IT'S GRIND TIME, NO FLOSSIN'

Issue Three of The New New Magazine

Every so often you hear exactly the right thing at exactly the right moment, and it changes your brain chemistry forever. I had one such moment the first time I heard “No Bars” by JT of City Girls, the source of one of my all-time favorite TikTok audios. Towards the end, JT goes off in a bulletproof series of lines: “I'm low-key, bitches fuck with my anxiety / I'm prayed up and I'm waitin' on my rivalry / I'm the hype, nah, y'all ain't gotta hype me / I'm that bitch, give a fuck who don't like me / It's grind time, no flossin' (let's get it).” In that instant, scrolling through my FYP, I felt my neurons firing and wiring in new brand new ways. It’s grind time, no flossin’ – finally, I had a way to describe these last few years on the internet clown to creative entrepreneur pipeline.

How I find myself these days. If you’re not following me on Instagram…why not? 🤔

Last month, I wrote about the instances of Divine Providence that opened me up to this path, about how my lil human mind could have never strung together these steps on my own without the Infinite Intelligence working with, through, and for me. But missing from that Letter from the Editor is just how much actual work it’s taken me to get here. In the last two years, I’ve quite literally rebuilt myself from scratch. Without exaggeration, every single one of my daily habits has changed. I don’t think the same thoughts, go to bed or wake up at the same times, wear the same clothes, eat the same food, go to the same places, hang out with the same people…I could go on forever. I remain hilarious, thank God, but that’s about the only thing I retain from who I was in March 2023. Who I am now would be inconceivable to who I was then, a baby girl living in Abuja and thinking about moving back to the US, where the WGA’s writers’ strike was looming, wondering if it would kill my projects (it did). I did move back, and shortly after decided to try my hand at the influencer game, and within a few months, God blessed me with Rat Girl Summer, using me as a channel to get the girlies off their asses and into the streets. Since that moment, I’ve been on this unexpected journey, riding the wave – and sometimes getting my ass kicked by it too. That’s something else I didn’t mention last month. Running the play that only you can? Yeah, it’s a marathon, not a sprint, so make sure to eat your carbs.

I’m further into The Alchemist now, which I started reading last month, so let me catch you up on what’s happened with our dear friend Santiago, the protagonist. After the Soul of the World – the book’s term for God, or the Universal Consciousness – blesses him with the ability to easily sell his sheep so he can pay for his ship ticket, he sails to Africa in search of treasure. What happens when he gets there, you ask? Why, he’s promptly robbed of all his money, of course! Santiago proceeds like many of us probably would: by going damn, maybe I fucked up, and thinking about going home and abandoning his dream. It would be the easy thing to do, but he’s already come this far, so instead he persists, finding work at a crystal shop, choosing to persevere and work hard to realize his Personal Legend of finding the treasure at the pyramids.

Get a copy. This is an affiliate link.

At the crystal shop, he’s up close and personal with what life will look like if he doesn’t go after his dream: the shop owner is a man who dreams of making a pilgrimage to Mecca, but makes excuses as to why he can’t go. Eventually, he tells Santiago the truth: “I’m afraid that if my dream is realized, I’ll have no reason to go on living.” This fear is so great it keeps him paralyzed, unable to take action at all, rather than make a move and see what happens when he gets there. This is a way a lot of us play ourselves in the game of life: letting what ifs keep us from taking action because we’re afraid. But I decided long ago that there’s only one thing I’m afraid of, and that’s reaching the end of my life and looking back in regret, wishing I’d taken more shots. Since then, I’ve decided to get like Kobe, who famously took 1,000 shots every practice.

When I wrote last February on perseverance (talk about the cyclical nature of life!), I wrote that “when you’re chasing a dream, you already know what will happen if you put a stop sign in your own way and quit. What’s still unknown is what will happen if you don’t.” My own words came back to me when I thought about quitting writing this Substack to devote more time to some other work I enjoy, but simply doesn’t hit the way just the right sentence does for me. I role-played a scenario, imagining myself updating an old friend: Oh, I don’t write anymore. I could see the scene but not feel it, an obvious sign I wasn’t in Heart-Mind Coherence, which meant that the decision wasn’t aligned with my highest self. I knew then that quitting wasn’t the right answer, but, as always, the better move was to pause, take a deep breath, and reassess. It’s shocking how often we forget that’s an option: being still for a moment instead of always straining to reach the next monkey bar. I took some time to think about how to proceed, then decided to survey some of the most engaged members of my community here and in The Cosmic Girl Bible, the Skool community I’ve created to accompany this season of my podcast, and ask them what’s good: of all the stuff I put out, what are you resonating with the most?

The response was uniform: the writing’s cool and all, but once a month is not enough, and what we really love is the podcast. I love making the pod too, and I’m grateful to have a community engaging with my work at all. (And as an aside, the podcast hit an exciting milestone this week – I’m officially reaching cosmic girls in over 100 countries, y’all!) But at the moment, receiving this information was upsetting enough that I couldn't step out of myself to see the obvious good in the situation: the fact that there are literally people all over the world who give a shit about my work, and beyond that, actually enjoy it. It was one of those times where the sometimes antithetical nature of “creative” and “entrepreneur” was starkly obvious. As a creative, you want people to want what you want to give; as an entrepreneur, you give them what they want. In the moment, my reimagining of this space as a monthly magazine felt like a flop – but I quickly remembered that failure doesn’t exist – and that led me to another realization. It turns out that when you have more information, you can make a more informed decision. Imagine that!

That being said, things are changing (again!) here at The New New. One thing about me, I’m gonna go for it, and I’ll always make a change when something isn’t working. Here’s what’s up:

1. I’m going biweekly, with new posts coming out the first and third weeks of the month. The girls said one issue is not enough, and I’ve got more than enough shit to say, so let’s go. These’ll be longish reads, in the vein of what you’ve come to expect from me, but shorter than the last two months. The first of these will be free; the second will be for paid subscribers only.

2. Exclusive podcast episodes will live here on Substack, dropping every other Friday. The vibe is cosmic girl off duty – I’m talking manifestation and running it (“it” being your life, of course) but also chatting about pop culture, life, and being a cosmic girl in a “be realistic” world. Apparently you guys want more of me just chatting shit! And what a phenomenal blessing that is. The next exclusive episode will be available on March 28th, to get us on what will be our typical drop cadence, on the second and fourth Fridays of every month.

Edit: In an earlier draft of this piece, I wrote that I was raising the price of the monthly paid subscription to $9.99 to reflect the labor that goes into producing this podcast by myself. But God said He’s got me, so the price will stay at $5 a month for now. I’m on the journey, guys, and I’m writing it all out for you…let’s see what happens.

The weekly episodes on other platforms will continue as normal for the time being, so you can still hang out with me on the preferred streaming platform of your choice through the end of this season.

In the first episode of The New New Off Duty, I’m talking about Capricorn King Timothée Chalamet’s controversial SAG Awards speech and his open pursuit of greatness (and why Ioved it), my campaign to legalize self-love, and why being being a hater is corny and makes you (spiritually) ugly. Here’s a clip:

The full episode is live here for paid subscribers:

Chalamet was top of mind because last week, he made headlines after winning Outstanding Male Actor in a Leading Role at the SAG Awards for his portrayal of Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown. In his speech, he said the following: “I can’t downplay the significance of this award because it means the most to me, and I know we’re in a subjective business, but the truth is I’m really in pursuit of greatness. I know people don’t usually talk like that, but I want to be one of the greats. I’m inspired by the greats. I’m inspired by the greats here tonight. I’m as inspired by Daniel Day-Lewis, Marlon Brando, and Viola Davis as I am by Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, and I want to be up there.”

Though public opinion has been mixed – some found the speech inspiring; others shameless, self-aggrandizing, and just plain cringe – when I heard this, I understood him completely. Because I mean, well yes, exactly. I’m in pursuit of greatness. And yes, I know people don’t usually talk like that, but I wanna be one of the greats. Like Chalamet, I’m as inspired by James Baldwin and bell hooks as I am by Michael Jordan (who I wrote about here) and Kobe Bryant. (As I write this, I can’t help but wonder…maybe I am a sports girl after all 🤔). I’m inspired by people who go for it, and keep going for it, who hold strongly to their internal self-image and run as many plays as it takes until physical reality bends to their will and confirms what they already know: that they’re exactly as good as they know themselves to be.

Basically, this is me whenever someone talks their shit:

This is a big part of why I love Doechii so much, another artist who recently went viral for an awards show acceptance speech. After becoming the third woman to win Best Rap Album at the Grammys, Doechii thanked God, before later encouraging viewers, saying: “you are exactly who you need to be, right where you are, and I am a testimony.” In the weeks since her win, old clips of the rapper from her days as a YouTuber have been circulating, evidence of her meteoric rise. In one, she’s just gotten fired from Chipotle, and in another, she’s expressing her desire to just say fuck it and give her dreams all she’s got. She did just that, and now her grind period has paid off. And of course it has: Doechii’s a certified cosmic girl. I mean, peep this, from her hype up chant “God,” which appears on her mixtape Oh, The Places You’ll Go:

We must come to recognize that God is an unlimited supply and that everyone has access. God does not run out of blessings…cooperating with God's plan will manifest goodness in your life…and by listening to the crеator within I will be led through the right path, and on this path I will find mеaningful work.. If I am a product of the greatest artist of all time, which is God, if I am a product of the original creator and he has an unlimited supply of creative energy, that means I have access to an unlimited supply of creative energy.

It’s worthwhile to listen to the whole thing, because she gets it. This is not someone fighting with the mirror of external reality; this is someone working with the full power of the Universal Consciousness – and knowing it. Looking at what she’s achieved, could there be any better inspo?

Source: Good Morning America.

Both Chalamet and Doechii are naturally talented artists, it’s true, but they’re also doing the fucking work. In his full speech, Chalamet mentioned the five-and-a-half years he spent preparing for the role; Doechii experienced homelessness after losing her job and still found a way to keep making music. Not to mention she has almost a decade’s worth of YouTube videos cataloging her come up. There is a reason the Bible says faith without works is dead: sure, Santiago could have faith he’d make it to the pyramids and find the treasure, but he still had to sell his sheep and buy a ticket. A mystical breeze wasn’t going to carry him to Egypt, the same way God isn’t going to pluck you out of your current life and drop you in the middle of your dream life. You (I) still have to take action. The pursuit of your Personal Legend is a collaboration with the Infinite Intelligence; realizing it in physical reality isn’t a “just because” gift it gives us. We work together, with us taking aligned action in the 3D, and when the appointed time comes, we get rewarded for our faith. This is what the Bible describes as God “crowning our efforts.” When we act with intention, faith, and purpose, the Universal Consciousness rewards us with the Divine Providence I wrote about last month, the moments of God’s grace that unlock new levels of consciousness in ourselves and new reflections in our physical reality.

This realization – that Faith + Action = Divine Providence – flashed me back to my college years, where I was part of a student group called Columbia Faith & Action, which we typically called CFA. I joined CFA in the fall of my freshman year, feeling unmoored and confused (at the time I was an econ major – yikes!) and I went to the group’s weekly Bible studies and various events on and off for all four years of my time at Columbia University. The interpretations of the Bible weren’t aligned with my new knowledge, and it was a more traditionally church-y environment than is my vibe right now, but the group always anchored me when I needed it. It served as a reminder that a higher power was always with me, working with and for me, even if I didn’t fully understand our relationship. Things have changed, and I do understand now, and I know that this is a powerful synchronicity – the term Swiss psychotherapist Carl Jung coined to describe the meaningful “coincidences” that happen when we’re in resonance with the Infinite Intelligence, what might also be described as a sign from God. Here’s another clip from Off Duty, about why this relationship is so inspiring to me:

This isn’t my first experience with these – the recurrence of Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic in my life was another one, and it was a number of synchronicities that brought me to The Alchemist again after reading it for the first time as a teen. In the book, author Paulo Coelho calls synchronicities “omens.” “God has prepared a path for everyone to follow,” Melchizedek, the King of Salem, tells Santiago when advising him to go on his journey. “You just have to read the omens he left for you.” Just then, a butterfly flutters between them, a sign Santiago recalls his father once telling him means good luck. The butterfly serves as a reminder that he’s in the right place at the right time, that he and the Infinite Intelligence are in lockstep, that God has gone before him to prepare the path, even if Santiago cannot see it. This flashback to college did the same to me, reminding me that I’m on the right path, on the journey to realizing my Personal Legend, and I’m in exactly the right place at the right time. What a gift to be comforted in this way, and what an even greater gift that it’s available to all of us.

Last week on the pod, we talked about giving yourself permission to go after your dreams and taking action. Check it out:

You can listen here, and get additional resources like episode summaries and guided meditations here, by joining The Cosmic Girl Bible.

To wrap up, I’m gonna get like Timmy C and give you the real: I wanna be one of the greats. I’ll see you on The New York Times Best Seller list.

Cockily yours,

Lola xx