Lived My Passion and WON a Prize!!!!

                          

Hey there Shiners and Shinettes….I pray all is well with every one!

April 27^th, 2013 I was given the grand opportunity to Live My Passion at the wonderful Chasing Joy Brunch & Learn event.  I was asked months back if I would be a guest speaker at her event and with my spirits up and an excited heart I said “YES!”  Now, with great opportunities comes preparation, so that is what I did.  I created a PowerPoint Presentation that I never imagined that would touch the many attendees of the event.  As I stood and presented…I WAS LIVING MY PASSION!  Did you hear me?  I Lived My Passion!  As many of you know, I love to motivate others to be their best, love themselves, be kind, grateful, thankful, humble, and understand that you matter.  Below are some points from the Presentation.

To start living your passion here is what one must do:

ž Get up and get moving….

ž Think Positive….

ž Be CERTAIN of who YOU ARE!!!

ž Throw your passion out there for the world and let it make ripples!

ž Do NOT self defeat!!

ž Get Busy Living

ž STEP into your Passion

ž Get into YOUR zone of your Passion

ž Know your LIMITS

ž Test YOUR LIMITS

ž You have a great opportunity to bloom your passion into reality!!

ž Come ready to work, create, or motivate!!

ž Be patient, don’t rush it….

ž Smile because you’re about to change the world for the better.

We all had great conversation, food, and prizes.  Everyone received gift bags that included wristbands, key chains, and buttons.  Several bags had special bands that allowed the winners of a certain wristband color to win free services from me, such as, a free vision statement, and free motivational coaching session.  The event had many sponsors and the sponsors gave away gifts and services as well.  We had several raffles that were major fun because many attendees like myself stated that they never win anything.  Well guess what!?  I won the beautiful prize from "AHappySlappyGreeting"”.   Click the link to see her great and joyful work! 

This young and beautiful Dynamo has a major latent for making beautiful greeting cards.  Check out my prize (Picture at the top of the blog post) and other great pictures from the awesome event in the slide show!

Do you have a passion?? If so what is it!? I would love to hear all about it!  #ShineOn

            

Getting back to Me....Guest Post by Dina

                              

                                                   

                                                             Finding Dina

Ten years ago I was in my 20s, I was a full time student and I had a part time job.  I met and started dating my husband; we fell in love and decided to get married that year. Everything was working out perfectly, almost like a modern fairytale.  The most stressful thing about my life at that time was the wedding planning because I wanted it to be perfect.  And it was that desire for perfection that led me to making the worst decision of my life: taking a break from school.

I planned on taking one semester off to have a stress free wedding, a glorious honeymoon and blissful first few months of marriage.  I saw no harm in taking a little break because I only had one more year left to get my bachelors.  I was young and I thought I knew it all, had it all under control.  But one thing you never know is what may be waiting for you around the corner.

That semester off?  You guessed it.  It stretched into years.

The company my husband worked for laid him off and then went bankrupt a few months later.  Many companies followed suit and jobs were hard to come by.  This was 2001, the year of 9/11 when tragedy struck our country and the first whispers of recession were becoming audible.

I found work as a secretary in a hospital, a great job with great benefits.  And we needed those benefits as a young married couple that hoped to start a family someday.  I worked full time and was happy there.  I quietly gave up on my dream of becoming a teacher because I thought it would be too hard to work full time and go to school.

Then one day one of the new doctors was chatting with us while he was waiting for his patient to return from a test in another department.  This doctor looked so young that we liked to call him Doogie Houser.  On this particular day he was telling us about his wife who was pregnant with their second child and by the end of our chat I knew that his wife was to become my inspiration.  This day and this conversation literally changed my life.  Why?  Because this pregnant woman who was already mom to a toddler was also keeping herself occupied by being the Chief Resident at one of the leading hospitals in the state.

And I thought my life was busy?  I thought it would be too hard for me to go back to school?  I was willing to give up on myself so easily?  No.  I needed to get back to ME.

The next day I filled out the application to go back to school and I enrolled in classes for the new semester.  It took me a little bit longer to finish as a part time student, but a couple of years later I graduated, with honors.

Finally.  I was ME again.

You can find more of Dina @30ish_Mama and also  http://30ishmama.blogspot.com where she writes about motherhood, toddlerhood and her random thoughts.  She is married to her own personal Clark Kent/Superman and is mom to one sparkly little princess.

Getting back to "Me" Guest Post by Chivon Anderson...Finding Me!

            

                                                               Finding Me

So after a very long break my writers itch has begun to get the best of me. The box of treasure in the form of words and expressions have been unlocked and unleashed. The greatness in me only shared with a few is about to bless the world. These first few blogs are what I will use for practice, to get the kinks out, to stretch lol. After all it has been lying dormant for such a long time. Forgive me if it is not as eloquent as you might expect or if it seems a bit shallow. I am simply giving myself the freedom to be ME with no restraints. (smile).

After talking for a while with a friend and witnessing so many blogs birthed I thought it was time for me to break my silence. I am not one to jump on any bandwagon. As a matter of fact when I see one coming my way, I run in the opposite direction. I like being unique, I love being a trendsetter. It has taken me years to break out of the mold that I have allowed so many others to create for me but today I am finally free. I am the mold, the model, the standard. Lets not get it twisted this is not about self glorification but rather liberation. I'm free to be who God created me to be. And I have been raised for such a time as this to help others become truly free. I have been hurt before which is why I can declare that the Lord's strength is made perfect in my weakness. I have loved, been rejected and found true love, not only in my husband but in God. So I can shout with confidence "WHAT SHALL WE SAY THEN? IF GOD BE FOR ME WHO CAN DARE BE AGAINST ME". "FOR I AM FULLY PERSUADED THAT NEITHER DEATH NOR LIFE, NEITHER ANGELS NOR DEMONS, NEITHER PRESENT NOR FUTURE, NOR ANY POWERS, NEITHER HEIGHT NOR DEPTH, NOR ANYTHING ELSE IN ALL CREATHION WILL BE ABLE TO SEPERATE ME FROM THE LOVE OF GOD THAT IS IN CHRIST JESUS MY LORD.

Romans 8:38-39. It is this perfect love that has cast out all of my fears. I am a Kingdom Kid and their is no denying that. Hate it or love it, I'm here to stay.

To get to know Chivon better check her out on Twitter at @QueenChivs Thank for stopping by Shiners!!! Til next Monday! 

Let your Light Shine....

Well Shiners we have come to our final Shining the Spotlight post of the year! Yeah I know time fly's but hunni each of you are amazing! I have never read so may great pieces from such awesome people in my life! I have had the pleasure of shining the spotlight on so many and I don't think I will stop there! Just keep in mind the new year has some new, fun, different and awesome things in store! I cant wait for you to be apart of that too! Well lets get to it shall we!!!


First of all I am so thankful for Melissa allowing me this wonderful opportunity to guest post. Most mornings Melissa greets me with a wonderful twitter hello, and it really does help make my morning start better. You see although Melissa and I have never met personally she sends me a morning smile… just because. That is just one of the many ways that she is always letting her light shine. AND for that I am very appreciative.



Let your light shine

Some people aren’t naturally positive people. They just are not. No explanations needed.

Does that make them mean or negative?

No.

What about those who just “keep it real”?

Nope. Some of them are my closest friends and blog buddies too! They do keep it real. No sugar coating, just the facts and you know what? Some of their perceptions help me maintain a realistic view of life and my expectations.

For me it is important to be surrounded by people who allow my light to shine. But in order for my light to shine I have to know that disappointments will happen. Every day won’t be all happy, holding hands and singing hymns.

You see adversity has made me stronger. Taking the time to get to know people, from ALL walks of life has helped me define my outlook in life.

I have learned who to surround myself with and who to steer clear from.

What about those people who you can’t stay away from?

Continue to let your light sine. AND just maybe your light will set a fire within someone else. If that light begins to fade, evaluate exactly why you are staying near those people.

As we start a New Year, I challenge you to assess yourself and those you keep close.

Is it possible for you to let your light shine a little brighter in 2012?

Does that mean you have to do a complete makeover of yourself if you are in the mean or category?

Absolutely not!

HOWEVER, my challenge for you is to find a way EVERYDAY to smile for no reason at all. This is one option for letting your inner light shine. Sounds crazy? Well give it a try and see what happens. I think you might be surprised.

You can start right now

Go ahead.

Do it.

I’m waiting.

Smile.

Awesome! Just be sure to pop a mint and everything should be fine.

Wishing you an absolutely wonderful day!

Before you go tell me in the comments what are some other ways that you can let your inner light shine. Yes, I know you might have to dig WAY down to figure something out. No worries, take your time.

Source: picasaweb.google.com via Latorsha on Pinterest

Latorsha, is the blogger of Life is Hard, Laugh Anyway, a place where she tries to remain optimistic by any means necessary, mostly laughter. On twitter you can follow her at @AnOptimisticMom. You can check out her blog Here or contact her at AnOptimisticMom@ gmail.com

--
Latorsha

YES ALL YOUR LIFE.....

Great Morning Shiners! It is once again "Shining the Spotlight"  I can't believe that the series went so fast and in just a few day Christmas will be upon us.  I just wanted to say that I am so grateful and thankful for each Shiner for all of their support through this series.

Today I am glad to introduce to you a young lady that goes by the name Simply Z!  I have the great pleasure to work with this wonderful lady and she is also apart of MAZ (Melissa, Aliya & Z) Together we are so strong and we have been through so much.  Z has been blogging for a while and she came to me and asked could she be apart of my Shiner team! To me she was already a Shiner! So lets shine on her guys! 

Simply Z the spotlight is all yours!

                                                       

As the year end slowly approaches or rapidly (time flies) I think of the slogan I carried throughout 2011, “Yes All Year.”  Funny that those 3 little words sound so easy to live by, and they are, yet months ago I wondered if I really had what it took to continue the journey.  Today, I say yes!  However, if you would have asked me then, my answer would have been, not so much.

I felt like my dream was slowly dying or that I wasn’t good enough to see it truly manifest.  Doors closing from left to right, things not happening how I hoped they would, opportunities I spoke about not happening, being at a job I do not like and wondering if I’ll ever see the light of day (literally).  And, that alone caused my thoughts to run wild: What am I doing wrong that isn’t allowing me to move forward?  What do I need to do to move on?

Okay, I digress.  I said all that to say, at the end of it all, when you think you have nothing left to give yourself, your dream, something deep inside of you wakes up (it probably was never sleep) and those 3 words become louder than they did the first time they were heard.  Yet, those words change from “Yes All Year,” to “Yes All My Life.” 

Life happened in 2011, life happens, but I am blessed to have experienced every moment.  Through it all I have become more aware of who I am (always learning), what I dream (always dreaming) and who I will become. 

We live in an ever evolving world and we are an ever evolving people.  We EACH have a job to do and through our own experiences (good, bad, not understood, etc.), we are to take them and show people or someONE that “shift” happens, yet you, I, and we can all get through the “shift.”

I heard a message on Sunday, “I’m Glad You Made Me Do It.” (Pastor Martina Mitchell)  I like to take that a step further and say, “I’m Glad You Made Me Go Through It.” 

I am humbled and honored to have been able to “Shine the Spotlight” with a fellow blogger, Ms__Positivity and all her shiners.  As I’ve been reading the posts featured every Wednesday at 10 am I remember post like, Grateful Journey, Taking “Life” Back and Don’t Let Clutter Steal Your Shine and I like to add that through it all we must NEVER GIVE UP, HOLD ON TO OUR DREAMS and remember YES ALL YOUR LIFE! 

It’s been a pleasure "Shining the Spotlight" and may you all continue to Shine On!

Signed,

Simply Z

To get to know Simply Z better follow her on Twitter, catch her celebrating on Facebook and last but not least Skip on Over to her blog and show her some love!

Grateful Journey....

Well hello there to all the awesome Shiners out there! It is once again time to "Shine the Spotlight" on another great blogger.  She is fairly new at this but she is a great person and she provided me with a really nice piece and her name is Tiffany.  In addition, Tiffany and I have become really good friends through a No Spending November Challenge through her blog that is called Scenes From a Single Mom.
As I read her blog, many times I say to myself "I know that's right" totally agreeing with what she is saying.

So here today, I am ready to Shine the Spotlight on Tiffany aka the Gemini Super Mom! So everyone here is Tiffany's guest post!!! #ShineOn Tiffany and as always #ShineBright!

                                                     The Grateful Journey

A little more than a week ago, many of us spent time in fellowship with our friends and family, eating, catching up on all things new and sharing all that we are thankful for.  Then many of us left dinner tables, and headed straight to shopping malls to buy MORE THINGS.  Isn’t it ironic?  We immediately forget about the many things we already have to be thankful for and run out with, cash, credit/debit, or check in hand to stock up on MORE things.

During this time of year that is supposed to be full of cheer, joy, love, peace, and yes, thanksgiving so many of us find ourselves feeling down, depressed, and unfulfilled.  In many cases these feelings are directly related to our ability or inability to purchase the gifts that we feel that our loved ones deserve, want and need.  To this I say: ENOUGH is ENOUGH!

I challenge you to embrace, and enjoy this holiday season with a heart full of thanks and gratitude, and encourage your family and friends to do the same!  Start a grateful journey, and keep a grateful journal along the way.  What is the grateful journey?  On the grateful journey you end each day naming three things that you are grateful for, and you NEVER repeat them.  You will be amazed at how much you are thankful for, and how much less you feel that you and your family needs! If you have children, take some time every night and discuss the grateful journey as a family, over dinner, or just during your family time in the evenings.  The journal is an added bonus. If you create a grateful journal, then you can go back and reflect over time, all that you have to be thankful for.

The grateful journey is not meant to replace your daily devotional time, meditation or prayers of thanksgiving by any means.  However an extension of the way you count your abundance of blessings.

Please, share your grateful journeys here as well!

To get to know Tiffany better Skip on Over to her blog, Follow her on Twitter and catch her on FaceBook!!

Its been great Shiners! Forever Shining Bright!

Don't Let Clutter Steal your Shine.....

Itsssss Backkkk! Hello Shiners "Shining the Spotlight" is back! I pray that everyone has had a great holiday and are ready to get back to reading some awesome blogs by some awesome Shiners.

I have the pleasure to present to you a wonderful shiner by the name of Alison.  She is the owner of Learn to Embrace the Struggle. She has become one of my good friends of blogging and each and everyday!! So here is her guest post on getting thing together and clearing out the clutter...ohhhhh this is a good one Shiners!! Hey I needed to see this piece myself and I am really getting ready to apply so much of this to my life! Many times when you think you have life under control its just way to cluttered!

                                          Delete. Ctrl X.  Backspace.  

You know which key, or combination of keys, to use when you need to remove items on the computer.

And so it is in real life.  You sometimes need to hit delete--to edit your life--in order to shine like you want to.  

Clutter isn't only about a house bursting at the seams with "stuff."  Every area of our lives is subject to clutter, but, we have the last word regarding what stays--or goes--in our lives.

Mental clutter

Are you worn out mentally?  Guilty of foggy thinking or (gasp!) no thinking?  You probably have too much going on in your "beautiful mind."  Sometimes we need to take a "mental health day" to purge our minds. 

• Choose to focus on positive thoughts and eliminate, or at least decrease, negative thinking.  
• Let go of the multitasking!  It really is less efficient than doing one thing at a time.  A fragmented mind is often a demented mind, but an uncluttered mind is an effective mind.
• Relinquish the title of superman/superwoman!  You don't have to be Ruler of the Universe.  Someone else already snagged that title!

Emotional clutter

We're often unaware of the extent of the toll taken on our lives by emotional issues.  When we vacillate between one end of the emotional spectrum and the other, we become imbalanced.   

• Pay attention to your emotions and behavioral triggers so that your relationships won't be hampered. 
• When deep-seated issues, many of which are formed in childhood, are not addressed, our emotional clutter will disable us from living in the present.
• Focus on the people that truly count and deserve your time, and root out those that don't.  That might mean cutting back on some activities or losing some toxic "friends," but if it lessens your clutter and replenishes your life, go for it!

Physical clutter

We are a generation that wears its body down to a frazzle.  The amount of stress and tension we put ourselves through is alarming.  Why do we do this when the result--poor health, shortened lifespan--is so devastating?

• Combat the physical clutter within our bodies by paying attention to your eating habits and adding exercise into your daily lives.  
• Incorporate practices such as slow eating, yoga, walking, and tai chi, which are proven change-makers.  Sometimes just paying attention to our body language (furrowed brows, hunched backs) and responding by breathing deeply can deflate the tension we carry within us.
• Remember that physical clutter isn't limited to our bodies; it's also found in our surroundings.  There is a proven link between uncluttered surroundings and productivity. 

I've always loved--and try to live by--this quote by William Morris:  "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful."  What better way to invite peace and positivity into your life than by making the areas you inhabit clutter-free, yet attractive!

Spiritual clutter

Here's the thing:  if the three areas we just discussed are cluttered, there's no room for the spiritual, the most important aspect of our lives.  

• We are spirit, gifted with a soul and inhabiting a body; unfortunately, we've reversed the order and thus forfeited much of our peace and joy.  
• Prayer and meditation are God-given pathways to spiritual wellness.  
• As we clear away the hindrances to our relationship with God, we begin to see ways to work on other areas that may be cluttered.

In his book "The Life You've Always Wanted," John Ortberg states that "the enemies of simplicity are multiplicity and duplicity."  Whenever we are pushed and pulled in too many directions, it becomes impossible to keep life simple.  In addition, we aren't true to ourselves when we are ambivalent. 

Are you shining to the fullest?  Are you giving yourself the chance to enjoy a simpler, balanced life, brimming with possibilities, positivity, and peace?  As you press that "delete" button in each area of your life, you'll begin to see measurable and enjoyable differences.  And so will others!

 

To Embrace the Struggle with Alison and myself check her out Facebook or follow her on Twitter!! Its worth it! 

Special Edition....Time to Shine for a Birthday Bash!!

Hey Shiners! I hope everyone has had a great time during their Thanksgiving holiday.  I know I did.

I am sending out a Special Edition of Positively Shining!

                                               

This edition is for a 30th Birthday Bash.  I know many of us are young and vibrant and are hitting milestones in life.  I know for me turning 30 was great!

Well today I am Shining this Special Edition for  Isaac M. Hamm III.  He is turning 30 and he is doing this in a major way. Check out the details below.

“Mr. Philadelphia Socialite”

 Isaac M. Hamm III Charity Birthday Bash!!

PHILADELPHIA, PA., Dec 23, 2011 – Isaac M. Hamm III CEO and Founder of IM3Media.com will be hosting his first annual charity birthday bash.  This event will be held at Gallerie Isada, located 3320 Collins Street from 8:00 P.M. to 2:00 A.M.  Please join us for an unforgettable evening as Philadelphia’s biggest and brightest stars and local businesses come together to make a change.

This is a celebration of a birth but more importantly, it’s a celebration of giving back.  Partnering up with a local ministry called Chosen300, whose sole purpose is to distribute meals and services to the homeless throughout the Philadelphia Region and around the world.  With the hard work and dedication Brian & Shandai Jenkins, and Chosen300, to date, now feeds over 100,000 people a year.

IM3Media.com has established an ongoing relationship with Chosen300, and the community which they serve, over these past previous months. We have put in the much needed time to have built a family bond and we would be remiss if we didn’t want to take it a step further.  We have decided to donate a portion of the proceeds from this charity event to Chosen300.

“Turning 30 is a big year for me but the biggest gift I can give to myself is to give back. Last year I feed the homeless the weekend of y birthday and I felt great doing it. We try to make sure we give back to the community throughout the year whether it is standing at Love Park to feed the homeless or going to a community center or church to help out.” said CEO Isaac M. Hamm III

IM3Media.com is a Philadelphia-based marketing and communications company that offers an array of services. We implement an effective marketing strategy through integration of creative event design and production management.

 

Shine the Spotlight....

Hello Shiners….

This is one of my most exciting posts that I am having the pleasure of sharing with you all.  Many of you I am getting to know and many of you that are behind the scenes readers, never the less each of you have humbled my heart in some way!

This post is about “Shining the Spotlight”.  I want to shine the spotlight on all of you if you would allow me the pleasure. 

Let me explain to you what “Shine the Spotlight” is all about. 

Shining the Spotlight is about “YOU”. I am not involved in any way….well besides me loving my Shiners and posting their wonderful pieces through my blog to their blog.  Doing this will shine the spotlight on you.  See I want to make this very clear-IT IS ALL ABOUT YOU!

I am a 3 ½ year college student and I will be going back to school starting on October, 19^th, 2011.  No worries I will still be around to pass on my daily dose of positivity, however, I will not have as much time to write as often as I would like and this saddens me to my core.  I am a Psychology major, and with psychology it entails so much writing that I honestly will not have that much time to write when I want to on what I want to, but I will post here and there.  This is why I want to shine the spotlight on you Shiners.

I have gotten to know so many of you and you guys make me smile so much each day.  I want to show all of my other readers how magnificent you are.

***Here is what I am looking for from my wonderful Shiners.***

If you would like to be apart of Shine the Spotlight all you have to do is write about something that is positive, funny, inspirational, kindness, NOTHING NEGATIVE, and be family friendly.  I expect for you to be yourself, no word count, I love pictures but not mandatory, so pretty much how you would write on your own blog just in those areas. I am sure that I will love it so RELAXXXX! The next thing you do is sign up with the linky below, write a piece and email it to lamirah5@yahoo.com.  I will read it over and let you know when I will post you piece.  Each Wednesday I will post a new piece so Wednesdays I will be shining the Spotlight on you! I have a few awesome shiners already but I want to shine on more of you!! Of course it goes without saying that I will link our pages so that other readers can skip on over to your blogs as well. 

So if you would like to be apart of Shine the spotlight all  that is left for you to do is sign up. The link has been placed below!!

So what do ya say?? Would you allow me to shine the spotlight on you!