"When everything fails, try Mathematics" - Adeboye

Pastor Adeboye with faculty members, department of mathematics, University of Lagos.

“Mathematics is the science of life and this principle has helped me in my marriage of over 47 years” - Adeboye

Equation1:            Love is Blind
Equation2:            Marriage is a special miracle worker with an anointing for opening eyes Genesis29:24-25 (Leah & Rachel) When you solve these two equations properly you'll see that while love is blind, marriage has the anointing to open the eyes. 

When your wife adds too much pepper in your soup, instead of shouting and yelling at her just say “my mathematics teacher taught us that the amount of pepper in the soup should be inversely proportional to the temperature in the city” and she will get the message LOL!

Equation3: Angels don't eat jollof rice Judges 6:11-16
Equation4: Angels don't marry  Matthew 22:30
The fact that you're married to her at all means you're  not an angel and your wife is not an angel even though she might have dressed like an angel on your wedding day, she is definitely NOT an angel.

When everything fails in life for you, try mathematics! Yes mathematics! This is because mathematics is the science of living. One way to know is the bible in John 9:5 says; “Jesus is the light of the world” and Mathematics shows us light travels at the speed of 297,600,000 km/secs therefore it means to say if Jesus is the light of the world and you invite him into your life your least progress rate will be at the speed of light.

My mathematics professor once gave me an assignment to do which was naturally beyond me. Upon his arrival, he discovered I had finished it he asked who helped me because I didn’t want to tell him it was Jesus I said Prof Emmanuel (he then said which department is he?) I in turn said ‘department of original science’ he said ‘so we have that department in this school?’ it wasn’t long before he figured I was talking about Jesus and because there’s a thin line between a genius and a mad man he didn’t bother arguing with me any further.

I want to implore you today if you’ve not accepted Jesus into your life to please decide and do so today and your progress will be as the speed of light.
                                                                                                               - Courtesy, @PastorEAAdeboye

Pastor Adeboye was at the University of Lagos, department of mathematics on thursday 19th february 2015 for the first ever inaugural lecture in his honour where he also donated 50 million naira. History has it that he was the first ever MSc student in the department in 1972. A one time academic himself, this is not the first time he will be making such contribution towards the attainment of a world-class education sector.

                                                                                                             

Lessons From A Lagos Bus Conductor

What could I possibly learn from a tout - an uneducated, violence-prone, abusive, dirty and unkempt person as a bus conductor, especially the ones in Lagos? The above is a near-description to what you have running through your mind upon reading the title of this piece. So many times we are clouded by sentiments, prejudice and biases so great and so little, we fail to learn even from the smallest of things (ants) expecting our lessons to come from the most structured places (classrooms, trainings, seminars, conferences etc.).

After learning from one of Nigeria’s finest life coaches Steve Harris on Business lessons from hookers (#bizlessonsfromhookers) and after reading from my Bible Life lessons from ants (#lifefromants) I have drawn Lessons from Lagos bus conductors (#lessonsfromlagosconductor) which I will share with you and hope you draw inspiration from, sharing other lessons with us as well.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor the first thing noticeable about him is that he has a very strong, thick and coarse voice! Oh yes! That is what makes you know you are in Lagos. Your business must have a voice. He knows that the only way he can reach his customers is through that voice also, the best way he can withstand his competitors, union members and co. is by having that voice. Your business, brand or whatever it is must have a voice and you should know the appropriate channel through which to make this voice heard.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor another thing is his character. He has a strong character which is his major tool of oppression or resilience either on his passengers or on his fellow union members. It is this strong character that makes you readily comply with his demand for smaller denominations (money) with you once he says ‘do not enter without change’.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor the power of vision! Oh yes! (you must be laughing by now) He has vision else, how would he sight his passengers? He has his target, he doesn’t want the bus to move along empty therefore he must be quick to see opportunities (passengers) and communicate same to his driver when they get to that point to then maximize the opportunity. To excel, we must have the ability to recognize opportunities when they come our way and then maximize same and it is only when you have vision that you recognize an opportunity that is in tandem with the vision you have.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor he has negotiation skills. He is a good negotiator. When he mentions a price and it is inconvenient for the passenger, he negotiates with the passenger and based on the outcome of the negotiation, decides to either pick the passenger or let him be. His ability to negotiate well gets him a passenger or makes him lose one and so the success of any enterprise depends on how well you are able to negotiate for sole benefit or at worst, mutual benefit. Only those who are able to negotiate their way through life always get the best out of it.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor he has calculative skills! (laughs) yes, the same simple calculative skills that you probably struggle with. This one fundamental skill is required in his business in order to save him time amongst other things therefore, (assuming you gave him N200 for a N70 fare with an expected change back of N130) you then hear things like ‘do you have N20 there so I can give you N150?’ That is indeed simple calculation of addition and subtraction and he gets his problem solved in a jiffy. In other words, to be able to solve problems, you must have an analytical mind capable of solving problems that would otherwise have cost you time and resources by virtue of not being solved.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor he monitors the environment and assesses competition. The same bus that will delay you at a bus stop looking for passengers is the same one that will decide not to stop at a particular location, racing on to the next. I have observed that once he sees a bus going in same direction with his, he tells the driver to move on to the next stop preferring to get there first before this other bus gets there. 

#lessonsfromlagosconductor from the above, we also see that he has the power of foresight! You should be able to see what the market holds for your business or what the strides of your competitors are and race into the future before they get there so when the future eventually comes, you will not be stranded rather maximizing all the gains and value it has to offer. A perfect example is a company like Nikkon which continues to be relevant in the photography industry long after the demise of the film/dark room technology.

So, what lessons have you learnt from your everyday bus conductor which have gone unnoticed? Why not share them with us and let everyone draw inspiration from them!

Adios!

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