To be yourself, To be your best

😀The year 2017 was great! To all my readers, may each day of 2018 be vibrant and new, bringing along many reasons for celebrations. I pray this year gives you a relaxed mind, a peaceful soul, a joyful spirit, a healthy body and greater accomplishments. Happy new year to you all.

👼It is certain that the year 2017 has come and gone. It came with its opportunities, hopes, attempts, mistakes, lessons and triumphs. Summed up, 2017 was a great year for me and most of us I hope. I came to terms with some realities which will stay with me till the sun grows cold. Let me share some:

👣Starting _ I learnt that the most important factor after having a conviction and plan about an endeavour is the courage to start. Most ideas when concieved don't​ come out fully formed, they flourish as you begin to work on them. The "lhabyslane.blogspot.com" is a testament to this fact. I told myself that I'll start writing when I buy a laptop, but when I finally started, I did with my smart phone. In fact, all the write-ups on the blog are written with my phone and the blog was opened with a smart phone not even a laptop. I have been adviced, commended, questioned and most importantly corrected. So, sometimes you have to start when your conviction is right even if the conditions aren't favourable.

☝Ignorance _ I learnt that blessed are those who are not afraid to admit they don't know but are making efforts to know and explore. This is actually a hilarious one. It was my first time on an escalator and in an elevator. In the euphoria of stepping on the escalator I had to stand back, watch a friend of mine take the first step and I followed. I was laughed at, but I admitted it was my first time. No forming😀. The elevator experience was crazier, this time I wasn't the only first timer. The moment we gained entrance, my friend and I formed seriousness because no one in the elevator was smiling. When the elevator started moving, I felt like I was being put on a drip. Coincidentally, my friend and I started laughing in the midst of the non-smiling people. The most important factor was that our ignorance gave way to knowledge and we had the feeling of being a beginner again.

😦Fear _ I learnt that fear is a disease that cripples one's mind, soul and destiny. I made a goal to do positive things I've always wanted to do but lacked courage. I have always been comfortable playing second fiddle because of fear for one thing or the other. The moment I realized that if death comes knocking, I would regret not seeking advice from that person I hold in high esteem, not taking that leadership position and giving my best, not addressing that audience the best way I know how, not traveling to that place I have always longed to be. At that moment, I set myself free.

😨Pain _ I learnt that pain is a feeling and it demands to be felt; but the crux of the matter is that pain is transient. No matter how deep the feeling, it will wane, just give it time. I lost something very dear to me. I felt I couldn't recover considering the time and condition of the loss. Lo and behold, while in that same condition, I gained more. In the end, I learnt a great lesson, the loss became a scar which has added beauty to my soul and history to my autobiography.

👤Simplicity _ I learnt that living as simple as possible gives a kind of peace that can't be quantified. I discovered that I needed less and wanted more. I crowded my mental and physical space with junks. Then I stumbled on two books; The monk who sold his Ferrari by Robin Sharma, and The life changing magic of not giving a f**k (Don't judge this book by its title) by Sarah Knight. The application of some of the principles in these books in my setting helped me with the process of clearing up the junks I had acquired both physically and mentally. It wasn't easy though, but in the end, I worried less, aspired and acted more. Therefore, this new year, no resolutions though, is a year I'll continue to be myself, be my best, acquire more experiences and learn as I go. Plus, make money💰.

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Ogunlana A. Owolabi