by Chinonso Ogbogu

Rather than recognize and effectively deploy our true values wherever we find ourselves, many of us have successfully allowed the interviews of life to threaten and clothe us with an identity that stands as a total embarrassment to our Maker.

I really don’t fancy job interviews. Apart from them being somewhat boring and stressful, they’ve become a rendezvous where some job-seekers converged on to tell lies or engage in window dressing in order to land a job. The size of deception that goes on during some job interviews is gargantuan! Sometimes when I mull over it, I begin to calculate the number of people who will go to hell just for attending a job interview. But just before I arrive at a final figure, something usually hits me and then I change gear and begin to consider the idea of starting a business of selling lie detectors! “Okay Chinonso, what particular matter do you’ve to tell us today? While not spare us those introductory stances and just dish out the meat?” you may be saying. Oops! I’m sorry for being carried away; but was I? Anyway, here’s the meat.

Some couple of months ago, I was invited to join a team of interviewers to conduct an interview for over fifty job-seekers. Since we only needed three persons, I knew we were in for a struggle! The interview was scheduled to commence by 10a.m. but by 9a.m. it appeared almost all the candidates were utterly ready to come in and tell us their stories. When it was time for us to commence, I took position and the first applicant was ushered into the boardroom. Roughly four hours into the interview, I began to feel a cloud of boredom forming in my system. “Oh, not again!” I thought. But just before it wanted to pour, something interesting happened—and my attention was jolted! A certain matured candidate was ushered into the boardroom and then I asked him to take a seat. When he did, we exchanged few pleasantries and then we began to question him. Well, few minutes to the close of the interview, I unequivocally asked him, “Sir, how much do you want us to pay you?” Looking somewhat startled, he replied, “Sir, anything can do.” I was taken aback by his response that I quickly retorted, “No. I don’t agree with you. You’ve a value…so what’s your value?” Again he replied, “Sir, anything you pay me is ok.” And then I asked again, “Okay, do you mean if I pay you N1’000 for a month you’ll work?” To my greatest bewilderment, he said, “No problem, sir. I will work.” Well, instantly I scored him on my evaluation sheet, shook his hands, and then thanked him for coming for the interview. As he proceeded to the door, I looked at him, and spontaneously I muttered, “Phew! What a great ‘humility’!”

Okay, please don’t ask me if he got the job—you already know.

Ladies and gentlemen, isn’t it heartbreaking that many of us don’t understand—or have forgotten—how powerful and valuable we are? I mean, isn’t it rather alarming the hordes of people we find roaming the earth surface without any sense of value…and yet they aren’t bothered? We’re the very best of the Grand Creator’s assets, yet the way we perceive ourselves, interact with people, and live our lives prove completely otherwise. Rather than recognize and effectively deploy our true values wherever we find ourselves, many of us have successfully allowed the interviews of life to threaten and clothe us with an identity that stands as a total embarrassment to our Maker. Many of us just can’t even engage in a meaningful conversation or argument or negotiation with others without brewing with inferiority complex. While for others, they’ve finally succeeded in contaminating their true values with what I call the ‘Perverted Humility Disease (PHD).’ However, if what I’ve just said is a reflection of your life or any part of it, then I’ve good news for you: You can correct it today.

Do you know that you’re so special? Do you that you’ve more potentials than you think you have? Do you know that your true value is raised by the power of infinity? You’re such a unique, beautiful, formidable, top-of-the-range, unprecedented being whose time for success and significance has come. So don’t allow life’s situations or the people around you to tell you otherwise. Even when people think or say unpleasant things about you, let your self-worth still be intact, always. The truth is that life will always mirror back the same picture you’ve of yourself. Therefore, won’t it be safe for you to always project your true value so that the forces of life will go to work on your favour? Hint: You have an immense value. Go ahead and live it today! Cheers!

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Chinonso Ogbogu is a management consultant, conference speaker, personal development coach, writer, blogger, and a radio personality. He is the radio host of SuccessMatters™ and the author of the upcoming book, ‘THE VOICES.’

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.