I’m burdened by the things I do not know

In the spirit of things to pay attention to this yeah, let's talk about knowledge.

Jan 18, 2026

Hey there,
Happy New Year to you.

This is my first episode of the year, and I’ve spent a fair amount of time thinking about how I want this newsletter to evolve in 2026. If I were to separate FSHL into seasons, this would officially be the beginning of Season 4.

So, Welcome to Season 4 Episode 1 of FSHL.

This started as a log of random concepts and things I find fascinating but as I grew it became a repository of career and personal lessons that anyone in varying stages of their career and personal development can benefit from. So welcome.

I hope you’re doing well. I hope the year started with optimism, planning, and audacious belief that you can try and achieve anything.

The first few weeks of 2026 have been busy for me. I’ve been trying to find my footing, making both big and small decisions, and preparing myself for the kind of 2026 I want and I’m grateful that although there have been a lot of things to handle and deal with, we are on track to having an amazing year.

As I usually do, I started the year with a review of the previous one. I picked a few focus areas for 2026, defined what progress would look like, attached metrics to them, and broke them down into quarters, months, weeks, and daily habits.

One of my focus areas for the year is Reading.

Beyond the idea of reading, I’m rethinking what reading represents to me.

I’ve always believed that knowledge is power (I think everyone believes this). Not just in a motivational quote sense, but in the very practical way.

Knowledge quietly gives you leverage in life. It is that one assured way you have of expanding your capacity. And while life itself is a strict and often cruel teacher whose primary method is experience, reading is the concept that when engaged properly delivers this knowledge to you without the scars that experience might bring.

For many Nigerians who grew up knowing a life where survival was the primary goal, accumulating knowledge can feel like a foreign concept. When life is urgent, curiosity feels optional. Unfortunately, that is statistically the reality of majority of Nigerians.

I consider myself fortunate. I’ve had access to education, and more importantly, I’ve had a consistent hunger for personal growth. Over the years, this hunger has reshaped my thinking around marriage, parenting, religion, politics, history, and how society and life actually works.

I’ve come to believe that readers really do lead the world. Not through physical dominance, but through mental dexterity, context, and the ability to navigate nuance.

Sometimes, when I scroll through conversations online, especially on Twitter, I can tell how deeply someone has thought about life just by how they express themselves. That skill did not come by accident. It came from years of learning how to communicate better, articulate thoughts clearly, engage with people, and sit with ideas longer than was comfortable.

This is the core of what I’ve been wrestling with that influenced my reading goal for 2026.

Lol. I know I could easily have said …

I want to read more this year because readers are leaders.

… but as someone who has always known that but still struggled to live intentionally in it, I needed to paint a clear picture to help you understand why it is different this time.

Those who know certain things are miles ahead of those who do not. And those who do not know often assume the gap is small. That it can be closed quickly if needed. The truth is, they don’t even know what they’re missing.

Take parenting as an example.

Someone who has studied reproduction, child psychology, family systems, emotional development, and finances has already stacked the odds in their favor. Even without wealth, they are more likely to raise a healthy, capable adult than someone who relies purely on good intentions and “God will do it”.

The difference between knowing and not knowing is so wide and it often goes unnoticed by those on the other side of it.

The same applies to history, politics, and philosophy. If you have no interest in these areas, it’s easy to dismiss them as irrelevant. But those subjects quietly determine who gets access to certain rooms, conversations, and opportunities.

You may never even realize you’ve been excluded. You’ll just wonder why progress feels slower, why some doors never seem to open. Often, it’s not about talent or effort. It’s about curiosity and the knowledge you possess.

If even one line here made you pause, rethink, or feel more focused—imagine the impact of getting this kind of clarity every week. Hit subscribe and don’t miss the next one.

I grew up more science-inclined, uninterested in news, politics, or history. Now as an adult, I see how having a working understanding of these areas can become a differentiator.

The same is true for niched subjects like art, wine, fragrances, and culture. These things act as social filters. If you don’t care about them at all, you are already likely removed from certain networks and experiences.

If we were to put this into a monetary perspective, someone who does not care about art would always think a few strokes on a canvas is insignificant and people who think it’s more than that are just too rich and only engage with it because they have money to waste. But there is a poor struggling artist with talent who manage to knows that:

A good story can trigger the right emotions and if you trigger the right emotions of someone with means it can make a different for you. So he uses art as his medium.
Even without triggered emotions, he also understands that some people have an incentive to buy art to write off taxes and save money.

… and because of these 2 facts, he transforms his life.

So you are free to call all those who are involved stupid but there’s a previously broke artist who understands how to leverage this knowledge and He is managing to do extremely well financially while you who judge the entire art economy are stupid can’t boast of certain luxuries in your life.

This realization is why I’ve committed to reading more this year. I’ve decided to be more curious than conclusive.

I want to live the full length of my life. I want to explore what the world offers without restricting myself. The more I engage with new subjects, the more I realize how much opportunity I am leaving on the table simply because I didn’t know.

This same lack of knowledge pattern repeats everywhere.

Ignore physical health and exercise, and you shorten your life. Ignore budgeting, planning, and productivity, and you quietly resent the quality of results others achieve easily. Ignore opportunities like scholarships, grants, or niche programs, and assume they don’t exist, while others build entire lives around them.

The title of this episode feels fitting.

I’m burdened by the things I do not know…

Not burdened in a negative way. But burdened because I’m hungry and curious to know. I recognise that every subject is a doorway. Every area of ignorance is a closed portal and once I read about it and understand it, multiple possibilities are open to me.

My question to you as we move into the year is simple.

What are the things you do not know?
What have you ignored because they were not valued in your upbringing, environment, or social circle?

Pick one. Go deep. See what doors it opens for you.

Life improves in quality when you improve in range. When you can navigate nuance. When you can hold conversations across worlds.

What is life if you are not becoming better?
What is life if you are not intentionally widening the gap between who you are today and who you will be tomorrow?

That’s my two cents for today.

If you’re a reader, I hope to join you more seriously this year. I’ve already finished two (2) books this year. The first one is one I started reading last year and the other is a book on design I’ve been meaning to reading for a while.

My goal is at least ten books (big and small books), hopefully more.

I’ve also been following new creators who talk about art, legacy, culture, and history. And because of recent global events, I’ve found myself reading about Venezuela, oil politics, Greenland, and its relationship with the Kingdom of Denmark. Topics I would have ignored not long ago.

My hope is that this newsletter becomes richer this year. More layered. More nuanced. Something that casually introduces ideas you feel compelled to explore further.

The goal of this is not just to know things but to expose doorways you can easily walk into in this complicated world.

So here’s to finding your thing this year.

I’ve found one of mine.

Launching my first book this year

I typed “I’ve found of one of mine” because there are multiple things I’m doing this year and one of them is that I’ve decided to write and launch a book.

I’m going to be releasing special newsletter episodes containing drafts of the book itself. That would probably be a paid subscription cause it’s a deeper dive.

It’s a carefully curated compilation of;

… the top and most quality content from the newsletter from the past 3 years.
… a much more thorough and nuanced review of it lessons, benefits and experiences from the perspective of a much wiser version of me.
… a better flow of thought for the average audience of this newsletter.
… practical and actionable frameworks based on translating successful concepts into templates you can use.
… a single delivery mechanism for anyone who has been positively affected by any of the 140+ newsletter posts so far.

So you see now why I’m reading more this year. It’s a deeper look into what excellence looks like so that the book is worth your time.

It’s going to be an amazing year.

Comment what you would like to see in the book and what you look forward to.

Cheers.

In summary

You are more likely to walk into certain possibilities you expect for you life if you read more.
Reading is how you acquire life experiences without the scars.

Discussion about this post

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