My thought on the subject of competence is that no one can be competent in isolation. You have to be competent in association or alignment with others. It does not seem complete or healthy if one wears the toga of "master" of one's game by playing independently. The reason for this is that we cannot win alone. No one is truly competent in isolation because one's competence must be measured relative to others. When one is said to be competent, what exactly does it mean? The following suggestions come to the fore:

How can average companies become good and how can we move good companies to become great companies? How can we stimulate real growth that will endure the dynamics of change? How do we preserve the great core as well as attain progress both as an organisation and in the lives of those we serve? What values do we subscribe to and what culture have these earned us over the years? These are critical questions that we must provide answers to as a business entity all the time.

The first step in self-management is the ability to manage our emotions and effectively use our mental faculties. But, can we manage what we do not know? Identifying our emotions, our rationalities and irrationalities, being conscious of them, and knowing how they work, help us to understand them well enough to regulate them. What makes you angry, sad, afraid or fear? Are you able to identify these emotional triggers?

The principle of sowing and reaping is built on the foundation of death from life and life from death. Life does proceed from death. When a seed is sown in the earth, that seed is buried and hid in the dark earth. The seed is scorched in the earth and it dies. The seed loses its outward and every other covering so that the gem of life embedded within is allowed to spring forth. This process is referred to as germination. It is the process of birthing and engendering life through death.

The principle of sowing and reaping is built on the foundation of death from life and life from death. Life does proceed from death. When a seed is sown in the earth, that seed is buried and hid in the dark earth. The seed is scorched in the earth and it dies. The seed loses its outward and every other covering so that the gem of life embedded within is allowed to spring forth. This process is referred to as germination. It is the process of birthing and engendering life through death.

A curious aspect of emotional management is how much we mismanage our emotions due to our lack of self-awareness and misunderstanding of what they are. With our irrationalities taking the better if not the best of us, it has become more than important to pay attention to how those intangible parts of us threaten the tangible parts and things that really matter to us, but which we are incidentally and increasingly unconscious of.

There is a direct connection between how you are wired in your essence and what you turn out to become if you are able to find yourself, develop yourself and forge a meaning out of it all. Everything that nature has bestowed on mankind is good and not one is without its purpose but not everything is useful to you. Your ability to find and know what is important to you will lead you to become one with your purpose for being here, if you stay hungry and persist in the search for value. A proper mix and alignment with all components that pertain to you in the physical space earns you fulfillment and accomplishment in the physical space. These components are you, your education and its prize, your skills and then your productivity.

Oftentimes I hear people talk about the science of something or the art of something and I wonder which is which or what is what really? Are they different or can they be used interchangeably? Wallace Wattles wrote a book, 'The Science of Getting Rich'. Vusi Thembekwayo talks about maintaining art in business and the possibility of losing art in order to build to scale.

Grit is firmness of character. Grit is indomitable spirit. It is the pluck that keeps you focused on a cause regardless of the negative hits and failures that you encounter. Grit is a sign of how much you seek the attainment or manifestation of a desire. And because you have a burning desire, you make the desire a goal driven or goal-bound one. This is a great way to look at grit.