I was fortunate to have many role models, not the least of whom were my parents, to guide and support me in the first phase of life leading up to my first job at 27 years old, some 56 years ago.
It became very clear to me that the purpose of life as a human being was to be happy, wise and healthy and for this to come to pass I had to embrace and develop spirit, mind and body.
I then shifted gears to focus on the next phase of life where I accepted the responsibility of earning a living, managing a family and happily enjoying the good fortune of surviving as an entrepreneur.
Then, at 56, I was diagnosed with coronary heart disease. By God’s grace and the skills of the medical team that performed a double bypass open heart operation, I was given a new lease on life. Before the operation, my surgeon told me, “You can expect to be perfectly normal.” Since then, for 27 years (the last 11 of which I have spent with my partner Judy in Trinidad), I have lived a most fulfilling life for which I am most grateful.
My personal relationships have contributed to my growth, my chosen activities within the public and private sectors have filled me with much joy, I have lived to see my children’s generation mature into their 50s, and to witness my grandchildren’s generation emerge.
I have tried to share love, compassion and forgiveness and to help others using the skills and experience with which I have been blessed. A few legacy projects still linger on my bucket list and only God knows how many of these will be fulfilled in the last quarter of my life.
Now it is time for me to return to Barbados — “where I belong”. September 2024, here we come, Deo volente!
This unfolding of my life has happened because of a determined focus on the spirit, mind and body and I have no plans to change this strategy for the rest of my life.
I read The Power of Positive Thinking by the Reverend Dr Norman Vincent Peale as a teenager and it has shaped my personal philosophy throughout my life.
I was brought up in the church as a Christian. My maternal grandfather was the superintendent of the Sunday School at the James Street Methodist Church in Bridgetown. I had no choice but to go to church and Sunday School every week, and eventually became a Sunday School teacher prior to my departure from Barbados to pursue formal and informal higher education.
My wife Kean and I ensured that our three children were brought up in the church. We attended the Hawthorne Methodist Church, which was a stone’s throw from our home, until the children were teenagers. After that, they were on their own to explore their spirituality and build on this spiritual and religious foundation.
There were many examples of the benefit of education and entrepreneurship on the paternal and maternal sides of the family for my sister Helen and me to follow. In our family, the quest to seek one’s passion in life and to support it with education and mentorship was encouraged and manifested itself in many different ways in my generation and my children’s generation. It is now up to the grandchildren’s generation to follow suit.
I was active on the cricket field when at secondary school and at university, but I did not pursue a sport’s career. It seemed to me that academic learning followed by entrepreneurial endeavour was more likely to lead to wealth, prosperity and security.
Physically, I preach nutrition, exercise, sleep, peace of mind and love.
Let each and every one of us embrace spirit, mind and body strategies so that we may enjoy happy lives.
Dr Basil Springer GCM is a corporate governance adviser. His email address is basilgf@marketplaceexcellence.com. His columns may be found at http://www.nothingbeatsbusiness.com.
