Balance

‘I’ll sleep when I’m dead’. 

‘There’s no rest for the wicked’ 

‘When you rest you rust’

Do any of these sayings sound familiar to you? I’m going to assume you’ve heard atleast one of these. Maybe once upon a time just like myself one of these sayings was part of your mindset. The mindset that working until you run yourself into the ground will help you reap the rewards you have so desperately longed for. 

Well, I’m here to remind you, that this is not the way forward. This life is very short and tomorrow is not promised to anybody! 

Now I’m no behavourial scientist, psychologist or doctor however, I do know that we need some balance in our lives. You see the thing is balance is key to not only our happiness and well-being but also a vital component to increased levels of productivity and career/business success. When you have balance you find that your steps are ordered in a more fruitful way. 

I know people who have multiple ventures whilst holding down a full time job. Which is ever so admirable. But to do this effectively, one must always remember to switch off. If you can’t afford a weekend of switching off, ensure you have at least one day where you disconnect. I mean completely disconnect from the business of your schedule. Turn your laptop off, put your phone down and give your brain the rest it deserves. Do something fun, engage in conversations that will have you rolling in laughter or simply just rest. But be sure to switch off from the hustle and bustle of the grind. And whatever you do, do not trade your down time to engage in something equally as taxing.  

With balance the value of your time appreciates, therefore you are able to say no with confidence. Because you understand that you don’t need to engage in everything. You want to avoid stretching yourself too thinly and focus on the many tasks you already have at hand; with the freedom to also unwind. 

When acquiring balance you must not ignore your body. Eat well, sleep, and engage in some sort of activity. And when your body is beginning to feel run down take some time to stop and recharge. After all health is wealth! 

Lastly, but by no means least enjoy life! Tomorrow isn’t promised therefore don’t get too caught up in grinding so hard that you miss out on life. Travel, explore, feel, see. Live your best life!!

What does balance mean to you and how do you ensure you’re getting a healthy dose? 

Their Reality, Not Mine

Just ten days in to 2018 and the internet has showcased 2017 attributes, that quite frankly should have stayed in 2017. It’s clear that as a people, the majority still lack empathy.

Which ever way you feel about the recent H&M incident, I think it’s fair to say that those who are offended, should be able to freely feel offended. Nobody has the right to tell anyone a) what they should feel offended about and b) when they should not be offended. After all, the offence for most in this case is taken from a racial stance and therefore should really be addressed with a bit more tact and sensitivity.

Reading the various posts and commentary around this inspired me to further address our lack of empathy and why empathy is actually very important. I sometimes get the impression that people mix empathy with sympathy, which are clearly two different words, with totally different meanings. According to Merriam-Webster empathy has two meanings:

1: the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another of either the past or present without having the feelings, thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an objectively explicit manner;  also  : the capacity for this 

2: the imaginative projection of a subjective state into an object so that the object appears to be infused with it

 

The beauty of empathy is that it allows you to co-experience feelings of another person. Like virtual reality you are able to see things from another person’s perspective without actually having to go through it. It allows us to gain a better understanding of things we may not be so privy to.

Why not try and embrace empathy? We all come from  different walks of life, equally no two people are born the same even twins have unique identifiers. This is what makes the world an amazing place. Each individual has a story, one that may lead to broadening your horizon. One that may open doors or close them. One with the potential to motivate you or give you healing. Whatever it is, however idealistic it may sound, empathy is a skill required for the betterment of human-kind.

So yes, you may not see where the offence is in relation to the example of the H&M incident. To be honest you may never understand, because the bottom line is as simple as racism not being your reality so it has clouded your ability to be empathetic.

Next time you find yourself in a scenario where you don’t share the same view of taking offence to a situation as someone else or do not understand their taking of offence, I challenge you to dig deeper, and find out the route to their offence. I guarantee you that showing a bit of empathy will allow you to experience life in a higher resolution.

 

 

Room For Everyone

Picture a family get together where the person hosting only has a dining table to accommodate four people yet there are seven in total. Somehow, someway, each person is comfortably seated around the dinning table; enough room to put your elbows on the table (which isn’t good table manners btw). I know you’ve definitely experienced this before. Maybe at Grandma’s when the whole family is round. However, at this table there is a small twist, people won’t be tucking in to the mouth-watering feast Grandma is known to create, rather you will all be enjoying the sweet taste of success. 

You see it’s simple, I firmly believe that there truly is room for everyone. If you focus and stay in your own lane and everyone else commits to this too; then you’ll find that in that room filled with everyone you still have space to succeed. 

Nike and Adidas are similar brands, both successful in their own rights. Their industry is filled with a whole range of other competitors, a majority successful too. As much as they are competitors they’ve all focused and stayed in their lanes of maintaing their brand, vision and their niches. The reason they can all co-exist and remain successesful is because they all bring something different to the table. Instead of fretting about whether or not another can steal your thunder, I’d refocus that energy towards being/doing my damn best.

Without new ideas and ways of doing things how else would you better yourself or ensure that you’re giving it all that you’ve got? Competition is certainly healthy. Embrace that feeling it gives you, may it fuel you to go and do great things. Let it be your constant reminder to never sleep on the job, and do not take your success for granted. Rather allow it to motivate you when you’re low on energy. 

So whatever it is you’re persuing, don’t give up. Stay focused and be sure to stay in your lane. Afterall the table of success makes better company when there are others to share it with. 

Silence is Golden

Have you ever regretted saying something, and wished that you had never said it ? Yep, thought so, me too! 

Life and adulting has really showed me that sometimes silence can be indeed golden. 

Here’s why. 

Silence protects you from blurting out in-the-moment feelings. I have learnt that by being silent it has helped me to prevent causing any offence or saying something that may be misconstrued, especially when engaging in heated discussions and arguments. To be honest to do this requires a lot of self-constraint and consciousness. You’ve really got to learn to pause, take a deep breath and think about your rebutle. And if what you’re thinking to say doesn’t sound right in your head and has potential to offend when that is not the intention, my friend purse those lips and keep schtum. 

Or when words are simply not enough to express your gratitude, the silence that comes with your beaming smile surprisingly speaks a thousand words.

Sometimes, you may find that you do not have anything meaningful to say, which is absolutely fine. Instead of filing people’s ears with useless babble, use this golden opportunity to observe and learn. 

 I have often found silence to be a great comforter. Especially when having to consoul someone. The silence found in the warm embrace of a hug or a hand hold can prove to be far more significant than saying ‘my condolences’.

Or just sometimes our role in the conversation is to listen. I mean really listen! Not fade in and out, but to truly hear what the other person is saying that you feel the words that they are speaking. 

Here’s to embracing the moments of silence!

Zip It Up

I’ve had this post in my drafts for a few days now, but I just haven’t had the chance to finish it and tidy it up. But I feel that this topic is the theme of the week. Therefore, I’ve been inspired to finish writing and get sharing. 

It’s unfortunate to say that announcing your plans prematurely can actually prove to be detrimental to the progression of those plans. My reasoning is as simple as two points. 

As much as it’s great to share and speak things into exsistence, it’s very important to be wary about who you share your plans with. There are a number of things that I personally think should be kept private, until it happens atleast. This is because jealousy is real and it’s a powerful thing. It can lead people to do some things deemed out of their character causing all sorts of havoc. Have you ever told someone, a friend or an acquaintance of your plans? Everything is looking upwards and then all of a sudden, just like that, nothing. Over the years it’s become very evident to me that not everybody who appears to be rooting for you is actually for you. Some may only want you to succeed within reason, never wanting you to surpass them. 

Another thing I have noticed about the premature announcement of plans is that there has been times when I have shared with every and anyone who would listen. Literally telling it all, what I’m up to, aiming to achieve, sharing all the granular details; afterwards I’ve ended up feeling less motivated. It is as if the positive responses and reactions to what I said I was going to do is enough satisfaction that I no longer need to carry out the plan and achieve the goal. I have personally witnessed and experienced that the sense of premature completeness is equally as detrimental as the green eyed monster is to your plans, because it causes you to be the enemy of your achievements. 

The morale to be taken here is not to talk too much or make premature announcements. Personally I’ve learnt to keep it schtum, commit my plans to God.

Whatever the case is I pray that anyone in our lives who is disguised as a friend hoping for our downfall is removed and that we are protected from them! And we never fall into the illusion of premature completeness! 

2018 – A Year of Endless Breakthroughs

Happy New Year!

I hope you enjoyed the festive season and spent it with loved ones, eating a whole ton of food and making great memories.

Like most people in the last few days of 2017, I began to reflect on the year I had had. I also started to seriously think about what my 2018 Goals, Objectives and Prayers would be. I wont bore you with them however, I will share this with you. I’m claiming that 2018 is a year of endless breakthroughs!

Endless breakthroughs!? Yes endless breakthroughs. Some of you may be a little lost as to what I mean. So here is the Merriam-Webster definition of endless and breakthrough.

Endless
adjective
1. Being or seeming to be without end.
“an endless speech”

Breakthrough
noun
3. a: A sudden advance especially in knowledge or technique.
“a medical breakthrough”
b: A person’s first notable success.
“the actress’s break through performance”

 

You’ve been working so hard on this project and still nothing. You desperately want that breakthrough and you’re on the brink of giving up. Well I’m here to tell you, don’t! There are a few things that we can refer to help aid the likelihood of our breakthroughs this year.

 
Research
Research is a great way to know your market, further your understanding. Allow your findings to provoke your thoughts.

Whatever the case do not ignore the gems of information that your research presents. Rather use it as a tool to stimulate breakthrough thinking, you’ll be surprised what happens when you mix old ideas with new ones.

 
Plan Plan Plan (budget your time accordingly) 
We all know that saying “failing to prepare is preparing to fail”. A plan allows you to gage the amount of effort needed to bring your idea in to fruition. Which helps to also prevent you from burning out, which could later result in a loss of enthusiasm. Which isn’t good for business.

 
Slow Down 
Haste is the enemy of creativity. This is not a race! It’s really okay just to stop, recuperate and take some time just to think. These are often the times you have a eureka moment which propels you closer to your breakthrough. So enjoy the down time, after all we are only humans!

 
Celebrate 
Celebrate the the small milestones as much as you do the big ones. No matter how small you may deem the achievement, be sure to give yourself a pat on the back and make a note of it . At the end of the day it’s an achievement nonetheless, which required hard work, bringing you one step closer to your breakthrough. So try not to be too hard on yourself!

 
Prayer 
And above all else, for me, prayer is key! There’s nothing too big for God, so I put it all to him! His grace and divine intervention mixed with my efforts are the recipe to my endless breakthroughs.

 
Who is also claiming 2018 a year of endless breakthroughs? I want to know what you’ll be doing to order your steps down the road of breakthroughs.

Plunge

How far are you willing to go in order to turn your idea into a reality?  

We can choose to make excuses or make changes, the choice is simply ours. I tend to find that often we go for the former, as those excuses wrapped up in reasons look very appealing. There are so many things I’ve said I would like to do, then backed out of it because of some sort of excuse or in some cases fear. But what is the worst that can happen? 

Whether the excuse has been due to being scared or stemmed from not wanting to rely on someone else for support, I’ve always later gone back and thought “what if…”. 

There’s no point daydreaming of a future you would like whilst disliking your present. Especially when you actually haven’t proactively tried. Regardless you’re circumstance/current situation there is always an action you can take towards being one step closer to that aspiration.

Just know that whatever it is that may be holding you back, is an enemy of progress and you need to shake it off and just do it!

Life’s too short to have regrets. So, less moping and more doing, and let’s see these ideas come into reality. Let this very moment be a commitment to ourselves, that we shall start or finish an idea we’ve had. 

I don’t know about you but I shall be taking the plunge!