As I look back over my life, I realize that for most of it, I was living according to what I could do and sheer willpower. 2016 flew by like a whirlwind and I quickly realized I had to do things differently.
I took 4 simple steps that were critical to my growth and maturity as a woman, wife, mother, and as an entrepreneur. Even though these steps were simple, they were not always easy. I had to make a mental shift to be consistent and persistent as I kept my goals in mind.
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PRAY – It’s that simple. I had to pray. I had so many things happen to me. I could only get through them with prayer. They weren’t bad things, but definitely different from my norm. Once I began to pray first, the stress level decreased tremendously and I was able to see clearly the tasks before me.
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FOCUS – Because of prayer, I was then able to focus on the tasks at hand. My nonprofit, Forever Free Books, grew and my new business, The Real Wife Movement™, was born. I had to get focused and not side tracked by what others thought or what other people were doing. I had to focus on the steps I had to take to complete the things I had before me. Focusing on a holistic me, helped me to say “NO” to things that were distractions and to say “YES” to things that would turn my life in the right direction to begin my journey to walking in my purpose.
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GRIND – What do I mean by grind? I mean putting in the hard work and time needed to grow. Plain and simple! I began attending educational events that helped me gain the information I needed to grow as an entrepreneur. I also began spending money on classes to help me become a better me. Not only that, I connected with like-minded, purpose driven people and asked someone to mentor me. That was the best decision I ever made. She pushes me beyond my mental capacity which causes me to grind. In my grind I now have results!
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REPEAT – I know you are probably thinking, “Well, that’s dumb.” On the contrary, repeating these steps is crucial for continual growth. If I stop at grind, I can go no further than that place. Repeating these steps causes us to go to the next level, the next business deal, the next phase in our life. Growth is a continual process.
If we get stuck in only one phase of this process, there will be no change. Imagine being stuck in either the prayer phase, the focus phase or the grind phase. This creates an imbalance in the flow of progress and growth.
So, as we face the last 2 months of 2016, what steps are you taking towards staying successful?
3 months after my book launch and 2 months after a total rebranding, I sat on a panel at the Congressional Black Caucus. The panel consisted of experts in the field of relationships and marriage.