Life Archives | Lanre Dahunsi

Regulate Your Identity Thermostat.

March 31, 2024 In Life 6 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

A thermostat is a regulating device component that senses a physical system’s temperature and performs actions to maintain the system’s temperature near a desired setpoint. ¹A thermostat regulates the temperature of a system, and we all also have an internal thermostat that determines how far we think we can go. Our Identity thermostat is a threshold we place on our greatness based on factors such as early childhood programming, indoctrination, nurturing, societal norms and values. Most of what we consider our identity is a cumulation of early childhood belief systems that we choose not to question or evolve. Some of these beliefs serve us well in adulthood, while others need room for improvement.

‘Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.’ – Carl Jung

500 Days Meditation Streak – Lanre Dahunsi

May 11, 2023 In Life 2 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Meditation is a practice to calm the brain by paying attention.

I started experimenting with meditation during the COVID-19 global pandemic. The pandemic was a roller coaster of anxiety, trials and tribulations, among other emotions. I had seen the Calm advert on YouTube but decided to check it out after watching an ad campaign featuring the Train Your Mind with LeBron James session. I started with the Lebron meditation on Calm and have been hooked on meditating ever since.

Who is in your Foxhole?

January 26, 2023 In Life 8 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

We know our friends during adversity, and our friends know us during prosperity.

As author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn often said, “You are the average of the five people we spend the most time with.” I agree with Rohn; your thought process & worldview is determined by who you surround yourself with, the people, and the media you consume daily. You cannot take people farther than you have gone, and we cannot give what we do not have; who we surround ourselves with matters a lot. Most of us surround ourselves with default friends disguised as frenemies, the familiar (family), our comfort zone, and low-growth individuals.

“You are the average of the five people we spend the most time with.” – Jim Rohn

The above statement by Jim Rohn cuts across every area of our lives, your income is the average of the five people you spend the most time with, and your perspective is proportional to the five people you interact with often. Who we surround ourselves with is one of the most important decisions that we all have to make. One of the recurring themes in my study of people through the reading of multiple Biographical books is the importance of choosing the right partner, whether in life or business.

How You Do Anything Is How You Do Everything.

January 12, 2023 In Life 8 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

It is often said that we get rewarded in public for what we diligently practice in private. One of the hallmarks of the highly successful is their obsession with sweating the details; they are usually the hardest workers in the room, and they are also the first to get to the gym and the last to leave. They sweat the small stuff, paying attention to details and executing relentlessly.

It is that time of the year again when we are all setting new year’s resolutions and goals. As the saying goes, “How you do one thing is how you do everything.” As the founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, once noted: “We often underestimate what we can achieve in a year and overestimate what we achieve in five years.” The hardest part of starting most journeys is the beginning.

We often underestimate what we can achieve in a year and overestimate what we achieve in five years

Don’t break the chain – Lessons and Strategies in Goal Setting and Achievement.

December 8, 2022 In Life 7 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training. – Archilochus

2022 has been a year of streaks for me – from running six 42.2KM marathons to listening to a podcast every day (365 Podcast Challenge), meditating every day (30 minutes per session), 100 Books Reading challenge, daily gratitude journaling and daily swimming sessions, among others. It has not been easy to execute these goals as I broke some streaks, and I have not been consistent with achieving those goals, such as the 100 Reports Reading Challenge, 50 Magazines Reading Challenge, Daily computer programming challenge etc.

50 Documentary Challenge 2023.

December 5, 2022 In Goals 2 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Earlier in April, I set a goal of watching 50 documentaries in 2022, but at some point, I stopped documenting the documentaries. I am setting a goal of watching 50 documentaries in 2023, and I plan to follow through this time. Some of the ways I would follow through would be selecting the documentaries based on themes, scheduling to watch the documentaries same time weekly and documenting every series watched.

A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion picture intended to “document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record.

Infographic: My year in Marathon Running.

December 1, 2022 In Life 2 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

I ran six full marathons (42.2 km) and three 10 KM races in 2022. I ran a personal best of 3 hours forty-four minutes at the Beneva Montreal Marathon in Montreal, Quebec, and I also ran two other sub-four hours marathons, taking the sub-4 times to three in 2022.

The Marathons I ran in 2022 are as follows:

The 2022 BMO Vancouver Marathon – 5:00:31 | Vancouver, British Columbia | May 1st, 2022
The 2022 Tartan Ottawa International Marathon – 4:37:39 | Ottawa, Ontario | May 29, 2022
The 2022 Servus Edmonton Marathon – 4:00:20 | Edmonton, Alberta | August 21, 2022,
The Beneva Montreal Marathon 2022 – 3:44:14 | Montreal, Quebec | September 25, 2022
The Toronto Waterfront Marathon 2022 – 3:56:14 | Toronto, Ontario | 16 October 2022
The Hamilton Road2Hope Marathon – 3:55:18 | Hamilton, Ontario | November 6, 2022

My year in Self-Discipline: 5 AM club, swimming, cycling, marathons, meditation, book challenge, podcast and many more.

November 24, 2022 In Life 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; We fall to the level of our training. – Archilochous

Greek philosopher Aristotle once quipped, “We are what we repeatedly do; excellence then is not an act but a habit.” I firmly believe that how you do one thing is how you do everything. We get rewarded in public for what we relentlessly practice in private. At the beginning of the year, I set multiple goals to enhance and build my self-discipline muscle. 2022 is, by far, my most disciplined year ever.

‘Discipline is choosing between what you want now and what you want most.’ – Abraham Lincoln

My Swimming Journey: 365 days of learning to swim.

October 27, 2022 In Life 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

In October 2021, I decided to learn how to swim. Just like any new skill, the process of learning to swim was not as easy in the beginning, but I kept at it day in and day out. I kept showing up at the swimming pool, getting tips from fellow swimmers, and lifeguards at the YMCA, watching hours of Youtube swimming videos, reading books, watching documentaries and most importantly, trusting the process. I am not where I want to be swimming-wise but am not where I used to be.

Marathon #5 in 2022: Toronto Waterfront Marathon 2022 – 2nd sub-4 hours in 3 weeks.

October 16, 2022 In Life 4 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

I participated in my fifth full marathon of the year (2022) at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon. I finished with a time of 3 hours 56 minutes and 14 seconds, making it my second sub-4 hours in 3 weeks. I had earlier ran a personal best and my first sub-4 marathon time at the 2022 Beneva Montreal Marathon on September 24, 2022.

I had a target of running a time of 3:30, but it was not meant to be. Like every marathon I participate in, there were lots of lessons learned and strategies that I hope to implement in my next marathon, such as experimenting with my running shoes and running without a running bag et al.

Marathon #4 in 2022 – Beneva Montreal Marathon 2022 -1st sub-4 hours Marathon (PR)

September 25, 2022 In Life 3 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

The 30th edition of the Montreal Marathon was held on the weekend of September 24 (10KM) and September 25 (21.1 KM & 42.2KM). The Beneva Montreal Marathon was my fourth full (42.2KM) Marathon in 2022 (Vancouver, Ottawa, Edmonton), and I ran a personal best of 3 hours 44 Minutes. I set a goal to break the fours time for a marathon in Montreal, and I achieved it. It was a tough process getting to the finish line as the picture below shows.

Over 10,000 runners participated in the 2022 Montreal Marathon with the start line at Espace 67 on Île Sainte-Hélène and the finish line at Olympic Stadium.

Oasis Toronto Zoo 10K Run – Lanre Dahunsi.

September 18, 2022 In Life 1 Min Read By Lanre Dahunsi

The Oasis Toronto Zoo Run was held on Saturday, September 17, 2022, with 10K, 5K, CubRun (1K) & Tiger Trek Challenge (15K) Runs. I participated in the 10 KM run, and I finished with a personal best time of 46:28:00.

Over the years, the Toronto ZooRun has raised over $573,000 to support the crucial wildlife conservation work being done by the Toronto Zoo in preserving endangered species, breeding and reintroducing endangered animals into the wild, and creating opportunities to reconnect people with nature.

Marathon #3 in 2022 – The 2022 Servus Edmonton Marathon – Lanre Dahunsi.

August 21, 2022 In Life 2 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

I participated in my third 42.2 KM marathon of 2022, having previously run the BMO Vancouver Marathon and the Tartan Ottawa International Marathon both in May. The Servus Edmonton Marathon was held on Sunday, August 21, 2022, and I ran a personal best of 4:00:20 sec. I nearly ran a sub-four-hour time on this particular run trail.

My First Live Tennis Game: 2022 National Bank Open in Toronto, Canada.

August 14, 2022 In Life 1 Min Read By Lanre Dahunsi

The 2022 National Bank Open was held between August 8 to August 14, 2022, as part of the 2022 US Open Series. The women’s event took place at the Sobeys Stadium in Toronto. This was my first time viewing a competition-level tennis tournament featuring one of my favourite female tennis players: Coco Gauff.

Toronto Carnival Run 2022 – Lanre Dahunsi

July 25, 2022 In Life 2 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

I participated in the 2022 Toronto Carnival Run, a Caribbean-inspired run encouraging health, wellness, and active living. The 6th edition was held on Saturday, July 23, 2022, and I ran a personal best of 47 minutes for a 10 KM run. The run started at Sir Casimir Gzowski Park and heads East along the Martin Goodman Trail. The run/walk distance options of 5K, 10K and 1K Kid’s run

The Toronto Carnival Run takes place annually in downtown Toronto one week before North America’s largest cultural parade, the Toronto Caribbean Carnival (formerly known as Caribana), along the same route.