WHY THIS BOOK, BECOMING?

Two days ago, being the 2nd of July, marked the official release of my new book, BECOMING. Since I have been talking about this book for weeks prior to its release, I have had to answer some questions from different people, mainly out of care.

Some people would send me messages, mostly to my inbox, asking what #becoming is about? Some were more curious because of the name of the book. Others just wanted to know how they could experience this becoming journey.

So why this book, #becoming? For who was it written, and what for??

You see, the first truth you should know about this evolving life's journey is the fact that all of us are daily becoming something; whatever that is, is entirely up to us.

The decisions we make daily are all leading to who we're eventually becoming in every way.

Recently, I shared in my blog post about how awareness can help with these decisions we are daily faced with, especially during critical times, and under spontaneous situations.

We live in a part of the world where culture is so strongly rooted in our being, that it can be sometimes difficult to make certain decisions without being held down by same pervasive, sometimes destructive culture.

As much as our culture is important, because we are all products of the interactions of our culture, environment, and our parental upbringing, each of us are unique individuals, too. We shouldn't lose that essence.

If you are not deliberate about becoming self-aware, living a peculiar life that is best suitable to your authentic design could turn out herculean, because our life's purpose are as different as our finger prints, although seeming alike, but never really the same for everyone.

Even though we hear quite a lot about purpose, and the messages about fulfilling it, these days, which is a great thing by the way, more pertinent at this time, however, is the issue of becoming self-aware, first. Otherwise, the question becomes, “how do you fulfill the purpose of a life you are not even aware of?”

Again, it boils down to how much of yourself is known to you, before thinking of the walk towards fulfilling one’s life’s purpose.

If you have been following my posts here, you may have learnt a lot more on self-awareness, and the different ways you can maximize its practice to help you live an evolving life.

In my new book, #becoming, I shared my own tales of emotional suppression and sufferings, at some point in my life, and how these issues did lead my curiosity onto the journey of becoming; one which I am still ongoing.

I also shared how by becoming more self-aware, you can be in an empowered state of accepting your uniqueness, thus leading to better chances of living your truth.

Why should you be bothered about this?

You see, almost all of us have been given a narrative of who we were supposed to be. A lot of our guardians, by their actions, rejected us. By emulating them, we rejected who we are, even though this was done rather unconsciously.

In 2009, Dr Neff said that self-acceptance was more important than self-esteem. This study was further proof of the importance of self-acceptance to our now adult life.

Self-acceptance has been proven to improve our mental state, especially individuals who are susceptible to emotional and behavioural disorders.

According to Abraham Maslow, People who have accepted themselves "embrace the facts and realities of the world (including themselves) rather than denying or avoiding them."

This mindset is good for our mental health. Something we can no longer take for granted.

In Nigeria alone, 21 million people are currently living with Psychiatric disorders. This was according to Dr Rahman Lawal. Since last year, 8-10 million Nigerians went through this service. So mental health issue is a serious one, even here.

But, a lot of mental cases had their roots in how these adults were raised as children. Reason everyone must have the knowledge of how to, not only embrace their own individuality, but also that of others around them, and allow people live their unique lives by not trying to fix them into their box.

Understanding how these things work helps you maintain the right energies for who you are #becoming, and also help nurture others in that right path, especially if you are a young parent.

Becoming was written to enable you acquainted with who you are, and exactly how you can go through this journey in order to truly live the life that is yours, so you can live freely, indeed. Inside #becoming are timeless principles to help you enjoy more enriching relationships, because by embracing who you are, you learn to love yourself the right way, showing others how you want to be loved.

To make purchases of this book here in Nigeria, please go here. For further discussion, questions, speaking engagements, or personal counselling with the author, please visit the author's website. Book is now available on Amazon.

To your evolving life,

Joy Iseki