know how don’t worry. We serve a mighty God who knows how to clean you up and heal you.

In the pep talk session, I surrender things to God. So I surrendered the process of being pruned to him. God was not concerned about the potential client I thought I had lost. Sometimes as Christians we look at God and say ” do you know how much I could have made Lord. Why? Why me? What did I do to deserve this? Isn’t it funny? He created everything and now you suddenly want to remind God how much a potential deal was worth? I understand it all too well. Bills have to be paid, you gotta eat and sometimes those are things faith cannot buy or pay for, right?

So like I said God was concerned about me. My character. Remember as a business person you chartering on new ground,grounds you know nothing about. Who’s got your back?You think you are ready. You think you are prepared. You think you got friends who wil pick you up when you fall. You think your family will understand when invoices are paid late or when clients cancel orders. You don’t know the half of it. You don’t know nothing. God does, that is why he has to prune you. Undo what you think you know and HELP build your character. This takes time and when one gig fails after another there are lessons to be learnt. Shift into ” I am PRESENT and LISTENING” mode then you will hear God speak.

So I did that. I went back and took my laptop out and sent Vimbai another email. This time around I was not offering anything I just reminded her that I was available if she needed me and left it at that. I did not give up, I just appreciated that it may not happen now, but soon it will ( one day we will talk about now vs soon).

A few weeks down the line I received a call from Vimbai and she was seeking my help with a photo shoot. I was so excited I did not even discuss the important stuff . I laughed out loud when I put the phone down. I was in awe of the timing and how God works. This prayer had been answered a long time ago. The waiting part is not our challenge, learning to surrender and being patient is. I did not give up, I just appreciated that it may not happen now, but soon it will ( one day we will talk about now vs soon).

1.You can knock on a door and it may open if it doesn’t knock again. Maybe no one was inside at the time? For your sake let’s be optimistic and say there is someone inside they did no hear you well. So knock again.

2.Know when it’s time to walk away or surrender. There is a very thin line between the two hence most of the time we miss out. Timing is also important in the spiritual realm but if you miss it, don’t worry God will never deny you what is yours

3. Every winner has counsel. Who is at the top of your counsel. Who is the wisest of them all. Know who to confide in with your business matters who can advise you best. The best coaches choose a combination of players with a skill set that will enable a environment that will create victory. Who have you signed up or offered a seat in our squad? Look again and choose wisely. Do not discard some people in your life because they do own or run a business. That has nothing to do with it. Sometimes you just need someone wise on your team

4. Bank on relationships and not money to ensure success. Sometimes its not always about the deal. Look at the potential of growth or knowledge or skill sharing that can happen with the successful people you come across. Your personal development is a good place to start so that you can sustain the growth of your business. You can earn a contract today and lose it tomorrow if your character is not of sound mind, invest in yourself as well..build good relationships Apologize when wrong and fix the mistake and keep working at it if you were in the wrong. Sometimes not all perfect relationships started well. If you burnt a bridge man up and rise to the occasion and fix that bridge.