A knife is only as useful as its ability to cut through what you need chopped.

The more effective it is at that, the more likely it is that a mindless stroke could also cut you.

You will not discard a knife or blunt its edges because it cut you. You will be more mindful during its use.

That is how to approach strengths and weaknesses. The parts of you that are most effective can also be your pitfall if you are not mindful.

Your weaknesses are not a reason to shrink away from the light. They are there to remind you to be mindful.

And if you are, they will hurt you less.

– Osasu Oviawe

On important occasions, I ask for my mum’s prayers.

Then I ask for my girl’s prayers.

And finally, I pray for myself.

God always comes through.

Somebody’s prayers work, and I’m unwilling to stop any to find out whose.

– Osasu Oviawe

Good old friends are the best company for time travel.

The laughter they bring smooths out all the curves and edges of the journey, making it all feel worth it.

I have few friends, but I have some really good old ones.

– Osasu Oviawe

You will never understand what enough is until you experience the wealth of a stable home.

A stable home is the hallmark of belonging. Wherever you find it, nurture it.

Anything else only triggers a desire for more, and more never satisfies, it only bloats the ego.

A bloated ego courts suffering.

– Osasu Oviawe

The strongest people I know are just as afraid as the average Joe.

What sets them apart is that they keep going, turning the slow trickle of time into fuel for courage.

And no one who keeps going remains a victim, however overwhelming the circumstance.

– Osasu Oviawe

Learning to ask for what you want is the purpose of all learning.

On one end of the scale, some people skip all learning and jump right into asking for what they want. They are called geniuses.

On the other end of the scale, some people seek all learning before asking for what they want. They are called rut dwellers.

Most people sit somewhere in between, moving in either direction depending on life’s feedback. They are called learners.

Most people feel they need to first be sure of what they want before they ask, even as life continually teaches that there is no sure thing.

Move toward the end with the geniuses. Never second-guess yourself before asking for what you want.

— Osasu Oviawe

Mastery is the art of creating beauty through asymmetry.

– Osasu Oviawe

Whatever you want to do, if you really want to do it, start now.

Whatever you do not want to do, if you do not really want to do it, postpone it to a future date.

The biggest regrets in life come when you muddle up the sequence, postponing what you really want to do to a later date and starting what you do not really want to do now.

– Osasu Oviawe

Our tongues are designed for a wider range of tastes than we ever get to explore.

These days, when I travel, I try to explore a meal I would not normally have in my day-to-day life.

I have been more pleasantly surprised than displeased, and even in the moments of displeasure, the memories created are priceless.

In the same vein, our lives are designed for a wider range of experiences than we ever get to explore.

As you journey through life, explore parts of your world that are not in your normal day-to-day routine.

Whatever the experience is, the memories created will be priceless.

– Osasu Oviawe

My role as a leader is to ensure those in my care and those who come after me are able to take risks.

The role involves taking risks of my own with documented learning and building a buffer for failure to ensure it is less likely to be fatal.

But my role also involves making sure it is more comfortable to take risks than it is to avoid them. This is the harder bit.

– Osasu Oviawe