51 Adundance in Action

Last week I had the opportunity of visiting Alexandra Township in Johannesburg. I was invited by two amazing ladies. Portia, an Alexandra resident living in one small room which is usually the resting place of 10 or more children who would be sleeping on the streets if it were not for her kindness. And Jane, a Bryanston resident, who was so moved by the hopeless despair of the children in Alexandra, has, in just a few short months, turned despair into hope.

I got to know Portia and Jane at a “Journey” weekend retreat just two weeks ago and that led to the invitation to visit the township and what is now know as the Alexandra Children’s Haven. To say that I was moved would be understatement. If you haven’t visited Alexandra Township I recommend that you take a drive out there. Just 10 Minutes from the wealth of Sandton City you will find row upon row, block upon block of small dwellings that house many of the poorest of our workforce and many who can not get work at all.

And in amongst it all are the children. Hundreds of children who are HIV/Aids orphans or whose parents simply are no longer able to support them. Why is it always the children who suffer most?

When I visited the Children’s Haven last week I went with members of the Journey Outreach program based in Australia and a Canadian Journalist and I was immediately struck with one thought. How can we live in such comparative wealth and go to the rest of the world with our begging bowls for help with the children of Alexandra. Surely this is for us to solve.

Over the last ten years we have managed the unthinkable. We have changed fear and despair amongst all the varied cultures of South Africa to wonder and amazement. Of course we still have a lot to do but our transformation in 10 short years has been nothing less than miraculous. The rest of the world is looking on in wonder. Now is the time to make a difference to those we are leaving behind and we cannot wait for the kindness of foreigners to solve these problems for us.

Each of us has a responsibility here. As soon as I heard the wonderful story of the work that Portia is doing and the support that Jane has managed to generate in a very few months I was moved to dig deep and help with a donation but I had the very strong feeling that it was simply not enough. I asked Jane for a shopping list of desperately needed items and I have placed the list at the end of this note knowing that you have some of these things gathering dust in your garage or in a storeroom at work.

The Alexandra Children’s Haven needs a proper home and a piece of land at the edge of Alexandra has been identified for this. To buy land, of course, we have to raise money so in addition to the list we need R1.2 mil for the land and R2 mil for the buildings. The plan is to build a village of 25 homes housing eight children each. These children will have a family life, love and a solid education. These children are our future.

It has been said that if you save just one life, you save the entire world. This is your opportunity to save a life. Christmas is coming and this would be a good time to gather your friends or colleagues around you and find some way to help. I know that you are already giving to whatever cause you find appropriate but I would ask you to also help the children of Alexandra.

Last week in Richard’s Review we talked about abundance. The last paragraph of that article went like this:

“Wealth does not stand still (I do not just mean money when I use the word wealth, it also includes wealth in relationships, in education, in fitness, in love etc...etc.) Wealth is a flowing river that, if blocked, simply finds another route to take. If you get some wealth and store it like a miser it simply stops flowing. If, on the other hand you understand the principle of abundance, you will know that the more that flows out, the more will flow in.”

I am hoping that you will feel compelled to join me in encouraging the flow of wealth. Please have a look at the list below and let me know what you are able to help with. Your company will have some social responsibility funds and this would be a great way of making a difference with that money. If you are in Johannesburg and you would like to visit the new site or even chat to Portia or Jane make contact with me and I will direct you.

If your company would like to do more (contribute to the building of one of the houses for instance, or financially adopting one of the children), please make contact with me and I will arrange to come and see you to talk through the details.

You may be saying that there is so much poverty, how can my small donation make a difference? If you had seen the look on those children’s faces you would know. Help to save just one child, and you have saved the entire world.

The Alexandra Children’s Haven in a section 21 company. The account for donations is:

Alexandra Children’s Haven, Nedbank Business Westrand, Branch Code: 128 605 Account Number: 1286 068 150

Please let me know what you have been able to achieve for the children of Alaxandra Township and which of the things on the shopping list below you are able to donate.

Thank you

Richard

Wish List for Alexandra Children’s Haven

Things we need NOW!

Freezer

Outside Door (the existing door is broken)

Big Pots for Cooking (Catering Sizes)

10 Mattresses (Sponge covered in plastic) (Children are sleeping on the floor at the moment)

Tea Urn

Telephone

Big Nappies for the Sick

Nappies (all sizes) for babies

Bottles for babies

Medical Gloves

Mops

Cleaning Chemicals

Savlon and Jik

Facial Soaps

Bath Towels

Massage Cream / Ointment

Caps / Sun hats for the volunteers

Cotton Wool for cleaning wounds

Bandages

Nail Cutters / Scissors for hair

Washing Bowls

Wheel Chairs

Socks for the sick

Mask to cover caregivers mouths and noses

E-pap (Immune Booster) for the sick

Bed Pans

Camera

TV

First Aid Kits

Swimming Costumes

Gumboots

Plastic plates / Cups / spoons

Table Cloths

Powder Soap

After Care

Beads

Material

Paper and Cardboard

Pens / Pencils / Crayons

Paint / Paintbrushes

Dress Up Cloths for Plays

Books

More Books

Educational Games

Musical Instruments

Christmas Gifts

Food and Perishables

Cereals

Boxed Milk

Mealie Pap

Rice

Beans

Lentils

Boxed Juice

Furniture for 25 Houses

25x General Items

Dining Table and chairs

Lounge Suit

Coffee Table

TV / Video

4x Cushions

5x Sets of Curtains

25x Kitchen equipment

Cutlery / Crockery / Cooking utensils for 8 People

Toasters

Fridge/Freezer

Stove

Washing Machine

Dryer

25x Bedroom furniture

6 single beds (Frames, Mattresses, Headboard)

12 sets bedding (Blankets, sheets, pillows, mattress covers)

1 double bed set, 2 sets double bedding

2 wardrobes

2 sets of draws

8 bath towels

Building Material For 25 Houses including

Bricks, Cement, Roof tiles etc.

Plumbing / Wiring

2x Baths / Taps

Showers

2x Basins / Taps

Kitchen Sink / Taps

Front Doors

Inside Doors

Cupboards

Security Fencing

Alarm System

50 The Principle of Adundance

A number of incidents have happened to me and around me recently that raises an interesting principle that I have touched on in my book “The Will to Win” but that I would like to expand upon now. The principle is one of Abundance.

There is an abundance of everything you could possible need waiting for you to simply reach out and grasp. Okay....... I understand that this is a little too spiritual for many of us to accept or even contemplate but my feet are firmly on the ground when I talk about abundance and I hope you will read through to the end of this article before you make any judgments.

The principle of abundance applies to any field of human endeavour and works like this:

You are limited in what you can achieve only by your mind, not by what you are told is possible.

Okay, that is the principle, how does that apply to you?

“We are limited only by what we think, not by what is possible.” That means there is no limit to your potential.

Example:

You are a salesperson, and you have recently been given a target that you think is impossible. You go home with this target in your mind and complain to your spouse. During the evening you decide to take it up with your boss the following day (fortified by a couple of relaxing beverages), but as the next day dawns (and as the headache dies away) you realise that your boss is not to be argued with, so you decide to “do your best” and see how it goes. What are the chances of achieving that target? None at all. As long as we believe that we can’t do it, we wont do it. That’s the way it works.

In the spirit of abundance your approach would be very different. When you are given a tough target, double it! Yes, you heard right. Double it, and then truly believe that you can achieve it. Now write it down to commit yourself to achieving it. (You may have to trust me here just a little, until you see how this can work, but that’s okay)

Now that you have “double a tough target” you can’t just sit back and wait for it all to happen of course, that’s not the way it works. You have to make it happen and the best way to do that is to imagine yourself in the result of achieving double that tough target, and ask yourself how you got there. Knowing my strike rate, how many customers did I have to see in order to make all those sales? How much turnover did I have to do each month, week, day, to achieve that target? How did I work smarter rather than harder to see all of those customers? How did I categorize my customers so I spent most of my time focusing on those areas that will bring in the most business? How did I get focused on the possibility of achieving that target rather than the impossibility?

Take a look at the bar in your local pub on a Friday lunchtime. It will be full of salespeople complaining how bad business is right now. The achievers won’t be there, they will be out getting face to face with the customers, getting the business.

There is absolutely no limit to the number of customers out there who want to buy from you. None at all. The limit is in your mind.

Now you have looked back from the future to see how you achieved “double that tough target”, the next stage is to take action. Work forward from where you are now doing what you predicted you would have to do, to get there.

I have recently been discussing a potential new development in my business with a friend. I know there is no limit to the possibilities in my business, and I am always open to new ideas and the limitless areas where my business may be taken. After the initial enthusiasm and excitement of taking my business to new areas off shore we started to look in more detail at the figures together with the “what if” options and the enthusiasm started to wane. This is too easy. Give me a set of figures and I can “what if” them to death.

The most important element in any new venture is the enthusiasm. Of course there are other elements involved here. Intelligence, ability, activity, strength and fitness (both physical and emotional), and yes, a good understanding of the figures involved is essential. With any new venture, however, you can never predict what is going to happen, you take a stab at it of course, but your predictions are not likely to be all that accurate (both good and bad) and it will be your enthusiasm to make it work, that will win out every time. That enthusiasm will come from the understanding of how the principle of abundance works.

The spirit of abundance applies to your relationships as well. There is absolutely no limit to the number of people who want to be your friend or partner, the limit is in your mind. Open your mind to the limitless possibilities and then open your heart and see what is possible.

Wealth does not stand still (I do not just mean money when I use the word wealth; it also includes wealth in relationships, in education, in fitness, in love etc...etc.) Wealth is a flowing river that, if blocked, simply finds another route to take. If you get some wealth and store it like a miser it simply stops flowing. If, on the other hand you understand the principle of abundance, you will know that the more that flows out, the more will flow in. This is a principle that I will continue to explore next week.