The Right Teem—Embrace The Dreem

One of my Dad's favourite sayings, which he hammered into my head all the time, perhaps because he noticed my introverted nature and wariness of people was: "No man is an island; everyone relies on others." This valuable saying has stayed with me all these years, guiding me as I build relationships along the way.

True, we are born alone, with no attachment to anyone, except for twins and triplets. Maybe they are the lucky ones. But to truly survive in this world, we must be surrounded by the right people. The operative word here is 'right'.

Many dreems have died stillborn; some are lost and others forgotten because the owners of those dreems surrounded themselves with the wrong people. In this context, the use of the word 'wrong' refers to people who do not share the same vision or agree with the dreems of people close to them. So they either suffocate the dreem, rendering the dreemer confused, or mislead the dreemer so the dreem is lost.

I've experienced this before and when I came to the realisation that your dreem teem is very important, I'm intentionally committed to finding the right people to run my dreem race with me. This concept applies not only to a career related dreem but also your physical and spiritual goals in life.

Thankfully, I've been blessed with a few people who have stood by me to run the race to achieve my dreem. But these three stand out because of their commitment, love, attention and empathy. They requested to be anonymous so I'll just mention their first names — Nadia, Dudu and Ephraim.

These brilliant minds have stood by me in the years I've known them and whenever I bring up plans towards fulfilling my dreem(s), they give me their attention and time. Their guidance has been invaluable and when I make mistakes, it's a no judgement zone, giving me a nurturing environment to rise. Their constructive feedback on my pieces have been helpful, making me better at what I do.

This amazing collaboration with these beautiful souls is not one-sided. I'm also a part of their teem and try to give as much of myself as I can. It's been a worthwhile journey with its ups and downs which makes it interesting. I couldn't ask for a better teem.

As I write this post, the song of King Sunny Adé, a popular Nigerian singer-songwriter, comes to mind. It's titled - Enia l'Asho Mi meaning human beings are my clothing; the cover of my existence. This means, without other people around us, we're nothing and can achieve nothing.