Author Archives: yemmakelly

922760_428116813951469_7288564_n

Success

Posted on by

182578_639892889358367_1690374705_n

1986, was not only the best year to be born (not biased at all..) but was also the start of one of the most successful careers in football management. As you may have heard (or not if you are like my sister!) Alex Ferguson retired as manager of Manchester United Football Club. For me this was a very upsetting time as the he had been the driving force of my beloved football team since the day I was born. Since he announced his retirement I have enjoyed reading the reflections on his career which have put into perspective the enormous success and inspiration he was.

In some way, shape or form we all want success. Whether that is in our job, in our sports teams or in our family life, we want to accomplish something. So how can we be successful? Here are some ideas on how to be successful using Sir Alex’s way…imagesCAFYNRHX

1: Imagine Success

Einstein said “the imagination is more important than knowledge”. Sir Alex dreamed of success and made it a reality. Of course there were bumps along his journey, we all know he is known for his controversy with the likes of Beckham (remember the boot to the head!). However, he got the job done with an extraordinary 38 trophies across 27 seasons, including; 13 League Titles, 5 FA Cups, 4 League Cups, 10 Charity or Community Shields,European Cup-Winners Cup, 2 Champions League Trophies, European Super Cup, an Intercontinental Cup and FIFA World Club Cup. (Sorry for the little factoid there but WOW!) So…dream and imagine your success to enable the ball to start rolling.

2: Get the motivation

You need to identify the things you love to do, the things that give you satisfaction and that in turn will provide the motivation. What if Sir Alex hated football? How could he have made a success of the club? The answer is he couldn’t! Enjoyment leads to success.

3: Take Risks

“Success…seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.”

–Conrad Hilton

ManUtdGrey_468x366
Become active in your journey, don’t take the back seat as nothing will happen. Furthermore there is no point in giving up at the first hurdle, you need to keep going, reflecting on what was good and what went wrong and why. Sir Alex had many a defeat in his time, many of which I would like to forget…anyone remember the grey shirt excuse against Southampton? Oh dear! However that just provided him with more motivation to come back fighting.

4: Value people

In Sir Alex’s farewell speech it struck me how much of his success is based on the value of others, teamwork and respect. He knew that his success was a result of other people as much as himself.

“The players… I wish the players every success in the future. You know how good you are, you know the jersey you’re wearing, you know what it means to everyone here and don’t ever let yourself down. The expectation is always there. ” -

Sir Alex Ferguson

Finally there is not any shortcut for success, it’s just the result of preparation, hard working and learning from failure!
Success does not come through willpower alone, it takes consistency and determination. Doing something once won’t make a huge difference; it’s when you do that one thing many times over before you can achieve success. Sir Alex’s success is one which many people, United fans or not, are in admiration of. He is definitely an inspiration to many. Thank you Sir Alex for 26 years of success … now time to pass on the baton.

922760_428116813951469_7288564_n

So your challenge today is start your own journey of success…no matter how big or small…imagine then go for it! Who knows you may be the next Sir Alex! :-)

barney-stinsons-quotes-challenge-accepted-timeline-profile-facebook-cover

Come on….take on the challenge….

Posted on by

I love trying new, different things and challenging myself.  For me going through life without any challenges at all would be pretty boring, right? Going from day to day being able to do every single thing with ease and confidence is just too easy, yes? When we create challenges for ourselves we create excitement, we learn lessons, experience new things, and have to push ourselves a bit harder.

Recently, I read this quote ;

“Challenges make you discover things about yourself that you never really knew. They’re what make the instrument stretch-what make you go beyond the norm.”

CHALLENGE-612x300

This week I have been able to share in other people experiencing this for themselves. On Wednesday, my 15 year old brother, Nathan, performed his first solo in an event at school. For a couple of years now, he has declined singing solos due to a lack of self belief and confidence. However a few months ago he was approached by some sixth former’s asking him to sing a solo in their charity event. Suddenly he felt he needed to take this challenge and push himself to step outside of his comfort zone.  The nerves and insecurities, of course took their toll but he never gave up, in fact he became more and more determined to succeed in this challenge.  Wednesday came, so did the solo and so did the accomplishment of the challenge. Suddenly Nathan experienced a new, exciting exhilarating feeling whilst performing. He also received great praise and made many people very, very proud including his big sister who didn’t stop showing everyone the video.  So here it is for even more people to see….

So when was the last time you created a challenge for yourself?  Would you rather challenge yourself or go through life completely knowing you can get by from what you already know or can do?

Why not check out our ‘Get Involved’ page to see how Chennai Challenge can get you to challenge yourself and step outside your comfort zone.

Born to be a leader….

Posted on by

LeadershipIconLeadership – this month has seen global changes in leadership; a new pope, a new archbishop of Canterbury and not to be left behind, we at Chennai Challenge are developing our leadership and management structure.  This got me thinking about the phrase commonly heard, ‘born to be a leader.’   Some people believe that leaders are born with the necessary qualities that make them successful as leaders. Others believe leadership can be learned and developed through life. For me, I think it depends on how you see leadership.

What is leadership?

Some believe it is the ability to inspire and influence others. John Quincy Adams states; “ If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and  become more, you are a leader.” For others leadership means being courageous and willing to speak out on an issue they are passionate about.  Many define leadership as a typical intelligence / behaviour which would bring us back to believing it is a trait which we are born with but can develop and enhance through life. So what does this mean?

Anyone can be a leader!

We all have passions in our lives where our talents lie and where we can succeed. These passions lead to qualities that we may not use in other areas of our life. Therefore whilst we may not be a natural leader, we can overcome obstacles and develop a desire and an ability to lead through our inspiration.crossword 14

Developing Leadership

Here at Chennai Challenge we invite people of all ages and backgrounds to join our projects and they in turn bring differing experiences and characteristics. However they all have a common desire to make a difference which in turn brings out unknown qualities which we encourage and develop whilst they are on project.

For example we endeavour to encourage team members to develop their leadership skills by;

  • Taking risk and living outside their comfort zone.
  • Improving their communication skills especially their ability to listen.
  • With support make decisions in planning sessions and organising resources.
  • Being confident in themselves and their ability.
  • Being reflective, knowing their strengths and seeking support in areas they find difficult.
  • Thinking positively and committing to reach their aims for the project.
  • Supporting and mentoring other team members.
  • Influencing others.

So what do you think? Are leaders born or made? Comment below. Or why not look at applying for our next project to develop yourself as a leader.

Making a difference

Posted on by

4th Saturday means my time to blog! Unfortunately this also means there will be no recipes or baby related talk just a small insight into my thoughts…..I know scary! So here goes….

MAKING A DIFFERENCE – A thought for the week ahead….Make-a-Difference

When encouraging people to join a Chennai Challenge project, we often use the phrase ‘make a difference’. At a recent project leaders meeting it occurred to me that many people have this desire within them to make a difference by changing lives, being an encouragement or actively helping people. In Rob’s blog in January he used the story of the starfish and the girl http://chennaichallenge.com/2013/01/05/order-order/ to show us that we can have a positive effect on the things we are involved in.

Recently at school, I used this video clip to illustrate how just ONE person can have an impact on people and that nothing should stop them with their desire to do so.

Sometimes, a hug is all what we need. Now I know what your thinking ….and yes it is still Emma writing…the person who is rarely seen giving hugs! However ‘Free hugs’ is a real life controversial story of Juan Mann, a man whose desire was to reach out and hug a stranger to brighten up their lives. In this world of social disconnectivity and lack of human contact, the effects of the Free Hugs campaign became phenomenal. It had a snowball effect and soon this “hugs campaign” was bringing good feelings to many, many people. Acts like this one are the type that work to bring the people of the world closer together.

My challenge to you this week is… make a difference to someone elses life. It may just be a hug, smile or listening ear but as we have seen it can have a huge impact. 

Let’s try to bring our world closer together and enjoy connecting without Facebook. Twitter or the social networking we are all so accustomed to.

Why not comment below and share the ways in which you made a difference.

Discos – love or hate?

Posted on by

discoDiscos are like Marmite, you either love them or hate them. Growing up, I always hated attending parties as it was customary to dance and anyone who knows me knows I don’t like dancing.  Yet surprisingly I am now the one up leading the dancing at every school disco we have! Unfortunately I have also been to many parties where the DJ has a playlist of awful songs that no one ever gets up to dance to.

However about three years ago I became an amateur Charity DJ playing at a range of parties and events including anniversaries, decade themed nights and birthday parties. Since then I have become more aware of the top tracks that get people up and dancing.

There are two types of music that people dance to, traditional ‘disco fever’ tracks and action disco dances (probably because there are set actions where you don’t have to worry about looking like a fool!) Below are my top 10 disco dances and top 10 disco songs which are guaranteed to get your party goers up and dancing.

What are your favourite disco songs which get you up and dancing?

Comment below for them to feature in the Disco top 10.

discos

TOP 10 DISCO SONGS

1 I will survive Gloria Gaynor
2 Le Freak Chic
3 Staying Alive Bee Gees
4 Disco Inferno Trammps
5 Don’t Blame it on the Sunshine Jackson 5
6 Hot Stuff Donna Summer
7 Play That Funky Music Wild Cherry
8 Dancing Queen ABBA
9 Celebration Kool and the Gang
10 Lady Marmalade Christina Aguilera, Pink, Mya, Lil’ Kim
1 Macarena Los del Rio
2 Cha Cha Slide DJ Casper
3 YMCA The Village People
4 Oops upside  your head The Gap Band
5 5,6,7,8 Steps
6 Saturday Night Whigfield
7 Cotton Eyed Joe Rednex
8 Superman Black Lace
9 Reach S Club 7
10 Gangnam Style PSY