2021 - Dream. Pray. Work.

It’s that time of the year again! A time of making promises to ‘change’, to ‘evolve’, to experience a ‘breakthrough’ and committing them to a notepad📝. But this often doesn’t go according to plan. For most people, all you have to do is refer to your previous years’ new year resolutions for an example of this. I hope to change that with my prescription for success this year: dream😴 --> pray🙏🏾 —> work👊🏾.

Dreams are God’s way of communicating and revealing His plans. In the book of Jeremiah (29:11) God makes it clear that He plans for and intends for us to thrive so once you dream it, believe it. Be ready for times when excitement pushes you to share your dreams with other people and they end up killing your vibe by telling you to “be realistic”. ‘Being realistic is the most commonly trodden path to mediocrity.’ God said you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you (Philippians 4:13). Remember this verse and use it as fuel when you wake up. Do not be defeated and do not accept other people’s limiting beliefs... that dream came to you for a reason.

Prayer🙏🏾 is your chance to openly express your heart’s desires. An opportunity for you to ask for that which you wish to receive. Oftentimes the missing component of realizing a dream is prayer. If you’re not where you want to be then understand that the only thing wrong with your dream is that you’re trying to go at it alone. Get on your knees and pray... Understand that prayer is part of the hustle.

Work is all about output. Life gives you what you deserve. Not all the time, but often enough to appreciate the value of actively working towards something. You’ve wished enough. A dreamer is an individual that doesn’t put in the required work to realize their dream. Wake up and get to work because the bigger the dream the harder you’ll have to work. You must work and persist until you get what you want. Mpaka vi chitike.

Here are the dosage directions for the successful completion of your New Years resolutions in the year 2021:

• Pray everyday & commit your plans to God. Lesa pantanshi🙏🏾
• Aim to do something everyday that pulls you closer to the things you want. Want a 6pack or to lose weight? Commit to working out and eating healthy everyday. A bit of fruit, a bit vegetable with each meal goes a long way! Want a masters degree? Study every single day. Want a better marriage? Make a conscious effort to improve your marriage every day by focusing on the little things. Make breakfast, compliment your partner, tell them you love them etc.
• Develop unshakable belief in yourself and unwavering confidence in your ability by talking to yourself. Incorporate the practice of affirmations & mantras every single day and do so the moment you wake up. Why? This practice activates your spirit and inspires the determination required to conquer the next 24 hours. Say something enough times and eventually you’ll start to believe it. I personally affirm the following: “I believe in myself. I have the ability to succeed. I am capable.”, “God has a plan for me.”, "Everything that is happening right now is happening for my good." With these daily affirmations, no matter the situation, I’m able to maintain my composure and keep going and so will you. Repeat a chosen affirmation 10x everyday.
• ​Smile in every mirror you find. Smiling releases happy hormones and auto regulates your mood. A common dream killer is negative thoughts and a bad attitude. Smiling provides some positive realignment.
  
• Find a mentor. The majority of us only know what we want when we see it with other people. Find the courage to approach the people you admire and ask them directly how they got to that level. They will gladly share their success story with you. Once they show you the path, follow their footprints.

Big plans require the consistent application of the little things to order to see them through. Always remember that as you take on 2021.