Happy New Year.
Wishing you the best that life has for you in 2024.
Those dreams you have. Don’t sleep on them. Go get it.
I woke up on the first day of 2024 thinking: “What will this year be about?”
I didn’t necessarily have any strong goals. I had a few things jotted down
And a few things that I had journaled about but I didn’t have a list of clear things that some of those hardcore self-improvement people on X have.
By the second day of the year, I wondered whether I was letting the year slip away already.
I reminded myself – to be patient.
But the antagonizer on my shoulder was there to remind me: “Patient for what bruh, you better get moving. You remember. No free lunch”
I grabbed the book I was reading Deepak Chopra’s Abundance.
The chapter I was on was fitting.
It talked about bliss.
By the end of the chapter, I reminded myself “I am enough”
New Year. New Who?
Every year rolls around. It’s a reminder that time waits for no one
Most people feel the anxiety of time ticking away (tick tock).
This is heightened with the new year.
If you don’t have a set of clear New Year resolutions, you seem like a failure who has no ambition
The hustle bros and sis hit you with all their clear goals and tell you if you don’t have one, what exactly are you doing with your life?
A lot of people are scared to set up their goals.
They did it in the past but they didn’t follow through. So some don’t even want to dare to dream anymore.
All this just heightens collective anxiety.
Like the economy is not tough enough for the everyday person….psssh.
This letter is just a reminder that: You are enough.
You don’t have to do things to be accepted and loved.
What you need is to be real, connect to your true self, and detach your self-worth from your ability to perform.
True confidence going into this new year comes from increased awareness.
Because when you connect with your true self, everything else follows. You are enough just as you are.
The Blissful Path
A lot of these ideas I’m sharing are from Deepak Chopra’s book. He takes a more holistic approach to health and wealth. A mix of neuroscience, spirituality, and medicine.
The part of the book that resonated with me as the year started was about tapping into what he calls “bliss-consciousness”
As you lead your year, tap into this consciousness. Lead with that and everything else you want will follow.
You’ll connect with your real self.
You’ll build real confidence and break away from the ego and social agenda that has most people living life like robots.
The Bliss Agenda
“Money is the coin of consciousness” – Deepak Chopra, Author of Abundance.
Pure consciousness is always there, you just have to connect with it then everything else follows.
Jason Campbell said it in a way that the Western world connects with it “Follow your bliss.”
Other sages have said it in a way that signifies that they are part of everything and not limited to the human thinking form.
A meditation on this is to remember: “I am enough”
This is how to always connect with your bliss.
The ego’s agenda is different.
The ego says “I am not enough”
So I must do things and get more to be enough.
We follow our bliss when the life we ought to be living is the life we are living.
When we think of the life we ought to live, it’s filled with hard work, grind, and duty imposed on us by family, society, heroes, and role models.
The ego is built on this, reminding you that there is still more to do to feel complete and loved.
Being aware of this bliss that exists is the starting point, you just have to put yourself in a state to connect with it.
Be still and remember you are enough.
The bliss consciousness is generous, giving, and inspiring.
Bliss is generosity of spirit
Your natural tendency is to be generous.
Humans have only gotten this far in life because of the benefits of being in social groups.
We built these groups based on reciprocity.
Give a little, take a little.
The modern world, however, has made us focus on the individual.
“How can I look out for number one? Since no one is looking out for me.”
This has turned into a “taking economy.” Take. Take. Take.
Hey, I don’t blame you if you feel this way. I feel it too.
The reality is that there is a consciousness beyond what your body and flow of thought perceive.
This consciousness is always there. You experience it when you are doing something that makes time pass without you noticing.
When you are in the flow of things.
However, when that task ends, you disconnect.
You can build up that connection through a practice of awareness of this consciousness.
This consciousness has a generosity of spirit. To connect with it, be more generous.
This does not mean being generous by giving more money.
This means being genuinely generous.
Be generous with people. Support their best impulses but don’t criticize their worst.
Provide a space for people to feel like themselves, where they don’t feel judged.
It reminds me of the stoic teaching: “Be strict with yourself and tolerant of others.”
Or how Jesus said, “Let he who is without sin throw the first stone”
It’s easy to cast judgment, it’s more challenging to be gracious to people.
Be generous and connect to your bliss.
Bliss is giving
When last did you genuinely give someone a gift?
Not a gift out of obligation. A random gift.
Last year, I wrote my 3rd book.
I didn’t sell it though, I sent it out as a gift.
It might not be the bestseller you hear about. It might not be the #1 new release. It might not even be seen.
But the process of creating this gift came from a pure place.
When you give, you open up space to receive.
In the same vein of generosity, bliss is giving. To connect with it, tap into your giving spirit.
The most valuable thing you have in life is your attention.
Whatever you direct your attention to grows.
The most valuable gift you can give someone is your undivided attention.
A lot of us are in a physical space but not really there.
Eyes on digital screens. Scrolling on with no ends.
Mind on a thousand thoughts. Questioning all you just bought.
Slow it down. Give the gift of presence.
Listen more. Silence is your friend. That’s where the answers reside.
Bliss is inspiring
“The highest human act is to inspire”
That’s what one of my favorite musicians, Nipsey Hussle, said.
I watched his interviews as I wrote my first book, Press Play.
As I reflected on the type of work I wanted to do moving forward, that message resonated.
To create stories and tools that inspire people to be their true selves.
Bliss is inspiring.
You can connect with this inspiration by surrounding yourself with things, ideas, and people that inspire you.
Watch inspiring movies. Read inspiring books. Listen to inspiring music. Read poetry. Go to the museum. Be part of inspiring experiences.
Cultivate a lifestyle that allows you to reconnect with inspiration.
Then pay it forward.
Build, teach, and give people things that inspire them.
There’s a lot of positives when you inspire people to do something.
Final thoughts
I wish you a successful year and I hope you connect with your true self and bless each day this year.
Yours truly, Nifemi
P.S. I am still crowdfunding my next book coming out this year. The campaign ends on Jan 19. Please contribute here if you can. I’d really appreciate your support with it thanks.
