Exploring the link between Social Media, Social Comparison, and Mental Health

'Nosedive' (Black Mirror Series 3, Episode 1), October 21, 2016

   

   Most recently I have been checking out the research of various organizations and institutions around the idea of social media and social comparison. Not to my surprise, there is emerging evidence that links social media and social comparison with mental health problems and how increased virtual opportunities to make virtual comparisons contribute to these problems. In other words, some of the psychological issues that we see broadcast across social media, and within our communities, are directly tied to folks comparing themselves to others on social media. According to one source, "Social media undoubtedly offers huge benefits for society by providing access and connection to people, services, information and opportunities that would previously not have been possible. However, evidence is growing, particularly in adolescent mental health, of an association between greater social media use and higher depressive and anxiety scores, poor sleep, low self-esteem and body image concerns." (Kelly et al, 2018; Royal Society for Public Health 2017). I mentioned that this is not surprising to me because I have witnessed this increase in mental health issues linked to social comparisons, especially during the 2020 Shutdown and Global Pandemic, and I have engaged it directly on multiple occasions. 

   Sean Parker, the former President of Facebook, once described the App as a "social-validation feedback loop." When people are coming from a place of low or vacant self-esteem, they don't know their value and often use social media to be acknowledged and seek approval. In the world of social media, getting a "LIKE", being liked, and receiving a comment is often enough for people who have low or vacant self-esteem. Thus, these social interactions, and the billions of potential social interactions, become a quantifiable measurement that folks use to determine their value. A value that they are sometimes financially rewarded for with sponsorships, product placement, brand ambassadorships, cross promotions, etc. by sharing the most vulgar, controversial, click-bait content. Think about the numerous people who became celebrities based on sex, violence, and other dysfunctional social media content. This is to say that people can become, and do become, anyone online and literally make a living for themselves. In my sixth-grade class a couple of years ago I had a quiet student who only wore black whom I will call Aiden. When I say quiet, I mean this dude may have spoken one sentence the entire school year. Aiden only nodded and gestured to basically communicate. One day a group of my students came excitedly into class sharing with me in confidence some information about Aiden that floored me. They told me to take out my cell phone and proceeded to show me Aiden's TikTok profile. This dude, posing as a Russian-based Influencer, had almost a half-a-million followers! Long gone are the days of selling youth the idea of going to college, getting a trade, doing manual labor, or going to the military as career choices. Why should they if they can become a celebrity making ASMR videos eating Takis?

  Biochemically speaking, the dopamine people get rewarded with from these social media interactions is a driving force that keeps them seeking validation. Dopamine is a type of 'feel-good' neurotransmitter that plays a role in many important body functions, including motivation and pleasurable reward. Produced in our brain, dopamine is a chemical messenger between our neurons; released when our brain is expecting a reward. On a psychological level, even the anticipation of certain activities associated with pleasure can raise our dopamine levels. Activities such as smelling food, anticipating sex, hearing about a promotion, getting a "LIKE", or receiving an encouraging comment on social media... High or low levels of dopamine are also associated with several mental health and neurological diseases. Having high levels of dopamine has been linked to a person being more aggressive, competitive, volatile, manic, and having poor impulse control. Having low levels of dopamine has been linked to a lack of motivation, apathy, moodiness, obesity, and depression. While all of these symptoms are visible in the everyday world, they are also visible across social media as evidenced by what people share, and how they react/respond to what other people share. What we may write off as people "trolling", being extra, smart-shaming, and soliciting for pity may be real biochemical imbalances. 

   For many, social media becomes a dopamine addiction. According to a Nursing.com article, "The number of hours worldwide internet users spend on social media is increasing and in 2018 averaged 136 minutes a day (Clement, 2019). Social media has been described as more addictive than cigarettes and alcohol (Royal Society for Public Health, 2017), but the nature of addiction is complex and the idea of it being more addictive may relate to the fact that it is available without restriction and is accessible and socially acceptable." In considering this growing social media use, that is often driven by a dopamine addiction, these social interactions amplify social comparisons. 

   Social comparison is defined as a form of sociological self-esteem, where people derive their sense of self through comparing themselves with others. These are comparisons that people make when they begin to measure themselves against unrealistic social media standards of financial success, beauty, health, family, happiness, intelligence, influence, and every other aspect of life that other social media users often LIE about. Comparisons that are virtually impossible to live up to that can impair a person's mental health. While social comparisons in our everyday world involve a limited number of folks that we come into contact with, social media gives us infinite opportunities to compare ourselves to billions of people who we don't even know. If we are insecure about our appearance or body type, there are countless examples on social media to help magnify that insecurity. If we are financially challenged, there are an infinite number of pseudo-entrepreneurs on social media to show us just how broke and unsuccessful we are. Regardless of how beautiful our vacation was, there are millions of folks going places more exotic and extravagant and they look better than us in an unfiltered bathing suit photo. For any person who is already coming from a place of low or vacant self-esteem, who is struggling with their identity and finding their life purpose, the social comparisons they encounter on social media are not healthy for their mental state. In many instances, it can be seen as masochistic for folks to constantly subject themselves to such humiliation; like the people who consistently read these articles, watch my videos, check out my social media posts, etc. but always has something negative to say. 

    So here is the problem: folks are being algorithmically hardwired and biochemically attracted to watch something, and someone, on social media that is impossible to be, and processing this virtual reality negatively affects their mental health. This is no different than an alcoholic, or drug/sex addict who is constantly looking for a fix that cannot fix anything. Some of you who are reading this are social media immigrants. We were born into a pre-cellphone society where there was no internet or social media. Now consider this problem through the lens of children who are born into this landscape as social media natives. They only know of a world with the internet. Imagine the degree of social comparison they are subjected to 24/7 in an already vulnerable developmental state. Now ask yourself the question, does our youth's growing virtual exposure intersect with the increased diagnosis of children between the ages of 3-17 with anxiety and depression, and the increase in substance abuse, sexual activity, and suicide among 12-17-year-old's? From a global citizen perspective, has China, the inventor of TikTok, done this research, and has created countrywide limits on youth social media exposure and gaming because of the potential mental health risks? 

    In closing, this is not a doomsday message. There are many positive applications for social media use and social comparison can be inspirational. We have to be very intentional with its use in order to maximize these social interactions. What I strongly caution people to do, especially with our youth, is to limit our internet screen time. As I shared, it is algorithmically hardwiring  us on a cognitive level. In my article Is Social Media The Digital "Turn on, Tune in, Drop out"? I wrote, "All social media formats use a scroll screen model. This enables users to easily scroll through pages without the cumbersome task of reading anything. If reading was not considered cumbersome, social media Apps would not limit the character count to convey a thought. Consider the following character count limits and ideal character count: Instagram = 2,200 characters max (144 ideal); Twitter = 280 characters max (71-100, 85 ideal); Facebook = 63,206 (40-80, 60 ideal); LinkedIn = 700 (50-100, 75 ideal). While some people have learned and are learning to use these limited/ideal character counts to refine concise truncated thought, many others have found themselves becoming less and less equipped to communicate, online and offline." 

     This society and its technology are not going backward; the internet, and social media, is here to stay in some form or fashion. Thus we must always explore ways to use it in a positive, progressive way, and not allow it to use us, our children, and compromise our mental health. The high propensity of social media use, especially by our children, means that adults need to stay aware of this growing evidence tying mental health problems to social media use. I cannot stress enough the importance of limiting our screen time, and investing more time in everyday life unplugged from our devices; engaging in activities that help build a positive self-image and sense of self-esteem. And if and when we do choose to use our devices, we must be deliberate about willfully engaging in progressive content that reinforces our positive self-image and sense of self-esteem. 

Peace,

Saladin

Anusha Serum: Health and Wellness Formula!

   The Anusha Serum from Quanaah Herbal Accents is a health and wellness formula that is designed to support immunity. This specialized formula was developed by Biochemist/Physicist Terry L. Hamilton of HAMILTON EADES GENETIC RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT LLC. Both the Anusha Serum drink and skin cream have been used to successfully treat everything from fever, common colds, lupus, COVID-19, and even cancer. 

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To learn more you can read our Official White Paper HERE

NEW RELEASE: "Skin Like Coffee"

 

Skin Like Coffee is a Quanaah Publishing release by first-time author Maya Arrington, Illustrated by Taylor Faith Leeper and Edited by D. Scott. According to Arrington, "Coffee comes in so many wonderful shades of color, just like we do! Whether your skin is silky smooth like dark chocolate, warm and bright like cream, or anything in between, Skin Like Coffee helps us learn that while everyone is different, we all are beautiful! It also highlights that a strong relationship between parent and child can validate the importance of self-love!" 

ORDER HERE

Your investment in our literature goes directly to support the projects, programs and initiatives of the Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters. Thank You!

Peace,

Saladin

How do we honor our "Infinite Potential"?

Photo Credit: Samar Hamilton

In this 74th Episode of Atlantis Build Talk Radio I discuss honoring the infinite potential within us, especially when it comes to the youth. Also, please SUPPORT and SHARE my Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters Renovation Project. I am renovating a property to establish a cultural enrichment early childhood learning center and after school program:

LINK: WEBSITE 
PayPal: atlantisbuild@gmail.com
CashApp: $SaladinAllah

 

Atlantis Build Talk Radio · Episode 74 -Honoring our Infinite Potential

SUPPORT THE ATLANTIS SCHOOL

Thank You everyone who checked out the Spectrum News story about our Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters HERE! If you are interested in supporting our project you can email me at atlantisbuild@gmail.com in regards to items you would like to donate. You can make any financial contributions below:

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Peace,

Saladin

From Student Enrollment to Solar Facts

    

     First and foremost I would like to say, "PEACE" to my brother Sincere Asiatic who knowledged 120 recently! I am very proud of the God and appreciate the time, effort and consistency he has shown to be successful in this undertaking. For those who have taken this sacred journey from Who is the Original Man to Pluto know that this is not an easy task. Once we have this knowledge we now have the potential to grasp its wisdom and understand how to apply these degrees in our every day life. That also is not an easy task. The knowledge of 120, wisdom of 120 and understanding of 120 equals 360 degrees or a complete cipher. That cipher or code, in addition to our Supreme Mathematics and the Supreme Alphabet, is a vital part of codifying our Five Percent cultural worldview. Celebrating milestones, especially milestones like this, are an important part of measuring our growth and development. If we do not acknowledge where we have been and how far we have come, it is difficult to fully appreciate where we are and where we can go. 

     When we are learning Five Percent culture some of the principles and values that we are exposed to may be unknown or theoretical to us. Learning about the legacy of Allah, his community outreach and youth advocacy, some of us have never done any of this work before. It is an entirely new world to us. It is not uncommon to meet those who claim to be Five Percenters for years.., yet they have no history of community outreach and youth advocacy. It it also not uncommon to find Five Percenters in the heart of any community actively building with the youth.

     Today I want to take you through Today's Degree to give you a sense of how we build on our degrees. This is not THE ONLY WAY and only serves as an example of my self-styled wisdom. Meaning, this is my unique perspective and how I may practically apply this degree and its correlations to other degrees, our Supreme Mathematics and the Supreme Alphabet.

   As Today's Mathematics correspond to the current date, Today's Degree is a degree or lesson within 120 that also corresponds to the date. If today were the 13th, Today's Mathematics would be Knowledge (1) Understanding (3) all drawn-up to or all being born to Culture (4). Today's Degree, Knowledge (1) Understanding (3), would also correspond to one of our 13th degrees within 120 as shown below:

13/1-14: "What is the meaning of C.A.P.T.A.I.N. and L.I.E.U.T.E.N.A.N.T.?"

13/1-36: "What is his ownself?" 

13/1-40:  "But brings rain, hail, snow and earthquakes?"

13/Actual Facts: "There are 790,613,581,824,000,000 square inches on the Planet Earth."

     So if another Five Percenter were to ask me, "How do you see Today's Degree?" I would reference one of the above degrees, recite the question and answer by heart and then share my understanding of the degree and how it applies to life. Suppose today is the 20th, here is an example of how I may build on Today's Degree:

     "Peace! Today's Degree in the 1-40 is, 'What are the prescribed laws of Islam for the said person of that ability? That the civilized is held responsible for the uncivilized and must be punished by the Nation of Islam.' In this degree we learn that for any said ability, meaning, even if we simply said that we had a certain ability, there are certain rules and regulations that govern that ability and expectations that come along with that ability. If I were to say that I was a plumber, there are certain rules and regulations that govern that profession and expectations that I am held accountable for. Imagine if I said that I were a mechanic and someone hired and paid me to perform a job that I didn't have the ability to complete. There are a variety of consequences, including legal, that are the result of me not being responsible for following through with what I said. The same applies to us when we call ourselves civilized, righteous, Fathers, Mothers, Gods, Earths and etc. when we don't live up to who we say that we are. Regardless if a person punishes us or not, life itself penalizes us for being irresponsible. This is one reason why it is important to not say we have an ability that we don't have. It is only a matter of time when we will be forced to show and prove it. It reminds me of my 6th grade students. When I introduce them to a new math concept I always stop to ask the class if they understand. There are always some students who nod their heads in agreement knowing good and well that they don't get the math. After calling them up to solve a problem on the board, I remind them to not say that they know something that they don't know. You will have to show and prove it and sometimes you might get put on the spot. More importantly, I remind all of them to not be afraid to say that they don't know something and to ask for help when they need it. You may think that you can fake it until you make it but you will eventually break it; whether that is a broken object, a broken promise or a broken relationship.

     When something is "prescribed" it is a recommendation that is considered beneficial. In regards to this wisdom cipher [20th] degree in the 1-40, responsibility for the uncivilized is what is recommended for those who are civilized. Why? Because those who are civilized possess knowledge, wisdom, understanding, culture, refinement and are not savages in the pursuit of happiness. Thus we have the capacity to help temporarily guide those who are uncivilized. I say temporarily because the goal is for others to ultimately help themselves.  While we learn that we get punished for not following the recommendation of being responsible, the benefits of this prescription is not expressed. We learn, through experience, that the benefits of being civilized is our direct access to righteousness, knowledge of self, the science of everything in life, love, peace and happiness. 

    Again, this is the Wisdom Cipher [20th] degree. The importance of only speaking about an ability that we actually possess and being responsible for assisting those who are in need is wisdom [2] that helps solidify and sustain our cipher [0]. In fact, it is the exact same wisdom many of us have been taught in our family's cipher, community ciphers, academic ciphers or employment ciphers growing up. My parents always told my siblings and I about not writing a check with our mouth that our ass can't cash. As members of the Black Panther Party they also taught us about the responsibility of being civilized and teaching others. Peace!"

     Above was just a brief example of how I may build upon Today's Degree. If I were to cross reference other corresponding degrees and elaborate on the 2nd and 20th letter in the Supreme Alphabet, the above build would be even more extensive. It would be too lengthy to read, thus I share builds like that via FB LIVE or YouTube LIVE or on Atlantis Build Talk Radio. If you would like me to build on any degrees please email me your NAME, COUNTRY, STATE/PROVINCE, CITY and QUESTIONS to atlantisbuild@gmail.com.

Peace,

Saladin

NEW BOOK RELEASE: The Map IS NOT The Terrain

Purchase HERE

     My twentieth book, "The Map IS NOT The Terrain" describes the relationship between Five Percenter culture as an object and a representation of that object as the culture. 

   In a series of insightful essays, this book explores Five Percent principles, values and customs as a conceptual territory [a map] and their practical application in every day life [the terrain].

     "The Map IS NOT The Terrain" and my other nineteen titles directly support the Atlantis School Renovation Project and can be purchased at Quanaah Publishing. I appreciate your support!

Peace,

Saladin

How Do We Make Racist Children?

*This article appears on the Five Percent Media website*

 

“Ignorance.” That is the short answer to the question, “How Do We Make Racist Children?” With all of the intelligence, expertise, lip service, and resources addressing this issue in America you would think that we would have figured this out by now. But no, we continue to grow children who become the kinds of adults that we saw desecrating the U.S. Capitol building on Wednesday, January 6th. These are the same kinds of adults we saw in Wilmington Delaware in 1898, one hundred and twenty-two years ago, who violently overthrew a duly-elected government. For me, this behavior is not surprising. I could literally write about historical instances of violence perpetrated by Americans against their own citizens EVERY DAY for the next three years and still not exhaust that content. That is only 1,095 days. For 1,095 days I could exclusively write about lynchings and never have to discuss another topic. This is America and make no mistake about it, violence has been a staple of this society from its inception. Some people have been on the historical receiving end of that violence, while others have been its historical perpetrators.

Following the storming of the U.S. Capitol building by Pro-Trump supporters, we have heard both Democrats and Republicans proclaim, “This is not who we are” -which is one of the most disingenuous statements one could make, especially at a time like this. It is a boldfaced lie that denies the obvious existence of historical dissatisfaction, division and devilishment we have witnessed in this country. IT IS who you/we are… and until we can accept that uncomfortable reality we will not be able to perform the institutional autopsies needed to determine the cause of this cannibalism.

 

As an early childhood educator, I am always thinking about ways to foster the kind of growth and development that enables our youth to become caring critical thinking adults. From my experience and research, children are not born racist, sexist or etc. Babies are born into a societal womb that reinforces institutions, social norms and an economy that nourishes racist, sexist, ageist and other ideas just like blood vessels in a womb support the growth and development of a fetus. These ideas help set a child’s cognitive trajectory and contributes to shaping their worldview. We were all socialized like this, regardless how we ultimately grow up to define ourselves. A critical part of our growth and development journey is constantly performing a self diagnostic to check the bullsh*t ideas we have knowingly/unknowingly adopted along the way. Another important part of that journey is helping support others to do the same. Treating these racist, sexist or etc. ideas like they are harmless only creates a larger problem later on. For generations these problems of race, sex and etc. have been outright denied, ignored, minimized and treated as minor by the dominant society. This is the same dismissive way the garden snake was treated in Genesis until it grows into a fire-breathing dragon once you get to Revelations. Like Revelations, January 6th was a day of reckoning for America to face its uncomfortable truths.

So what can we do about this as adults? First and foremost it is important that we model the type of attitude, behavior and citizenry we would like to see and celebrate in our children. Because our youth are growing up in a society that promotes ideas that may not coincide with a worldview of freedom, justice and equality, we must be invested in helping them successfully navigate around, beneath, above and through racist, sexist and etc. ideas. Part of that means helping them develop their “spatial awareness”; one of the critical cognitive skills children start to learn in early childhood.

Spatial awareness is our position in space relative to the people, places and things around us. In early childhood, children start understanding the concepts of location, direction and distance which enables them to physically navigate their environment. They also begin to understand where they are; their point of origin and how they are oriented. For example, recognizing that a toy is across the room on a couch or the direction of a window in a room. When a child has challenges with spatial awareness they have difficulty navigating their environment, reaching destinations and understanding their position in relation to the people, places and things around them. When a child or even an adult does not understand their point of origin they will lack a sense of orientation. Without a sense of orientation, it is impossible to determine direction. This disorientation makes a person more prone to being lost and easily led in the wrong direction. Make sense?

What makes racism, sexism, ageism and etc. so insidious is these ideas distort a person’s spatial awareness and sense of orientation. These ideas pervert reality and warp a person’s ability to understand their socioeconomic position in relation to the people, places and things in society and their capacity to reach their goals. Consider how something like segregated drinking fountains twisted a person’s spatial awareness. Where an object only steps away had to be rationalized as being more distant than the Moon. What about women who have earned a certain position based upon quantifiable data but are consistently passed up for a promotion by unqualified men. There is no way to rationalize how those positions in society and distance to other people, places and things are what they are. In both of these examples, accessibility and the landscape that they see IS NOT what it truly is… While black and brown people are often told all they need to do is work hard to successfully get from point A to point B in life, it is more like the game Frogger. Some will argue that we all have challenges reaching our goals and that is true. What is also true is there have been and still are institutions, government policies and socioeconomic obstructions that have impeded the progress of specific segments of our American population. In other words, some frogs are facing an entirely different obstacle course that other frogs have never seen and will never see in their lifetime. Understanding and navigating a society that distorts our spatial awareness is difficult for adults. So just imagine how difficult it is for our children. The growing mental health crisis and expanding education on trauma-informed care in this country is a clear example of this.

To some people, this warped reality of racism, sexism, ageism and etc. puts them in an inferior position of disenfranchisement. This makes it difficult to navigate this environment, reach destinations and understand their position in relation to the people, places and things around them. To other people, this warped reality of racism, sexism, ageism and etc. puts them in a superior position of privilege. Thus they are able to navigate this environment, reach destinations and understand their position in relation to the people, places and things around them with relative ease. We are all socialized this way the moment we take our very first breath.

   When children are taught to be culturally competent, when we respectfully expose them to different worldviews, it encourages them to become caring critical thinking adults. They learn that everyone has something to offer of significance to this world and your skin color, gender, age or etc. does not make you superior or inferior to others. Teaching children the obvious ugliness of America, as well as its beauty, is also a vital part of this educational process. IT IS who they/we are. For some of us, America has been more of a nightmare than a dream. America has only existed for 244 years yet my ancestors were legally enslaved and segregated against for 189 of those years. This means that 78% of the time black people have been in America we were legally denied the right to participate in American society and have equal access to its resources, institutions and economy. In regards to spatial awareness, many of my people literally lost their lives… and still lose their lives… for “not knowing their place.” We will continue to make racist children, who become racist adults, by lying to them about this American landscape. They need to know what they are inheriting; good and bad. They need to be spatially aware and know their true position relative to the people, places and things around them. There is a short answer for that also. In my culture, we say that understanding is seeing things for what they are, not what they appear to be.

Peace,                                                                                                                                                    Saladin

9 Ways To MASTER 2021!!

 

   First and foremost I want to acknowledge those whom we lost this year, especially those due to COVID-19 and other health related issues. This has been and continues to be tough for many of us. It is my will that we honor them by walking with the best part that they shared with us. By allowing their knowledge and wisdom to live through us, others can understand who they were and are! Reflecting upon what 2020 has been for me and looking towards 2021, I just wanted to take a moment to share some of my thoughts with all of you regarding being successful in our undertakings. Whether we make New Year Resolutions or not, striving to be resolute in all that we say and do is important, regardless when we choose to make that decision. In part, this is what “word is bond, bond is life and I will give my life before my word shall fail” means to those of us who are Five Percenters. This phrase is not simply something to recite. It is a declaration of being resolute and it highlights the integrity, fortitude and consistency to follow through with our word. In fact, when our word is truly bond we will not be broke, or broken...

   Despite the challenges of this year, there was much that I accomplished; from helping coordinate the second phase of our city's Heritage Art Mural Project, working on my Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters Renovation Project, my animation series now globally available on Roku via the first Five Percenter based streaming platform Seven On Demand and appearing in both the IMAX documentary Into America's Wild Narrated by Morgan Freeman and Hosted by Ariel Tweto and John Herrington and the award winning docuseries Enslaved Executive Produced and Starring Samuel L. Jackson. As one of our cultural ambassadors I take great pride in knowing that positive contributions such as this continue to expand the global footprint of our Nation. This means nothing if I am unable to show others how to also be successful in our undertakings. There are certain things that I have done, and continue to do without fail, that have allowed me to take my ideals from knowledge to born, from inception to conception. So in this article I would like to share these thoughts as 9 Ways To MASTER 2021:

1. Although it is your personal idea, our idea should be something that improves (progresses) you with the intent/consideration of making you a better resource to others and this world we share. Life is interdependent, we all play a role in how the world turns and there is a constant process of giving and receiving. This intent/consideration ensures that our idea is in tune with the universal order and is something that is sustainable -because we are actively providing a service (and/or products) that others, and the world, needs. If all we are thinking about is what we can get (keep), and not what we are able to consistently give, what we get (keep) will eventually run out. If you don't believe this, try it with your breath. Keep it to yourself and see how long it takes for your oxygen to run out... In short, we are not the 10%.

2. Make sure your idea is real and obtainable. It is less likely that we are going to change EVERYTHING at once so it is important to work on what we can change, one goal at a time. Also, take things one day at a time. It took a while to create habits/routines and it is going to take time to change them. The smaller goals we accomplish serve as stepping stones; helping us build confidence and gain the tools and experience that are necessary to forge our larger goals. And with any goal, one of the first and most important steps we need to take, and habits we need to create, is to “get our day underway with a positive, productive attitude.” That attitude sets the stage for our altitude. This is one reason for asking ourselves, and other members of Nation, “What is Today's Mathematics?” and “What is Today’s Degree?” It orientates you with higher order thinking and enables you to get your day underway with a positive, productive attitude. The average person is not thinking about principles like knowledge, wisdom and understanding. You are, and that psychologically sets you apart.

3. Make your goals specific. Instead of saying something murky like, “I’m going to read more” say something more specific like, “I am going to read one book every month.” This is called Specificity. Specificity helps you better focus on your goals and encourages you to be more responsible and committed to those goals. If you were to say, “I want to be healthier in 2020” there is no sense of ambition or plan of action to take that idea from knowledge to born. Now if you said, “I am going to only eat baked chicken once a week and go to the gym three times a week for 1 ½ hours after work” that has a sense of ambition and provides part of a plan of action to achieve your goal of being healthier in 2021. If it is not clear, our path will not be cleared. When we learn about being ‘right and exact’, Specificity is what ‘exact’ means.

4. Set a projected time/date for your goals. Setting a time/date creates a sense of urgency, responsibility and accountability to meet your goals. If you don’t meet your time/date then set another one. Without setting a time/date then we are saying that our goals are not really a priority (important). Why? Because under these circumstances they can happen any time and any day; that is not resolute. If you don't have a time/date, you are creating the possibility that there will never be a time/date. Keep in mind that “one day” or “someday” are not days on a calendar. This is especially important for those of you who still have not knowledged 120. Apply yourself and make a serious commitment to getting your degrees on cap. Set a reasonable time/date when you want to be complete and don’t procrastinate. We need you, especially our youth!

5. Write down your ideas. I have known people who had challenges with organizing their day, appropriating their time and focusing on achieving their goals. One of the solutions I shared with them was writing down their goals on index cards or signs and posting them in visible places around their home. Not necessarily for everyone to see, it is for you to see! This helped reinforce and remind them of their goals so they would not allow themselves to get lost in the hustle & bustle of each day. Committing your ideas to paper is the understanding or knowledge and wisdom. How? Because it is outside evidence that allows you to physically see what you thought [knowledge] and spoke [wisdom] about. Understanding is often referred to as the child or the best part. This is one reason that Creatives often refer to their projects, such as their paintings, literature or music as ‘their baby.’

6. Only share your ideas with those who have shown themselves to be supportive of you fulfilling them. If they are not there to help you, they are only going to hinder you. If they are not an asset, they are a liability. If they are not in your life to build, they will destroy. This also includes the nice folks with the pleasant attitudes. Just because they have a happy disposition it does not mean that they can automatically help. Again, our idea is likened to a baby and a baby must be nurtured, respected, loved, protected and educated. That baby must build its immunity to repel the bacteria and virus that could compromise its health, growth and development. It is unwise to let any and everybody touch your baby. It is equally unwise to expose your idea to any and everybody.

7. Look into networking with people/organizations that will help you fulfill your physical and mental health goals. That is why our social equality is important and the reason some keep us apart from their own social equality. Our network is a prime indicator of our net worth. Take care of yourself and connect with those who are invested I doing the same. There are no ideas when we don't have your health!

8. Speaking of health; strive to maintain a positive outlook! Some days it will be easy to maintain a level of positivity and other days you need the social equality with others who share the same goals and are just as resolute about achieving goals. This means invest the time to build with others and be present to learn as much as you can about the positive principles/values they are sharing with you. As a Nation, this is a part of our custom and the foundational network to help support our positive outlook on life, which we all need.

9. Your idea is not the end all be all. Some people live to have a wedding while others strive to be married in the mind, have a family and etc.. While the wedding is a place, being married in the mind is a state. So although your ideas may help you arrive at a place, the ultimate goal should be to achieve a state of existence. And this state of existence should set the stage to help you achieve even higher and greater goals! It is all about constant growth and elevation, not stagnation. Life is constantly changing and evolving and so should the living.

PLUS DEGREES: 

"Be a shark, not a peacock" as one of my homegirls would say. When a peacock walks into a room with its feathers fanned out everyone can see it. It is not necessary to be showy and strive to get attention. You also attract predators that way. Sharks move in silence and by the time you see their dorsal fin it is too late. In many cases staying below the radar and not revealing what you're doing until it's actually done is a sure way to be successful in your undertaking. Be a fine mist which the naked eye can hardly detect. When we talk a lot we are also subject to the expectations of others which are usually unrealistic. If you tell people you are writing a book and you know that you don't even have a manuscript yet, people may assume you are going to be publishing a three hundred page book next week and expect it. Now when you obviously don't deliver, people begin to look at you like the boy/girl who cried wolf. Always remember that light travels 186,000 miles per second and sound only travels 1,200 feet per second. People will see what you are doing before they can hear what you are saying so your reputation precedes you. So talk less in 2021 and let your work speak for you.

*Just say “NO.” Sometimes we put too much on our plate because we don't know how to tell people “NO” and we feel guilty about it when we do. Here's the thing: if you literally don't have the time, you don't have to agree to do it. Let time be the reason that you are literally not able to commit to something. It is unreasonable for someone to expect you to create more than twenty-four hours in a day. Just. Say. NO.

   In closing, I want to will every one of you and our families a positive and progressive 2021! I also will that while reflecting on our past year that we consider those negative things we have held fast to that has undermined our ability to be successful in our undertakings. We’ve all had challenges within ourselves, and with others, and I will that the next steps of our journey add more beauty to our families, community and environment.

Peace,
Saladin