4 STEPS TO CREATING THE ULTIMATE VISION FOR YOUR LIFE

**As originally posted on tonyrobbins.com**



The one trait that all successful, fulfilled people cultivate—be they great writers, teachers, artists, parents, politicians or athletes—is a passion and enthusiasm for life. We all need a compelling vision for our lives: one so powerful that we are driven to do whatever it takes to achieve it.

When we pursue something greater than the current moment, we find fulfillment and joy. The ultimate vision flows from knowing we have a special and unique purpose on this planet. So, how do you create this ultimate vision? Go to an environment that inspires you and where you won’t be interrupted (e.g. the beach, a park, an art museum), and take these steps:


Step 1: Write a paragraph or two answering following questions: What do you want to create for your life? If all of a sudden you had the energy again like you were a little kid and the journey had just begun, what would you be excited to tackle? What would get you up early and keep you up late at night? What would your life be about? What does that vision look like? If you had no fear about moving forward, what would you do in your life? What challenges might you be excited to overcome? What do you want to contribute to your own life and the lives of others? What do you want to give, create, be, feel or share?

                                                                                                                                                        
Step 2: Make sure this vision is emotionally charged, with the power to move you to action: Your vision will provide a consistent focus, continually reminding you what it is you are committed to creating in your life, career or business.

Step 3: Add specifics: Your vision should provide some detail about what measurable results you are going to achieve in your life. This yardstick will help you assess where you are versus where you want to be.

Step 4: Don’t try to make your description perfect You aren’t writing for the Pulitzer Prize—you’re writing to create something that excites you! Try drawing or cutting out pictures that inspire you or that describe your vision. Or choose a song that becomes your theme song for your life. Get creative, as there is no right or wrong way to describe your ultimate vision.

Need more tools and strategies for finding your vision—and having that drive what you do each day? Visit //www.tonyrobbins.com/more-time.

10 Ways to Get Paid to Do What You Love

Over the last few years, I’ve met hundreds of women all over the country who want to finally stop talking and start doing what it takes to build a business doing what they love. And what I’ve noticed is that many women in our community aren’t even aware of all the opportunities that are out there for them to create multiple streams of income based on their passion, skills, expertise and experience. So I wanted to give you a dose of inspiration and motivation that will help you build your business with less stress and more confidence.

As my gift to you, I’ve put together a summary of the 10 different streams of income you can create based on your passion, skills, expertise and experience. Now, these are not just theories or random ideas. These are all areas that I’ve actually made money in through both of my businesses over the last six years. I hope you find them helpful as you brainstorm strategies to earn more money in your business this year!

1. Freelancing

You can earn income through offering contracted services in a specific area such as photography, web/graphic design, personal styling, copywriting, editing, social media management or personal training. You can offer your services by the hour or in a package, depending on what you offer. As a freelance writer, I was paid a monthly fee for producing several articles per week for a career website.

2. Consulting

You can get paid generous fees for advising businesses, nonprofits, churches and government agencies in your area of expertise. Consultants typically provide key deliverables as part of a time-bound contract, which typically runs for a few months to a year. As a nonprofit consultant, I maintained two long-term contracts with organizations that borrowed my brain and my time for 10 hours per week.

3. Speaking

You can build a lucrative stream of income as a keynote speaker or workshop leader for conferences all around the world. It’s a great way to make a difference with your message AND get paid to travel at the same time! I’ve been a professional speaker since 2008, with more than 100 clients from New York to Nebraska who have paid me to teach, inspire and motivate their audiences. I suggest you start by speaking for free at local events and attracting paid gigs from there. 

4. Training

You can earn a good living as a trainer for the staff or members of businesses, associations, nonprofits, churches or government agencies. Training is usually done with a smaller group than you would speak for at a conference, which allows you go more in-depth with a 90-minute, half-day or full-day session on a specific learning goal. As a trainer, I’ve worked with staff to get them up to speed on social media, show them how to manage millennial employees and build their leadership skills in the workplace.

5. Coaching

You can help people all over the world through coaching in person, on the phone or via Skype. The five most popular areas are life, career, business, health and relationship coaching. Most coaches either charge by the hour or create packages of sessions to help clients reach their goals over a period of one month up to a year. As a life, career and business coach, I’ve helped clients change jobs, improve their lifestyle, switch careers and build businesses doing what they love.

6. Online classes, courses & programs

You can earn income by teaching what you know via teleseminars, webinars, homestudy programs and audio/video trainings. I’ve been teaching online classes since 2010 when I was still an adjunct professor in DC. What I found was that I could make a lot more money with my own courses than I ever would teaching part-time at a university! Once you establish yourself as an expert online, you can begin to offer opportunities for your tribe to learn from you. Setting up a blog and writing useful articles on a weekly basis would be a great way to start building your audience!

7. Physical products

You can add physical products to your business to earn additional income. Items like t-shirts, jewelry, mugs, purses, CDs and DVDs are becoming easier and easier to sell due to advanced online technology. You can post your items on Etsy or Ebay, then ship them out when you receive orders. I’ve sold branded Happy Black Woman t-shirts and mugs through Zazzle over the past year – people love giving them as gifts!

8. Books and ebooks

You can create another income stream by adding books to your business, in either paperback, PDF or Kindle format. I have self-published both a paperback and an ebook on PDF and Kindle. The process is relatively simple and the revenue potential is huge if you can build a following and a brand related to your book(s). The paperback book that I co-wrote back in 2010 is still producing passive income with sales on Amazon.com!

9. Blogging

You can earn money with your blog by participating in affiliate marketing or placing advertising on your site. I’ve been blogging since 2007 and I’ve seen several hundreds of dollars of advertising income come in on my best traffic months! The downside to this income opportunity is that you do have to post often and be getting a decent amount of traffic to your blog to really see some profit. So it’s not the best option for those just starting out, but the potential is huge for adding another income stream through your blog.

10. Live events

You can bring in additional income through hosting your own workshops, conferences and retreats. They can be local or national in scope from a three-hour workshop to a week-long retreat! I held my first paid event back in 2011 as a weekend career training intensive that brought 11 attendees from all over the country. If you have valuable knowledge, resources and tools to share, people will be  excited to come learn from you in person.

Last year, I brought in 30% more revenue than I did the year before, all because I had multiple streams of income coming into my business. I highly recommend that you implement at least one of these additional income streams so that you can grow your business and enjoy the freedom that comes along with being a successful entrepreneur!

About the Author:

Rosetta Thurman is a nationally-recognized author, speaker, mentor and coach dedicated to empowering women through personal development, leadership and entrepreneurship. She is the founder of Happy Black Woman, a supportive community that helps women create lives of happiness, success and freedom.

Rosetta teaches women, step-by-step, how to find their purpose, take action on their goals and build businesses doing what they love, all while becoming happier and more fulfilled. Rosetta’s clients and students value her “tough love” approach to helping them achieve powerful breakthroughs in their lives.

Rosetta is an avid traveler and currently resides in beautiful Honolulu, Hawaii. When she’s not writing or teaching, Rosetta enjoys good food, good music and a good mai tai. Preferably all at the same time!

Connect with Rosetta at the Unlimited You Weekend April 10-12, 2015. www.unlimited15.com

Invest in Yourself: Yes, You Can Afford It

How many times have you denied yourself of something you need such as a financial coach, mentor, or investment in your business? How many times you said you cannot afford something but your splurge your money and time on mindless shopping, going out to eat, switching hairdos weekly and other things that don't serve your purpose? I am all for looking beautiful but don't you think it is time for you invest in your inner beauty and essence to match the outside?
We all have done this once upon a time because we either feel guilty or ashamed into investing in ourselves. Many times, we will invest in frivolous things such as a new outfit, shoes, expensive handbag or something tangible that doesn't provide substances within our lives.  How many times do you "reward" yourself with an expensive gift but still feel guilty or empty within?

 
When you invest in yourself, you are proving yourself with an unlimited wealthy of opportunities. Investing in yourself is a part of self-love and self-care which are two valuable personal experiences that are organic and natural. When you denied yourself of investing in yourself, it will show within your personal and professional life. When you don't invest within yourself, you suppress your inner passion, interests and growth/evolution. How can we be truly free and independent when we don't provide investment and self-love for ourselves? You will always be caught up in the rapture of brokenness and chasing after a deferred dream when we don't invest in ourselves.
Remember, investing in yourself take patience, persistence, prayer, and payment. Yes payment. You are going to pay one way or another, you are going to pay money to attend that long over due workshop, conference, or class to help you achieve your lifelong goal. You are going to have to dig a little deeper in the closet and shop for that cute outfit to wear for that investment meeting with the big investors who are looking to invest thousands into your company. You are going to stop asking your fellow sister-friend for the "hook up" because that sister-friend is worth more than asking for the hook up. She invest in her business, have home and business bills to pay and she is worth it.
Now is the time to invest in yourself and building your empire! Don't defer your dreams and goals for something else.
Here are three ways why you should invest in yourself:

1. Pursuing your passion.  Time is one of the most important things you should invest in when you are pursuing your passion. You cannot get time back. When your pursue your passion, you are providing self-love and perseverance. Your passion is within and at your fingertips but you must discover it. Discovering your passion, being persistence and investing in yourself are valuable tools. When you invest in yourself, you have to be willing to make sacrifices such as cutting back from getting a manicure and pedicure weekly, you have to go shopping within your closet and at times you have to minimize your lifestyle. (Some of you all are probably rolling your eyes but you have to sacrifice something to achieve your dreams.)
2. Creating and Increasing Your Wealth. When people think of wealth, people think of finances. Wealth is not always about finances. The definition of wealth have a plethora of meanings but for this article we will stick with abundance of anything. We should invest in our wealth of knowledge, resources and wisdom. When we increase our wealth, we should also invest our wealth in others who have the wisdom, knowledge and experience in a certain field or business. We should invest in books, workshops, a coach, our community and organization to increase your net-worth, network, and self-worth
3. Holistic Self-Care. “The most powerful relationship you will ever have is the relationship with yourself.” – Steve Maraboli Great quote! If you don't love yourself, don't expect anyone else to love or invest in you. We live in an ADHD and microwaveable society in which we are constantly on the go. Stop, breathe and connect with yourself. Invest in healthy and unprocessed foods which we save you money and sickness. Invest in your health by working out. You don't have to invest in an expensive gym membership in which you may never use but one time. Go put on some shorts/sweatpants and sneakers and work it out. Turn off the TV and sit in your thoughts. Be still, meditate and listen to that voice within called intuition. All these things cost you nothing but time and effort. 

Providing self-care and self-awareness doesn't cost you nothing but time and effort. You must be willing to invest into you, your dreams, your wealth and health. You deserve to love yourself and care for yourself. Stop investing your wealth into tangible and material things which will slowly fade away. Invest into things that matter which is you and your well-being. If you cannot invest and give to yourself, there is no way you will be able to give whole-heartedly to others. Invest in yourself. 
Invest wisely!  

What's really holding you back from fully investing in yourself? Share and comment below!
About the Author: Andrea C. Imafidon 

Andrea is a professional coach with a certification in personal development coaching from The CaPP Institute. She holds a Master’s degree in Social Work from The University of Southern Mississippi and a Bachelor’s degree from Tuskegee University. Andrea is the creator of Brown Girl From Boston a personal growth and coaching blog that inspires, encourage, and empower brown girls everywhere to live life boldly, loudly, and fearlessly on purpose. Connect with Andrea April 10-12, 2015 at the Unlimited You Weekend in Baltimore, MD. Learn more at www.hwhn.org

5 Steps to Free Yourself from the Guilt of Being a Passionate Parent Living Your Life on Purpose!

          

It’s after 10 o’clock on a Sunday night and I just plopped down on the couch with my son to watch the movie, “Curious George.”  Together we’re cherishing the moments, and enjoying all the short-lived freedoms that the summer months bring…then about 15 minutes into the movie, I get a call and it’s the transitional home I volunteer for as a Life Coach-I had to answer.  A sincerely compelling voice greets me on the other end, it’s the house mom who apologizes for the short notice and is wondering if I can go to court with a resident as a support in the morning, as in about 8 hours from now.  How can I resist?  After all, just a few days ago after hearing her story, I was moved and inspired to advocate for her, and here is God answering my prayers!  I’d wondered:  “How can I be of help?”  “What can I do to make a difference?”  “How can I use my story of victory to help encourage her through her process?”  So without hesitation and full of gratitude, I eagerly respond, “YES!”

           But wait, here it comes…My son had just came back home earlier that day after having spent some time at his dad’s.  We were just swapping hugs & kisses, expressing I love you and I missed you’s.  Now here mommy is again whisked away by her passion for living her life on purpose.  But before I allowed the guilt to set in, I reminded myself of these 5 simple steps that I employ frequently so that I remain guilt free:

#1 Communicate on your child’s level.

We’re all aware that in all healthy relationships, communication is key.  However, sometimes we don’t share our passions with our children, assuming they can’t understand.  Children are smarter than we sometimes give them credit for.  My son loves his cars.  He likes to talk about them, design them, write stories about them, build them out of Legos, and conveniently build “parking lots” all over the house where I’ll step on them so that I may feel the depth of his passion!  So what I did was juxtapose our passions by saying, “You know how mommy calls you to eat and I have to repeat myself several times because you’re engrossed in finishing one of your Lego cars?  Well, that’s how mommy feels about the work she does with the girls at the Sierra House and when I’m writing,” he responded with an illuminated smile, “Ohhh yeah, yeah, I get it!”  Use your knowledge of your child’s passion to leverage the conversation and come to a mutual understanding.  They get it.

           #2 Invite them into your world.

Each year when I attend the Heal a Woman to Heal a Nation Annual Conference, I love to be reunited with all the women who attend.  The women in attendance are the embodiment of passionate living on purpose.  Many of the women are wives, mothers, and single mothers too.  It always brings me joy when I see one mom in particular, who faithfully brings her daughter who is a child with special needs.  Having worked for the special needs population as a nurse, I know how the parents struggle with guilt.  Many of the parents neglect living fully so that they can tend to the demands of parenting a child with special needs, as well as to avoid the social stigma attached to the role.  But not this mom, her daughter’s presence is a light in the room and she brings so much love, youthfulness, laughter and dance into the space; I don’t know that it would be the same without her; she teaches us that sisterhood knows no boundaries.   Seek out communities in alignment with your passions that are supportive of your needs as a parent, they do exist.  Sometimes my son will come with me to the Sierra House when we do creative activities like vision boarding during group.  Help them to feel included by sharing in your excitement.

           #3 Help your child to discover and nurture their interests.

It’s never too early to get your child’s wheels turning in regards to discovering their passions and divine purpose.  Get them to think BIG!  In many foreign countries, it’s custom to take notice of a child’s gifting and those involved in that child’s upbringing, nurture and invest in those qualities accordingly.  These children grow to become confident and productive young adults who start making contributions to the improvement of their societies early on.  When people encounter my son, Amen, they often say things like, “Oh!  So one day you can learn to be an auto mechanic and fix the cars!”  So what we did one year for his Black History project was research African-American designers in the automobile industry and did his project on Earl Lucas, one of only 25 in the world.  You don’t have to wait for a school project though, spend a Saturday afternoon creating a vision board together.  The thing is to get them to see the possibilities beyond the average roles regularly presented to them, keep them motivated to press towards the high mark, and help them to develop a heart for servicing the greater good of the world.  The best time to begin instilling these values is when they are young and the imagination is ripe.  This will also help to strengthen their self-esteem before the world or experience comes in and triggers doubt.

          

#4 Create balance.

This weekend I found myself over-committed and overwhelmed, leaving me to make cancellations and back out of my plans.  Sometimes us passionate ones give way too many yeses before checking in with ourselves first.  Establish healthy boundaries to protect the values you hold and those of your family.  Ask yourself if you have the capacity to fulfill the agreements you make with others.  Commit to keeping track of your obligations to avoid disappointing others, people tend to understand a justified “no” better than a broken promise.  Get yourself a planner to help you stay mindful of where you need to be, what free time you have for family, and to be sure you square away time for self-care. 

   

           #5 Know that having the freedom to express yourself makes life better for us all!

What we have inside of us, is vital for the continual healing of ourselves, our homes, the community, our nation, and ultimately our world.  Think, “If mama isn’t happy, then nobody’s happy!”  Your family is happy to see you happy.  That thing that you do, that no one else can do like you do, is making this world a better place to live in.  Living on purpose is not about you, but it is about us all.  You are out there being the change that we so need to see, and your children will thank you for assuring that they would inherit a world wherein you made an impact so that they could thrive, be safe, and have access to opportunity so they can become all they are destined to be!

I hope by now that you are inspired to keep on living on purpose, passionately and guilt free!  With communication, sharing, your leadership and example your children will become your biggest cheerleaders.  Free yourself from the weight of self-condemnation for operating in the world as your highest self.   Lastly, pat yourself on the back for modeling excellence to the little ones who are forever watching, for they are our future.    

About to the author: Jonae N. Potter-Gill coaches young women who are in transition.  She is a mom, student, and Licensed Practical Nurse by profession.