Plugged.

Let me get right to it;

i always get asked by the most random people what is it that i do here in atlanta. I’ll tell you what i don’t do…

I do not work for free; ok goodnight… lol [in real life]

Just a synopsis of what it is I do all day – 

ok, so picture this 30 year old human whom has a pretty decent mind with pretty decent goals and just recently decided that they wanted to get serious about life. They decide that in the near future they want to be able to make life decisions and have their finances be ready as well. [however] they don’t know who they need to speak to, what they should do, when they should do it or how for that matter!

Here’s where i come in…

i sit down for about 20 good minutes on the phone or in person [as long as its a good hair day] and I have them tell me their goals just as they did their friends and parents, right. After those 20 good minutes i map out what they will need to do to accomplish these goals – but not only do i map this process out, i assist them in accomplishing this [and] in maintaining their new and improved life, that i let them take all the credit for changing [inserts emoji face].

So in laymens terms, I assist individuals with most things finance:

Obtaining Funding. Personal & Business Loans. Credit Restoration. Credit Building. Business Planning. Business Setup. Bookkeeping. Accounting.

[and a slew of other things that can save a life]

Seguing —

I would have never known the importance of making wise financial decisions and planning ahead financially had it not been for me wanting to get serious about life. so ‘what is it that i do?’ – i help those who are trying to transition and better themselves financially.

Take it from me; you are not going to want to be 40 when you finally decide you want to buy a house with a 30 yr mortgage. Let’s face it, we all won’t become millionaires and buy our houses outright; most of us will be regular people waking up to a different kind of grind.

Words of Wisdom: Education yourself when it comes to finances. Understand how your decisions can effect your future. Know where you stand in life. Acknowledge your true status. Think beyond today - be a Big Picture Thinker!

[Then] speak with me.

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The Pressure

There was a time that I couldn’t find a piece of mind

Stretching every piece of my mind, to what required a piece of my attention

Losing retention; the irony in that.

Taking in so much that I’d forget this and that.

I blamed it on the pressure

My stressors; my many responsibilities.

The rent due, lights, cable, car.. it was killing me.

No literally killing me;

Insomnia kicking in, no sleep — i had no energy.

The pressure, thinking about all the pressure.

Caught a flat tire, gotta get another one; that’s another stressor.

Money flowing in, love flowing out;

Prioritizing the things I can live without.

Just a whole lot of random pressures……

—- [Insert your many pressures in life]

I’m thankful for the pressure

Long nights, early mornings and Starbucks.

I had a random thought, and it translated like a poem actually. My recent pressures have put me in a position lately to choose, to prioritize. It was the worst-best thing that could’ve happened for me. I will admit that I’ve never been the type to force myself to choose if I could find a way to have it all. SO imagine my ignorance to making “this or that” choices. It was all bad… until it wasn’t.

Somehow I managed to make a choice and be good with that choice no matter what. I’ve excelled tremendously in the way that I react to things. Over the past however long, I’ve been really digging in with getting to know the things I like and don’t like. The things I’ll entertain and what just doesn’t work for me. The things that matter and those things that are merely around to provide commercials when you’re tired of dealing with the real things in life.

So yeah, I’m thankful for the pressure. I can say it played a catalyst in the person that I’m becoming. Feeling that pressure taught me that I had to work harder than I ever thought I’d have to work. It taught me to be honest with myself and others. To prioritize. To grind. To turn water into wine.

I feel that one whom has never had a moment when the pressure is on, 3 seconds til the buzzer, with the game winning three point jumper on you… they just won’t understand where the real grind originates from.

Words of Wisdom: Don’t be afraid of that added pressure. You’ll either get through it a conqueror or a loser; you choose. 

Don’t Let People Make You Mean

Greetings Readers and skimmers…

So I had a thought recently, and as always, I lead by experience.

So the other day someone really did well to upset me on a day when I was actually having a good day. In lieu of me getting upset, I may have handed out a crazy tongue lashing. Afterwards, I felt bad because although I can be an intentionally mean person, that’s not who I wanted to be. As I’ve grown, I’ve realized that retaliation is a waste of time. Spending time coming up with ways to be vindictive, while maybe it does provide a great release, is also a waste of time.

Don’t let people make you mean…

I can remember having this one co-worker back when I stayed in Tampa and worked at HSN Call Center named Valerie; she is really the sweetest person ever. She would work late, and come in early. She would get some of the worse callers and still get off the phone in this chipper mood and I can remember thinking, “How in the heck is she not irritated and throwing a tantrum??”

I get it now! It’s simply because that angry, irritated, rude and irate person is just not who she is. She is actually a chipper person (Whom I’m sure gets upset), but she does well to exude positive vibes.

Point basically being…

Never let someone get you so caught up in temporary emotions that you become someone whom you don’t even recognize. I’ve seen too many times some of the sweetest people I know doing the ugliest things out of anger towards another.

I’ve adopted this new attitude that comes off carefree, but it’s not, it’s merely me not allowing other people’s negative energy to become mine. I only interact with people who produce the same vibe as me.

I need somebody thiiiiiiiiis happy or better… 

Although better written than said, and said than done… I feel that’s it’s worth the effort to try to save yourself a little bit of sanity.

Words of Wisdom: Don’t let someone who technically has no control of your emotions or actions CONTROL your emotions and/or actions… It’s just that simple.

Leaving The Nest: 10 Things To Remember

Inspiration for this post: Around the 15th/16th of every month the different institutions that I have accounts with (like how I phrased that) start reminding me that I have a bill due soon. I never get used to it; but as always one thought with me leads to a million more and here we are with yet another post…

 

1. If you don’t wake up, you WILL be late for school.

See, when you’re a kid and your mom bust in your room screaming for you to get up.. you don’t move because you know that she’ll be back a second time and a third time to actually wake you up. It wasn’t until I lived alone that I noticed that if I don’t wake up when my alarm tells me to… then I WILL be late for school, miss a whole lesson that I needed to hear, miss all the questions on the exam… and fail. (Lol, dramatic I know, but IJS it’s like that for me.. missing class is dramatic like that for me)

2. If you don’t clean up, you will live in mess.

Again, living at home it was easy to leave a mess lounging because of course at some point in time someone will complain and make you clean it up. Now that I live alone, if there are dishes in the sink.. if I have laundry piled up and hair all over my bathroom sink… I’m the only one that has to look at it. No one comes behind you to clean up. It taught me that value kindergarten lesson… clean up when you’re finished. 

3. You’ll starve.

Cook? I mean yeah, it was fun to cook with my mom and have bake-offs. Yea, I actually enjoy cooking; but you mean to tell me that my cooking skills are all I have to go on?! PERIOD? No one tells you that meals don’t magically appear on the stove when you come home from a long day. No one tells you that it takes 45 minutes and 100 dirty dishes later to get a quick meal. No one told me, and so I wasn’t prepared… and in turn; I Starved. lol (I cook now)

4. You may not spend your money on Cosmo Magazines and Pay Per View.

This one was the big one. Realizing the value of a dollar!!! I went from collecting magazines, to taking them from doctors offices. (LOL; I made a funny); but really… every penny counts; even the ugly pennies. My only bill growing up was considered having leisure money for when I wanted to go somewhere and do something. I was always a hard worker and conscious of my spending, but again, I was working hard to obtain a check to spend wisely at Forever 21. No one told me that 85% of every hard-earned check would go towards bills, 10% on gas and the other 5% has to be put to the side JUST in case you miscalculated on how much you spend on GAS!! Lol. Nobody tells you this. Living alone and having to provide for yourself has taught me to prioritize. I don’t need to be at every shoe sale, or BOGO shopping (Although I love them so..); Oh, and Netflix IS your friend. Lol

5. I O U?

I remember my mom use to say “Lisha, just give me $100 on the phone bill”. I lived at home and worked like a slave; somehow every two weeks I came up short on that $100, and had the grandest excuse as to why. You would’ve thought I was supporting a whole household; Anyways.. lol; No.. no.. you may not ask for an IOU when your rent is due. You may not tell Comcast to keep the cable on because you’re spending your cable money on a pair of Jessica Simpson heels that you saw in Dillard’s on sale with an addition 15% off the ticketed price that’s already marked down (catches breath)… UGH! You cannot! But there are times I’m tempted. I’m sure it has to be some Live-Aloner that understands my struggle…

6. Staying up late watching your favorite show isn’t worth it anymore.

I feel like at some point in time it was cool to see who could actually stay up the longest and still be up at the same time as everyone without being tired. Somehow in my circle growing up that was “cool”. Now, I need every ounce of sleep that I get, which is not much at all. I definitely don’t purposely stay up however watching TV. I live off of Redbulls as it is, I can’t afford to purposely deny myself needed rest.

7. Grocery shopping is not as fun as I thought it was.

When I was a kid it was nothing to go up the cookie aisle and throw two different kinds of cookies in the buggy and hope that my mom would at least let me get one. NOW, I be in Wal-Mart making full-blown sacrifices. “Which cookie is cheaper?”, “Which cookie is healthier?”… “Do I REALLY need this cookie?”. It’s rough. What’s even worse is, you get all this stuff in your cart, pay about $300 on a good grocery trip, only to get home and your cabinet, fridge and pantry still look empty. FML -_-

8. Naps are heaven-sent.

I think every adult can concur with this. When you have to work, study, cook and clean, it is absolutely heaven-sent finding time to take that quick power nap.

9. Leftovers & taking lunch to work are genius habits.

Spaghetti AGAIN?! Yes, spaghetti again. You’ll thank me later once you’ve saved those $20 bucks that you would’ve spent on McDonald’s for the week.

10. Piggy Bank or Savings Accounts – Get One.

Ok, I get it, some of you may feel like you’re too old to have the old ceramic piggy bank chilling on your dresser, BUT I will say that I recently dumped my piggy bank out just to see how much I had and I noted $64.32 in coins and another $40 in loose dollar bills. This was over the course of a 3 month span. Might not seem like much money, but if you think about it that averages to about $33 a month saved, but it makes me wonder how much I recklessly spent to accumulate all this change. I have both a savings and a piggy bank; Every penny counts. Lol.

---

 

My list could continue for days I feel like, but I don’t want to lose site of my point.

Responsibility. Accountability. Ownership. Prioritizing. Sacrificing. Decision-Making.

Moving out and living alone has taught me all of the above and more. It’s barely how the movies project it. It’s not all sleep-overs and pillow fights. It’s not all house parties and cuddle sessions; it could be, but it’s not… It much much more. Don’t take that leap without a keen understanding that the proper mindset is needed. No, it’s not hard necessarily, but it isn’t wise to think it’s a cake walk. 

 

My Thoughts. Words of Wisdom. Goodnight (or Good Morning, depending on where you are).

 

To Those Who Are Patient…

Hey there beautiful readers,

“Time heals all..”

“It takes time..”

“In due time..”

“Take your time..”

“It’s not your time..”

I really could go on and on with all the time related quotes I’ve heard. With every quote I’ve heard, I feel that they give the same message… WAIT. 

I will admit to not at all being a patient person, but as stated in a previous post, one may be Impatient, But Don’t Rush.

I feel that my problem with waiting was the fact that I felt that I’d obtain whatever it was a lot quicker had I just proceeded to getting it. Which in a sense is true. I would reach my point of impatience though and stop doing whatever it was that I was doing. I felt like my efforts were going unnoticed.

Just because I love giving examples (I’ll give you one):

At my current job, I started off as the girl who answers the phones and takes messages. I went to work and alphabetized file cabinets and did a lot of busy work. For a while I thought I’d never get past that stage. I would try to do everything right. I’d be early to work, I’d extend myself to anyone that needed help, and I’d learn things that I knew I’d need to know one day. FINALLY, 5-6 months later, I was given an actual desk, in an actual office with my own personal password! ^_^ My boss pulled me to the side one night and told me how she see’s my potential, and she sees me working hard. She said that she wants to see me make it. Those words, I would have loved to have heard 5-6 months prior, I was elated that I’d heard them at all. My motto was don’t wait on a promotion, MAKE them give you a promotion! Leave them no other choice but to recognize how great of an employee you are. 

This brings me to my actual point…

Don’t stop whatever you’re doing. If you want love and you’re dating.. Keep dating. If you want a promotion, and you’re working super hard.. keep working super hard! The catch is though, don’t keep looking for that moment for things to change, as it will happen when you least expect it. It will happen just as you relax and allow things to develop on their on. That moment will occur just as soon as you exude some patience. It’ll literally sneak up on you.

I wouldn’t encourage one to exude patience if I hadn’t been in a situation where my patience was tested and I had to find out for myself.

They say “Good Things Come To Those Who Wait..” I’ll edit this statement and say:

“Good things come to those who are patient…” 

Words of Wisdom: (Read the quote again) and have faith that everything that you work so diligently for will come to form. 

Furthermore Beautiful Readers… Be Blessed.

 

 

Juggler

I met someone not too long ago and over time I could never really put my finger on who they really were, or what they were really about. It wasn’t until recently that I discovered that they are actually the prime definition of a what I refer to as a juggler.

Juggler: Someone who grasp things/concepts and even LIFE with one hand. Instead of holding on with two.

Now just to briefly go over what I mean; have you ever felt like your mind and heart were in two different places? You can be physically in front of someone having a great time, but your heart is in a different city and state. You my friend are a juggler. You’re holding to something/someone with your heart, but allowing your mind to be distracted by whats presently going on or vice versa.

I feel that the problem with a juggler is that they’re in denial to a certain extent. JUST because something can be explained, doesn’t mean it makes sense and jugglers don’t get that. A juggler is stuck trying to be everything for everyone.

(Segueing)

I could sit and tell someone just why John Doe in Florida has my heart, but John Doe here in Atlanta levels me. At the end of the conversation though, there will still be that question of why?

Why would you even want that? Why not just pick one? Why not get rid of confusion? Why not?

Because… Juggling allows that person to still get a dose of everything that consumes them. Jugglers are in a sense incapable of letting go of what metaphorically destroys them. Just because one hasn’t tripped and fell on their face doesn’t mean that everything is well-balanced. Just because one can understand everything dysfunction in their life doesn’t mean it makes sense.

In my greater opinion, I feel that everyone has a little bit of juggler in them. It’s human, its natural, it’s comfort, it’s crazy, and it’s what some are used to.

Words of Wisdom: Choose. 

Good day and goodnight…

Scared of Success

Hi {Inserts Wave}

It wasn’t until I moved out of Florida that I realized that I was scared of success. It wasn’t until I starting figuring out ways to be successful that I found out that I could’ve been doing this a long time ago.

I’m been blessed with so many opportunities this year alone, it really was scary. So many different avenues and options. So many ways to get to where I wanted to be and I’m just now realizing that what held me back before wasn’t that I couldn’t do it; it was that I was scared to be successful.

I know this sounds weird… maybe. Maybe some of you can relate.

I used to question my ability. Although, I knew I was able to do anything I put my mind to, there was a certain thought that steered me away. There was a little voice in my head like “but can you REALLY do that?” 

For 2 years, I’d contemplated moving away to a new somewhere and move forward with life. For while, I couldn’t find my inspiration. I could barely conjure up a smile. For two years, the pages of my journals were filled with questions that I’d go back and read that stated:

• “Can you really leave your mother?”
• “Can you really finish college?”
• “Can you really start you own business and be a Boss?”
• “Can you really let go and move on?”
• “Do you really believe in yourself?”

Yes, yes I can, and I did, and YES I do!

Words of Wisdom: Don’t be afraid to be good at something. Don’t be scared to be all that you can be. EVEN if you’re going in a different direction that everyone you love and know, don’t be afraid to take that path. You never know what life has for YOU. I don’t know if the next quote is in the bible or not, but ‘they say’ that:

“What’s for you, is for YOU”…

I sit here today believing in that wholeheartedly; I left, and I’ve conquered more in 2013 than I have my whole entire life I feel like. I faced every fear I knew that I had. I’m nowhere near where I want to be, but I’m a lot closer than I was last year and the year before that.

I just felt that I needed to tell someone that you are as great as you think/feel you are, but nowhere near as great as you can be. Success is something to be conquered and fought for. I now know this.

So from one person that has recently conquered a small portion of her success… I pass this encouragement to you 🙂

Furthermore, be blessed beautiful reader & goodnight.

I Want You To Win.

..&& then it hit me

Even when you feel like you’re doing everything right, take into consideration that the ‘situation’ might be what’s wrong… 

I won’t make this long because I feel as though the quote is self explanatory. I’m only giving a bit of encouragement on this topic because I’ve recently had to take it into consideration. 

((Guru Glasses On))

It was like wanting to wear sneakers to a corporate job; It was symbolic of wanting a pair of jeans that didn’t fit or compliment your body well; It was synonymous to wanting to play basketball, but expecting to never break a nail… My situation was a game of “watch me try”. 

It’s like I would do everything right at this corporate job so much that the attention would be away from my attire, and then being shocked to find out that it was a cumulative objective to be a Boss. It’s like I would play that game of basketball so well, and then be surprised that the fundamentals wasn’t all I had to learn about the game. 

My best friend once quoted me a quote that was quoted from somewhere else, and it stated that “you don’t have to be a bad person to not be a good person“. My situation fell under the category of “you don’t have to be doing anything wrong for something to go wrong..“. 

..&& then is went wrong; well not wrong, but not right. 

That moment is often accompanied by confusion, which is then accompanied by a plan and then executed not well at all because it’s like, “what am I really trying to do?”

Even when you feel like you’re doing everything right, take into consideration that the ‘situation’ might be what’s wrong… 

((I posted the quote again, so you wouldn’t get lost in my words…))

See, there was nothing wrong with either person in the situation per say; And on some level both people were doing what they felt was right (so in my mind they weren’t doing anything wrong).. HOWEVER, when a ‘situation’ isn’t meant to be, then it matters not the number of hurdles you’ve jumped.. there will be more. Then there’ll be that moment when you take your eyes off the pavement to gain a grip on the finish line only to see that there is none, well not one in plain sight. 

Where then comes this moment… when you realize that even though you’re keeping up, you’re not winning… && what’s a race if you don’t win, but energy lost and practice. 

I’m not being pessimistic here, I’m just expressing my thoughts tonight (or today depending on your location)… 

I skated all around through examples, metaphors and similies to say:

Know your situation(s).

Have a good one dear readers 🙂 

 

 

 

 

Who Wears the Pants?

Who wears the pants??

I grew up in a household where no one really wore the pants, everyone just played a role; no role really being greater than the other. Long story short, I grew up with the notion that it wasn’t about “who wears the pants”, but more about how well each person wears them.

She Makes More Than Me…

In society, I feel that it’s expected and accepted that in a relationship the man can and/or should make more than his woman. In my mind I don’t agree nor disagree with that standard. I just feel that there are calibers, and exceptions to this unwritten rule.

I’ll start by saying that I don’t feel it’s necessarily a terrible thing if the woman makes more than a man… My only rule to that is: It’s not an issue for the woman to make more than the man AS LONG AS the man is making enough to take care of his household off of his means alone.

Is that too strict?? Well don’t jump down my throat too quickly, because I feel this rule applies to women as well.

Well let me try and explain this the best way I know how. At the end of the day, I feel that a man should have the proper means to take care of his household if something ever was to go wrong and he needed to step up. So it’s like even if the man is an under-paid teacher and the woman is a top dollar Certified Accountant, his teaching salary shouldn’t size up to a McDonald’s check when it comes to taking care of a household.

The Real Problem..

I feel that more than anything, the difference in pay could effect one’s ego. However, I feel it’s important to understand that as long as your partner doesn’t have a problem with the difference in the weight of your checks, then it’s fine. I honestly don’t find it to be as big of a deal as many may think it is. I feel that the real problem isn’t really the difference in checks at all. I feel that it has to do with evaluating the lifestyle…

((I had to start a new paragraph for this thought))

See. A woman who’s making good money can afford to do things that a man making a small check cannot. She can afford to spend and know it’s coming back. She can afford to pay all of her bills and still go out and splurge on a new handbag. She afford to not need a man. I feel that men yearn for that feeling of being needed that when that feeling is null and void, it does something to them. It brings about an insecurity that women maybe can’t truly be empathetic to because we don’t know what it’s really like.

Words of Wisdom: Communicate with your partner if them making more bothers you. Do things that will make you feel a bit more empowered.. pay an extra bill :). Furthermore, gain that security within your relationship. If your partner doesn’t see it as a big deal, then don’t make it a big deal. IF you happen to make a McDonald’s sized check in comparison to your partners check then HEY! Don’t duck down, BE A BOSS! Make your partner forget you make pennies to their dollar. 

WEAR THOSE PANTS, AND WEAR THEM WELL!! 🙂

Furthermore, Be Blessed.

“Do What You Gotta Do…”

Hi there.. seems like nearly forever since I did a post; Lately I’ve been a bit more than inspired though by a few things.

*SideNote* There is irony here though, I’m not wearing my glasses 🙂

I still must Do What I Gotta Do. The topic today.

The other day I found myself with an abundance of tangled thoughts, no efficient answers and a million rhetorical questions that I was asking myself. I found myself becoming very concerned with certain things that I had no immediate control over.

My turning point came when I relaxed my mind and was actually able to solve one of my worries in that same instant. I literally solved my problem within minutes of me concentrating on the solution. Seriously.

Everyday I hear complaints, and in my mind I can relate, but at the same time I try to encourage one to instead of complaining, brainstorm. Try it. Instead of saying “ugh! This test is going to be sooooo hard”.. say, “I should probably get an early start on studying because I already KNOW this is going to be a challenge for me”… Do you see the difference in connotation?

Words of Wisdom: Yes, this is pretty short, sweet and to the point. I learned that when you’re handling your business, and doing all that you’re suppose to be doing, then everything will fall in place. Understand that the moment you press pause on life to cry and reminisce in your moment of somberness that you’re losing valuable time. Time that can be put into a goal. Do What You Gotta Do and be patient. 

Furthermore readers.. Be Blessed.