Invest in Your Mind

Good Afternoon!

I’m blogging whilst babysitting my two little cousins (one’s a baby, the other a very intelligent toddler). They’re very well behaved however today’s experience has given me a new appreciation of mothers and fathers in general. So before I proceed further I’d like to salute all (good) parents!

Oooh by the way before I start yesterday morning I woke up and my CrackBerry was going crazy. Loads of email, BBM’s etc. It turned out the very fabulous Jamelia had tweeted my ‘The Friendship Detox’ video and given me a shout out on her Twitter page. I was SO surprised and really chuffed

Here’s what she tweeted @ me later …..

JameliaTweeties @Christiana1987 Girl!! I watched all your blogs...and loved them....esp. 'friendship detox' n 'pay your part of the bill'!! Keep It Up x J x.

* Massive Smile *

I hate mornings so it was a great way to start what turned out to be a long but productive day. So thank you Jamelia!

Anyway today’s blog is slightly different. I’m in a contemplative mood…so here it goes……

There are certain people in my life who opinion wise, often occupy the position opposing mine and do their utmost to push my mind to my limits. I call them my intellectual sparing partners. Some of them are friends (shout out Professor Nemesis), others are people I’ve become acquainted with over the www but most of them are my family members.

My chief intellectual sparing partner is my dad (love you Guvna!). Alongside my mother (love you Duchess), my dad is the person who has effectively shaped who I am the most.

Ever since I could speak our relationship has been characterised by intense love coupled with constant debate.

I was obsessed with Thatcher but he believed Neil Kinnock had all the answers.

Weekly he took me to piano lessons; I later revolted and took up the flute.

I later quietly quit the flute and returned to the Piano

I love luxury. He embraces frugality.

Ideologically we’re complete opposites. But character wise we’re similar.

Correction: I hope to one day have the amazing character of my father. I’m not even 2% of the way there. However as much as I HATE to admit it, we are eerily similar.

I’m in this transition phase of my life. I’ve graduated and I’m entering a new world where my actions from this point onwards will determine the trajectory of my twenties. As such I’ve been thinking really hard about what I’m going to do next.

And what do you know? All those ‘ramblings’ of the Guvna have a higher utility than I ever thought they would.It turns out all those lessons he drilled into me as child are actually useful.

Sidebar: Until the age of about 16, I was only allowed to watch TV on Saturday’s and Sunday’s. Since TV was banned my sisters and I occupied ourselves by playing instruments, reading books, writing stories, building mansions out of cardboard boxes that we accidentally set on fire and like most children of ambitious African migrants…..revising till our eyes bled. The rest of the time was spent talking to our parents and listening to their stories...*shudders as she recollects another Anansi tale*

At the moment, my favourite lesson from my lovely dad (who yesterday told me to put on my coat when I asked him to turn on the heating)

‘ Many people confuse money as their main currency. Money isn't currency. It is merely a product of your level of creativity. This means your real currency and power lies in the ideas you create. Ideas spring forth from your mind. Therefore your mind is your greatest asset. Invest in your mind and you’ll always be wealthy'

* Said as he gesticulates in a very Tony Blair-esque manner *

Sidebar: The above is paraphrased, condensed and unpacked so it’s easier to understand. My dad has a really flowery vocabulary. Half the time my sisters and I don’t know what the heck he’s saying.

And it’s the final clause....

‘Your mind is your greatest asset. Invest in your mind and you’ll always be wealthy’

That’s been on my mind the most.

Because if the substance of our minds determines our actions….

And our eventual destiny is nothing more than an accumulation of prior actions.

Following that logic….

If I sort my mind out e.g. get rid of negativity, embrace positivity and set out a list of goals to work towards…

I can potentially create a better destiny for myself than I would have had at a lower level of thinking.

Sidebar: Some of you will be thinking ‘duh’. And I know it’s ‘obvious’ but it’s often the obvious things that we miss.

I spoke to my dad this morning and I let him know (in the most discreet manner) that I would be jacking one of his ideas for my blog. He looked flattered (discreetly of course). However the only reason I spoke to him about this blog was because I needed to pick his mind.

And my question was this….

‘Dad how on earth do I invest in my mind?'

And he said (Right off the top of his head)

‘Very simple. Five things’

1) Reading
2) Listening
3) Watching
4) Acting
5) Experimenting

Then he walked off.

As I stood in the kitchen waiting for the water for my coffee to finish boiling I thought…

‘Shoot, Christiana, when last did you read a book that actually enhanced your existence instead of picking up a magazine that only you made lust after clothing/shoes/men you can’t afford (yet)”

‘You talk a lot…maybe it’s high time you adjust your listening to talking ratio…’

‘You’re never going to like films (I don’t get the fuss) but why don’t you spend more time observing people, rather than critiquing them….’

‘You act a lot so why not act smarter?’

‘What was the name of that inventor that tried to invent that thing like 400 times and only succeeded on the 401st try? You need to be like that dead man. You need to innovate/experiment more. Winners never play it safe ’

Apologies for walking you through my cognitive process but those thoughts inspired me to write down a step-by-step plan concerning how I intend to invest in my mind in order for me to ensure I become wealthy.

And for those of you that are in the same boat as me e.g. people with dreams that need the tools to get there….I’d love it if you’d join me.

Peace, Love and Chichebe

xxx