I’ve Lost My Mojo*

*No, this is not a reference to the ridiculous Austin Powers movie.

A shadow of the person you used to be 302/365 291009

These past 2-3 years have been difficult on myself and my family thanks to layoffs and an economy that went south real fast. To be even more honest, the situation here is degrading, not improving. I’ve been struggling inwardly while I am Mr..-Anything-Is-Possible on the outside. It is becoming real difficult to maintain that position too.

I’m not the man I used to be a few years ago and I don’t like it. I’ve said  before that I used to be a lot happier and it is truer today than when I first said it.

Almost eight years ago I was asked to create a user name for a new mail and internet account (MSN dial-up, what was I thinking?) and I chose “mojodenbow”. I’ve always loved the Blues music which uses that term a lot. It rhymed with my last name so that was the beginning of an era.

After a few weeks of thought, I have decided to put an end to that era. Slowly. I have built an entire brand and websites around the “Mojo” theme and am still very proud of it too. Audio Mojo, Techno Mojo, Photo Mojo and Video Mojo have been fun. I will still pursue these things but not with that brand name.

Why am I putting the Mojo behind me? The term itself is African for dark magic. It was brought to America and became very popular in the south, especially with Creole and voodoo. The Blues music was born there and calls upon this term frequently in the older, classic songs. One of the more popular songs says “I got my mojo workin’ but it just won’t work on you…”

I honestly believe that while Mojo has been fun, it has not been productive. In fact, because of the reference, it may have been destructive. It wasn’t who I am and that is the point.

I want to be myself again

Over the next month or two I’ll be in the process of converting everything over to something that reflects this. I’ve already secured two domain names for this website and others. The email, social media accounts will be next. if you’re interested in sticking with me, I will be posting notifications, new addresses, etc. I’ll probably lose some friends and followers in the process. I hope not. If so, then maybe they were following the wrong person.

I’m starting to feel like myself again.

8 responses

  1. Very Bold move Chris as you really have built a very successful brand around the 'mojo' name.

    Look forward to seeing the new brand as it develops 🙂

  2. That's great that you're being yourself, but I count myself fortunate that I met Chris Denbow and know him as that, no matter what his online handle is.

  3. I'm glad to know Chris and not just mojodenbow. I will continue to follow, and be your friend, no matter what you want to call yourself. One of these days, I still hope to stop for a visit on the way to visit my family.

  4. whatever you do Chris, just know your dad is behind you 100%.
    so when you decide, let the family know.

  5. […] in October 2009 I decided that I’ve lost my Mojo and it was time for a new direction. I’ve changed the name to reflect a personal website and […]

  6. […] I’m in the slow process of migrating five years worth of images from one Flickr account to another. This is part of the promise to myself to wean off of the old “Mojo Denbow” moniker […]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *