3 Lessons from Kevin Durant’s Win

Y’all know I don’t even blog on a Tuesday, but that Golden State win was blog worthy for anyone who is passionate about taking a non-traditional career path. I particularly wanna talk about what I learned watching KD (Kevin Durant) for those of you who are not fluent in basketball (and don’t feel bad I only know a little basketball). 

So, here’s the back story for those who don’t know and for those who do don’t judge my sketchy details. Durant used to play for OKC the team was great, but couldn’t win a ring. He left and people accused him of chasing a ring and not being loyal…blah…blah…blah 

Since GSW are celebrating a win that means he chased that ring in the right direction and here are three things we can learn from his pursuit. 

Three lessons from KD’s win:
1️⃣ To level up sometimes means you have to leave the space and place where you’re most comfortable. You might be functioning well there, but are you fulfilled? Yes, Durant, Westbrook, and the bearded one were an awesome trio, but they couldn’t take him where he wanted to go. Many people criticized his decision, but it looks like a smart choice. Be careful when listening to critics because most often the people criticizing you can’t get you where you want to go, but will be quick to tell you how to get there. 

Kevin Durant Photo Credit: Salt Lake Tribune

2️⃣ Be appreciative enough of the gift to be humble and wise enough to know you’re gifted and conduct yourself as such. In the face one of basketball’s greats, Bron Bron KD didn’t falter or faint. There was no time for to think man he’s great I wish I was too. He played in his greatness. 

3️⃣ Because you’ve lost before doesn’t mean you can’t ever win. Stay in the game.  

Now when you’re ready to stop playing by the rules you usually play by and ready to work with a winning team to #getyourInheritance book a Publishing Pow-Wow and evaluate your marketing game, so you can bring home the championship. 

Did you learn anything from last night’s game or the series? Share your insight with me.

#MompreneurMonday 4 Ways to Keep the Fire Burning

Let’s face it–everyday you’re not going to love your business, especially in its early stages, but here are four ways to keep the fire burning. 

1. Celebrate and memorialize your accomplishments. Hang up photos of you with your products, of you at events doing your thing, and photos of you with your clients. When you’re feeling down about your progress or lack thereof just look up. 

2. Form a mastermind group with other mompreneurs. When you have people who are just as passionate as you are rooting for you and willing to help you come up with solutions for your family and business that makes it much easier to remain in the game. 

3. Take a break. Step away from the business, get back to being a mom and reconnect with your source, God. 

For some help reconnecting to your source make sure you get your copy of Pursuing Your Passion in a Godly Fashion: Prayers for Creative Christian and Entrepreneur (use code: passion to save $2 on your pre-order). 

4. Change your work hours. Are you putting in work during the hours when you’re the least productive? Sometimes as a mom and an entrepreneur your work hours become the midnight hours, but that might not be the actual time your brain functions best. You have to create a schedule that will allow you to work when you’re most productive. 

Don’t look for ways out when it gets rough. Continue for looking for ways in. Don’t give up Pursuing Your Passion in a Godly Fashion because you’re tired right now. 

I want to hear from you. What do you do to keep the fire burning when being a mompreneur is driving you insane??? 

#MompreneurMondays: It’s Ok If You Can’t Quit Your Job

So, this might be the antithesis to all business advice out there, but I’m telling you it’s ok if you can’t quit your job. There’s probably more pressure than ever telling you that you’re not successful if you’re not able to quit your job. But listen here, it’s ok if you can’t quit your job. 

1️⃣ You can’t live someone’s narrative.

Most authors and lovers of literature are familiar with the unreliable narrator; you should be too. It very well may be the voice trying to convince you that you need to quit your day job. Be wary of stories coming from people who walked away from six-figure jobs to pursue their passion or those stories of people who catapulted to overnight success. Don’t let their story convince you that you’re not doing enough or doing it incorrectly, especially if you didn’t get all the details or the back end of the story. It’s okay if you can’t quit your day job. 

2️⃣ Your bills have to be paid. 

Bottom line. Point blank. Period. Your bills must be paid (and having health insurance is a plus). If you have young lives depending on your decisions and you paycheck you are not a failure, a punk, nor is your faith weak if you’re not willing to take the leap. If you can’t afford it, don’t push yourself into an unnecessary struggle or take on an extra dose of mom guilt. When Satan told Jesus to cast himself from the top of the mount for angels to catch him Jesus reminded Satan that we should not tempt God. Meaning, don’t purposefully put yourself into tricky situations  just to see the word of God fulfilled in your life. You’re not doing anything wrong by starting a business and maintaining your full-time job until your business takes off. Really, it’s okay if you can’t quit your job. 
Now, if quitting your day job is what you want to do:

• Set a quit date. 
• Calculate how many units you need to sell per month to replace or exceed your monthly income.
•  Determine what you need to do monthly, weekly, and daily in order to start generating that type of income.  That includes what type of content you’ll use to promote your business on social media. 
• Get a jump start today with 10 Sexy Content Ideas to keep your audience coming back (FREE DOWNLOAD).     

Seriously, it’s okay if you can’t quit your job now as long as you’re working towards what is best for you and your family. 

P.S. Pursuing Your Passion in a Godly Fashion will be available for pre-order this week. I’m one happy mompreneur. 

Release Date: 10/28

These 4 Things Should Be Enough

It is great to have people in your life that support you, uplift you, and motivate you, but at the end of the day you need these four things to keep you moving forward when pursuing your passion. 

1️⃣ Confidence in the Spirit of God living within you and working with you should be enough to move you forward. 
2️⃣ Your quality of life should be enough motivation to move forward. 

3️⃣ Your belief in your ability should be enough to push you forward.

4️⃣ Your passion should be enough to push you forward. 

What’s your biggest internal motivator​?

#WriterWednesday: When Inspiration Strikes or Not

This is a late night edition of #WriterWednesday, but if you’re anything like me this is when you get your best work done. That is if you feel inspired, but what happens when you’re not feeling it?

I’m going to tell you what to do when you’re not feeling it. Treat your writing like your faith–keep walking anyway. As Christians we walk by faith and not by sight. It doesn’t matter what we see or what’s going on around us we’re supposed to stand. What do you think you’re supposed to do with your gift? Only write when the muse strikes or when you’re wearing your lucky green socks?

No…don’t worship the muse or wait for the muse that is idol worship. Worship the Lord, who is the giver of every good and perfect gift, in spirit and in truth and watch the words flow. Watch how you’re fingers fly if you just sit down and say “It’s not me, but it’s in you, Lord and I want to be used by you no matter the time–day or night and regardless of how I feel.” 

How do I know that this method will work? Because I’m doing it right now. I wasn’t feeling it. I wasn’t inspired and I have nothing to say, but I want to be consistent (as a good blogger should be), I want to be encouraging to new authors and share what I am learning (I am The Neophyte Author, right), but I don’t want to sound like a broken record either rehashing all kinds of lessons on writing that are available all over the internet. So, as I tried to think of what to write about this Wednesday I said a prayer and left my computer alone. I went about my day the way I normally do (pick up Boogie from camp, eat dinner, and hit up Bible Study).

Now it’s after ten and I said this night will not end with me offering something. In this moment the Jesusmet me (that’s the Lord I’ve been referencing if you want to get to know him see the What Must I Do to b Saved? page) and gave me these words. Don’t trust your gift, talent, or calling for they come without repentance (God gives you what you need to be who He wants you to be before you’ve even considered serving Him), but trust in the one who gave it to you. Yield yourself to him and do what you have been called to do, share your gift, and cause your talent to be multiplied and bring the bounty all back to him. That means work in spite of feeling inspired work as unto Him and He will take care of the rest.

#WriterWednesday: 3 Lessons Writers Can Learn From Misty Copeland

Unless you were offline yesterday or out of the country then you know what wonderful event occurred yesterday and in case you don’t I’ll give you the skinny. Misty Copeland has become the first African-American woman to be named principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater. Now, you may be wondering what writers can learn from dancers, but any time someone reaches their dreams or some level of success there is something we can all glean from that.

3 Lessons from Misty Copeland

1. You’re never too old to begin. Misty began her dancing career at the age of thirteen which in the world of professional dancing is the equivalent of a stay-at-home mom trying to reenter the workforce after little Joey’s on his way to college. So, dust off that manuscript or exert some extra effort to promote you’re current novel. You’re not too old to do this and be a success.

2. Don’t listen to the naysayers. Ignore every no you get and continue to work on being better. Misty was told she couldn’t do this not just because of her age, but the fact that she didn’t look like a dancer. You may have been told no that won’t work for a variety of reasons. Forget the naysayers, forget the realist who say that’s never been done before or that’s not going to work. It is and it will because you’re going to make it work.

 

 

3. You have to have a goal or destination in mind and always reach higher. Since Misty began dancing all she wanted to do was be a part of ABT and she achieved that. It wasn’t enough to be a dancer or to be a soloist. Misty wanted to be the big cheese and now she is.

So, this week let’s not just focus on craft, but on being inspired to push forward. Who else’s journey inspires you or has taught you how to push forward? Please share their story in the comments.

#MondayMotivation: Six Month Check Up

Happy June! 

We’re in the six month of the year and it’s time to dish on our dreams.

Where are you?

What have you accomplished and where are we headed next? 

I’ll share some of my progress:

Goals

-Tempted to Touch is done (editing is a different story–don’t judge me)

-Riches of Grace is still a work in progress

-Berri and Delilah still a work in progress

-I’ve got some notes for High-Stepping

-Set a date to begin outlining that collabo (feeling super duper excited about that) 

Vision Board Progress

Now this year was the first time I engaged in this process and Lord is really blessing me. 

-My Born at Dawn has been reviewed in USA and called a “Must Read”

-The African-American Christian Fiction Book Club read “Born at Dawn”

-My second book, Seasoned with Grace has appeared in Publisher’s Weekly

-I’m making “power moves”. I formed my own publishing company, Inheritance Books and I am preparing to not only publish my books, but the work of other authors and facilitate workshops. 

To be truly successful I’ve found that it’s been most helpful to have someone hold you accountable, so right now the Neophyte Author is checking you, boo. Where are we at in terms of reaching our dreams, where are you at on the pathway to your passion? 

For more information on my new company Inheritance Books visit the website

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#FridayFinds: A-Z Writing Tips: A Motivational Guide for Authors

Our #FridayFind comes from author and publisher, Barbara Joe Williams, who is no stranger to The Neophyte Author. If you want to get your writing rolling look no further, Barbara has the answer for you. 

 

Synopsis

 

Genre

Non-Fiction/Self-Help. I wrote this book to help aspiring as well as published authors with their writing goals. Hopefully, this book will motivate them to write and keep writing.

Synopsis

“If you’re looking for a place to get started writing, this is it. Chock full of

helpful tips, this book will have you writing in no time. Just like it says:

you don’t have to get your manuscript perfect, you just have to get it done.

There’s nothing like A-Z Writing Tips to cure writer’s block. Buy it! Use it!” Felicia S.W. Thomas, author of 80 Proof Lives.

A brief (brief) excerpt

 

One valuable piece of advice for any author is this: Get a partner. Not a writing partner,

but another author you can share ideas with, proofread each other’s work, and

keep each other motivated to write. Staying motivated to write every day is the

key to becoming a great writer. Don’t let writer’s block or anything else block

you from getting your writing done.

Bio

Barbara Joe Williams is an Amazon bestselling author, indie publisher, and motivational speaker living in Tallahassee, Florida. She is a Navy veteran, a graduate of Tallahassee Community College, and Florida A & M University. Barbara is also the founder of Amani Publishing, LLC (2004), and the co-founder of the Tallahassee Authors Network since September 2008. She has published books for over thirty authors and the following for herself:  

 Holiday Hotel 2: A Valentine’s Day Story (2015), A-Z

Marketing Tips (2015), A Cup of Barbara Joe (2015), Holiday Hotel: A sexy short

story (2014), Forgive

Us This Day (Anniversary Edition, 2014), First Class Love (2014); You Don’t Even Know My Name (2014); A Writer’s Guide to Publishing &

Marketing (Volume 2, 2013); Double Proposal

(2013); Losing My Soul (2013); The 21

Lives of Lisette Donavan (Anthology, 2012), A Man of My Own (2012), A Writer’s Guide to Publishing & Marketing

(2010), Moving the Furniture: 52 Ways to Keep Your Marriage Fresh (2009),

Courtney’s Collage (with Sherille Fisher, 2007), How I Met My Sweetheart (Anthology, 2007), Falling for Lies (2006),

Dancing with Temptation (2005) and

Forgive Us This Day (2004). Her novel, Forgive Us This Day (Anniversary Edition), was recently reviewed in USA Today by Michelle Monkou. It was a recommended a “must-read” romance.

All of her books are available on Kindle and Nook.

 

 

Amazon page: http://goo.gl/hCOkBb

Email:  amanipublishing@aol.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/barbara.williams.31105674

Website:  www.Barbarajoe.webs.com

Twitter:  @Barbarajoe22

 

 

#Pathways to Your #Passion: Stay in Your Lane

There is nothing new under the sun, which means that regardless of what you’re passionate about there is someone who shares the same passion and may be making great gains in the field or industry that you are trying to break into. As you look at their resume it seems like you’re standing next to a giant and you are a dwarf. They’ve made so many gains and in such a short time–how could you possibly compete?

Don’t.

Let me say that again. Don’t.

The pathway to your (your) passion is not a competition. Nor is it a race. It’s a marathon.

You’re going to go around the track a lot of times. Some laps you’ll eat up and others will beat you down and have your legs feeling like jelly. You’ll see other runners turn the corner while you’re still holding an aching rib, but don’t fix your eyes on their race, instead with patience run the race that is set before you (Hebrews 12:1). Stay in your lane. 

 

The pathway to your passion is yours and you don’t have to replicate anyone else’s success or try to match or beat their time. What you have to do is walk or run the course that Lord has laid out specifically for you recognizing that there is no limit to what God is able to do for you, through you, and to you.

 

See you on the other side of your passion.  

Pathways to Your #Passion: Find Freedom Through Courage

Recently, our FLOTUS shared some words of wisdom that she would have said to her younger self: “…Stop being so afraid! That’s really what strikes me when I look back – the sheer amount of time I spent tangled up in fears and doubts that were entirely of my own creation. I was afraid of not knowing the answer in class and looking stupid, or worried about what some boy thought of me, or wondering whether the other girls liked my clothes or my hair, or angsting about some offhand comment someone made to me in the lunchroom.”

While Michelle’s (I can call her by her first name right) advice is useful for the young girls she was speaking to this advice hold true for those of us walking along the pathway to our passion or actually at a standstill because we’re concerned about how others will receive us and our dream. We’re too wrapped up in the notion that I’m new to this, no one’s ever heard of me, no one else has done it this way. Our fear has us bound and is preventing us from getting to the other side of our passion. Today is the day to follow the Lord’s commandment to Joshua, “Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1:9)

• Write down every fear you have about pursuing your passion wholeheartedly.
• Write down what actionable step you need to take to demolish each fear.
• Rip up the list of fears, jump out the window, jump out the plane, and “…Go up and take possession of it [the land, your passion, your destiny] as the LORD, the God of your ancestors, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” (Deuteronomy 1:21)

Which fear will you tackle first? Share your results as you capture the land. See you on the other side of your passion.

P.S. In case you’re wondering how do I know it will work. Well, here is my testimony. I received an email near the beginning of September about applying to participate in an online conference. I didn’t apply right away because that fear of being rejected because I’m the new girl seized me. I shook it off very quickly and applied anyway. Guess who is going to be a panelist on SORMAG’s Online Conference?