Let me say this: as a media personality including as a radio host, I understand the need to leverage trending topics to your brand. I also understand the importance of a general awareness of what is going on in the world around you. However, on this Motivational Monday, I would encourage you to be mindful of how you spend your time. Time spent, just like money, will demonstrate what really matters to you. Life is full of distractions: emails, texting, cell phone calls; please don’t get me started on social media (tweets, instant messages, timeline posts, etc.). All these things have their appropriate uses but, without balance, you will soon find yourself consumed and overwhelmed. So how do you refocus and make you, your mission, brand and a business a priority? As the late Steven Covey said, “begin with the end in mind”. Or, as Alesha Brown The Joy Guru likes to say, “start with your why”. If you could click a wand and have anything you want, what would the top five be? What goals have you made for 2016 to achieve these things? Why do they matter to you? Once you have answered these questions, then you can work on a plan of action to make them happen. One of the keys to fulfilling your desires is strategic, forward movement. In laymen’s terms, your time is limited so, can you really afford to waste 30 minutes in Facebook conversations on why the Oscars have no black nominees this year? Do you really have 45 minutes to spare to read all those posts on your timeline since the last time you checked in? If you struggle with distractions, you might have to turn off your Facebook notifications and set a daily 30 minute time limit for checking and responding to social media posts. Sounds too strict? Well, if you begin with the end in mind or start each day with your why, you will understand why the above suggestions are necessary. Wealthy, successful people operate very differently from the poor; they just have discovered the strategic moves necessary for them to meet their goals and objectives. So, as you start off this week, begin with your why and craft your plans to fulfill every goal you have for 2016. Plan your day around that and let nothing distract you or knock you off course. I can tell you one thing for sure: whether the Oscars are all white or all black, Jada Pinkett and Wil Smith will continue to be successful; Chris Rock will still get his paycheck for hosting and the Oscar winners will still get their awards. What will you or your brand get in return for all the time you spent on social media expressing your views thereof? Exactly; that’s why strategic planning is NECESSARY! Spend your time wisely and fulfill your dreams instead of promoting someone else while ignoring yours. –Alesha Brown, The Joy Guru Author/Motivational Speaker/Media Personality/Joy Enthusiast thejoyguru.net President, Alesha Brown LLC Amazon Published Author
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“ . . . there’s a lot of Destiny and Purpose in the grave.” When my Pastor uttered these words in Sunday morning service, it reminded me of a story told by platinum speaker Les Brown. On a recent Periscope video, he talked about a friend of his that was a great cook. That friend had told him that he wanted to get with him and write a book with his special recipes. Upon his passing, the spouse was talking to Les Brown and asked if they ever got together and wrote that book. Unfortunately, the answer was no. Les Brown talked about that experience and how he was working on his upcoming book; he didn’t want to die with a book within him. Pause for a moment and apply this to your life. If you let go of your fears, doubts and what-ifs and dared to dream again, exactly what would you do? There is another saying: If you knew you couldn’t fail, what would you be? Here’s the reality; life and its challenges often silence the dreamer and increases our fears, doubts and insecurities. If you step out on faith and take risks, you will fail. You will experience some wins as well as great loss. Why bother? If you never take the journey, the path of least resistance, you will die. You will die from a passionless life of mediocrity, you will die by the weight of conformity. The real death occurs when you die with some of the world’s greatest answers, inventions and gifts that your life and purpose was designed for. Imagine living a life of poverty only to discover that you were a royal heir and could have enjoyed a life of abundance. (Side Note: you are a royal heir and there is a great inheritance with your name on it; will you choose to enjoy it?) “ . . . there’s a lot of Destiny and Purpose in the grave”—will you allow the same to be said of you? –Alesha Brown, The Joy Guru Author/Motivational Speaker/Media Personality/Joy Enthusiast thejoyguru.net President, Alesha Brown LLC Amazon Published Author Disclaimer (and I’m laying down my MBA for this post): I am a young old head: young enough to not be considered old but raised “old school” so the “old mind” shows itself. Therefore, the old head side feels pretty hip using a recent slang term “thirsty”; sometimes slang is just necessary. Back to the point of this article: Are you a thirsty entrepreneur? The slang term thirsty is defined as someone who is desperate or overly eager. You know, the one that well sell their mama if it meant a profit; that person with the used car salesmen appeal. Now that you understand the term thirsty, is that the type of entrepreneur that you are? Are you cheapening your business, brand, product or service by wearing the thirsty wardrobe? There is nothing wrong with being passionate about what you do and eager to connect your vision with those who you think need it. There is nothing wrong with showing people how they can benefit from what you have to offer. What is WRONG is not understanding that EVERYONE does not want what you have to offer. Here is an example I like to use in my presentations: Starbucks Coffee. Regardless of whether you think they are the best coffee in the world, for this exercise, let’s assume they are. If I am a Starbucks brand ambassador, I would tell you how delicious, bold and robust our flavors are. Show you a steamy, hot cup of coffee with swirls that seem to energize you while taking away all the stress of the day. I would show you a relaxed, inviting atmosphere and an actor or actress that sits down and enjoys that rich, tantalizing cup of gold. (If you’re a coffee lover like me, this depiction just took you to a happy place.) But there is one problem; one BIG PROBLEM: What if the viewer doesn’t like coffee? Hmmmm . . . See, that is where a thirsty entrepreneur or marketer might go wrong. If your focus is on sales, sales, sales--we must sale more coffee, regardless of how it is marketed—you will lose if I am not interested in what you have to offer! If I don’t like coffee, don’t make purchases for those who do or ABHOR coffee with a passion, you’re barking up the wrong tree! Remember: in business and in life, you do not have time to waste! In 2016, if you are thirsty entrepreneur, STOP IT! Stop focusing on trying to sell the bridge and focus on making a connection. Don’t lose the 80% by focusing on the 20% or vice versa—the 20% might actually be your target market. If you are serious about your business or brand, there is a target market/demographic for it; there are those outside of that market that may patronize you but, overall, there is a specific audience that you should be marketing to. Okay, I’ll go old school on you in conclusion: “all money ain’t good money”. Trust me on this one, you really don’t want to work with EVERYBODY. There are some clients—either because of their tactics, spirit(s), attitude, drama, messiness, (you fill in the blanks) —that you are better off not doing business with or taking a loss; no money replaces your sanity or peace of mind. As one of my favorite Brand Manger & Publicist, Nikki Curry, loves to say: “You are not the Walmart brand; you are not for everybody”. She’s dead right about that: seek to make an impact and connection with your target audience and you will be successful. --Alesha Brown, The Joy Guru Author/Motivational Speaker/Media Personality/Joy Enthusiast thejoyguru.net President, Alesha Brown LLC Amazon Published Author Three kinds of people that made your life better in 2015 (that you don’t necessarily need to keep in 2016):
I am a reflective person—a New Year has nothing to do with it; I just believe that, as we grow in various areas of lives, there is a constant need for reevaluation. When I woke up today, I thanked God for a life that is draped in success, love and favor unimaginable (money and things come and go—don’t solely use them as measurements). One of my takeaways from last year was maturity: God literally showed me how there were new blessings and favor that He released to me because I was ready. Certainly maturity was required to see how the following three groups of people blessed me (and YOU) in 2015: Okay, I’ll save the Encouragers/Supporters for last: they are self-explanatory and provide a great contrast to #2 and #3. See the real problem is, too often, the Manipulators, Liars & Frauds come disguised as Encouragers/Supporters. Oh they are the first in line and appear to eat you up with a spoon; truthfully, they are just looking for the right opportunity to kill, steal and destroy. Yes, I said kill, steal and destroy: they bear the fruits of their leader and do not understand the full extent of their acts of deceit and manipulation. They have different levels of impact: some are like leeches that are determined to hang on until they suck the life out of you, your gifts, talents, abilities, resources, etc. Others are more strategic and have a specific purpose for what they intend to rob you of, nevertheless, they can be just as deadly and draining. This is no trivial or laughing matter; you have a specific mission to achieve before you leave this earth and you DO NOT have time to waste. Getting caught up, wrapped up and consumed by the actions of #2 and #3 will leave you depressed, frustrated, disgusted, disheartened and questioning your value and worth. Thank God for intervention and realignment—But God; don’t lose the essence of who you are or delay your achievements (let alone your peace and joy)! Why did I say that you needed all three in 2015? I’ll share my personal example to illustrate: 1.Encouragers/Supporters: not only are they the ones that initially saw my greater potential before I did but, late in the midnight hour, they are the ones I can call and who cover me in prayer. Oftentimes, they are the ones that call me to see if I’m okay because the Holy Spirit placed me on their minds. (Those are the people you need to invest in and cleave too; not those Fly By Night types.) Your mission will have twists and turns, exhaustion, disappointment, extreme labor and much travail; you will need a team of people that will grab you, redirect you and refuse to let you give up. BONUS: they will also be a breath of fresh air when dealing with the type of folks below. 2. Doubters/Naysayers: if you know my platform, you can visit thejoyguru.net, you know that I have endured a lifetime of rejection and abuse. When I arrived at the do-or-die turnaround point in my life, a “NO” suddenly became the fire that I needed to prove them wrong. With maturity, I learned that the only one I needed to prove wrong was me, my worst enemy. SECRET: I wasn’t forthcoming with this in 2015 but, what the doubters/naysayers and manipulators never realized was, every time they spoke maliciously against me or my mission, God would bless me at least twice as much. Every time they tried to smite me, God would come right back and give me what they should have and more. Not only did He restore what they refused to give me that was rightfully mine and what they promised, He would do it openly before them. So, I learned to thank them and just laugh at their attacks and ridicule; if they had known the secret, they would have cut it out A LONG TIME ago. (Then again, they probably would have proceeded to do what they did; people can only operate in the spirit in which they are under.) You need to pray for them and do so with a spirit of compassion and urgency; they will reap what they sow and even your prayers may only prevent but so much. 3. Manipulators/Liars & Frauds: now I’m not going to say that none of their acts didn’t sting or hurt at times; believe me they did. What I will say is that, and here is another lesson in maturity, God protected me and made one thing crystal clear: if it wasn’t for His grace, I could have operated in the same spirit and committed the same acts they did. When you look at things from that lens, it is easier to forgive them and move on (note: I didn’t say you had to keep being manipulated, lied to or defrauded—sometimes it is best to take a loss and move on). Whatever they promised, offered or extended isn’t worth the headache, heartache or time wasted; move on knowing that you will get that and much more if you don’t abort the mission. With that being said, I thank God for all of them in 2015 and glad that I am alive to see the beginning of a new day (and a new year to boot)! Literally, it seems like there are more opportunities, visions and ideas in my spirit than there is time in the day for. I no longer worry about so much about perceptions or expectations of others; I am on a mission and you cannot please everyone. I know there are additional separations, departures and hurt to come but it’s okay; I don’t fear man, I fear ignoring the voice of God and not fulfilling my assignment. The loss, risks and cost of not moving when He say move are too much to bare; the rewards for obedience are ones that we truly do not have room to receive! Here’s to an abundant and peaceful New Year, --Alesha Brown, The Joy Guru Author/Motivational Speaker/Media Personality/Joy Enthusiast thejoyguru.net President, Alesha Brown LLC Amazon Published Author |
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