Leave This Shit In 2018…
Happy New year Motherland Moguls! 2018 was a year filled with events and lessons for me. So, I thought I would share with you some of the lessons learned that apply to life, career, and business. Life is full of surprises and often take unexpected turns. Our successes are a result of how well we respond and adapt to the life changes. My hope this year is that we are all able to embrace change and let go of what is holding us back. Welcome to 2019! Now let’s talk about the shit you need to leave in 2018. You don’t need that baggage with you in 2019! [bctt tweet=”Here are 5 habits you need to let go of this year #leavethatshitin2018″ username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Resenting others Nothing good comes from resenting others. I’m telling you this as someone who is guilty of holding grudges for long periods of time. I resented the person who took this picture for a while. I blamed them for making me miserable. I wished them all the bad luck in the world because I felt they were somehow the origin of everything bad happening in my life (and it wasn’t the case). I don’t resent them anymore and I am so much happier for it. Don’t get me wrong, I still highly dislike this person, but as soon as I was able to refocus the time and energy I was spending brooding over the situation, amazing things started happening. Nothing good ever comes from resenting others. Take it from a champion in the resentment Olympics. #LeaveThatShitIn2018 Snoozing your life away I am usually pretty good at waking up early and getting on with my day. But every so often I think that I could do with “5 more minutes” of sleep and hit the snooze button for the next 2 hours. The problem? When you snooze, you not only wake up more tired than you initially were, but you then spend your entire day playing catch up. You waste time, miss opportunities, and get caught up in a vicious circle. The same is true for life. I didn’t get to see my grandmother one last time because of this viscous snoozing circle I had slipped in. So now, I try my best to make things happen ASAP. One of the best trips I had this year was possible because I did not snooze (when I really wanted to). I was able to discover part of Cape Verde, meet great people, and have an amazing experience.Don’t postpone things you can do now. Finish (or start) that degree you have been thinking about for so long. Take that art class. Visit with your friends and family. Explore the world. Launch that business. And when that thing you want to do seems impossible, just remember that Rome was not built in a day, it was built one stone at the time. (And stop snoozing that alarm clock!) You snooze you lose. #LeaveThatShitIn2018 Being a technology zombie Technology is wonderful. It enables us to take great selfies (and groupies) and more importantly it enables us to connect with each other and the world. We, however, have to be very careful. Technology is a double-edged sword. It can be a nice distraction. But it is a distraction nonetheless. It is a distraction that turns us into shallow versions of ourselves.I took this picture while I was waiting for my car to get fixed. And I was so glad to have my phone with me at the time. It made the wait so much more enjoyable. But more and more I find myself scrolling on my social media feed while I’m on the phone or watching TV. I like to think that technology is not the boss of me. But I have noticed lately that I miss pieces of conversations, movies, and I waste time that could be put to better use because of it. [bctt tweet=”Be present. Connect with intention. Don’t be a tech zombie. #LeaveThatShitIn2018″ username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] I feel this negatively affects the quality of my relationships. It turns me into a passive, absent-minded, and monosyllabic individual. And this is not the type of person or friend I want to be. I want to be a friend that remembers what we talked about. That friend who is attentive, present and listens actively and with intention. The friends we have and the relationships we build are what make life interesting and beautiful. So, we owe it to each other to be mindful, engaged, and attentive. Be present. Connect with intention. Don’t be a tech zombie. #LeaveThatShitIn2018 Letting fear cloud your judgment We often think of fear as this scary monster that makes us do crazy things. But more often than not, fear comes posing as a gentle and wise friend that has your best interest at heart. Fear is eloquent and charismatic. Fear is (seemingly) insightful. Fear is convincing. In fact, Fear is so convincing that it will have you believe that your neighbor must be dangerous since they do not look like you. It will convince you to stay quiet in the face of injustice. It will convince you that putting your head in the sand is the best way to solve your problems. I have been there. Fear had me paralyzed. It made me watch a personal situation getting worse and worse and interpret anything as a sign of improvement. I was very fortunate at that time to have a great friend who guided me through this fog of fear. But sometimes, you have to be your own guide and ask yourself: what would I tell a friend in the same situation? Don’t let fear cloud your judgment. Be your own friend. Take fear out of the equation. #LeaveThatShitIn2018 Traveling someone else’s journey When we are young, it is the responsibility of our parents, our family, (and, to some extent, our community) to prepare us for life. They make choices for us, take decisions about our activities, our lifestyle, and our beliefs.
You’ve got 6 More Months To Slay and Conquer this year
January through June have come and gone. Yes, these past months may have come with lots of setbacks, perhaps in achieving our personal goals and dreams or in advancing in the corporate world. It may have been six months of moving in circles. Six months of going below both personal and general standards. Six months of bewilderment crawling up in between high hopes and a positive stand. Here’s my own little story… Personally, I tasted the true meaning of depression. How or where it came from, who knows? But hey! The good thing is I’m out of it now! Like out for good! I never even remembered I had suffered from the disease of the mind (as I like to call it) until just a few weeks back, on different occasions, I encountered different individuals slowly sinking in the depth of this same ‘depression’. Indeed, it’s been a battle thriving beyond all odds these past months and for the first time, I was glad I went through what I went through to better understand the situation of those that came around with the same ailment and help them gradually scale through. [bctt tweet=”Your confidence is one of the main weapons of emerging as a conqueror at the end of the year – Eden Benibo” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Perhaps this is your own story… Maybe, just maybe, you had achieved a reasonable number of your goals and aspirations during the first half of the year. Awesome! Have all or majority of your inputs fallen in alignment with your expected result? Great!! Whichever category you had fallen into, just know there are six more months to slay and conquer. In duality, we would be looking at two categories in this article. Let’s say – Slayers 1 & 2. Slayers 1 are the people who went through a relative number of down times during the first half of the year. If you fall into this category, here are a few tips for you: Regain your confidence Your confidence is one of the main weapons of emerging as a conqueror at the end of the year. Without confidence, a soldier is nothing but a loser even before the war begins. Without confidence irrespective of the cash at hand or even your skills within, one will have a very low chance of succeeding. Face the phase Of course, it’s good to reflect on the past sometimes, to retrace your steps and know where to improve on, but what we do most times is that we get so engrossed with past failures and pain that we allow a replay of these negativities in the future. Have the failures of yesterday boxed you in? Or built a shell in which you have crawled into? It’s time to come out! And face the now. This phase. Bill Newman rightly said “you must be willing to fail. Don’t fear other people or their opinions. Don’t just sit there and wonder, you should be doing. Act, start today, make it happen”. He is not trying to say we should set our minds on failure, no! All this is trying to convey is that we should not allow the mere fear of failure to be an obstacle to us succeeding in our business and life in general. [bctt tweet=”Stop agonizing and organize what you’re doing – Eden Benibo” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Newman further stated “stop agonizing and organize what you’re doing. Not to decide is to decide not to.” In other words, not making a decision is a decision on its own. Not acting is a move. A wrong move though. A move of stagnancy. Break free today! Slayers 2, on the other hand, are also known as the already Slaying Gang! It’s important to note that no one prays for a ‘bad beginning’, but it’s better to have a rough beginning and a smooth end than experiencing the reverse. Therefore, this is a call for unrelenting zeal to keep thriving. Thrive on! Ask yourself some questions. What did you do to get you to this point? Build on that. If possible, I advise you increase your general input, because it is very easy to remain in your comfort zone. Remember, never to be trapped within the confinement of living in past glory. Most importantly, learn something new every day. Now listen. If inexplicably you belong to the two categories, it’s all good. Here are some tips for you to explore. Breath Break free from the norm. There’s more to explore! Smile and say a warm hello to July and the next few months at your disposal. Remember your future is all in your hands: handle with care. Finally, here’s a piece of advice from an all-time scholar which applies to everyone, regardless of the level of such an individual at work) “If you are a senior executive, don’t take yourself too seriously. It is essential to hold on to our sense of humor throughout our lives if we want to remain sane, as has been shown by research into psychological cognition, and especially in the later years”. So go ahead and break free, slay and conquer it all, starting with your fears! If you’d like to get featured on our Facebook page, click here to share your story with us.
4 steps to starting the new year afresh
Happy New Year Motherland Moguls! The SLA team is cheering you as you SLAY into 2018. With the New Year comes a new start. A chance for you to leave the struggles and obstacles of the previous year behind and start afresh. I have drawn out a list of action-packed steps we can all take to make the best out of 2018! Step 1: Assess your situation My first piece of advice would be to assess the situation you are in at the end of 2017 or the beginning of 2018 before setting New Year resolutions. What went great? What didn’t go so well and what needed improvements? In doing so, you may realize exactly where you need improvements, or just how amazing you are at doing something. Either way, it will serve as the basis for improvement. Step 2: Shortlist the areas in which you would like to improve Once you have assessed the situation you can move on to your resolutions. Resolutions that are suited to you, instead of being generic ones. Throughout the process of setting these resolutions, remember that you do not have to set resolutions that begin on January 1st and end December 31st. See your resolutions as a way to better yourself, way beyond the limits of time. For instance, one of my resolutions is to gain more knowledge about cultures, economies, and politics. It is not a resolution I intend on giving up on as soon as the next year rolls by. Knowledge is continuous, just like every single one of our resolutions should be. [bctt tweet=”The internet and the technology available to us is vast, use it wisely and reap the benefits” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Step 3: Find out how you can better yourself Once you know where you would like to better yourself, brainstorm the ways in which you can kick-start your resolutions. My first step would be to consult books in all their forms. Visit bookstores, get audio books, magazines, online magazines (don’t forget your trusty SLA)… And then, there’s the internet. If you use the internet wisely, it can do a world of good. There is a YouTube tutorial on just about everything! Do you want to be more knowledgeable about table etiquette? Check out these tutorials. They will actually teach you everything from making a great first impression to the do’s and don’ts at a dinner table. If you want to get fit, popsugar fitness is the destination, you can start with that. Another resource would be smartphone apps. Many of them are free and work effectively. Are you looking to impress someone with your cooking skills…or just survive by feeding yourself? Watch what happens when you type ‘cooking books recipes free’ in your play store (team Android, what’s good?). The internet and the technology available to us is vast, use it wisely and reap the benefits. [bctt tweet=” Do not aim for perfection, but rather experiences in every step you take” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Step 4: Take the first step! So one thing we’re often afraid to do is take the first step. I try to remember that the first step is often the scariest and therefore the hardest, but once you’ve made that first move, the world is your oyster. For instance, I took my first solo travel for work in 2016. Believe it or not, I had never been anywhere alone, with no one I knew. I was scared out of my mind when my mother dropped me off at O.R Tambo International airport. I literally wondered how I was going to get from one place to the next in Bamako Mali, all on my own. But remember this: you have the capacity to do anything your heart desires and it is not the fear that lies within that has the ability to negate those capacities. [bctt tweet=”You have the capacity to do anything your heart desires” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] And an old age adage that will forever remain true, is that “if at first, you don’t succeed, try try again”. Do not aim for perfection, but rather experiences in every step you take. I really hope these steps will help you and contribute to an amazing 2018 for each and every one of you! And If you have made it this far and have enjoyed the read, until next time! Have a fabulous New Year!
How to maintain your figure 8 this holiday season
It’s the end of the year again. Christmas parties, end of year get-togethers, Thanksgiving feasts and lots more. My dear Motherland Mogul, if you are not very careful, while your bank account might get leaner from all the spending, I’m afraid it might be quite the opposite for your beloved figure. Therefore, being the good friend that I am, I have put together in this post, 5 steps to avoid unwanted weight gain and keep your energy levels up this joyful season. Have a plan Yes! Be deliberate about not adding any extra kilos. As with every other aspect of life, planning sets you up for success. So write down (please be realistic) what weight/size you want to attain/maintain at the end of the year and how you hope to achieve it. Let water be your close pal Drinks lots of water before and during parties. This will help control your appetite. If you can, drink a mouthful of water before eating or drinking anything else. The best way to buffet When on a buffet line, choose a small plate, walk through the line, taking in everything that’s on offer and decide what you want to eat. Then go back in line and take exactly what you decided. Walking through the line will prevent you from eventually filing your plate with everything that’s on offer because you didn’t know it was there until you got to it. Be the party queen Dance your heart out! Dancing is a perfect way of burning those pesky calories that keep shrinking your clothes (yes, I know it’s their fault, not yours) plus you’d really be having fun. Just don’t overdo it if it’s an official event. Don’t stop exercising It’s very tempting to stop your exercise routine in view of all the fun ahead but babe, you’re gonna regret it! (And this is to all of you that are planning to abscond from My Figure 8 fitness club and others this holiday season) Nuff said.
4 Steps to SLAYING into the new year like a boss
Walking through the stairs of 365 days without missing steps, go beyond making new year resolutions. Taking each day as a step on the stairs of this new phase (2018), we would realize that as days crawl into weeks and weeks run into months in the course of the year, the will to thrive beyond all odds may begin to dwindle. As a result of this, hopes will definitely fall whenever we miss our steps in the course of this journey. To this end, it is important for us to note that It’s not enough to make new year resolutions. It’s more paramount for us to become them. Yes! Become those resolutions! Consequentially, this connotes that each day counts! In other words, those tiny seconds, little minutes and few hours in each day matters a lot. In order not to get the same result at the end of this new year, we must change our approach to life in general. It’s high time we realized that: Change isn’t just a theoretical phenomenon Change isn’t a part of life Change is life itself So, it’s either we live it or it leaves us behind. Start Now! Start Right Sometimes, we never discover the beginning until the end. This is why many are left stuck in heaps of regrets towards the end of the year. But hey, this is another phase, another beginning to determine the end. There’s no better time to execute those beautiful plans in your head than now. “A good plan vigorously executed right now is far better than a perfect plan executed next week”.- General George Patton Start Right It’s never wrong to start right, but the big question is- HOW DO WE START RIGHT? The first step to starting right begins with the mind. Most times, life may leave our minds clogged up with so many negatives that we tend to close our hearts to the opportunities that come knocking. Goals and dreams seem to be far fetched, especially when one is surrounded by people who are ready to give 101 reasons to be content with failure. Here, it is required that you go not just steps away, but miles far from these negativities. No wonder Gandhi said- “I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feets”. Bill Newman also asserted that “minds certainly are like parachutes, they only function when they are open”. Indeed, an open mind is most sensitive to even the faintest footprint of opportunities, rather than lingering within the confine of self-pity. Live Ready! How ready are we, for the opportunities we crave for? The truth is, opportunities are right there on each step of the stairs. As we build on our abilities, we lay a stronger foundation for our capabilities. Learn something new each day! “In a time of drastic change, it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned usually find themselves equipped to live in a world that no longer exist”. -Eric Hoffer “The illiterates of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.”-Alvin Toffler Carry people along Imagine a life where you have the whole world to yourself, just you with nobody else. No one to share the wealth with, or the joy, peace, and love – if there will even be any… As we go through the steps on these stairs of 2018, let’s remember that we all need each other, regardless of the ‘buts’. Therefore, we need not get too serious with life that we forget to put a smile on a face each day in this new phase. We need not push ourselves off the stairs, for everyone has a pace, a lane and a destination which is the beauty of life. [bctt tweet=”It’s not how high you climb, but how many people you are prepared to take with you” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] As you go through this stairs, remember, taking the wrong steps will never get you the right result. Just Live the change you desire! Start now! Start right! Live ready! You may not have silver to deliver, but you sure do have love and care to share. Cheers! To this new dawn If you’d like to share your story with She Leads Africa, let us know more about you and your story here.
10 ways to end a business year
In the course of the year, entrepreneurs can get consumed with loads of activities that it becomes difficult to keep track of all that’s happening. The end of the year is the time when most business activities wind down, therefore, it’s a good time to pause, take stock, plan and take a position for the year ahead. Here are 10 things to do to make that happen: 1. Review your financial statements (balance sheet, cash flow, income statement) and prepare tax returns. You need to know: If your business is profitable How profitable your business is Where all the money that passed through your business in the year was spent How much the business owns How much the business owes Exemptions you can get on taxes 2. Review business expenses. Its important business expenses are directly linked to the bottom line of the business. 3. Compare financials from the year before to that of the current year. Pay attention to any rise or drop in figures, investigate reasons for them. 4. If you have made a very good profit for the year, this would be a good time to consider buying or replacing any equipment that will directly result in increased revenue. 5. Reconcile your goals for the year with your achievements; take note of goals you could not achieve. Also, be careful not to discard these goals instead try to find out why you were unable to, and devise new ways to go about achieving them. 6. List and celebrate major accomplishments, you can share with your staff, this should motivate them and make them emotionally invested in your business. 7. Reward your employees and customers, it does not have to be much, could be in form of bonuses, gifts, personal notes… Also get in touch with your vendors/suppliers and inform them of any change in the business that might affect them. 8. Pay attention to your numbers; identify your metrics, this varies from business to business – website analytics, the source of customers, customer growth rate, customer return rate/retention, subscriber list, downloads, number of monthly orders e.t.c. Identify patterns of growth in such areas, trace down these patterns to identify much bigger opportunities and devise ways to multiply effects of these patterns. 9. Review your systems, operations, and processes. This is a good time to review and update (if required) contracts, license agreements, and technology, Identify your strengths and work on your weaknesses. 10. Create a vision for the coming year, based on this vision, set goals, write down your action plan and ways you intend to implement these plans. Hope these tips help you end the year with sufficient knowledge of your business even as you prepare and position yourself for growth and opportunities in the coming year. How are you wrapping up the business year? Share your ideas with us here.
Effective Goal-Setting: Keeping Your new year Resolutions All Year Round
Each year in January, entrepreneurs, and moguls around the world make new year resolutions to help them reach their business goals. Common resolutions include personal and professional goals like starting a business, building financial capacity, and even improving health and wellness. As an entrepreneur, your first responsibility is to plan ahead. Not just for your personal agenda, but for the growth of your company. Your second responsibility is to avoid being a part of the status quo. A recent study by the University of Scranton suggests that only 8% of people actually achieve their goals. To avoid being part of the 92%, here are four tips to help you achieve your goals in 2018. Create an accountability system Research shows that when it comes to health and wellness goals, having a partner could mean the difference between success and failure. The primary reason for this is that having a partner creates a built-in accountability and motivational system. The same is true for your business goals. Practical accountability systems may include creating visual reminders of your goals, scheduling check-ups on your progress throughout the year, and designating key team members that are responsible for monitoring your goals. Being intentional about holding yourself and your team members accountable using these tools will ensure that your resolutions will not be an afterthought by the middle of the year. [bctt tweet=”Be S.M.A.R.T. – Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely.” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Be S.M.A.R.T I often encourage entrepreneurs to use the S.M.A.R.T. method when setting professional goals. S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. Specific goals break down your general goals into manageable bite-size pieces. A great example of this might be to increase your annual revenue. “Increase revenue in 2018” is a decent general goal. An even better goal is to “increase revenue in 2018 by identifying profit leaks, and creating monthly marketing campaigns in order to obtain new clients.” Even that specific goal can be further developed as you think about other factors that will affect the outcome. By ensuring that your goals are S.M.A.R.T., you set yourself up to experience the thrill of achievement that will become motivation for future success. Be Flexible Life happens, which means that despite your best efforts, some things will still go awry. Part of good goal planning is recognizing that and planning accordingly. Having flexibility in your approach and expectations relieves everyone involved of the pressure that comes with perfectionism. By recognizing that things may not always go as planned, you open the door for creativity to flow, and for discussion about alternative approaches to the goal. [bctt tweet=”Achieving your goals is as much a matter of timing, as it is a matter of consistency.- @Andrena_Sawyer” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Create Rewards Rewards are good for morale, which is good for productivity. As you set your business goals, a rewards system is as important as any other piece of the process. Whether big or small, rewards that highlight performance, collaboration and other values that are important to you and any team members could be the extra motivation for your overall success. If you find that, in years past, you have been among the 92% of people that don’t achieve their goals, there’s no better time to change that pattern than now. Achieving your goals is as much a matter of timing, as it is a matter of consistency. No matter where you are in the process, continue to forge ahead using these tips for success in 2018, and in the years to come.