Elevation Church Steve Furtick, sat with T.D Jakes in an informal interview recently where they talked on ‘Building your vision from the ground up‘. (I’ve linked the interview, so please feel free to click and watch).

Anyone who knows T.D Jakes knows that his story is one of pure hard work, diligence, consistency and crowned with Grace. I wonder if he would describe himself as self-made as he really came from the true definition of a humble background. But Because of his clergy position, I doubt he might openly declare himself such because there’s the high tendency of this single line being used against Himself, His faith and His church, however, looking at it, as a mere human being, T.D. Jakes, can be classified as the few Bishop/celebrity in the world to be self-made.

In his interview with Steve, he makes a bold claim, saying that “Most CEO’s and Business executives know very well that the problem is not where we are going, or what we want to achieve. The problem is usually what we are willing to drop in order to get to that place”.

Seeing as were in this part of the year where those who make resolutions, make them, those who set goals, set them and those who merely live by chance, somewhere within themselves, also make decisions, I think it is worth considering this statement to understand the battle were really fighting.

If you look at a lot of resolutions and goals, you will see that they are all the ‘will do’s’ and ‘will be’s’. The actions we hope to put in place in order to achieve whatever it is we have set in our minds as the goal, however, T.D. Jakes is claiming that answering these questions don’t really empower us with what we need to achieve the set goals, but he challenges us to identify the things/people, we are willing to let go of in order to make it to that desired goal.

In these last few days of my retreat, i’m taking my mind off the things I plan to do, the places I plan to visit and the people I plan to meet and focusing my mind on the things I must not do, the places I must not go and the people I must not entertain.

It is a phenomenon in mathematics called logical equivalence, instead of directly attacking what you need to do, start by identifying the things you DON’T need to do. I think it is an absolutely exciting exercise for anyone who will be truthful doing it as it stops you from seeing possibility on just one side and opens you to the possibilities on the other side as well.

For a lot of us, 2019 is not the year of ‘will’s’ and ‘do’s’, it is more of the year of ‘will not’s’ and ‘don’t’s’. I hope with everything in me that you identify clearly all those habits, people and things hindering you from being your best self, as the faster we drop those things, the closer we get to those goals!

Have fun completing the statements below, I advise writing them down. It’ll be your writing against you if you ever do break any.