Preparation: The Key to Attracting Opportunities

It is better to be prepared for an opportunity and not have one than to have an opportunity and not be prepared - Whitney M. Young

Contrary to the axiom that opportunity comes but once, opportunities do present themselves often in the form of problems needing solutions or questions requiring answers. Unquestionably, opportunities abound everywhere on earth; however, it is only those who have prepared themselves mentally, physically, intellectually, and spiritually that can attract them.

We All Crave for Opportunity

Everyone on the face of the earth yearns for an opportunity to achieve one thing or another. So many wouldn't have attained the heights they have today if not for the opportunities they had. A man who is without opportunities will perpetually experience stagnation. The difference between an achiever and a non-achiever is the number of opportunities they have had and also appropriated.

There is a tale about a young lad who was inadvertently found by a football coach in a suburb. The coach had traveled to the suburb from the city to attend the burial rite of a friend. Not too far from the church where service was conducted for this friend was a field with several boys playing football. Right there in the church, and not restrained by the somber ambience he was in, the coach could not help but notice how skillfully this young lad handled the ball as a midfielder. Immediately after the service ended, he approached the lad and presented an offer to him to join the national team. That day, a rare opportunity presented itself to this young lad, which today has translated him from an unknown, local, and amateur footballer to an internationally recognized professional midfielder.

Is the Lack of Opportunity Really the Problem or the Lack of Preparation?

It is not that we lack opportunities, rather, it is that we are not prepared for them. It is obvious that the young lad you just read about must have spent enormous time, energy, and resources sharpening his football skills. If he hadn't gotten himself prepared through ceaseless training, he would have missed that golden opportunity. Therefore, preparation is key to attracting opportunities.

How Well Must You Prepare?

Whatever opportunity you seek, you have to prepare adequately for it. The President and Founder of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo, in one of his books titled "Breaking Financial Hardship", said, "The greater your preparation in any area, the greater your results. He that prepares sparingly shall reap sparing results, and he that prepares bountifully shall reap bountiful results". Great opportunities will elude anyone who makes perfunctory preparations for any endeavor.

What Will It Take to Get Yourself Prepared for Opportunities?

Preparing yourself to attract great opportunities will require the following:

1. Being passionate about whatever you find yourself doing. Your passion will provide the inspiration needed to become the best at what you do.
2. Being focused on whatever you find yourself doing. In the course of preparing, there is a tendency to be distracted. Distraction only does one thing: it makes one waste all the energy needed to get a task done well. You have to decide to remain focused until the deed is done.
3. Remaining committed to whatever you find yourself doing. Preparation demands that one be totally devoted to one's aspiration. It entails giving it all it takes.
4. Being consistent in whatever you find yourself doing. This is what will take you from the level of a novice to the realm of an expert needed to attract opportunities.
5. Showing dogged perseverance. Quite often, the act of preparation takes its toll on the mind, body, and even available resources. If not managed, this can lead to discouragement and even quitting one's ambition. As a result, it will take a persevering attitude to become equipped for opportunities.
6. Disciplining yourself in terms of your disposition to activities targeted at preparing you for opportunities
7. Possessing an optimistic attitude at all times. You need to be hopeful that your efforts toward attracting opportunities will yield positive results. Not bothered with how long it takes, you remain certain of encountering life-transforming opportunities.

In conclusion, having prepared yourself for opportunities that may come along, you need to showcase what you've got experience in. This you can do through volunteering service, taking advantage of the social media to share your forte, through word of mouth, and whatever means you deem fit. It is said that opportunity will always meet preparation.