'Podcast' by Damola

In the 14th century, writers wanted to present depths of emotion, but were constrained by the rules pre-determined by the language speakers. Let’s call those grammar rules. So they started deviating from those rules. They created what we now know as poetic license, to give themselves space and room to write beyond the edges. To create words that never existed. To say things in ways that had never...

I care about what you think. I care that you think. I care about how well I care. I care about what to care about. I care enough not to be defined by what you think. Caring is human. Not caring dampens our capacity to feel, to love, to open our hearts to how we show up in the world. That’s too much power to hand over to someone else. Instead, I care…a lot. Enough to know that you can care about so...

The first line is the ceiling. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.bydamo.la

Your job is to make art. To create something beautiful. To obsess with care and love over how every tiny part fit. To gift yourself with doing the work in ways that make your work useful. Their job is to be entertained by your art. To be moved by it. To critique it. To praise and badmouth it. To compare it with others. Remember this when you find yourself doing their job. This is a public episode....

The first audience to tell your story to is an audience of one - you. Before you decide to share that story with others, start by telling it to yourself. Your story matters. It always has. Telling your stories to yourself helps you see yourself, and see the plots clearer. It helps you understand facts, fiction, reality and what meaning you decide to give each. I’ve written before about how the sto...

If you are reading this, it’s likely you are doing both right now. We all are. None of us is grown up. And none of us is dead - at least not while reading this. Of the two states, the latter is what I’m sure about. We are all growing, if we choose to. And we are all dying daily, whether we choose to or not. That’s good news. Now we can forget about becoming grown ups and focus on the verb - the gr...

I am not asking if you’ve had an encounter with Jesus. My question is more simpler, more basic. Have you seen a photograph of Jesus Christ? For many, the answer is yes. They’ve seen a picture somewhere and everywhere. In a church nearby. On the internet. In stories and videos. In many renditions made during Easter and Christmas. None of the images you’ve seen of Jesus is right. When compared to on...

So is yours. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.bydamo.la

No best practice is right or wrong. Just group think and taste at work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.bydamo.la

What books do you talk about when someone ask you to name books that changed your life? I had a few of those. There are some I re-read every few years. I read one and it didn’t do what it used to do. It was, underwhelming, to say the least. Did I outgrow the book? Had the same happened to you too? Maybe it wasn’t the books. Maybe it was the time you read them. Pick that book up today, and chances...

I was barely 16 when I started my first ‘official’ social venture project. And that first few years working on global development issues lit the fire and desire to save the world. Right now, I’m not interested in ‘saving the world’. We can still influence the world, change the world, make the world better. But not by trying to saving the world with our might. Our job is not to save the world. It’s...

We all have within reach options that bring shallow joys and deeper joys. None is better than the other. None is more right than the other. The ultimate test of the joy you enjoy is that it is helping you become the kind of person you said you want to be. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.bydamo.la

Who defines what time is prime time? None of their approaches are right and wrong. Just different. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.bydamo.la

No solution is the complete solution. All solutions are partial. All conclusions are snapshots. No conclusion covers it all. No picture is the complete picture. Just stories within a frame. No answer is an absolute answer. When our choice changes based on what tradeoff we are comfortable with, there is rarely a right or wrong answer. Life is both simple and complex. Clarity and mystery can live to...

Right and wrong are ineffective tools we use in moving around the world. We keep using it because it sometimes gets us close to where we want. It sometimes help us imprint our perspective on others. Every perspective is incomplete regardless of the truth in it. We use right and wrong to create pain and judgement. We use both to grow in status and affiliation. We use both, even when they have becom...

Some of the important things are borderline uncertain. Some of our most unique strengths are honed when nothing is certain. Even certainty is seed for uncertainty. Transformation happens when we lean into the wisdom of what’s uncertain, only to come out at the other end better. Ask a lot of people with this experience if they are grateful for going through the process when things were uncertain. Y...

What exists is the emotion, pain, or result you are avoiding. You might be somewhat set, but there is still a gap in what you are thinking about. Maybe your body is tired. Or your mind wants to pay attention to something else. Something urgent. Or there is resistance. Maybe not to writing. But to something else. Something you might uncover as you write. Or the excitement of what the completed work...

This reminded me of why we make things. Why we care. And why what we care about matters. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.bydamo.la

You see things nobody else does. Weird gaps that call at you. Strange problems that only you seem to understand. Obsessions that won’t let go. You may think it’s too small to care about. Too immaterial. But that’s exactly the point. You cared because that’s your dragon. Slaying it will be trying to be like others. Trying to be normal. Instead, sit with it. Understand it. Share it someone who gets...

Can you see the parts of you that make you proud of yourself? Can you see how who you are validates those that look up to you? Can you see the parts of yourself you freely and graciously love? And the parts you are yet unwilling to love? Can you see the parts of yourself that aren’t socially acceptable? The parts of yourself you’ve learnt to hide? Can you see yourself feeling the full spectrum of...

Many stamps of credibility serve at least one purpose; they show the world that you are worth taking seriously. There is wisdom in knowing what stamps are worth the game you want to play and what stamps aren’t worth it. The ultimate goal is to be your own credibility stamp. When I think of the people I really adore - from Jesus to Charlie Munger and my dad - I realise they were their own credibili...

That's a Yoruba phrase that I love for its meaning. Whenever I write ‘OKOW’ on my notepad, it's a forcing function to remember the other possibilities. That phrase, Ò̩nà kan ò wo̩jà , means 'not only one way leads to the market' No one path leads us to our destination. Sometimes, the best path for us is the path we choose. Others may follow a different path and we both arrive at the same destinati...

Shame says, "I am bad," so we treat it like a sentence. Guilt says, "I did something bad," so it’s easier to admit and fix. Shame says, "you are broken, end of story”. Guilt says, "you broke something" and we can choose our next step. What separates shame from guilt is that one focuses on the person, the other focuses on the action. When put this way, guilt feels more empowering than shame. But he...

Loving any human being may hurt. Loving someone messy definitely can hurt. But the wholeness of genuine love outweighs the hurt. I am responsible for how I love people. They are responsible for what they do with their lives. Although I’ve known this for years, I still forget. I love my parents and will never be responsible for the decisions they made. Some of those decisions were beneficial. Some...

A is where you are now. B is your next step. Z is the big picture. It’s the end you have in mind. Often times, C to Y will change. Trying to make them perfect may be a waste of time. Focus on understanding the reality of where you are and what you want to do next. The rest will always be taken care of. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access...