Hang Around A Little More If You Need That Haircut!

Failure tests our persistence. Success tests our consistence. Failure will test how badly we want something and success will test how badly we want to keep that same thing. The thing about setbacks is that it will test how long you can still run after your dreams!

Skimming through the success story of almost every great man, one experience one can never skip is their failure story and how they stuck to their dreams only a little more when others quit. The only difference between ordinary and extraordinary men is the extra time the latter can afford to wait for their dreams to become a reality.

Life has a way of sieving the passionate from those who are not… with failure. Setbacks set those who only want a dream back… and those who badly need that dream forward. The biblical prophet Elisha was just one of the many mentees of Elijah. However, the mantle of leadership fell on him because he could persist only a little more than the others.

If you hang around the barbering shop for a long time, you will eventually get a haircut. If only you can afford to pursue your dreams a little more, you will soon make some gains.

Today, let me write about one young gentleman— Eugene Evans Arthur. We met somewhere in 2014 on Facebook. It began as a mere exchange of pleasantries and then I asked him to join my #TeamScribe as a protocol member. I was about staging my first play— This Family Is Not For Sale.

Mind you, I didn’t know he could act. I didn’t even know he was some voice over gem. All I knew was that he was one committed member who was always at my beck and call when I needed him to run errands for me.

Then… later in 2015, I finished writing “I Want To Sue God!”. I had observed from previous plays that when cast had to change costumes in between scenes, there was a break which left the stage idle. Thus, I introduced some spoken word therein as a creative way to engage audience within this break.

I thought of no one else… but Eugene. At least, he could get himself busy with a role this time, too. I didn’t care if he couldn’t do it. I only threw the challenge to him. Guess what, the spoken word talent inside of him was unveiled. That was how his brand YujinSpeaks was born!

He stole the show. He executed that role so well that no one could talk about the beauty of the show without ever making mention of his dexterity.

All this while, I still didn’t know he could act. I had seen him hang around the cast during rehearsals while often reminding them of their lines when they forgot. I was thinking about throwing another challenge to him soon.

In late 2016, I wrote my three-cast romantic comedy “My Wife-in-Law” and asked that he joined the backing vocalists. I tested his vocal skills. He passed.

Soon, we were in early 2017. I had finished writing “Tribeless” with him in mind. I was going to put him on stage to play a major role for the first time. He had shown enough character in times back and I knew without an iota of doubt that this was going to be no big deal for him.

Though it was his maiden stage performance, he did it with such panache. He rapped with confidence. He danced same. His vocal dexterity was awesome! I won’t be surprised if he emerges as one of the big shots in rap soon.

All of this taught me one simple lesson in life. As long as our dreams are concerned, delay doesn’t mean denial. All one needs to do is to hang around what they love to do… only a little bit more.

That’s what it means when they say if you hang around the barbering shop for a long while, you’ll soon get a haircut. Failure will test how badly you want that dream. All you need to do, despite the setbacks, is to keep hanging around the barbering shop of life. Keep hanging around!

If you hang around your dreams for a pretty long time, eventually you’ll hit a jackpot. It doesn’t really matter how long that haircut may take to come. Eventually… it will come!

I am inspired. I will keep hanging around life’s barbering shop a little more. Despite all the setbacks, I will chase my dreams a little further. I know I will get my haircut soon. I won’t despair!

The writer is a playwright and Chief Scribe of Scribe Communications ( www.scribecommltd.com ).