First permit me to express my gratitude to the Apostle-General, the Most Reverend Sam Korankye Ankrah and the leadership of the Youth Ministry for the kind invitation extended to me to address the 2010 Youth National Camp Meeting under the theme: ‘Going Up’.
I am grateful for the opportunity to share with you bits and pieces of my life under the following areas, as provided by the invitation letter:
THE FINANCIAL AND SOCIAL STATE IN WHICH GOD PICKED ME FROM?
I was born about 55 years ago. I lost my mother before I could make class one and can’t recollect how she looks like. I lost my father; when I was in form one, second term at Mfantsipim School in 1968. At the time of my GCE ‘O’ Levels exams, I was the student with the highest outstanding school fees because it hadn’t been paid for over three years. I felt so humiliated most of the time that going to the dining hall to eat was a real hurdle and therefore preferred staying away and rather engaged myself in hiding and weeping in isolation, but I was determined to study hard and pass all exams as I realised that it was my only way out of the hardships.
Let me say that I did not allow my situation to intimidate me.
In a school, where more than 80% of the students came from very rich, high-society homes and could afford more than the basic needs of the average student; and where the remaining 20% from poor homes included those without weekend family visits with their accompanying baskets of all kinds of home food, the student from the poor home needed to be exceptionally gifted to find his own level, with all the disadvantages.
You could tell the difference between these two types of students from the way they speak their English: whilst those from poor, rural, unsophisticated homes speak our English raw with strong local accent, those from rich homes slang their English in the direction of where they spend their holidays – either Europe / UK or the USA.
Thus, to lose a father and suddenly find yourself move from the fringes of one group to the centre of the other group, was not only nerving and could break many a student, I kept faith with myself and the Lord God to make it through to the University.
Permit me to admit that at that time I didn’t know anything about GRACE and MERCIES of the Lord God, indeed, it was when I joined Royalhouse Chapel that I became aware of what actually kept me, guided and guarded me, and directed my path for the greater glory of His Kingdom.
For whilst my other siblings dropped out for non-payment of school fees, my grand-aunt kept my faith alive that it really didn’t matter and what was left for me to do was to study, and she took care of always begging the Bursar to grant me the peace to learn.
Before the final GCE ‘O’ Level exams, the list of students owing school fees was pasted on the dining hall notice board, requesting that the students involved were to leave and go home. First, this kept me away from eating at the hall because I couldn’t bear the shame as I was leading the list and the next student was just about a third of how much I owed. At that time I had been told a story of how my own father faced a similar situation when he was also a student at Mfantsipim School and therefore he had to drop out for a year to work before coming back to continue and complete his education and also that the then headmaster was his classmate.
I went to see him and told him my story stressing that if I went home I would still come back without any money since there was nobody to pay, but if he could allow me to finish my GCE ‘O’ Level then I was assuring him that I would go and work like my father and come and pay the outstanding before continuing to the Sixth Form. The headmaster looked at me, possibly couldn’t believe what he was hearing and gave me money to go home with; but also gave me an additional to come back if I couldn’t get any money. This I did and when I came back, he gave me some provisions and that was the end of the matter till I finished, collected my share of my father’s SSNIT payment and went back to pay the fees.
Meanwhile, at about Form Three, Form Four, whilst I was roaming in Sekondi during one of the holidays, I met a Lady who apparently knew my circumstances and asked how things were: I told her how rough and also that someone had advised me to go to the Social Welfare Department for them to look after me at school. She told me that was a wrong move because I was going to be great in future and at that time if I consider myself how I declared myself a pauper to get through school, I would hate myself and also be without a story to tell others; and I dropped that thought.
There are lots of other stories to tell but I will keep it short for time allotted me for my presentation. Let me sum it up by saying that when we don’t know our end, our future, how great we would be and be a blessing to others, there is always the temptation that we wouldn’t want to endure the hardships, and wanting a shortcut out of the problems – only to lose the whole import of the lessons of that life.
For me, life’s journey is about how we handle and deal with all the lessons of life we face, every second, every minute, every day: challenges, obstacles, opportunities, death of family members and close friends, sicknesses, health, prosperity and blessings, in short everything because the word says in 1 Thess. 5:18 “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”.
I guess, if I hadn’t gone through all these, I wouldn’t have qualified to stand before you today to speak to you and be part of this year’s Royalhouse National Youth Camp Meeting.
Indeed, the Lord’s Hand has always been over me through my days at the University as a student and a teaching assistant to working with the National Sports Council, Ghana Food Distribution Corporation (GFDC), to setting up and operating with my own company from 1986. Next year, 24th July 2011, my company would have been 25 years in business.
Now I look back with nostalgia to the very beginning of starting RICS Consult from my hall, with no working capital than full of ideas, to getting my first job from Ghamot Company, then local agents for Toyota for a sponsorship sum of 5,000.00 cedis or the current equivalent of fifty (50) Ghana Pesewas, straight conversion into today’s currency.
Within this period too, I have had the unique opportunities to live my dreams through three major international sporting events hosted by Ghana, namely the 1999 CAF Africa Youth Football Championship; the 2008 CAF Africa Cup of Nations Football; and the 2009 AfHF African Cup for Nations Hockey tournaments.
WHERE I AM NOW AND WHAT MY PRESENT STATE IS?
Currently, I have retired from official public service and would now be concentrating on perpetuating a very good succession plan for the companies I have established.
The centre of it all is RICS Consult Limited, an integrated marketing communications consultancy firm; Ethel-Jane Sports Business School, a tertiary institution established for sports business, sports, events management, music and cultural industries; AWD Sports Strategies Ghana Limited, a sports business and management consultancy firm; and RICS Properties, a real estate development and management company.
I have always said that one thing I have in abundance is ideas and dreams. My limitation, as always, will be funding but I am more than persuaded that the Good Lord will show Himself strong and provide a stream in the middle of the desert.
Our intentions, at RICS Consult, is to establish the first stand-alone tertiary institution in Africa to grow new career paths and professions in sports business and aiming at empowering over 500,000 Africans across the continent to manage and promote sports into a self-sustaining veritably competing industry.
Our plan is to build the main campus in Sekondi-Takoradi, where we are currently securing a large tract of land in the metropolis for the construction of lecture halls, administration block, libraries (both electronic and print), cafeteria, hostel and recreational facilities; whilst we are developing corporate offices, lecture rooms, libraries and suites for visiting overseas lectures at our West Tesano premises of RICS Consult Limited.
We are trusting the Lord and coupled with the prophesies of our spiritual father and the Apostle-General, we are persuaded that this dream, this vision and this innovation will become reality to His Glory.
With the AWD Sports Strategies Ghana, named after my late father: Amos William Danquah, it has been established to take over all the sports consultancy businesses of RICS Consult, and grow it into an African brand, with collaborations across the continent.
We are also entering into the real estate market with RICS Properties Company to manage other people’s properties as well as develop properties in Accra and Sekondi-Takoradi for sale and rental and also manage all properties of the Group.
My current pre-occupation is to institutionalise a pragmatic succession plan to ensure the future of the companies are assured through the recruitment of bright young men and women as the disciples for the harvest of growing employment opportunities for the youth of the African continent and establishing sports business and events management as emerging industries.
WHERE I AM ASPIRING TO BE IN FUTURE?
First, let me admit that I am a serious DREAMER, never limited by any constraints.
All my aspirations for the future are embedded in the first part of Proverbs 13:22 “Good people leave an inheritance for their children’s children”.
For me, there could be no greater inheritance to bequeath my children’s children’s children to the tenth generation and ultimately, mankind than to establish a tertiary centre for learning and empowering Africans across the continent, as well as grow new career paths and professions for the youth in sports business, events management, music and cultural industries management.
The beauty of the dream is the challenges and constraints that we will have to surmount to make it a reality.
When I started saying that sports was a big business and that it should be one of the critical indicators of economic growth, national development and a major driving force for rebranding the Continent of Africa, many were the skeptics who took me for a pretender.
Over two decades on the journey, I have stood the test, whilst being the first to admit that the real job is only beginning for Africa to impact the world through sports business.
I want to look back after everything and say that like Apostle Paul, I ran a good race and gave my all to the society.
I made the point at the launching of our 25th anniversary celebrations that after running my course of the last 24 years, it is about time I took the back stage for a new leadership to take control and with new vigour, creativity, innovation, and excellent spirit, take the dream to the next level and drive the original agenda to its God ordained destination.
HOW I INTEND TO BE WHERE I AM GOING?
I know the going isn’t going to be easy and that I know.
What we have started is a whole revolution and we are expecting to fight for each of the grounds we will cover.
Our first requirement therefore is to seek the face of the Lord in all the things we will do. We also intend to rely on the prayers of the faithful, the Church and a Prayer Group, we will ask of the Apostle-General to support the dream. I am asking for the prayer support because I know firsthand what it did for me during the Ghana 2008 Football tournament, as that kept me alive against all the odds to finish the event.
We are also consolidating our Business Plan, which we will be launching for the growth of the dream, source for partners to invest in the project at a later stage for an accelerated development.
Definitely, each stage will be driven by prayers and impartation by the Apostle-General.
ANY ENCOURAGEMENT AND MOTIVATION FOR THE YOUTH TO INSPIRE GREATNESS AND THINK BIG?
Up to this point, I have tried to go by the script as determined by the letter of invitation.
I guess this part is the point that I become myself and talk to you, intimately, about life, dreams, thinking big, encouragement and motivation.
What I have learnt over the past fifty years on my life’s journey is that this journey, which is set for each and every one of us, is about lessons of life and how we react to each and every one of these lessons.
I have grown to realise that the society has never owed anybody and rather it is us, individually who owe the society, making it imperative that within the period we are here on this earth we work to give back to society.
This society has always been shaped by dreamers, people who think big, people who desire to impact the society in whatever field of endeavour they find themselves, be it career, vocation or profession – in music, education, physics, chemistry, medicine, sports, economics, agriculture, mining, sanitation, oil & gas, fishing, pharmacy, theatre, evangelism or business.
Anybody who undertakes his / her pursuits with PASSION: with intense interest, not thinking of the returns becomes the most successful and has the icing on the cake with financial rewards. With passion, you don’t fret nor whine, you serve selflessly, and you accept the position of Elisha and serve a master to the end, not halfway so you earn a double portion of favour. Let me say that passion-driven activities lead to excellence for as long as there is consistency, backed by perseverance.
For me, one major attribute which we are lacking today and leads most people, especially the youth to failure is desire to serve as an APPRENTICE. You need to learn to serve without question.
One of the secrets of Elisha’s successes was being a faithful apprentice to Elijah.
If you read 2 Kings 3:11 – “King Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord? An officer of the King of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”
There is one thing the youth of today lack greatly. Everybody is in a rush to become a MASTER and be on his own. Nobody is ready to learn and serve by continuously pouring water on the hands of the master to the end to earn the double portion of favour.
If you tell yourself, when working for a master that you will go to work late, close early, incite others against your master and wait for the day, you will start your own work and be successful, you are lying. If you leave without the blessings of your master, you will not succeed until you do the right thing, as you would have already acquired the spirit of failure by the way you conducted yourself.
Please, don’t get me wrong: nothing stops anybody from leaving his master at any point in his life to chart a new path for himself but there are principles to follow. Let us take it from a father-son relationship. A man / son needs the consent of the father to move on in life and get married, indeed that is why fathers give away daughters in marriage, just as fathers stand behind sons in marriage. A father needs to bless the son before he leaves his house to set up his own; and that is why the apprentice will have to secure the consent and approval of the master before moving on with blessings. Check Abraham to Isaac; Isaac to Jacob; and Jacob to his Children to appreciate this.
Hairdressers, seamstresses, artisans and fitters also experience this phenomenon by the day and they can tell you the import and implications of this truism better.
The way I work now, was the same when I was working for others: so now I can start early and work late for myself.
Taxi driver and taxi owner story………
For me, I have long accepted that the only thing anybody owns absolutely is his / her head / brains / mind. Any other thing in a man’s life, you could be dispossessed by an armed robber or through litigation. Thus, it should be the place to invest the more in terms of KNOWLEDGE to be successful. So learn, read all kinds of books, not necessarily those related to the subject you read at school.
What we sell as educated people for employment or consultancy is knowledge. Nobody will pay anybody for what they already know, so your value is correlated with the depth of your knowledge over and above that of the person paying you. So please, take your education seriously. That is exactly what I opted for when I lost my parents and I know it will help you.
Finally and most importantly, grow in the Lord. Let the Lord be your teacher. The things I do for business are those that I took for hobbies at Mfantsipim School and admittedly, gift from the Lord and yet without any formal education but reading extensively, I have matured and grown into the best there is in the business.
Thank you for the opportunity to share these points with you.
very inspiring...
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