Everything 2023 Taught Me about Building the Life and Business of Your Dreams

In the past three years, the world has been defined by so much cruelty and suffering, it would be remiss to not count my blessings for being alive and well. Annually in December, my yearly practice is to take a few days off during the holidays for quiet reflection and introspection. I do this to be grateful for how far I have come as an individual in transit through this earth. It often involves taking stock of what I have learned in the past, accepting the present, and preparing for my future. Doing this helps me put a lot of things in perspective. This article is not going to be your regular post about goal-setting, achievement, and new resolutions for the upcoming year. I’m about to expand on everything 2023 has taught me about building the life and business of my dreams.

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Life is a Two-Way Street. You Should Give as Much as You Expect to Receive

Kevin Kelly has talked about the notion that you only need 1,000 real fans. Remember this for when you begin building the life and business of your dreams. So, when you find your people, cherish them and never let them go. Build your community and be discerning enough to tell the real from a counterfeit. Talk to people one-on-one and often. Hear them out genuinely, with empathy. Personally, I like to invest in both personal and business relationships that allow both people to thrive. Back to Kelly. Here’s what he said…

“To be a successful creator you don’t need millions. You don’t need millions of dollars or millions of customers, millions of clients or millions of fans. To make a living as a crafts person, photographer, musician, designer, author, animator, app maker, entrepreneur, or inventor you need only thousands of true fans.

A true fan is defined as a fan that will buy anything you produce. These die-hard fans will drive 200 miles to see you sing; they will buy the hardback and paperback and audible versions of your book; they will purchase your next figurine sight unseen; they will pay for the best-of, DVD version of your free YouTube channel; they will come to your chef’s table once a month.

If you have roughly a thousand of true fans like this (also known as super fans), you can make a living “if you are content to make a living but not a fortune.”

First World Problems and “Toxic Positivity” is a Matter of Your Perspective

Without getting too overly psychological or philosophical, I will attempt to explain reasons why I have concluded that “toxic positivity” is a myth. One natural goal of human existence is to truly be happy and fulfilled. As an optimist, I believe it is only perfectly normal to desire positive emotions rather than negative ones. Even though we know what its like to feel both, the humanity in us usually wants more of what makes us happy over pure sadness. If it is human to seek happiness, then why should one be blinded into thinking it’s bad to feel happy or that we need to be guilty for it?

Suffice it to say, negativity and pessimism can be extremely harmful. In my opinion, balance is key and so, it is quite possible to be happy and still be aware and sensitive of the fact that there is much pain in the world such as inequality, death and loss. I continued to wrestle with this concept of toxic positivity in the sense that I didn’t really agree with the term. What is happiness anyway? There are international and cultural differences in the meaning. Truth be told, you don’t have to be rich in material possessions to be happy. If you want proof, look at all the people residing outside the West who don’t have much but still experience rich and deeply fulfilling lives through a sense of community and sharing. This tells me that where your attention goes, your energy flows.

This year, I chose to be highly optimistic in every aspect of life, to see the obstacle as a way forward, to acknowledge being blessed in the midst of the challenges and finally, I put to rest any thinking that doing all of this could somehow be detrimental.

Stick with the Vision On the Life-Long Journey to Fulfilling God’s Calling

Writing has always been a huge part of my personal life. I’ve been writing ever since I was old enough to hold a pen — from learning to write cursive as a child to penning short stories about holidays from school, to well-thought-out essays that won competitions and eventually, pursuing a career in communications. In Canada, I started blogging on and off in 2011. However, this platform was officially launched in March 2017. Then, around this time last year, I decided to “stand on the shoulders of giants” instead of going at entrepreneurship alone. It was at that point that I applied to participate in the LiftOff Incubator for Black Entrepreneurs. After going through the interview process, I was finally accepted into the program and my journey with them began in January 2023. Since then, I’ve made some giant strides which include launching the retail shop and consulting arm of my business.

When I look back through my life, I realize that I have been on a certain trajectory, Everything that has happened to and for me has always tied back to my ultimate purpose, which is storytelling, although this has taken various shapes and forms over the years. The vision and calling has never really changed, even in moments where I may have doubted myself. My confidence and work ethic has grown so much in the past year and I’m very excited at what the future holds. The entire experience has only increased my capacity to serve more people and yet, this is only the beginning. Thank you so much to everyone who has played a role in my 2023.

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See you in the New Year!