Prayer And Hard Work...,

Prayer And Hard Work Got Me Through, Says Odane Dawkins

"I prayed and studied."

That is how 16-year-old Odane Dawkins, of Glenmuir High School inClarendon, prepared for the 2012 Caribbean Secondary EducationCertificate examinations.

The meticulous scholar, who lives in Claremont Heights in Old Harbour, St Catherine, obtained 11 distinctions in mathematics, English language, English literature, biology, chemistry, physics, history, geography, Spanish, economics, and information technology

"I did 11 subjects because I wanted to broaden my horizons. I wanted to make sure that I touched every area so that whatever field I decide to go in, I have a subject that can help me in that field," he explained.

Notwithstanding, he has already decided that he wants to become a gynaecologist.

On reflecting on the exams, the confident teen noted that hard work and sacrifice yielded the desired results.

"All my profile scores are As, except for geography, where I got one B," he explained.

Aimed to excel

The Marlie Mount Primary School alumnus said he worked with a special timetable and always aimed to excel.

"My drive is to succeed and to live up to expectations and to make those around me who believe in me proud," he said, pointing out that his older sister, Onella, also a past student of Glenmuir, copped 10 distinctions.

Odane, valedictorian of the graduating class of 2012, has earned numerous awards for outstanding academic performance.

In 2007, he was the recipient of the Scotiabank County Scholarship for achieving the highest Grade Six Achievement Test score in the county of Middlesex. He was also awarded a scholarship to the Johns Hopkins University in the summer of 2011 to study chemistry for three weeks.

How To Be A Good Worker

Steps

1. Behave professionally. This is a business, not a playground. People talk, and workers know the difference between a person who is fun to work with and a person who is always fooling around. Fun means a good personality, a joke or two, and a smile. Fooling around is wasting your time and that of others, being frequently off-task, and often being seen standing in the workspace of others instead of in your own.

2. Learn to take criticism gracefully. It will provide you with valuable ideas about what people expect from you, any weak areas, and what you need to work on first. If a boss or coworker criticises you in a way that hurts or angers you, wait until you cool/calm down and ask them if you can talk with them. Tell  them how you felt, but tell them that you would like to fix the issue and want them to talk with you about what needs to be changed.

3. Learn to do your job, and do it well. Whether it's menial and tedious, or tough and high-paying, learn how to do the job, regardless of how difficult you think     it might be. Salary is most commonly based upon years of experience, your ability to do your job, tenure with the company, and your educational  background. If you don't know how to do something, go find out; don't make excuses for why you didn't do it.

4.Cultivate good relationships with the people in your organisation;they are the experts in their departments. Treat all co-workers with courtesy, respect, and kindness because they hold more power than you realise, and your reputation with them matters. Do not hang out with other employees who mistreat,          disrespect, or talk down to others.

5. When you get the opportunity to learn a new skill, receive training for a different activity, or take a study course paid for by your employer--do it! Cross-training, new skill sets, and further education show that you are intelligent and value life-long learning. If push comes to shove, and people are let go, you stand a better chance of being retained than those who can only do one thing.

6. Maintain a clean job performance record. Do a good job, show up on time, keep a good attendance history. When you find out someone has been let go, you often find out later that there were underlying circumstances that led to their dismissal--including frequent absences, missed deadlines, reprimands for unprofessional behavior, or too many customer complaints. If you don't do that, you don't have room to negotiate.
7. Never be on time. Always arrive early. Be at least 15 minutes early every day. That way, if you are running late, you will be on time. If you have to park far away, you will walk in and still not be late. If your client is early, you will be there to greet him or her, and not leave someone waiting for you - even if you     arrive on time.

8. Ask your supervisor what the expectations for productivity are. This will immediately make you stand out from 95% of the other employees. Mean what  you ask and follow through on your promises.

9. Be part of the solutions. Quit whining about what's wrong and start being vocal about what's right! A positive attitude goes a long way with many supervisors. When you go to the boss with a problem, go with at least one suggestion in mind for a solution. Even if the boss doesn't take your suggestion, you will look like a problem-solver, not a complainer. Your boss has their own private lives to leave at the door, so do you. If you keep piling on     the emotional baggage, then your boss may see that you can't balance your personal life from your work life. They will not approach you when they want to ask employees about perhaps open door advice when it comes to work related group efforts.

10. Don't drag your feet. We mean this in a literal way. Pick your feet up and walk proud, and get right to your work - don't procrastinate or let things drag up to the deadline, and then jump in to get it done in a fast flurry at the end. It makes your boss crazy. Gain a reputation for having your act together more so        than the majority of people.

11. Be quiet and work. Quit gossiping and get to work. Your employer is not paying you to gossip. Of course, you want to establish a good rapport with your co-workers, and a little chatting is inevitable and desirable. But spending a half hour regaling your co-workers with your previous evening's adventures            will not make your boss love you. When one of you is talking a lot, two of you are not working a lot. Note: if your boss walks by and two of you are talking, no big deal, but wrap up the conversation so that the boss won't see the same sight on her way back. The same goes for a group of you. If you are part of a group who is talking when the boss walks by, discreetly excuse yourself to return to your area after a few seconds. If your boss hears that you are gossiping behind their backs or planning a secret meeting to approach your boss is not the solution. This may just make you look like a instigator or conspirer.

12. Always be productive. Don't let paper sit on your desk for days on end. Get the work done and move on to the next thing as quickly as possible.

13. Don't dress like your co-workers, dress as well or better than your boss. Close-toe shoes, full-length slacks, and shirts that don't show cleavage or chest hair are your best bet. When in doubt, don't wear it.

14. Hold your head high and be confident. A calm, assured energy will take you much farther than carrying yourself in a hunched up ball.

15. Volunteer or be active in projects to get the job done. Don't worry about who gets credit - your boss knows much more than you think. Be a team player. In addition, volunteering allows you to choose the part you will play. If you don't choose, chances are it will be chosen for you. Either way, you'll be responsible for some facet, so be one of the first to step forward when you can.

16. Don't spend a lot of time on personal phone calls. Work is for work. This includes phone calls from spouses. If your calls are put through by a receptionist or secretary, rest assured that they will not hesitate to tell others that you get personal calls "all the time".

17. Stay late, even if it is only 15-20 minutes. People notice who runs for the door at 5:30 pm. One of the best uses of this time is to organize your work space for tomorrow. Take a moment to put away loose papers, empty coffee cups, wipe down surfaces, and locate things you'll need.

18. Offer junior employees guidance and encouragement. Offer to show them the ropes or offer training tips. Remember how it felt to be the newbie. Be a mentor. If you are not sure someone understood something, be willing to ask if they need assistance. Don't do the work for them, teach them instead. Be careful what you say to new employees; don't air your grievances, frustrations, or interpersonal conflicts. Don't gossip.

19. Acceptance is the Key. Don't argue a lot, your boss's opinion is always right for her or him, so if you found something wrong, try to understand your boss's perspective, but without arguing. Use a good and quiet way to understand the problem point. You may just realize that things happen for a reason and not necessarily not for a season. Policies are implemented for reasons of the good of the whole.

20. Be appreciative, always say thank you whenever a boss or a co worker does something good to you, it will always motivate them to do more good to you.

Hard Work Beats Talent,When Talent Doesn’t Work Hard!

All three of my children play basketball in local leagues. One of the groups that they play with has t-shirts promoting their league and on the back of the shirt it has the phrase “Hard Work Beats Talent, When Talent Doesn’t Work Hard“. I love this shirt because it is a lesson that we can all learn from.

On an athletic level, it is clear. There are plenty of “gifted” athletes that never excel because they rely on their natural ability to pull them through. We see this in middle school, high school and we clearly see it in professional athletics. It is always sad to see money and fame ruin a great athlete’s career.

This lesson can also be seen in academics. Some students rely far too much on their natural ability and end up paying the price. We all have stories of high school valedictorians that never made it through college. On the other hand, we also have stories of kids who struggled through school and ended up very successful in life. Sometimes those challenges we faced, made us far more prepared for the real world.

There is no simple secret to success. There are no silver bullets. There are no short cuts. However, nothing is more important than preparation and hard work. Yes, we can always point to the examples of people who were successful by flying by the seat of their pants. We can also point to the guy who jumped off the 3-story building and walked away without a scratch. There are always exceptions. However, I prefer not to jump off buildings.

In business, we compete every day. We compete with other companies. We compete with other employees.  We compete with other candidates during interviews. Does the most naturally talented individual always win?  No. Does the most naturally talented individual win most of the time? I would argue “No”. In my experience the most prepared individual wins.

It is a common excuse in business to say, “We can’t compete with Goliath Corporation. They are 5 times our size!” Other companies will always have more people, more budget, better products, better market position and so on. This should not, and cannot, be an excuse. Why do startups with little or no budget beat billion dollar companies every day? It is simple – because they can. They are rifle focused. They usually only have one product, while larger companies have an array of products to worry about. They don’t have legacy issues to deal with. They know that failure is not an option, so they work exceptionally hard. If they don’t succeed, their company fails. They simply don’t have other revenue streams to fall back on. They are nimble and creative while larger companies are often bureaucratic and slow moving.

The lesson is simple, “Hard Work Beats Talent, When Talent Doesn’t Work Hard”. Don’t make excuses. Simply work hard and be prepared. You will win more often than you think.