BANJI 🙅🙅🙅

I remember when I started this blog, my pilot post, where I began my journey of self-discovery on this platform, unsure about what the future would hold and whether me 10 minutes from that moment would outgrow the idea of writing my thoughts for people known and unknown to me to read, share and possibly scrutinize. 30 posts and almost a year later (PS: our blogaversary i.e. blog anniversary 😉😅 is on Sunday the 27th of this month), I've been forced to develop the thoughts I have about certain topics into full-length blog posts while connecting them to my personal experiences. 

This creative process has allowed me to reflect and ask myself questions that I ordinarily wouldn't have bothered spending extra time finding the answers to. Well, I have to say, thus far it's been a very exciting and enlightening journey, I hope you feel the same. I hope I kept the promises I made to you in this post (especially since the promises embraced opposite possibilities and were pretty vague 😆). In case I haven't well 2019 is a great place to try again 😇.

A great philosopher once said 'Man, know thyself' and this has to be one quote that I really connect with personally. Knowledge of oneself has always been a pertinent issue in every time period as there would always be trends that come with the time, only self-knowledge and awareness can help one stay true and possibly stand out in the crowd when faced with the need to conform.

Especially with the advent of social media and the world becoming a global village where anything that happens in Mazi Ndubisi's house can be revealed unto Alhaji Beko, Chief Taiwo, Ndifreke and of course Bradley and Angelina just by a simple tweet or status update. The need to post certain things or act a certain kind of way both online and offline keeps increasing daily. Especially with celebrities on each social media platform flooding our timelines with their exotic travels, properties, photographs and of course weddings 😃. Social media takes peer pressure and gives it top notch Olympic medal snatching steroids.

Don't believe me? well here's a random test to see if I'm right: Remember when Meghan Markle got married? how most people around you (maybe yourself included) admired her dress and probably said you would do something similar for your own wedding or you would prefer if people did similar things for theirs? Now riddle me this: imagine you saw Meghan's dress on display at your local boutique before Meghan wore it, would you think twice about wearing it or suggesting that someone you actually like wears it for their wedding if you went dress shopping with a friend? If your answer is yes, then you're killing this self-discovery show, however, if your answer is no then don't worry, like most of us, your self-discovery career is still an upcoming artist.

Fast forward to the Simi Gold (Simi and Adekunle Gold) saga on twitter about them inviting 300 guests to their wedding and social media users giving them the ultimate coveted crown of 'goals' and disturbing their friends everywhere about how they would do the same when their time comes. Before this news broke the net, did you have a specific number of guests that you wanted at your wedding? Assuming you could afford any kind of wedding you want, would that have been your honest choice? 

In the midst of the noise, it is important that we stop and hear our hearts beating and our minds ranting, listen to what they have to say and decide on what would truly be authentically us. While self-discovery is a lifelong journey, it is important that at every point on the way we ask ourselves if we would recognize and be happy with who we are at the end of the trail. I sincerely hope this blog helps you on your own journey as it helps me on mine and when all is said and done, I hope we all smile at the thought that we stuck to what was best for us. Remember BANJI. Be Authentic, Never Jeopardise your Individuality🙅.