January

For some, it is a very long and tough month, while others find it to be a month like all the others. For me, it is a time of introspection, a time to reflect on what I have achieved and what I really want in the new year.

I would not call it making new year’s resolutions, they never seem to work. Life happens, and you forget about your resolutions and take each day as it comes.

January is month that determines whether the new year will be yours or not. Many are looking for jobs and finding means to register at universities, it is indeed a tough month. We have all spent our money in December and the only money we have left is for putting food on the table, checking in at internet cafés to see if we do not have important emails regarding those jobs that we have applied for, and to make sure we have not missed registration deadlines for university, it is a month where most people would say “umthwalo wami uyangisinda” (My problems/burdens are too heavy for me), it is a stressful month.

It should not be like that though, January is a month where you have to wake up as if you are going to work, do your chores if you have to, bath and go out there to do your job hunting, think about what you want to do in this new year, set smart (simple, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely) goals for yourself and go about achieving them. If it is a business you are thinking of starting, seek for advise from the right people, look for the people and companies who you are looking to work with and start with your business plan. Do not wait for January to pass by while you sit at home doing nothing because “it’s January”, that is what we all seem to say when somebody asks us what we are up to during the month right? “It’s January, there is nothing I can do, I’m broke”.

Start proclaiming the good, your faith and enthusiasm should start here. You cannot expect the year to be yours while you are uttering words of downfall like “I’m broke”. Start saying I am about to start a business, I am getting a job, you will not be seeing much of my face in the house anymore, I will be too busy making my dream come true, achieving my goals etc.

Through it all, do not forget to make God the center of all your plans, He will guide your thoughts and plans, and guide you on how to achieve them. Do not just go to Church in January, especially the first Sunday of the year and expects things to run smoothly for the entire year thinking that you have laid your desires in the house of the Lord, praise and worship Him daily if you can, remind Him that you are still His and you need His help in every aspect of your life. Do not get caught up in the world that you forget what you want, fix your relationships with the people close to your heart and start afresh with them.

January could be a month like others, if only we set our minds to the good and stop focusing on what a long month it is financially. It is in this strenuous month that we figure who we are, and what our true potentials really are. It is a month of tests and trials, conquer them all and start February renewed and ready to take ownership of what is yours!