𝗕𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗜𝗖𝗘.

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Yes! A choice that solely depends on you.

Come with me!

Right from when I was little, all the choices I made were never mine to make. What do I mean? The things I did, the places I went, the schools I attended, the food I ate, the role I played were all informed by people. I lacked the chance of defining my life, coupled with the fact that I was the backend girl who was intimidated by the beauty of others.

When I decided to stand and own my voice, I got scorned and shunned; I was reminded a million times why I shouldn't strive to be better than who I was. I remember apologising for always trying.

The day I moved out of the house, which was my first time packing my bags and leaving town, I was reluctant and scared. Something in me was comfortable with having people think and make choices for me.

When it dawned on me that every year my age increased, not minding my results in life, I picked up the car keys of my life, opened the door, sat on the driver's seat and took the wheel. This is the beginning of my making!🔥

How about the times I starved myself of food just to save up money to register and pay my way to Plateau-Jos for training? That's even too small to be counted in the pages of my "becoming."

I joined FECA where I invested so much in my growth process. Which training did I not pay to attend? From Ebonyi to Imo, Enugu, Abia, Port Harcourt, Benin, Lagos, Abuja, etc.

Many of these training, I attended as a teen (surprised)? The more I travelled, the more I was beaten by my parents. I still have some scars on my back. Hehe! I see them as evidence of my growth.

No! They didn't beat because they hated me, but because they loved and were protecting me to the detriment of my growth.

When the spirit of purpose calls you strongly, be mindful of those who love you so much and wouldn't want you to take the risk.

Though their actions are genuine, they won't help your "BECOMING." Learn to know when love should pause; don't be too pampered so you don't end a casualty.

Fast forward to now, in my early 20s, I'd garnered a lot of strength and self will. I'd learnt to make decisions and own my voice. I've spoken before men of repute, I've watched men of timbre and calibre stand at the sound of my voice. Yes! I have also rejected many speaking engagements contrary to my values.

How did I get here? When I learnt to think for myself, I mastered decision making, invested in myself and took actions that launched me into the deep. I'm now, not just a person but an institution others can learn from.

My point exactly?

My coach once said, "Normal practices will continually give you normal results; if you want an extraordinary result, go beyond normal.

You can't go back and change the beginning but you can start where you are to determine how the end will be by investing in yourself, taking the bull by its horns, and going beyond what others call "normal."

...when you take life too casually, you become a casualty.

Pay now to be paid later!

Pat Ottoh 

𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮'𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁.