#TBDaily Monday High... but does it go downhill from there?

Sunday evenings when I was younger meant a bit of mixed feelings. While what was on television was great, sundays meant I would have to go to school the next day.
I hated school.

When I started a job I loved however, Sundays came with a promise. I was usually rearing to go; like let us do this! 8 years later, still the same.
I love Mondays. On Mondays, I can fly, I feel productive, I tick most of my to-do list FOR THE WEEK.

Sadly, it starts to go downhill from there.

Sometimes Tuesdays are so anticlimactic that I wish they would end just as they begun. My Tuesday shows can be below par in my estimation; like I gave my all on Monday and I am now just handing out scraps.

It picks up on Wednesdays but yeah, by Friday, I am on another high- last day of the week, bring the weekend on type of high. Then I start it all over again on Sunday.

Is it like this for you or you're pretty much the same all week?
Let me know

#TBDaily Hey Monday... Bring on the 1st Monday in September

I am going to have to start wishing people a Merry Christmas because while January and February seemed to be slow, the rest of the year has gone by pretty fast.

I have had a different kind of ginger lately, thank God.

Thing with me is, when I feel it, I do it. The trick is to also be able to do it even when I do not feel it. May God help me o!

This week, I am looking forward to work, meetings, a dope feed on Instagram (yes, it is a thing), and being on top of my tasks. 

This weekend was a busy one. I bet you guys were kept busy with red carpet pictures and beautiful people. I loved it! It was also Ajebo D Comedian's comedy event and Inspiration FM partnered so we were there to support.

In between all of that, I was working, thinking, and believe it or not, writing and completing short films.. in my head. 

So, what is your prayer for the week?

#MondayMotivation Even if NEPA takes light, a Fridge should not become your Wardrobe

There is a common joke in Nigeria about how when the power situation gets so bad, the fridges and freezers lose their initial use and get turned into wardrobes. That is what I thought of the second I stumbled upon this quote by Benjamin Franklin for my Instagram Quote of the Day - "Hide not your talents, they for use were made; what's a sundial in the shade?" 

Of course Benjamin Franklin is old and not an African so we probably do not use nor know much about sundials but we still understand it for what he means- things (and talents) should be used as they were intended and not buried away.

What are the top 3 things that keep us from letting our light shine?
From what I know, it usually has to do with Fear (of failure or rejection), Laziness (and its cousin, Procrastination), and Lack of Confidence (How dare I do something this big).

If you are troubled by one or all of the above, then think about this
- It does not matter how old, big or strong you get, fear rears its head. What you must do is let fear drive and not stop you. As Omilola Oshikoya says, do it AFRAID!

- There are simple tips and tricks that can help get your laziness and procrastination under control if that is your handicap. Once you acknowledge your flaws, you can then work around them. Do not let a negative flaw you have hold you back ever.

- What can we achieve by refusing to dream big or aim high? As they say, dreams are free so why not just dream big?

I hope this helps you? Just remember that you have your talent for a reason. Let your light shine. I cannot say this enough.
What is one thing you can do this week to showcase your talent? Leave a comment below!

#MondayMotivation Pressure will take you from Coal to Diamond... Welcome It

My #MondayMotivation quote is by Henry Kissinger- "A diamond is a chunk of coal that did well under pressure".

I like it because it is one of those posts you see all the time so that it is when it comes true that you know how true it is. I know, I used 'true' twice. 

Until the test comes, we stay doing, thinking and saying the same thing, and that is why, no matter how uncomfortable change may be, it is welcome.

I have a friend who like many of us, thrives on deadlines. She won't study, work or do her stuff till the very last hour or week and she once told me that anytime she finishes her work before a deadline, it feels like the work isn't as good. 

Is that ideal? Probably not. It is an example though of how we need something major to squeeze the best out of us and actually show just how much we can take. Like with working out? 
People will tell you that every time you build your tolerance to a point where say, a 30 second plank, no longer stresses you, then you increase it.

Is pressure fun? No. 
Next time you are faced with pressure though, whenever you can, smile... It is just making sure you come through like Rihanna sang- 'shining bright like a diamond'.

#MondayMotivation But where is the action?

"Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit." Conrad Hilton.

I remember when i was younger and wanted to be taller.
Somehow, society convinces us that being short is something we should be ashamed of or want to change. Why? Short, Tall, Medium... who cares?

That is not what this post is about though. I was short and an uncle once told me- if you want to get taller, eat more beans, but not just any kind of beans. Eat the beans with weevils.

 So i did. Diligently. I asked for beans and more beans. Did i get taller? Check my Instagram then answer that question yourself. Lol.

 What i do know though is i made an effort.

Imagine if all i did was wake up, eat, think and sleep WISHING i was taller?

We have dreams, dreams of things we want to see come true but the only way to see some kind of reaction, is to actually have action.

Sitting down and really really really wanting it, no matter how cute or sweet, will oftentimes not get us anywhere closer to our wishes.

Getting to a destination requires actually putting one foot in front of the other as we walk, or driving in a car, or flying or... you get my point.

#MondayMotivation Maybe what matters is what you say about yourself, not what they say about you.

I do not know why but this sentence, 'Just because they play the music does not mean you have to dance to it' keeps presenting itself to me.
Or maybe i do know why.

It is easy to get caught up sometimes in what has been said or will be said about you. If i do abc, they will say xyz, or, they say i am uvw... It is a lot of ' they said ' and 'they will say' which my friends, can be crippling for you.

It is possible that some of the things people say about us are, maybe slightly exaggerated but true all the same. They may be right that you are lazy or a quitter, not the funniest nor the most put together. It does not however make it all true, nor less deserving of success.

People may question you, laugh at you or brand you a failure but the truth is, until you yourself say these things, then you are not losing.

While taking advice and striving for perfection is a good thing, do not let what people say become true by giving it life yourself.

Once again remember, maybe what matters is not what people say about you, but what you say about yourself. What are you saying?

#MondayMotivation Protect your happy

I know if i wanted to really be grammatically correct, i would have said, 'protect your happiness' but i am using a bit of poetic license so please bear with me.

When people die, they do not take anything with them (that we know of).
They leave their possessions, their ideas, the unfulfilled dreams and the happy memories.
If we truly die alone and have to deal with consequences of things we did and did not do, how come we leave ourselves so vulnerable to others?

Make a decision that your happiness is important, and understand that this does not mean you will never be sad, nor that you will always get what you want, but what it does mean is
- You do not look to others for your joy.
Stop letting partners, colleagues, friends or strangers affect you so much and do not depend on them to make you happy.
- You stand by the stance you take
Be it your choice of what to do, where to go, who to date or views to hold, please be sure that you base this on how you truly feel or what you want, not the dictates of man.

Protect your happy. Guard your heart. Noone has the right to make you sad. Do not give them the satisfaction of seeing you down!

#MondayMotivation This is YOUR life; are you who YOU want to be?

This post is about those who have balls, and those who don't.

Working on radio exposes me to all kinds of music- the good, the bad and the 'why na?'. Sometimes a big artiste releases a new song and they are taken to the cleaners and I'm like, o wow.

But to be honest, fighting for your dreams takes accepting criticism and ugliness. Question is, can you fight for your dreams the way artistes (even those we criticise the harshest) calmly release their song, overlook the hate and keep going on?

Sometimes we even knock ourselves down (and out) before others do, by thinking of what people would or would not say.

They want to model but on twitter there are so many jokes about how everyone is a model these days, so they never work on their portfolio.

They are good writers but instead of opening a blog, they listen to people laugh at bloggers and how suddenly everyone owns a blog. (re: blogs. It is okay for EVERYONE to own a blog. That is what a blog is all about. It is like an online diary. I don't get why all the fuss.)

My point is, sometimes we spend so much time knocking ourselves down that there is no need for anyone else to do it for us.

And for me, i pray i can truly say, this is my life, this is who i want to be.

Not some times, but ALL the time.

#TBDaily x #MondayMotivation A Day is a Day is a Day

Growing up, Mondays felt sacred. I watched people treat Monday like a mystical day. You had to 'price' the goods in the market properly, not fight with your neighbours and not give bad or stressful information because 'o saro Monday" (it was early Monday morning).
Okay.

For me, i hated Sunday evenings because they brought the week, not just Monday, but every single day i would have to wake up early, then go to school and get some homework for the next day. Till today, Sunday evenings can be scary for me.

Between university and NYSC, when i could truly let my inner gypsy shine because lectures / classes could be at anytime so Mondays were no longer as special, i fell back to loving each day for what it brought.

It was refreshing to not have Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays etc, but have 'Family Law', 'Js 3' etc. For holidays, days became blurry and Monday (and to a lesser extent, Sunday), lost its scare.

For those of us in the creative industry, or who run companies outside a 9 to 5, the same effect is there. Like i tell people, i work on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays... any day that ends with day.

The best way to tackle these things really is to not attach any special or mystic importance to any day in particular. That is not to say you shouldn't chart your energy levels and know your best days, but when we have all these 'moandays' jokes et al, it just gives 24 hours power. The kind of power we give 'New Year', but without the positive side effects like resolutions.

So this little message is to say, it is all psychological. And if you conquer Monday, you can conquer the week, But remember, after all is said and done, each day is the same twenty four hours. Don't let one day ruin your week. Nor life.