BE EFFICIENT.

I once visited a government ministry to get some papers and I met the officers breaking melon and chit-chatting. When I finally met the officer that was supposed to handle my request, she told me to wait for her; and sit I did for two (2) good hours. While treating my request, she was busy chit-chatting till the officer that was supposed to finally sign my documents closed for the day and so I had no choice than to go back the next day to collect my documents when she could have attended to me promptly. Although I was affected by her inefficiency that particular day, but I can conclude from her lackadaisical approach to life that the reason she is still on the level of a ‘messenger’ is because she is not efficient even in her personal life. And so it is for many today. Since the result we get is a function of our input, majority fail in their endeavors because they are not efficient. I might not have been to other parts of the world, but I sure can talk authoritatively about my motherland and I bet it’s the same everywhere; I stand to be corrected.

Many people are busy doing nothing. It’s not how busy you are that counts, but what you are busy doing. Thus, the need for you to be efficient in all your undertakings cannot be overemphasized if you are to live a meaningful life. What is efficiency? How can you be efficient? What do you stand to gain by being efficient?

Efficiency, according to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary is, “the quality of doing something well with no waste of time or money OR the relationship between the amount of energy that goes into a machine or an engine, and the amount that it produces.” In my own words, as it relates to human beings, efficiency is the ability to maximize resources (time, skills, equipment, human resources etc.) to achieve set task(s) at the appropriate time. A way of ensuring that you get all tasks completed is by listing all set tasks (it could be on a sheet of paper, your phone, computer, or anywhere that’ll keep you abreast of what needs to be done within a specified timeframe) in the order of priority. That way, you won’t even have the time to engage in some unproductive pursuits because the time available will not even be enough for you to complete your set tasks. That way, you can work with precision while measuring your progress. That way, you can achieve what you want to achieve.

How much time do you use in chatting with friends and colleagues on non-related work issues during working hours when you could use the time productively? How often do you digress from doing the most important things by doing the unimportant things? If you want to achieve much in life, then you had better start mapping out goals, effectively plan your time, and then maximize your resources. Else, life might just hand you whatever it pleases.

Prayer has its place, but I tell you that hard work and efficiency also has theirs. Your desires are not far-fetched, but you will have to earn them; there’s no such thing as having something for nothing. Whether you waste away your time on some unworthy pursuits or you use it productively, time will still tick; time and tide, they say, waits for no man. So, it behooves you to use your resources judiciously so that you can achieve your goals in life.

Do more than exist, thrive!