May 2021

Dealing with the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO).

May 20, 2021 In Life 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) is the uneasy and sometimes all-consuming feeling that you’re missing out—that your peers are doing, in the know about, or in possession of more or something better than you. FOMO may be social angst that’s always existed, but it’s going into overdrive thanks to real-time digital updates and to our constant companion, the smartphone. 1

With over 2.5 billion active monthly Facebook users, 1.1 billion on Instagram, 353 million on Twitter, 756 million users on Linkedin, users of these social media platforms have an unprecedented array of tools at their disposal to view how others are living their lives, and it is leading more people to have a fear of missing out.

Book Summary -The Joy of Missing Out by Tanya Dalton.

May 20, 2021 In Book Summaries 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

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JOMO: An intense feeling of delight and happiness caused by centering your life on what is truly important and letting go of the “shoulds” and “have tos” in life.

In Joy of Missing Out (JOMO), Author Tanya Dalton argues that we don’t have to do a million things to be productive, re-ordering our priorities enables us to live life more intentionally. According to Tanya:

Real productivity helps us know where to start. It’s intentionally choosing to cut through the clutter and noise in our lives. It’s discovering the happiness that comes when we center our lives on what is truly important to us and let go of the rest—it’s the joy of missing out.

JOMO – The emotionally intelligent antidote to busy; intentionally choosing to live in the present moment by embracing open spaces of unrushed time.

Anna Quindlen’s 2000 Commencement Address at Villanova University.

May 19, 2021 In Speech 8 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“You cannot be really first-rate at your work if your work is all you are.”

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Anna Quindlen was supposed to deliver the commencement address to the graduating students at Villanova University on Friday, 23 June 2000. She withdrew as commencement speaker because of a planned staged protest against her strong liberal views, especially her support for abortion rights. Quindlen later distilled the speech into a book: A Short Guide to a Happy Life

“I don’t think you should have to walk through demonstrators to get to your college commencement,”

Anna Quindlen’s 2000 Commencement Address Transcript:

Book Summary – The Age of Cryptocurrency.

May 19, 2021 In Book Summaries 12 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Book Title: The Age of Cryptocurrency: How Bitcoin and the Blockchain Are Challenging the Global Economic Order
Authors: Paul Vigna and Michael J. Casey

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In The Age of Cryptocurrency, Wall Street journalists Paul Vigna and Michael J. Casey write about Cryptocurrencies’ promise and challenges with special emphasis on Bitcoin. The authors posit that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have the potential of becoming a generally accepted model of payment. Still, the technology and the pioneers need to work on the reputation and trust challenges of Bitcoin. They provide great information for newbies and cryptocurrency enthusiasts – the history of money, blockchain, the promise of eliminating middlemen, cryptocurrency mining, altcoin, government regulations, the opportunities, and the challenges of cryptocurrency.

7 ways of reminding yourself of your Mortality.

May 18, 2021 In Insight 7 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“You could leave life right now. Let that determine what you do and say and think.” – Marcus Aurelius

It is not a matter of If; It is a matter of when. We are all going to DIE, sooner or later. Contemplating your eventual mortality is one of the greatest grounding mechanisms I have found to reorder my priorities daily. In the face of death, we focus on the important things in life. Memento Mori is Latin for ‘remember that you have to DIE,’ it is an artistic or symbolic reminder of the inevitability of death. Our time here is limited, life is short, but we can make the best use of our time here by constantly reminding ourselves of its inevitability.

“The trouble is, you think you have time.” – Buddha

The average life expectancy in the developed world is around 80+ years which is around 30,000 days. If we sleep 8 hours a day, that means we would sleep 1/3rd of our life: 10,000 days, work and commuting would be around 3,500 days. Work and sleep alone would take close to half of our lifetime. The challenge is that we all think we still have time, we procrastinate, and we tell ourselves ‘Someday I’ll,” and the someday turns to never.

Book Summary -The One Sentence Persuasion Course by Blair Warren.

May 17, 2021 In Book Summaries 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

The most magical things in life, on and off the stage, are often the result of the correct application of the most basic principles imaginable.

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In the One Sentence Persuasion Course, Persuasion expert Blair Warren shares insights he garnered studying persuasion, human relation, and influence. Waren shares various examples to convey his point, such as The Secret, Scapegoating as used in the Depression, Weight Loss and Landscaping Industry, Validate and Fascinate, Correct and Convince, etc. According to Blair Warren, the 27 words that could allow us to persuade almost anyone :

People will do anything for those who encourage their dreams, justify their failures, allay their fears, confirm their suspicions, and help them throw rocks at their enemies.

Top 30 Quotes on Stoicism.

May 16, 2021 In Quotes 4 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium in Athens in the early 3rd century BC. Stoicism teaches us to govern our lives from within, according to our own moral compass, rather than being pushed around by external forces and factors.

According to stoic teachings, as social beings, the path to eudaimonia (happiness, or blessedness) is found in accepting the moment as it presents itself, by not allowing oneself to be controlled by the desire for pleasure or by the fear of pain, by using one’s mind to understand the world and to do one’s part in nature’s plan, and by working together and treating others fairly and justly.

Micheal Dell

May 15, 2021 In Bios 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Michael Saul Dell (born February 23, 1965) is an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist. He is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Dell Technologies, one of the world’s largest technology infrastructure companies. He is ranked 30th richest man in the world according to Forbes, with a net worth of $USD 50.2 billion as of May 15th, 2021.

With revenues of $94 Billion and 158,000 team members, Dell Technologies is one of the world’s largest IT companies serving the needs of global corporations and governments to small businesses and consumers. The company’s unique structure allows innovative, fast-moving startups to co-exist with, and leverage, the global reach and trusted reputation of the large enterprise.

Book Summary – Emotional Blackmail: When the People in Your Life Use Fear, Obligation, and Guilt to Manipulate You by Susan Forward.

May 14, 2021 In Book Summaries 13 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

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In Emotional Blackmail, Therapist and Best Selling Author Susan Forward, Ph.D., presents the anatomy of a relationship damaged by manipulation and gives readers an arsenal of tools to fight back. Dr. Forward provides powerful, practical strategies for blackmail targets, including checklists, practice scenarios, and concrete communications techniques that will strengthen relationships and break the blackmail cycle for good.

Favourite Takeaways –Emotional Blackmail by Susan Forward

Service to Humanity is the best work of Life.

May 13, 2021 In Life 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“You Can Have Everything In Life You Want, If You Will Just Help Enough Other People Get What They Want.” – Zig Ziglar

Mother Theresa once said,”‘I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things.” When I was an undergraduate, I became a Jaycee. Junior Chamber International (JCI) is a worldwide federation of young leaders and entrepreneurs between 18 and 40. One of the JCI Creed/Values is”Service to Humanity is the best work of Life.” what an insightful and very true statement.

The above motto has been at the core of almost anything I try to do, and I also try to heed the advice of Zig Ziglar, who said: “You Can Have Everything In Life You Want, If You Will Just Help Enough Other People Get What They Want.” I have realized that giving back and having a sense of service is always rewarding and fulfilling. Anyone you see making a lot of wealth has been able to render his/her service to many people.

Bill Watterson’s 1990 Kenyon College Commencement Speech.

May 12, 2021 In Speech 16 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“The truth is, most of us discover where we are headed when we arrive.”

On May 20, 1990, American cartoonist and the author of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes, Bill Watterson, delivered an inspiring and thought-provoking speech at Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio, the 1990 graduating class.

To invent your own life’s meaning is not easy, but it’s still allowed, and I think you’ll be happier for the trouble.

Bill Watterson’s 1990 Kenyon College Commencement Speech Transcript:

The Allure of Groupthink in the age of Social Media.

May 11, 2021 In Insight 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“If it is popular, it is wrong” — Oscar Wilde

Social Psychologist Irving Janis coined the term groupthink, which happens when in-group pressures lead to a deterioration in mental efficiency, poor testing of reality, and lax moral
judgment (Janis, 1982).

Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people. The desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome.

It tends to occur in highly cohesive groups in which the group members’ desire for consensus becomes more important than evaluating problems and solutions realistically. In his 1972 Book, Victims of Groupthink, Janis expounded his theory of groupthink using the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and the Bay of Pigs disaster (the failed invasion of Castro’s Cuba in 1961) as case studies.

Janis writes:

“I use the term ‘groupthink’ as a quick and easy way to refer to a mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members’ strivings for unanimity over-ride their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action.
Groupthink is a term of the same order as the words in the Newspeak vocabulary George Orwell presents in his dismaying 1984 – a vocabulary with terms such as ‘doublethink’ and ‘crimethink’. By putting groupthink with those Orwellian words, I realise that groupthink takes on an Orwellian connotation. The invidiousness is intentional: groupthink refers to a deterioration of mental efficiency, reality testing and moral judgment.

“You might as well eat shit, fifty billion flies can’t be wrong.”

Caged Bird by Maya Angelou.

May 11, 2021 In Poem 2 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

A free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wing
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.

No Limits: Blow the CAP Off Your Capacity by John C. Maxwell.

May 10, 2021 In Book Summaries 7 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

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Many of us set limitations on our capacity, we set limits on what is possible in our lives. New York Times bestselling author John C. Maxwell, identified 17 capacities that we all possess and he also provides actionable advice on how to increase our potential in each. The Core theme of No Limit: If you are aware of yourself and your ability to improve, if you develop the abilities you already possess, and if you make the everyday choices that help you improve, you will reach your capacity.

John Maxwell Identified 7 capacities and 10 choices we can develop, grow and harness to blow the CAP off our limitations. Everyone has capacities that are based on their natural talents. Some of them require very specific abilities, such as those found in symphony musicians, professional athletes, and great artists.

The Seven Capacities

Energy Capacity—Your Ability to Push On Physically

Emotional Capacity—Your Ability to Manage Your Emotions

Thinking Capacity—Your Ability to Think Effectively

People Capacity—Your Ability to Build Relationships

Creative Capacity—Your Ability to See Options and Find Answers

Production Capacity—Your Ability to Accomplish Results

Leadership Capacity—Your Ability to Lift and Lead Others

Increased capacity comes from making the right choices.

The Ten Choices:

Responsibility Capacity—Your Choice to Take Charge of Your Life

Character Capacity—Your Choices Based on Good Values

Abundance Capacity—Your Choice to Believe There Is More Than Enough

Discipline Capacity—Your Choice to Focus Now and Follow Through

Intentionality Capacity—Your Choice to Deliberately Pursue Significance

Attitude Capacity—Your Choice to Be Positive Regardless of Circumstances

Risk Capacity—Your Choice to Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

Spiritual Capacity—Your Choice to Strengthen Your Faith

Growth Capacity—Your Choice to Focus on How Far You Can Go

Partnership Capacity—Your Choice to Collaborate with Others

Top 30 Quotes on Self Care.

May 9, 2021 In Quotes 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Self-Care is the conscious practice of taking care of yourself without the aid of medical professionals. It is not about waiting for the storm to pass but learning to dance in the rain. We could self-care in various ways, such as time management, financial self-care, setting healthy boundaries, emotional intelligence, taking a walk, reading a book, meditating, yoga, going to the gym, saying no, and walking away from toxic relationships, social media platforms, or people.

The World Health Organization defines Self-Care as:

Self-Care is what people do for themselves to establish and maintain health, and to prevent and deal with illness. It is a broad concept encompassing hygiene (general and personal), nutrition (type and quality of food eaten), lifestyle (sporting activities, leisure etc), environmental factors (living conditions, social habits, etc.) socio-economic factors (income level, cultural beliefs, etc.) and self-medication.

Self-care is not the same thing as becoming selfish or being self-indulgent. It involves working on yourself, your mental health in order to have something to give. You can not give what you do not have, it is about recharging your internal battery and keeping yourself centered.

Here are some great quotes on self-care: