I’m where I am today because of luck — Tony Elumelu. A lot of people misunderstood Billionaire Tony Elumelu’s tweets. This is because we don’t read between the lines – we read literal meaning into deep thoughts, another reason why we got confused with the holy books.
Mr. Tony Elumelu tweets are Juxtapositions. Please google the word Juxtaposition.
When two contrasting words are placed together to subtly express their difference, it is called Juxtaposition. Intelligent writers use skills like Juxtaposition and Sarcasm to communicate sensitive information.
Now Re-read what he wrote as I inject explanations in brackets: “I am where I am today because of luck. Let me be clear: Luck is important, but it is not a substitute for hard work or labor. Luck is a part of the cocktail that you need for success.
“There are two ingredients for luck -hard work and passion. The more work you put into something and the more passion you apply, the “luckier” you will find yourself. You have to work hard, and be passionate and committed about what you do, to be successful and make your own luck.
(Read this paragraph again. According to the dictionary, luck means success Achieved through chance with “NO EFFORTS” by you. So why did Mr. Tony insert HARD WORK AND PASSION into Luck? The answer is that Mr. Tony’s intention is to inspire hard work but he knows that Nigerians cannot swallow the bitter pill if he doesn’t coat it with what they like the most – Luck or Grace. So because he didn’t want to sound religious, he avoided the use of grace and used luck to communicate the need for hard work and passion.)
Here’s the last part of his tweet: “Hard work and passion are within your power and control, and you should apply them to earn your own luck and to help us foster a better and more prosperous world.”
(If you read the last part deeply, you will discover that he is trying to engineer your mind to take CONTROL of your own success and EARN your own ‘luck’. If you can earn luck, then it is no longer luck.
Comprehension is key.
When you read a post made by a deep person, please don’t read literal meanings into it. If you have been here for some time, you will understand that I attack sensitive topics with a touch of sarcasm – and this disarms those who would have defended their sentiments and Achieved quick results.
Imagine if Mr. Tony Elumelu had been straightforward and said “I am where I am today because of hard work and passion”. Nigerians would call him boastful, arrogant, and godless. But he subtly said the same thing but with a cocktail of juxtaposition and irony.
My name is Charles Awuzie and I am a student of written words.
