Action is the only known factor that brings intended results. Dale Carnegie said that, “Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.”

Are you ready to turn 2007 into a year of professional and personal growth? Act. Are you ready to let go of all the setbacks of 2006 and face your future with renewed passion, focus and determination? Act. Are you ready to make your work bring joy beyond what a pay check can do? Act.

To make 2007 a rewarding year, a time on which you can look back and say, “That was a steppingstone for my personal and professional journey,” you must set your mind for life beyond mere goals. The kind of life you will live when your today’s goals become daily routine. The kind of life when what you do for payment brings you the same excitement and fulfillment as what you do when you are not working.

Here are 7 ways to make acting on your dreams on the future you envision a personal responsibility:

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At least appreciate the freedom it symbolizes.

I was born in Kenya towards the end of the atrocious British colonial era. One of my disturbing childhood memories is my grandmother screaming, warning my grandfather that the police were coming to collect taxes. That got him to run and hide in a sugar-cane garden.

Kenya became independent shortly thereafter. I remember the small flag I held as a first grader. That flag meant that my grandmother wouldn’t scream anymore and my grandfather wouldn’t have to suffer the humiliation of being unable to pay taxes and have to run, a sign of cowardice.

That would be the last flag, of my native country, I would hold with pride. Only government ministers were allowed to post a flag on the vehicles, unless you operated a business, thus the law required the flag to be displayed on political holidays. But you had to display the portrait of the president, in your own business, all the time if you didn’t want to be imprisoned.

In the early 1980s, as an operator of a small business next to a government administrative center, I witnessed the pain the flag had inflicted in the lives of innocent citizens. I saw a policeman, who was a friend, run and arrest two high school students that I knew.

I went to find out what these students had done. The policeman explained to me that they didn’t stop as the flag was being lowered for the evening. The procedure was simple. Before hoisting or lowering of the flag, a policeman blew a whistle, thus everyone had to stop what they were doing and stand until the flag was in position.

I pleaded for the release of tens of people who had been arrested for violating the respect of the flag. The problem was a heavily used vehicle road next to the center and no matter how loud the whistle was blown, you couldn’t hear it. My shop was less than 100 yards from the center and I never heard it.

Unfortunately, that was the least of the pains of independence. A few years after the country became independent, a vice president and other elected officials who dared to voice an opposing view, were detained. A detainee was not allowed the privilege of being taken to a court of law, visitation from family or the opportunity to have legal representation. Detainees left the confinements never to be the same again. The physical and psychological torture that they received left some unable to walk without support and largely insane.

The denial of freedom was not limited to adults. It’s over twenty years, but I have been unable to overcome the mental turmoil of watching fellow students shot and some killed by police. They were killed as we held a peaceful demonstration to voice concerns on bad government practices. A student leader was imprisoned and later died in prison from excessive beatings and being denied medical treatment.

Freedom is the ingredient from which creativity, dreams and progress are hatched. With freedom, you can discover your purpose and embark on a mission to accomplish that purpose without governmental impediments. The American freedom is an elusive vision for millions of people in this world.


Dr. Vincent Muli Wa Kituku, an author, speaker and seminar leader, works with organizations to increase productivity and improve the bottom line through employees and leadership programs. He can be reached at (208) 376-8724 or visit www.kituku.com
 

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