Hey People,

Have you seen this clever video entitled "The New Rules Of Engagement"? It's about 3.5 minutes long. I feel like I should be snapping my fingers and sipping coffee while watching this… But I digressed…

It summarizes the shift in the way we all engage with each other — prospects, clients, potential clients — but in a fun, clever (and still informative) way.

Anyhoo, I hope you enjoy it. It's semi-random, but so am I.

Happy Friday!

***

Ever think that in order to become successful, you have to come up with some brand new idea that no one has ever seen, with all sorts of gadgets and gizmos and super cool thingamajiggers?

Coming up with a new invention or idea is one way to achieve massive success. But it isn't necessary. And it can be the most challenging road to success of them all.

You see – many people have found lots of success just taking something that already existed and simply put their own twist on it (their USP – Unique Selling Proposition). They then mastered the basics of that industry, determined the proper audience to market to (and provide value to), enlisted the proper resources to market it and uh, that’s pretty much it.

Brendon Burchard discusses this in great detail in his awesome new book "The Millionaire Messenger" – where he teaches you how to make a fortune sharing your expertise in whatever field you desire.

Taking that a step further – if you want to become an "expert" or a "success" in a certain niche, find out what those who are successful in that niche are doing and then do it.

I’m sure that this isn’t late-breaking news and you have heard this many times before.

It doesn't mean you have to become a carbon copy of anyone else; however, you do have to learn to master the basics of that niche, find out what makes you different, put your own twist on it, and get-to-gettin'!

To semi-quote one of my favorite ‘tell-it-like-it-is” business coaches, Dani Johnson – success is simple as long as we learn to follow the dang recipe!

After all, Solomon says it best:” "there is nothing new under the sun."

Don't believe me? Think about it: most great inventions are improvements on a previous invention.

Apple is one of the greatest case studies on how to capitalize off of improvements. They gained success with the iPod…then they released another one…AND another one…and then the iPhone…and another one…AND yet another one…then the iPad…now the iPad 2…

You catch my drift?

Did you notice that Apple never has sales specials? You won’t find a clearance rack in their stores. (Trust me, I checked!) They never offer BOGOs (Buy One Get One FREE specials). Nope – they just market, sell and upgrade; then wash, rinse and repeat.

And yet people continue to buy their products time and time again, whether their products are a necessity or not. Be honest – you know a few folks who claim to be broke and do not have a business, yet they own an iPod, iPhone, an iPad (WITH 3G) and the list goes on…

I'm convinced that 20 years from now, people will be buying the iPhone 36 – WITH teleporting capabilities. (OK…maybe not…)

AND, you will still be able to save a lot of money on your car insurance by switching to Geico. (OK…maybe not…)

But I digressed…

Rather than continuing to bore you with more clichés, I want to share an interview that I thought you might find interesting. It is with Will Smith (a fellow Philadelphian, woo-hoo!!!) and a radio host (Angie Martinez) talking about how he became the "Summer Box Office King".

Wanna know what he did? By simply studying the Top 10 Bestselling Movies Of All Time and seeing what they had in common, he discovered 8/10 had special effects and creatures. So in order to become the #1 bestselling actor of all time, he started seeking out scripts that had special effects and creatures.  And it didn't end there; he knew that he would need to be in great shape for these movies, so he took action and started training for them. He lives by this mantra:

If you stay ready, you don't have to get ready!

“I understand my stupidity.” ~Will Smith

Hey everyone – as you can see this week I’ve been doing some MAJOR spring cleaning on my website. Do any of you have articles or ideas written down that have been sitting in your draft folder for ages? Or maybe you’ve left them on your computer in hopes of posting it on your site “some day”. (Or maybe it's just me…?) Well, this week, I’ve decided to kick resistance’s bootay and pull these articles out of the closet. (Yep, I just said my articles are coming out the closet…)

Anywho, this is something that I wrote a while back. Now more than ever – given the “state of the economy”, job layoffs, career changes and more – many of you may need to hear this. If you’ve always had a dream to start your business, website, blog, or simply make a change – look around you.

The things you are searching for are probably already in your hands. You just need to pick them up and start doing something with them. *wink*

Stay blessed,

~Thea

P.S. – Now back to the regularly scheduled programming…

Don't Get Rid Of That Crusty Plant…Yet!

I'm sitting here looking at a plant I thought about throwing away in the winter because the leaves dried up, the stems looked like dried twigs, and the flowers looked like dry ash. NOT a good look for home décor, I know.

(Hey – I forgot to water the little thing. Sue me!)

But, since I saw a LITTLE bit of green – a sign that there was a little LIFE left- I instead decided to chop off all of the dead pieces of the plant, leaving only the root.

Throughout winter and spring, I keep watering it – little by little. There were times I thought, “Girl, why are you wasting your time with this crusty plant. Just throw it away. Your mom can just add it to her compost!” But I just couldn’t bring it to myself to get rid of the pitiful looking thing. Instead, week after week, I watered away.

One warm day – I woke up and opened my window blinds. I glanced down at the plant. Guess what? This formerly-crusty-lookin-thang was FULL of life, the leaves were bright green and it was even bearing flowers! It kind of caught me off guard! I mean, I had been watering it and all, but hadn't really paid attention or noticed its growth throughout the weeks until BAM – pink flowers were shooting EVERYWHERE.

As I went to do a little more pruning this evening (I forgot to water it this week, so some pieces of crust snuck in, he he) – a thought came over me: (And yes, I often get inspired by physical occurrences in my everyday life– strange and all. I’m weird like that.)

What would’ve happened if I had thrown that plant away because it appeared to be dead, even though there was a sign it had a little bit of life left? What if I had stopped watering it throughout the winter because it was cold, showed little sign of progress, and appeared to be a waste of time (and water!)? I never would’ve been able to see the beautiful flowers it was going to produce in the spring!

Then it hit me: this flower “incident” was symbolic of my own life. Seriously – it was. How many times have I given up on something too soon because it didn’t pan out the way I thought it should’ve, or maybe there were aspects of it that were pretty hideous.

Of course there are times when I know I have to let something go, but I’m talking about those opportunities that have come my way (or are STILL in my hand) that I didn’t really give enough effort to succeed.

You see, sometimes we blame circumstances, or people, or things, etc… for giving up or for causing us to fail. But if we take a moment to be honest, and we “keep it real” – we would realize that sometimes the only person to blame for our lack of success is the reflection you see in the mirror each and every day.

Sometimes we can see a little green (a little LIFE left) in that opportunity; but rather than watering it (being diligent and giving it our BEST shot), we either get lazy, do nothing with it, or are inconsistent with putting forth the effort it needs to grow, until we finally throw it away.

I know I have.

And if I’m TRULY honest, I at times STILL do.

What about YOU?

But that can change. We’ve heard over and over that the first step to recovery is to be completely honest and to admit an addiction. So often we attribute that to drugs, alcohol, sex, food, etc… But what about failure? Laziness? Disobedience? Inconsistency? Fear? Have you ever thought that perhaps these can be addictions too? I don’t know – all I know is some of the first steps to success is an admission of truth, making a decision, and then following it up with an ACTION. Sometimes that action can be simple as breaking a usual cycle that causes you to make the same mistake. For example:

• If you know you have a habit of overeating or eating junk late at night, go to bed earlier. Or, if you wake up and HAVE to eat something, only eat fruit.

• If you have a habit of watching too much TV, then make a decision not to turn it on AT ALL that day.

• If you drink too much soda, stop buying it. If it’s not in the house, you are less likely to overindulge with it.

•  If you started a website (or twitter or facebook account), but you aren't happy with its graphics (or lack thereof), get help.

And the list goes on and on.

These may seem like “common sense” solutions, but really – how many of us KNOW we should or shouldn’t do something, yet we set ourselves up to fail by placing ourselves in the exact scenario each day to guarantee our failure?

If you think or sense you SHOULDN’T do something, DON’T do it. If you think or sense you SHOULD do something, and then DO it.

I’m writing this to you, but I’m really writing this to me too. I just thought I’d share it with you too. In fact, writing this very “blog” post is something I often put off doing because I think I’ll either “do it later” while I help someone else, or my ego thinks it is not something someone else may want to read.

But quite frankly, all of these are excuses.

(See, I don't cut myself any slack either *smile*)

In closing remember this: if you have a dream, a clear goal, a desire, etc… and opportunities come – take them. If you are spending money getting training and mentored, follow the stinkin’ directions and put those teachings into action. If you are nervous and scared – that’s ok. But as it is said, “feel the fear and do it anyway.”

Keep moving forward. Be diligent. Be consistent. Give it your absolute BEST shot. In other words, keep “watering the plant.”

And one day when you least expect, you’ll bloom! *wink*

~Thea a.k.a "Ms. Tryna-Help-A-Fellow-Human-Out"

A Special [Sunday] Message:

Disclaimer: This message AIN'T for everybody… I wrote it in February and stumbled across it last night. I felt that someone might need to read this, so that’s why I’m posting it. It has nothing to do with website management services, graphics, web sites, social media or anything of the such. It’s just something from my heart. If that bothers you, you’re free to click the little “x” in the right corner. *smile* But if you ARE reading it – then thank you. I hope and pray that it encourages some of you. If the shoe fits, then run with it. If it doesn't – by all means take it off and keep it moving. *wink*

Sometimes you might have to step out and do something, even though many others advise you not to do so—even some "experts". Remember: God told Noah to build an Ark (that had never been built before) by someone who never built one before, in a land that hadn't seen rain in ages.

Did that make sense? Nope. Was he qualified? Nope.

But as a result, he and his family were saved.

And so was the entire human race…

Why? Because one man followed clear instructions given to him by God.

About thirty-three years ago, doctors (experts) told my mom to abort her baby, because she had German measles.

"You are STUPID to carry a child 'like that' full term" (the "experts" said).

"She won't live past the age of 2" - the experts said.

"You know better. You're a nurse! You KNOW what happens to these babies!"

But my mother rejected their words and gave birth to that child. Did she have complications? Yes. And "that" child did end up being born deaf. In fact, she almost died at the age of 2 and had to be rushed to Jamaica for heart surgery. She still bares the scar on the back until this day.

*Notice I said "until this day" because she still alive.*

Thirty years later, she is still here. And in overall good health. And had she not been born, my family might not be in America today. And I probably wouldn't be typing this note.

Why am I writing this? Some of you (like me) have wasted time waiting for some “big thing” to be the answer to all of your problems. Some of you are waiting for some "big wig" to proclaim you as "special" or gifted. I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but for some of you, it's not going to happen.

But don't worry – you really don't NEED anyone else to validate you anyways.

If you are down because you feel that no one recognizes you, or acknowledges you, I truly understand.

But guess what? I know Someone who does; The stars in the sky – He made it. The planets in the universe – He created them. Those genius inventions that are man-made (yep, that includes the iPad!) – He whispered them into many ears, hoping that someone will take them to fruition.

In fact, I think He whispered it into my ear while I was in college. Long (true) story…

(But I digressed…)

And even though many of the creators of these things never give Him credit, He doesn’t fret or frown. He doesn’t even skip a beat. Why?

Because HE knows who He is. Though He loves to be praised and honored by man – He needs no validation to know His worth.

So, your track record might say that you are disqualified for success. You have no right to do "this" or "that".

Well to that, I say – you're right.

Sorta…

You see – NONE of us are qualified or 'more' deserving of ANY good things that we have.

If you ARE blessed – consider that a blessing because it is ONLY by God's grace that we've received ANY good thing and have an opportunity to become a success.

And if you've climbed the ladder of success – please don't forget what it was like to be at the bottom rung.

For those of you at what might seem like the "bottom" – if no one has ever told you this, again, you ARE special.

If you're broke, disabled, depressed, sad, etc… THAT doesn't matter.

You matter. You are still important. And no one has a right to tell you otherwise.

And if they do, do not accept it.

Because it is a lie.

But PLEASE understand this: by all means – get mentoring from the right people, get help and get knowledge. That's perfectly fine and recommended. I'm not telling you not to. That's what God HIMSELF advises you to do. I'm currently enrolled in business coaching for six-months as well. Plus, I've invested thousands of dollars into my education and maintain monthly memberships to a few well-known and well-respected business forums.

My mantra for this year mirrors this: "Form your purpose by asking for counsel, then carry it out using all the help you can get." ~Proverbs 20:18 (The Message Bible)

But don't put your hope, value and success in anyone's hands but God…and yours. Because at the end of the day, the only validation you need is from HIM. And before you make any major life decision based on someone else's advice, ask God to validate (or deny) it three times before you move forward with it full speed. And guess what – He will.

Really.

So with that being said, please remember this final thing:

Just be yourself – EVERYONE else is taken.

Signing off – with LOVE,

~Thea

P.S. – I found a song that some of you might need to hear. Know this – no matter what you’ve done, what mistakes you‘ve made – it’s never too late to try again and get back on track. Even if you make the wrong move several times it’s not the end of the world. Just forgive yourself and always keep it moving!

HAPPY SUNDAY!! Have a great week! *smile*

Did you hear the great news? The Website Managers just launched a new division for WordPress website management and virtual assistance services! Woo-hooooo!!

It’s been a long-time coming, but we’re glad the day is finally here. We’ll be adding more services in the next coming weeks, but for now we’re making spaces for 5 happy (and lucky) clients.

To stay updated on our services, please click the "Website Management Services" link at the top menu or here.

OK, so we're on the homestretch: here is part 3 of the 3-part series "Why All Teachers Need Their Own Website". Who-hooo!!

I stated that this final post might be pretty epic.

To be quite honest, I can't really say that it is. Just keepin' it real…

(NOTE TO SELF: Don't ever say that again!)

But I hope you find these final tips useful. If not, perhaps you will like the clip art. If that doesn't wet your whistle, just click the "like button" any way and help a sister out. Insert a pat on the back if you'd like. You'll feel good about yourself for doing a good deed. Thanks.

With that being said, here are two more reasons why teachers might want to consider getting their own website.

6. The Content Remains Your Property…FOREVER!

Nothing lasts forever.

• Trends come and go. Do YOU still wear those baggy MC Hammer pants? No? That’s what I thought…

• Songs top the chart one moment and become nuisances later. Remember how beautiful “My Heart Will Go On” was when it first came out? 2,345 rotations later, didn’t you want to smash your radio when you heard the first note of that flute? Yes? That’s what I thought…

• Technology changes faster than a speeding bullet. Come on, you KNOW you still have a few pagers lying around your house somewhere. They are probably with your stack of 8-track cassettes, behind your VHS collection. Agree? That’s what I thought…

To sum it up, no one knows what the future holds.

We may have the best intentions of doing something for the rest of our lives, or living in a certain place, but then something called “life” happens.

If for some reason, you decide to move to another town, city, state – heck, another continent – and you are forced to relocate to another school, what happens to all that content you posted on your schools website? Chances are because it is hosted on your schools server, it remains their property.

Now, if you have some techno skills, you can back up your files on another private site.

But who the heck wants to do that?!

Wouldn’t it be frustrating to lose all of your files, discussions, exams, notes, etc… each time you move to another place, or start a new semester, or welcome a new set of students?

Yes, you can keep copies of all of your files on your computer, but can you imagine having to sort through that mess each year? I hope you’re really organized!

Wouldn’t you rather have one central location to house and track the progress you have made over the year? Won’t it be great to be able to see a snapshot of the past successes of your curriculum?

On the flip side, won’t it be easier to critique areas you think need improvement, simply by being able to review your website, student’s comments, questions, and more? After all, your job is to serve your students by preparing them with the tools they need for success.

Think about it: what “research” method can possibly be more effective than being able to review actual students’ questions, comments, suggestions (and more!) from an entire year?

There is no study, no paid report, and no analyst projections that can give you a better snapshot of what you need to do the following year than your actual stats and actual results from the students themselves.

And it will cost you little financially to do so.

How much is that worth to you? Really think about that.

Do you think the results that you can get, the lives that can potentially be changed, the connections that you can make – do you think a few hundred (or thousand) dollars is worth it as an investment to you and your students?

I think so. I take that back – I KNOW so. But again, that’s my opinion. *smile*

And back to the initial “points” – if you absolutely have to leave your current school, what happens to all the connections you’ve made?

If you’ve bonded with several students, how will you be able to stay in touch with them? What will happen to all those students after they graduate from your class? Once they’ve graduated, they may lose their school-granted email addresses.

And how can they stay in touch with you?

This brings me to the next benefit for having your own WordPress website…

7. Keep In Contact With Your Students, Long AFTER They Graduate

If you own your own site, you have a central location that students can refer to in the future in case they decide to follow you throughout the course of their lives.

Encourage students to contact you for future recommendations for job interviews.  Ask them to share pictures of their future children, weddings, successes – anything that they want to keep you in the loop.

I have a teacher who I keep in contact with ‘til this day, even though I have graduated from college a few years ago. I (along with one of my friends) visit he and his wife for dinner from time to time. He has written me job recommendations, calls me to see how I’m doing, and his wife has sent me pictures of their first grandbaby.

He considers me a part of his extended family. We may not speak often, but I know that if I have an issue or concern, he will be more than glad to help. This is blessing!

While we were at Villanova, people would randomly show up during our night class 5, 10, 20 years after they graduated to say “hi” to him. He becomes everyone’s grandpop.

We are making plans so that I can redo his website, so that he can have better communication with his students for that same reason. After all, he is now in his 70’s and will need to retire soon. Which reminds me – I need to call him!!

But I digressed…

Have you had a teacher in your life, who made such a positive impact on you, you wish you could visit them? You make plans to do so, but one year goes by…then another one…and another one…and another five…and before you know it, 10 years have gone by, and NO visits have happened!

Now you’re not even sure if he/she is still there, or if he/she will even remember you when you return. Well, I’m sure that most good teachers recall most (if not all) of their students, but there’s always that chance they won’t.

On the other hand, there are some teachers whose lessons have impacted you in a way that even if you hadn’t developed a personal relationship with them, you wish you could remember the content they taught, or the resources used throughout your course.

I had great plans of keeping all of the great notes I took throughout high school and college. I even had a folder on my computer where I would store these files.

Over time, I would save all the projects I was proud of, stored the PDF’s that we were given to download – did everything the “right” and organized way. I was so proud of myself! “I’ll be able to hold onto these memories FOREVER! This is awesome.”

Except I kept forgetting to do the obvious SMART thing – back up my hard drive! And I bet you know what is coming next…

You guessed it! My computer died and the hard drive couldn’t be saved. All that data, gone. All my files – erased. All those notes – vanished in an instant!

(Pardon my language) but that sucked – big time!

So during the second half of my education, I made sure to save everything on an external hard drive. Kudos to me for being responsible, right?! Go me!

…Or so I thought…

You see my old laptop was running on Windows XP. And our home computer had a virus. So I decided to use my old hard drive to transfer some files to another computer. However, somewhere along the process, my hard drive got reformatted by accident – and completely deleted!

Epic failure #2!

So all the memories, all my files were gone in a matter of moments.

Long story short, outside of using my yearbook – I lost track of the names of all of my teachers, files and things I treasured most – AGAIN!

I tried searching on the school directory to see if some of them were there. Unfortunately, many weren’t there any longer and relocated to different schools and universities.

Shucks!

Thanks to the almighty Google, I can find a few of them. But sadly, some of them who haven’t yet joined the social network phenomenon – can’t be found.

Please – don’t let this happen to YOUR students.

This can change today! Yes, it may require a little investment on your end, but the amount of time, money and wasted resources it will save you in the long-run will certainly be worth it – that is IF you REALLY want to make a major difference in your student’s life. But that is totally up to you.

I hope that you find these tips useful.

If you or anyone you know is ready to take the next step and get a valuable WordPress website, then send me a note and holler at ya girl! We are ready to serve you.

There really is no reason to have any students like myself, who years later regret not being able to find the teachers that have impacted their lives in a big way.

So in conclusion to this post, I’d like to give a “special shout” (because Black folks like shout outs!) to some of the teachers who have made a great impact on my life. I have had MANY great teachers, but I will spare you the details…

Ms. Gray – J.R. Masterman Middle School:

You instilled in me a love for learning. You made school fun. You were creative. I still remember some of the songs that classmates made up when you gave us the assignment to write a song about the story of Dies Drear. I can credit you as being the person who gave me the opportunity to pen my first song. I love you soooooo much.

Ms. Edenbaum – Central High School:

I will never forget the day you pulled me aside after doing an extra credit fictional story about a girl named Aquanetta Boncretia Jones.

(Yep, I made that name up. And I gave her a gold front tooth too. Long story…)

I will never forget how the class cracked up at my story and the feeling I felt after reading it to them. It was one of the first times I felt good after reading publicly. You pulled me aside after class; I was nervous and thought I was in trouble! But you surprised me and told me I had a wonderful “dry sense of humor”.

I was semi-insulted, because I thought that was a bad thing. But then you told me it wasn’t. You then said that I had a special gift with writing and speaking.

I thought you were being polite and trying to boost my self-esteem (ha ha!!) but looking back I realize that you planted the seed of confidence in me for writing. I’ve ran away from it for quite some time, but it’s starting to sprout again. Thank you Mrs. Edenbaum! I hope to reconnect with you soon and show you me new “stuff”!

Professor Erny – a.k.a “Max Go Clemson” – Villanova University:

Dear Erny, you are one of the weirdest individuals I have ever met in this Universe. And you are fully aware of this.

I know you remember that I actually dropped your class after attending it once, because I thought you were too weird for me (ha ha!). But I felt a great “force” (perhaps God) pushing me to sign back into it.

And I was surprised to hear you talking about me as I tiptoed back into the classroom that night. You were expressing how bad you felt that I dropped your class (ha ha!) and you were so excited when I walked back in. I thought “Dang! Now everyone probably thinks I’m weird. Awesome. Not!”

At times, I thought that you were a bit off your rocker giving college students homework assignments that required us to write our favorite flavors of ice cream, watch “Finding Nemo", write down the names of our future spouses and children, and all sorts of wacky things. You recommended we read several of Stephen Covey’s books and made us repeat several assignments over and over on yellow legal pad paper (the long one, ha ha!).

But it wasn’t until we graduated that I realized why you did what you did. You wanted us to discover things about ourselves, what we liked, disliked, who we wanted to be, where we wanted to be and more – so that we can get headed in the right path upon graduation. I’m still learning about myself each day, but I have to thank you for helping me get to this point.

I still find you a bit weird sometimes, but you know that. I look forward to visiting you and Marian real soon. Don’t worry – I will bring you warm oatmeal raisin cookies and strawberry ice cream – your favorites!

If you have any teachers who you want to shout-out, PLEASE do so and holler on my comment area below. I’d love to see their names and know what impact he/she has had on your life.

But before you go, you don't think I'd write about teaching without having a POP QUIZ at the end. I wanna know if you were paying attention.

So here goes: can you name all 7 examples of ways teachers can use their own website? No? Slackers!

I kid, I kid… 

Here's a little recap of the 7 reasons why teachers need a website and examples of how they can use them. 

1. Create An “Ask ______ (Insert Your Name)” Section On Your Site
2. Post Upcoming Topics For Discussion
3. Create A Twitter Account For Fun Communication With Students
4. Keep Parents In The Loop
5. Birthday Wishes Galore
6. The Content Remains Your Property…Forever
7. Keep In Contact With Your Students, Long AFTER They Graduate

I hope you had as much fun reading this as I had writing it.

Now please send me a note or two (or 17 if you're ambitious) below.

God bless

~Thea
 

1. Create An “Ask ______ (Insert Your Name)” Section On Your Site.

2. Post Upcoming Topics For Discussion.

3. Create A Twitter Account For Fun Communication With Students.

For part two, please check back next week. To get notified FIRST – simply subscribe to my list by entering your name and email in the upper right corner of my site. Yup, I’m talking about that rectangular box with the blue arrow.

I’ve got lots more goodies to share with you. Can’t wait!!

P.S. – Did you find of these tips useful? Let a sista know! Do tell by posting in that lovely comment area below. I can be nosey like that

Have you been pondering about starting a business for ages but never got around to it?

Have you already taken the steps to starting a business by starting a website/blog, but it looks pretty bland?

Are you a stay-at-home mom or dad with secret desires of starting your own blog?

Are you a working mom or dad with dreams of owning your own home business to get extra income or even one day replacing your current income?

Are you a writer? Musician? Work in the music industry? Or any type of artist?

Are you a coach, instructor, or teacher in ANY field?

Are you a current business owner?

Are you a consultant, or considering becoming one?

Do you provide any type of service – free or paid?

Do you have a talent, passion, or skill that you will like to be able to monetize?

Have you considered doing any other above things, but haven’t taken the first step yet?