Ever since covid-19 hit and my world came crumbling down, I now have a different appreciation for life, I have a need for intentional and wholesome living. I don’t just want to make money, I want a sound mind, a healthy body, and a great relationship with God and a business that excites me. I want a life that is MINE!

I realized how much this rat race had turned me into a so called hustler and while I appreciated the privilege of living creatively there was so much emphasis of building a successful life according to the culture, around giving in to societal pressure. Come to find out I didn’t even wanted half of what was proposed to me but them subliminals had me succumbed to a life that was not necessarily mine.

As the whole world came to a standstill and I was slowly losing my mind, I regained a perspective that suggested a different path maybe one that I always knew I wanted but didn’t have the courage to go after because going against the grain can be heart wrenching.

But this new found clarity allowed me to write a manifesto for the life that I WANTED! Hence affording myself the greatest luxury, living life on my own terms.

So I am building it based on these 8 specific pillars and writing a manifesto for each, and there are very much aspirational because I do believe that in writing the vision down, being in alignment with what God is doing and make it plain to my mind and my soul, I am advancing toward the life that I want more importantly to the one that God wants for because what became very clear to me when I started my healing journey is that I had a very faulty perspective of what life was and who God was.

In setting on this new purpose-filled journey I am running toward of life of faith, I am acquainting myself with uncomfortable places, assignments, conversations; with a life filled with uncertainty yet certainty of self and my identity in God, a life of wholeness and conviction that is not defined by time, space or culture solely defined by who God is calling me to be.

While being in a place like this can feel somewhat challenging and makes me feel like a stranger to so many, it is the only way that I found to exist authentically, being familiar with rejection and misunderstanding.

While this life is ours to live, the sad reality is that we find ourselves in societies that have already assigned labels and roles to us without our consent.

Having a manifesto allowed me to write my life story the way I have always wanted it to be, it is keeping me accountable. This is a promise that I make to myself, I hope that you can you use as a template to create the life that you want.

This 8-pillar model that highlights these eight specific areas- spiritual, emotional, mental, social, creative, professional, financial, physical-that I believe we need to succeed and to lead a wholesome life. So let me share how I wrote the manifesto.

1.SPIRITUAL LIFE

Spiritual life speaks to the unconditional love that I am afforded through my relationship with God, faith and the spiritual practices that I hope to build. This relationship is calling me to a life of empathy, compassion and most of all love! This connection with God affirms an inherent right that each of us has, that is to exist and thrive as per divine design through worship, so here it is:

• I love God with all of my heart and love my neighbor as myself
• I put God first through worship, prayer the reading of His Word and gratitude
• I seek God’s will for my life through the counsel of His word
• I pursue spiritual maturity
• I trust God to pick me up when I fall
• I trust God with my future hence I avoid dishonest practices that might dishonor Him, me or my neighbor
• I exist as per divine design which makes me worthy of the life that I lead.

2. EMOTIONAL WELLBEING

Emotional Wellbeing is about pursuing a life of emotional wholeness through self-awareness, self-acceptance and self-compassion. I work on fostering environment where I feel safe to express myself authentically, supporting my inner confidence and authenticity while encouraging others to do the same without reservation. I obviously also establish healthy boundaries as I acknowledge and celebrate the diversity of love languages and communication styles:

• I am healed and whole from all the trauma, dysfunction and unhealthy patterns that I was subjected to in my childhood
• I heal my inner child through self-compassion, acceptance and confidence
• I love myself and embrace my flaws
• I speak life over my heart, soul and mind
• I seek relationships that enrich me and challenge me to become my authentic self and I reciprocate the same way
• I am not a victim of circumstances or people’s wicked acts towards me
• I am open to love, trust, honest, protection, loyalty, abundance and peace
• I am neither the cause of chaos nor do I hold ill-intent towards anyone
• I honor my heart by choosing the right environment to thrive in
• I avoid drama and dysfunction like the plague
• I indulge in activities and foods that make my heart happy

3. MENTAL WELLNESS

Mental Wellness bring to light the inner work that I am doing in cultivating empowering belief systems. I make it a point to feed my mind with right information and to pray for a discerning spirit in order to make the right decision and build an intellectual acumen that allows me to think and bring a lot of great ideas to life. I pray for a potential that allows me to thrive without straining me:

• I feed my mind useful and helpful information
• I value my time
• I have a great work ethic
• I think of things that are valuable to my personal growth and of those around me
• I am enough and so is everyone else
• I embrace habits and beliefs that are propelling me to my chosen future and hope
• I prioritize my mental wellbeing through therapy, by paying attention to my triggers and choosing thrive in an healthy environment
• I am a brilliant mind

4. CREATIVE LIVING

Creative living celebrates the boundless realm of creative freedom that I afford myself by feeding my child-like imagination and by embracing the flow of inspiration. I am discovering and nurturing my unique voice by expressing it truthfully. I welcome epiphanies and moments of insight with the understanding that it is God’s way of reminding me that I am made in His Image. So, here is to a life filled with curiosity and exploration:

• I am a creator of beautiful things
• I embrace my creativity through self-expression
• I share my creativity with the world by being true to myself and feeding off other creators
• I choose to go after the life that sets my soul on fire
• I choose to be enlightened by God, the Ultimate Creator and to be inspired by His Work