The Big Advice for 2023

It is better to go deep than to go wide.

Concentrate all your thoughts on the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until it is brought to focus.

— Alexander Graham Bell

One thing we all must know, before we fully launch into 2023 is this; pick one thing this year and become proficient in that one thing.

Pick one thing this year and decide that you will lay bricks on that one thing consistently, each day, without giving up, and by the end of the year, your life would have become completely different from what it is now.

There's unrestricted access to a lot of things in our century. So many options and indulgences that we try our hands on, chasing the shiny new object or trend, thereby deploying genius that should otherwise have been concentrated on one important thing to the fullest.

If there are no restrictions to so many things, how about we create those restrictions ourselves, pick just one thing to do this year, and do it every single day for the rest of the year? It sounds a lot like discipline to me.

I know the human in us all likes the comfort of ease, and there's the issue of jumping ship from one thing to another, or doing a lot of things in a frenzy at the same time, like we are gambling with life, but wait, I'd like to ask a question.

Remember the last thing you gave up on simply because it became too hard, or something else came and distracted you from it. Imagine you hadn't given up on it, imagine you had continued to plug in everyday, lay bricks every single day no matter how difficult it became, how different would your life be today?

Exactly!

So this year, the single advice I have for you as you ready your horses and are still in slow motion is this: Decide to pick one single thing this year to concentrate your genius and all your energy on. Lay bricks on that one thing every day, don't give up no matter how hard it becomes, and see if your life wouldn't be completely different by the end of the year.

This one thing could be a habit, perhaps you want to be an early riser this year. Do it everyday, whether you are going out of not.

It could be a skill, perhaps you want to learn a digital skill, or you want to learn another language, do it everyday no matter how little your progress is.

Perhaps it could be a physical goal, you want to build muscles. Work out everyday, don't give up no matter how difficult it gets.

Giving up is a luxury. It is a bold statement that you have other options, and you can afford to stop doing what you're doing and move on to something else. You don't have that luxury. As long as you are trying to become a person of value, luxury is not something you have or can indulge in. You have to suffer. What does not hurt will not instruct.

The idea behind picking one thing and concentrating your genius on that one is this; it is better to go deep than to go wide. It is better to be known as an expert player in only one thing than to be a basic player in a lot of things. Specialised knowledge makes you a lot more valuable and a lot more balanced.

It’d become easier to say no to a lot of things, at least for now. Your path will be clearer and you will know exactly what it is you want to and should be doing per time.

Finally, going deep doesn't necessarily mean you still wouldn't know anything about every other thing. It just means you have chosen, at this time, in this space of 365 days, to pick one thing and concentrate your creativity and genius on it.

This is the 2023 advice. Decide on just one skill, habit, or goal that will make you a more improved version of you, and put all your focus on that one thing, every single day.

What happens after 2023, you might ask. You get to decide that when it comes. For now, do tell. What is one thing you will focus on this year?

Happy New Year.

To your growth,

Abiola Okunsanya

Handzinspired. ✨