MINDING YOUR APPETITE 

Through the power of advertisement, I fell into the trap of going to Burger King instead of KFC or McDonald’s for my meals, especially when I needed to eat outside. In one of my visits, I had a profound experience. I was at work on this fateful day and had an hour’s break in between to rest and, of course, eat. Actually, I was a bit hungry because I had a very light breakfast. So I searched for the nearest Burger King within the centre of Leeds. As expected, a couple of their outlets popped up, and I walked to the closest one. On getting there, I placed an order for a particular type of meal. When the order came, I was like, where is the burger in the meal? The lady attending to me pointed out that I had ordered exactly what I got. I was shocked—it was not what I expected at all. But I did something. I accepted what I was offered; I just didn’t refuse. In my thinking, what I had been given was not bad after all, and this could hold my stomach till I got home. Literally, I accepted because I didn’t have a huge appetite and wasn’t ready to create a scene there.

Here is the moral lesson of that experience. Many times, we go through life accepting things that are neither what we want nor entirely bad in the real sense. We settle after finding a convenient local spot, giving up our initial target for something global. We just decide not to push further because we feel this summit is okay. I believe our response to life is a function of our appetite. A student, for instance, may feel getting a pass is fine when he or she could have earned a distinction. You may be okay with being paid the minimum wage when you could be earning ten times what you currently earn. We settle for less often because our appetite is low. We restrain from taking risks. Somehow, we accept that it is okay to operate at a mediocre level.

In this note, I will be sharing some information about three appetites we are subjected to daily.

1. Appetite for Food

By our biological design, we all get hungry. Both the best and worst of us need food for survival. At the same time, we all display different levels of appetite. Some can eat five wraps of swallow, while some struggle to finish one or two. Hunger is a biological process triggered by internal signals like an empty stomach, low blood sugar, and weakness. Appetite, on the other hand, is a physiological or emotional effect. It is that desire or craving for a particular type of food. Satiety is that feeling of fullness and satisfaction after you have eaten a certain amount of food. Hunger and satiety are difficult to control, but what you can determine is your appetite. If I may ask, what is your appetite like for certain food? Are there particular types of food that drive your brain to action? The problem is not the food; it’s your appetite, and this is caused by different factors such as environment, sensory cues, and more.

2.Appetite for Excellence and Growth

It still amazes me how anything excellent can be easily recognized. As a tutor, I usually identify excellent students by their writing styles and attention to detail. In most cases, they write beautifully, show their steps, and display clarity. Excellence and growth speak not only of achieving a goal but also of a continuous drive to improve. With an excellent and growth mindset, you always yearn to get better, learn more, and do things to the highest standard.

Excellence is the ability to do something in a perfect way. It is the act of refining your work, learning from mistakes, and raising your standards. People who have an appetite for growth and excellence sustain performance, drive innovation, and inspire others.

3. Appetite for Risk

One of the appetites entrepreneurs and founders of great businesses have is the appetite for risk. To have a desire for risk means you don’t mind losing things dear to you—like your comfort, job, money, and sometimes peace. Risk appetite is the level of uncertainty or potential loss you can accommodate when pursuing opportunities and growth. In life, you can make decisions that are classified as either high risk or low risk. When you have a high risk appetite, you take bold actions that could bring great rewards, but there’s also the chance of failure if things don’t work out. Low risk appetite, on the other hand, means choosing safer actions with moderate or limited gains.

Conclusion

Time changes things arithmetically or geometrically. I submit to you that though change is inevitable, the rate of change is proportional to the appetite of an individual.

How hungry are you, and are your appetites consistent with the results you desire?

It has been said that one of the secrets to success is to stay hungry. In addition, you also need to constantly update your appetite for growth, risk, excellence, and more. How deep and solid is your desire to win?

Here is my advice to myself and to you, my dear reader: keep questing. Never be satisfied with your current level. There is more to what you can be. Dig deeper to find that aquiver and search harder to discover those amazing opportunities .

Thank you for reading. Don’t forget to drop your comment below.  

I am Samuel Ayankoso, a mere quester with some ink to write.

Quotes

“What you feed your mind determines your appetite.” ~ Zig Ziglar

“Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.” ~ Paul J. Meyer

“If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude.” ~ Colin Powell

“Life is too short to be scared and not take risks. I’d rather be the person that’s like, ‘I messed up,’ than, ‘I wish I did that.’ “ ~ Justine Skye

“Take risks. Ask big questions. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes; if you don’t make mistakes, you’re not reaching far enough.” ~ David Packard

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” ~ Hippocrates