Yeayi Kobina Writes: What matters in the end

What is your aspiration in your life? Did you pause to reflect on what your answer should be? It’s a pretty simple question; one we have been asked so many times. In this question lies a myriad of others that may cause some anxiety when pondered over for long: what are your hopes, your dreams, and your ambitions? What would you like to accomplish? Who would you like to be?

Have the answers remained the same as the years go by or do they now accentuate the inherent sadness that you are not doing enough to reach your goals?

In December of 2021, Daniel Tettey Ocloo was living his dream. He was blessed to be doing his dream job and was a step closer to achieving what he thought was his ultimate goal in life – to be amongst the top TV producers in world. He was without a doubt among the top producers in his country, having successfully produced the most watched morning show in the country for over six years.

A close call with death will however change this ultimate goal. As he lay on the hospital bed listening to his doctor telling him, he has to slow down, he realized how fleeting time was. His perspective was reset, the only thing he wanted out of life was to be happy.

I met up with him this Thursday. His usual jovial self, brought a burst of positive energy as we sat down for a talk between friends. He agreed with the notion that life comes at you fast. It was easy to get lost in the buzz of work, social life and meeting deadlines to actually appreciate the moments which are fleeting.

He laughed when recalling the moments where he had to sacrifice certain perks like a scholarship to Russia to pursue his masters for this dream. Although he has no regrets about the choices he made when he thought that was the ultimate goal for his life, he is realizing that aspirations and dreams in life are not meant to be stagnant.

“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it,” a quote by Bruce Lee is Daniel’s mantra now.

Goals have to change as you grow and experience new things in life. When things do not work out, it is important to see it as a re-direction rather than a setback.

By Yeayi Kobina

The writer has played multiple roles in broadcast journalism, news anchoring, branding and programming communications, scriptwriting, and content producing. He has worked as the lead producer of TV3’s flagship morning show, Newday.