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We are dealing with the important issue of capital today because it is central to human development. If a nation or person lacks capital, they could be hindered from attaining their full potential. No development takes place without capital. Men were placed on the moon, great discoveries are being made, huge enterprises are being set up, and technologies are being created because of the availability of capital in all ramifications.
If you lack capital, you may not excel. Mediocre individuals who have capital by inheritance could still build on it and excel, if they have experts to help run their projects, whereas a competent, capable man without means, though he were a genius, is hindered because he lacks the necessary funding for his ideas
Capital is what brings ideas to life; it is the engine of growth that perpetuates the advancement of humanity. That was why the first thing God created was natural resources, minerals, oil, precious metals buried in the earth, before vegetation, animals and, finally, humans. God then empowered man to dominate (develop) the earth, populate it to ensure the perpetuation of the human race, and also subdue it to ensure conquest in the shape of scientific discoveries and selfless political leadership.
One component of capital people often overlook is goodwill. As intangible social capital, goodwill is as important as hard currency, fixed assets or any other source of capital. There are so many things goodwill can do, which other forms of capital cannot do. A prominent citizen who is detained by the police or the court could get a bail on personal recognition, money may not be able to do that.
Goodwill is based on integrity; there are few things it cannot achieve. A man or woman of goodwill, even if of limited means or popularity, could win an election into public office where moneybags fail. Some key political appointments are given because the candidate has this important social capital in large quantities.
Therefore, a man of goodwill is a man a of means. Like other forms of capital, goodwill can be accumulated over time. Indeed, time is a major factor in the attainment of any level of goodwill. Character, honesty, trust, ability, reliability are the components of goodwill. These qualities are often tested over time, and the ability of any individual to sustain integrity in the face of temptation, trials and the strains that we experience in relationships determines the level of goodwill he or she may have. Like all other forms of capital, goodwill could be squandered and exhausted, if not properly managed or nurtured.
Some people who are popular today may end up being despised tomorrow. Why? They have squandered or lost their goodwill through some actions bordering on character flaws. If, peradventure, a respected or otherwise influential person makes a public statement or associates with the wrong people or supports unpopular causes, such persons risk losing their goodwill.
This is why some people transmute from hero to villain. You have to be very careful the way you do things, if you have goodwill. Goodwill could evaporate, like smoke, within seconds. When someone loses their goodwill, especially in the eyes of the public, such a person falls from grace to grass. This is often difficult to reverse.
A great soccer player who loses a crucial penalty, especially the crucial single kick that decides a major match like the World Cup final, could lose his reputation with that one act. Because sports are often driven by passion, fans react to defeat with extreme anger, especially when national pride is at stake.
What earns you goodwill is your will to do well. When the will is good, a public servant in any office performs creditably. It is clearly a key component of capital formation. George Washington, after a successful tenure as the pioneer President of independent America, resisted the clamour by adoring supporters to make him king. The late Lee Kwuan Yu still enjoys the prestige of being the man who transformed the tiny island state of Singapore into a world economic power. Mahatma Gandhi is still revered in India and around the world because he shunned the comfort of a lucrative practice and identified with the cause of the Harisjans, the untouchable lower caste of India. These are men of goodwill.
Gandhi’s campaingn of non-violent resistance achieved what violent liberation groups have not been able to achieve despite mass killings of innocent people. Although Gandhi, Lee, Mao Zedong, Washington, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Bill Gates and other men and women of goodwill might not have been Christians, they nevertheless exhibited that Christ-like character of doing good.
Rev. Chris Okotie says that it is the righteousness (doing the right things a godly way) that exalts a nation. When leaders exhibit this kind of righteousness, their people will be great. I define this element of righteousness as goodwill; it is the will to do well for the benefit of the people, even at your inconvenience or peril. It is the stuff that produces heroes.
You should be careful not to destroy your reputation. It could take decades to build goodwill, but just a second to blow it all away.
A good name is greater than all the money in the world. Goodwill is as vital as cash capital. Take that home.
Weekend Spice: Before things could change around you, you must first change within you.
– Pastor Michael Uche Iheanacho
Ok folks, let’s do it again next Friday. Stay motivated.
•Ayodeji is an author, rights activist, pastor and life coach. He can be reached on 09059243004 (SMS and WhatsApp only)
