WHEN OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS…
“When opportunity knocks it is too late to prepare.” That is credited to the legendary American Football Coach John Wooden. Many people wait for opportunity. They dream about it. They fast and pray for it. But they fail to do one of the most critical things required: they do not prepare for opportunity. Therefore, when opportunity comes, they are not prepared to take advantage of it. The opportunity passes them by.
“When opportunity knocks it is too late to prepare.” ~ John Wooden
For example, Nigeria has a crude oil production capacity of 2.5 million barrels per day and is one of the major crude oil producers in the world. However, through policy defaults and inconsistencies it had failed to make necessary strategic investments in the oil industry for many years.
Consequently, its production capacity has continued to decline to the point that it is not able to meet its OPEC quota of 1.77 million barrels per day, in spite of the current high crude oil prices. Current actual production is 1.42 million barrels per day. That is a huge loss for a country that is facing a major economic crisis and needs all the money that it can get.
The Russia – Ukraine war has driven crude oil prices to high heaven creating a windfall for all major producers. However, Nigeria has missed the opportunity.
When opportunity knocks it is too late to prepare.
The same applies to gas production. Nigeria has also missed the opportunity to cash in on the opportunities thrown up in the global gas market by the same crisis. While the Emir of Qatar went to Germany to sign a gas supply agreement with the German government to replace some of the Russian gas supply, the Nigerian Government on June 1, 2022, approved the construction of a gas pipeline through Morocco to Spain. Will the opportunity still be there when this 4,000+ kilometers of pipeline construction is completed? Your guess is as good as mine.
Well, when opportunity comes, it is too late to prepare.
Similarly, some people miss opportunities because they wait until they are appointed into leadership or management positions before they get leadership training. But then, it turns out too late. Do not let that happen to you. This is another chance for you to prepare for opportunity. Click here to start.
There is nothing like preparation meeting opportunity. Opportunity is a very sly thing; it does not give advance notice or ring bells to announce its appearance.
“Success occurs when opportunity meets preparation” ~ Brian Tracy
However, “Success occurs when opportunity meets preparation” according to Brain Tracy. Also, luck, according to Roman philosopher Seneca, is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.
The story of BlaBlaCar, as presented in a 2017 BBC report, is a powerful example of what happens when preparation meets opportunity. I reproduce it below for your reading pleasure.
A rail strike is a strange time to realize that your start-up is going to be a success but that was the moment that the founders of BlaBlaCar knew that their company was going to take off.
BlaBlaCar is the French online ride-sharing company that pairs people travelling between cities with drivers who have empty seats in their car.
When it was set up in 2006, founders Nicolas Brusson and Frederic Mazzella found it difficult to persuade customers or investors of the idea. “People thought we were crazy. At the beginning they would say, ‘it’s interesting but you’re doing hitchhiking online and no-one’s going to do that,'” Mr Brusson says.
The company’s big break came in 2007 when the French train network was shut down by a strike and passengers were looking for alternative ways of travelling. BlaBlaCar saw a massive boost, not only in its usage but also to its profile as media companies lined up to cover the strike-busting solution.
“It was the first time I realized it was very useful,” Mr. Brusson says. “After this spike, the passenger numbers went down but to a much higher level than before, a lot of people came back.”
The popularity and success of BlaBlaCar today is likely to make any investor who turned them down 10 years ago cry into their cornflakes. Mr. Brusson confirms to the BBC that the latest round of funding values the company at more than £1.2bn ($1.5bn; €1.4bn).
The company makes its money by taking a percentage of the cost of the journeys taken by its 35 million members in 22 countries. It says four million people use BlaBlaCar every month.
The thing is: opportunity usually appears as work; therefore, many people miss it.
This is another opportunity for you, do not miss it. Click here to find out. What will happen to you tomorrow when opportunity comes depends on what you do with it today thank you.
When opportunity comes it is too late to prepare. Click here to start.
