A Motivational Snack- Entrepreneurship Is Not For Everybody

Entrepreneurship is not for everybody. And that’s okay. You can be an employee of a company and still build wealth. It’s not so much about the source of your income as much as it is how you manage/leverage your income.

One more thing, if you do possess an entrepreneurial spirit, there’s nothing wrong with working a traditional job while you build your own business. Just do your due diligence to ensure there are no conflicts of interest. Choosing this approach doesn’t make you any less of an entrepreneur. Trust me, no one is giving out gold stars to entrepreneurs that quit their jobs to pursue their entrepreneurial ventures full-time. It takes time. It requires preparation.

Entrepreneurship is not a fad. It is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Let’s be careful not to feed into the sensationalism of entrepreneurship.

A Motivational Meal of the Week- Stop Wearing Your Burnout Like A Badge of Honor

Listen… 

Rest is not a reward that’s earned. Rest is not reserved for the wealthy. Rest is an essential part of our survival.

One more time…

Rest is not a reward that’s earned. Rest is not reserved for the wealthy. Rest is an essential part of our survival.

It troubles me that, as a society, we have been conditioned to wear our burnouts like badges of honor. We glorify overworking ourselves and idolize the hustle of those who adopt the, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead,” mentality.

But, why, though?

If we’re honest, at the core of that mentality is fear. Fear that we’ll miss the mark, that we’ll fail to achieve our goals; that life will pass us by and we’ll never reach the pinnacle of our success. For others, it’s the fear that resting will cost you something; the fear that you will be left behind- unfulfilled and unhappy.

I drank the Kool-aid.

At a very young age, I imagined what my life would look like by the time I turned 30-years-old. And over the years, I’ve molded that vision for my life to reflect any new wants and desires that surfaced. Then I got to work and I worked tirelessly to achieve everything I envisioned.

A few weeks ago, I turned 30-years-old and it hit me. I had dedicated all of those years to working extremely hard to manifest something that was my birthright. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying hard work isn’t important. I’m not saying that sacrifices don’t have to be made. I am saying that there’s a difference between work ethic and obsession. I am saying that you can be successful and well-rested. I am saying that what you accomplish in life means nothing if you’re not around to celebrate it with the ones you love.

Stop wearing your burnout like a badge of honor.

Your well-being is more important than your account balance. Your health is more important than the accolades. True wealth has nothing to do with money. You cannot buy happiness and fulfillment is not a reward disbursed to those who forfeit sleep the longest.

It’s time to shift our mindset.

You can work hard, you can work smart and you can still achieve the goals you’ve set for your life. You can do all of this without compromising your well-being.

On my birthday, I chose to forfeit my normal routine of setting specific goals for the new year of life. For once, I want to see what God can do when I surrender the need to control every aspect of my life and simply say, “Lead me, I’ll go.” I trust the journey and completely expect to be blown away by what happens when I move out of the way.

“Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

-Matthews 11:28

The Greek word for “rest” is “anapauó.” My favorite translation of “anapauó” is “take my ease.” Take it. It doesn’t say earn it. This is your one chance, the only life you have, don’t waste it burning yourself out in chase mode. Work hard, work smart and rest. Rest, my friend, rest.  And trust that everything you seek for your life is seeking you and will arrive in due time.

 

 

 

A Motivational Meal of the Week- Build Your Own Table

Build your own table. 

I know it’s easier to wait. I know it’s easier to hope that someone else will make decisions with your best interest in mind. It’s easier to strengthen your network in hopes that opportunities will find you.

It’s easy, but ask yourself, “Is it what’s best for you?”

The most precious gift of all is time and it is limited. Why would you want to waste your time at the foot of someone else’s table receiving crumbs when you can build your own table and enjoy a feast?

A Motivational Meal of the Week- “Don’t Compete, Collaborate.”

Happy New Year!

I hope 2016 was a great year for you and that 2017 is even better! As we plan our year, I want to encourage everyone to consider how you can help someone else become successful this year. I think a lot of people are afraid to shift their focus from their dreams and aspirations to help someone else achieve theirs. And that fear is usually strengthened by the ‘What-if’ questions. You know the ‘What-if’ questions I’m referring to- “What if I don’t achieve my goals?” “What if that person becomes more successful than me?” “What if that person betrays me or wastes my time?”

I have a better ‘What-if’ question

What if helping others become more successful is the key to your success? For true, sustainable success, you will need help from others. It’s a cycle. Someone helps you, you pay it forward by helping someone else. We all win. We all eat. So instead of competing, instead of fighting over the crumbs, collaborate and share the feast of success.

There’s room at the table for everyone. 

A Motivational Meal of the Week: Don’t Forget To Make Yourself A Priority

I’ll admit. I drank the Kool-Aid. I once believed that in order to achieve success, I had to sacrifice sleep, quality time with my loved ones, self care and the list goes on. And you want to know what happened? I achieved success, I reached some of my goals, but I lost sight of what was truly important- my well-being. I gained weight, I became sluggish and fatigued and I spent very little time with my family.

I knew there was a better way. 

So I started studying successful people who achieved work/life balance. I wanted to know what time they went to bed, what time they woke up, how much time they spent at the gym, how many vacations they took, etc. I used that information to establish a blueprint for what I wanted my life to look like and I started to make the necessary changes.

It is not easy to adjust. 

It’s not easy because it goes against everything that we’re taught. We are taught to be laborers not dreamers. And that’s wrong. We are taught to sacrifice our well-being for a paycheck. We are taught to chase the American Dream as though there’s a one-size-fits-all dream for humanity. We all have dreams and all of our dreams are valid.

It’s time to make ourselves a priority.

Stop right now and ask yourself, “When’s the last time I did something for me?” I mean really think about it. When’s the last time you just sat in the quiet and meditated? Now, remember, it is not easy to adjust. And I still have my moments- checking emails every five minutes, carrying my mobile phones with me wherever I go, not giving myself time to truly rest, because I’m working on other projects. Trust me, I get it. But if you’re not present, if you do not give yourself time to recharge, what will life look like for you down the line? You may achieve your definition of success but at what cost? I can assure you that the people who love and care about you the most don’t care about how much money you earn or how many material possessions you own, they just want you to be around.

True success, I’ve learned, is not about the things- the money, the nice houses, the nice cars, the exotic vacations, etc. True success, in my opinion, is good health, financial security, a strong marriage, mental clarity, spiritual enlightenment, serving and inspiring others, seeing the world, giving freely without expecting anything in return, being able to play with my kids (future kids), falling asleep with my wife in my arms, seeing my family happy and whole, the list goes on, but this is my success. This is my joy.

Life is a journey and life is a gift. Enjoy it. Don’t get tangled up in the chase and forget to be fully present. You can gain a lot in this world, but you can never replace your time. Invest it wisely and make yourself, your joy, your well-being, a priority.

As a follow up to this blog post, check out this great article by Arianna Huffington titled, “The Sleep Revolution: Transforming Your Life, One Night at a Time.” 

Motivational Meal of the Week: Stop Waiting For Permission

“You don’t have to ask permission to access what already belongs to you.”

As children, most of us were taught to ask permission before taking certain action. So if you wanted a cookie, you asked for a cookie. If you wanted to go out with friends, you asked for permission to go out with your friends. And no matter how frustrating it may have been, there was a reason why you had to ask permission.

You were not in control.

Fast-forward a few years and now you’re an adult. You are in control of your life and your actions. If you want a cookie, you can eat a cookie. And if you want to go out with your friends, you just go out with your friends. There are no curfews, no rules, you are in control. But when we look at our lives, focusing solely on our state of fulfillment, a lot of us are still asking permission…

We’re asking life…

Can I be successful?

Can I fulfill my dreams?

Can I make that six-figure income?

And the answer is simple, “You don’t have to ask permission to access what already belongs to you.” Success is your birthright. You were born with dreams planted inside of you that are yearning to blossom. If you spend your life asking for permission to water those dreams, you’ll never see them manifest in the physical.

You are in control…

We hear a lot of people say that our destinies are pre-determined. But few speak to the fact that we can interfere and delay the manifestation of our destiny and the fulfillment of our purpose in life by waiting for permission. It should be our goal to access the gifts, talents, faith, knowledge and wisdom that lies within us, because that’s what we need to unlock all that we desire in life. Think about being a kid on Christmas Day. Did you ask your parents to open the gifts that had your name on it? No. You knew those gifts belonged to you and you accessed the toys within each perfectly-wrapped box. Similarly, we were born with everything we need to access all that we desire; but we have to tap into it.

Life isn’t going to grant you permission. Life isn’t going to say, “Yes, I grant you permission to be successful…”  Your life, and all that happens therein, will follow your lead.

Motivational Meal of the Week: Success Is Not A Cheap Date, You Have To Earn Its Affection

My work ethic is the same now as it was when I made $5.25/hr. working at Zaxby’s. Of course, I’ve developed a lot professionally, but my standard of excellence never wavered.

Because I knew Zaxby’s was one step

On a staircase to something much bigger

And throughout my journey, here’s what I’ve learned: It’s easy to say, “That doesn’t fall into my job description” or “They don’t pay me enough to do that”, but that kind of attitude will limit you.

Don’t be afraid to go above and beyond the call of duty. Put in the work without seeking the recognition. Be content and be patient; because as Rumi says, “What you seek is seeking you.” But it cannot find you if you’re dodging hard work and consoling yourself with excuses. Show up every day, give your best and the rest will manifest.

Remember… 

“Success is not a cheap date, you have to earn its affection.” -Ciara Lilly

A Motivational Snack: Lies or Promises- Which Will You Believe?

“God keeps His Promises, but we must decide to believe them.” –Ciara Lilly

There are thousands of promises that God made to us. Promises of prosperity, promises of wisdom, promises of guidance, promises of provision, promises of unconditional love, promises of grace and mercy, the list goes on. But how many of those promises do we actually believe? One of my favorite promises is found in Mark 9:23. It reads, “And Jesus said to him, “‘If You can?’ All things are possible to him who believes.” Notice, it doesn’t say, “All things are possible, the end.” It says, “All things are possible to him who believes.”

You have to believe

And here’s the unfortunate part, we often find it harder to believe the good things about ourselves, our future and even God.We struggle with seeing ourselves as a reflection of God’s image. We struggle with believing in ourselves and our greatness, especially when life’s circumstances have conditioned us to only expect the worse.

But the lies are easier to believe

Why is that? Because lies are comfortable; lies are familiar. And although lies require the same faith it takes to believe in the truth, some people still choose lies. There are thousands of promises that God has made to His people. Promises of prosperity, promises of wisdom, promises of guidance, promises of provision, promises of unconditional love, promises of grace and mercy, but we still believe we’re too fat. We still believe that we’ll never achieve great success because we grew up in poverty. We still believe that God is divisive and judgmental. Some people still choose the lies, but…

 The promises are better

You don’t have to read the Bible every day to know that God is love. And you don’t have to sit in a church building every Sunday to know that God wants you to have life and life more abundantly. You just have to ask yourself one question, “If I believe that God is my Creator, my Father, my Mother, my Counselor, my Guide (whatever you identify God as), how would He see me? As your Creator, would God tell you that you were ugly? As your Father, would God tell you that you’re not worthy of success? As your Mother, would God tell you that you don’t deserve love? As your Counselor and Guide, would God tell you to settle for average when you destined for greatness?

The answer is… No, no, no, no, no…

We have all believed a lie, or two, or one thousand, but you can change your life by rerouting your faith. Today, you can choose to believe the good things, the promises, the truth. You can choose to evict the lies and all its guests: fear, doubt, hopelessness, despair and complacency. I promise the only thing you will lose are the shackles that have imprisoned your greatness. 

Aren’t you ready to taste freedom?

Meal of the Day: What I Have Learned From My Career

Today is my two-year work anniversary with ESS. And it has been a phenomenal journey thus far. You all know me; I am always searching for the lesson in my experiences, so here’s what I’ve learned from my time serving in this role:

Lesson #1:  Don’t allow your age or qualification requirements to hinder your success.

When I interviewed with the president of our company, I was beyond nervous. Here I was, a recent college graduate, with no executive or industry experience, interviewing with seasoned professionals that had more experience than I had life. The odds looked stacked against me, but all I could think about was God’s promises. I knew that if I went into this interview, and let my light shine, that God would handle the rest. And that’s exactly what happened.

When we’re looking for our dream job, it’s easy to disqualify ourselves before we even apply. We become distracted by factors that hold little significance. I want to encourage you to try anyway; send in that resume, make that phone call. If that specific opportunity has your name on it, it will manifest in your life. I am living proof of this.

 

Lesson #2:  If it scares you, pursue it.

So I started this career and it met every want and need I asked for. I was fired up and ready to go! But there was one thing; I would have to face one of my biggest fears at the time, public speaking. And I have to be honest, for about 1.5 seconds, I thought about passing up this opportunity. Now, remember I said that this career met every want and I need I had, but your girl was thinking about passing it up?!? Yeah, I was crazy.

I prayed. And I said, “God, now see, you didn’t have to throw that in the mix. I didn’t mention anything about public speaking, so what’s the deal?” My Spirit said, “Trust me.” I accepted the position and started May 29, 2012.

Fast forward to date, I exceeded my annual sales goal in my first year. I have forged new partnerships with companies I never imagined I would interact with. I have flown all over to present to Fortune 500 corporations to discuss multi-million dollar opportunities, and at first, it was painful. But each time I did it, I grew more comfortable and my presenting skills improved. There are times I still get nervous, but I play Philippians 4:13 in my head and press forward.

When you face your fears head on you notice how powerless those fears are. It’s not until you face them that you realize that you’re already equipped with everything you need to overcome them. I was focusing on what I didn’t have, but God positioned me with an opportunity that revealed all of the greatness I did possess. He will do the same for you.

One of my favorite quotes is, “Do it afraid”.  It’s very simple, but it’s powerful. Don’t allow your fears to steal great opportunities from you. Do it afraid and you’ll see gifts and talents emerge that you never knew were there.

Faith in God + Faith in Yourself + God-Inspired Action = A Winning Recipe for Success

 

Lesson #3 – Set the bar higher

This lesson is simple. No matter what career you pursue, you’ll always have responsibilities to fulfill. You’ll be given metrics to measure your success. And my advice to you is to set the bar higher. Always find ways to exceed expectations, never settle for “good” when greatness is inside of you.

It may appear at times like no one is noticing your extra effort. You may feel like it’s not producing anything, but don’t let your ego trip you up. I strongly believe that God is our only Source, He may use different channels to bring blessings our way, but He remains the Source of all good things. I’ll tell you why this is important. If God is our Source, and He uses our employer as a channel, then we should treat the work we do as if we’re doing it for God.

Colossians 3:23 speaks to this: “Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men.”

So when your ego tries to convince you that no one cares or that you’re not appreciated, just remember that God sees everything and He will not allow your hard work and dedication to go unrewarded.

 

Lesson #4 – “If you learn, teach. If you get, give.” – Maya Angelou

We are not crabs in a barrel; I don’t have to hold you down to get ahead. We are not racing against one another; we are racing with one another. There is no competition, compete against yourself to become the best you possible.

I grew up in a single-parent household. My mom did a great job providing for us and making sure that we received everything we needed to be successful individuals. It was hard, but I went to school with people who were worse off. There was no way for them to get a college education; they had to work to provide for their families. After seeing that, I made a promise to myself.

If I learn, I am going to teach. And if I get, I am going to give.

I have carried that with me throughout my journey. Success is not about how much you manage to accumulate in your lifetime; success is about how many people you were able to positively touch with your influence. We, as a Society, often think that service is reserved for the more affluent. That’s not true at all. To serve you don’t have to be a scholar or someone with wealth, you just need a heart for helping others. Whether I teach you the alphabet or how to write a business plan, I am exercising the most powerful action in the world, which is teaching.

Never forget, no matter where life takes you, that you are blessed to be a blessing.

 

Lesson #5 – Be content throughout the journey

You have time to get that promotion; you have time to refine your skills; you don’t have to go from Entry-level to Senior-level overnight. Be content throughout the journey. Make mistakes and learn from them. You will get where you’re destined to go in the appointed time.

We often see the success of some of our century’s trailblazers and think, “Wow, I want to achieve that level of success!” And there’s nothing wrong with gaining motivation from their success. But, don’t obsess with reaching that level of success overnight.

Give yourself time. Give yourself a break.

Those who have reached the pinnacle of their success did not get there in 24-hours. They made sacrifices, they made mistakes and they even failed a few times. But envy will not allow you to see that. Envy will turn their success into something that makes you feel inferior. Don’t give it that kind of control. Your path is different, your level of success could be even higher than theirs, you’ll never know what your life has in store for you if you’re always chasing after someone else’s.