Today, I’m excited to release the updated version of my popular Life Mapping Workbook! This is one of my most powerful personal development tools that has been downloaded thousands of times since I first created it back in 2012. In addition to the free workbook, I’ve now included a 15-minute audio training to walk you through completing it and putting it to use in your life.
On the left is when I bought my car 6 years ago. On the right is me last weekend, on the day I sold it!
In just a few days, I’ll finally be making the big move I’ve been talking about for months. This weekend, I’ll be getting on a plane to Honolulu, Hawaii (on the island of Oahu) with nothing but a backpack, a carry-on suitcase and a whole lot of trust in the universe that now is the right time. In many ways, relocating to Hawaii feels like the final stage of my journey to become location-independent. After two years of downsizing, traveling, building my business and experimenting with different living situations, I’ve achieved the possibility of being able to live and work from anywhere in the world. Something tells me that this move is only the beginning of another year of personal and professional adventure!
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared. But I’m feeling the fear and moving anyway. Here are a few other things that have happened ever since I made the choice to move to my ideal location. If you decide to embark on your own big move, you might experience some of them, too.
On the couch with Jeanne Sparrow!
Last week, I appeared on the You & Me This Morning TV show in Chicago! The segment was about the concept behind Happy Black Woman and the happy hour we held in the city. I had a lot of fun doing this segment with Jeanne Sparrow!
At last week’s sold-out Happy Black Woman Happy Hour in Chicago, we talked a lot about pursuing our dreams, taking risks on ourselves and not being afraid to ask for help when we need it. My lovely co-host Patrice Grell Yursik (aka Afrobella) shared in her remarks that in her career as a journalist, blogger and brown beauty maven, she has had to “rise to the occasion” many times to meet the challenges and expectations placed in her path. Patrice’s words were so inspiring to me and the ladies in attendance because it was a much-needed reminder that for us to succeed, we have to be willing to step outside of our comfort zones.
It can feel really good when you find your comfort zone – especially when it comes to your business or career. But that cozy comfort zone can limit you in life. You might be missing out on opportunities without even knowing that you’re missing out! Expanding your comfort zone can bring a whole new world of excitement, passion and fulfillment into your life.
Use these reminders to help you break free of the limits of your comfort zone.
In today’s video post, I share some of my best tips from my journey to become a minimalist. I outline four specific action steps you can take to start living with less. By putting the concept of minimalism to work in your life, you can save money and enjoy more experiences (like travel!) instead of spending all your income on stuff.
In the video, I share four tips to help you utilize minimalism in your life:
The most popular posts on our Happy Black Woman Facebook Page (by far) are the positive updates I share daily to inspire the women in our community. Every morning, I post an original affirmation that regularly receives hundreds of likes and shares.
What is an affirmation?
Affirmations are, well, affirming statements that you say out loud to yourself on a regular basis. The goal is to re-program your subconscious mind with positive thoughts so that you can remove any negative thoughts preventing you from pursuing your goals and dreams. Affirmations are a powerful personal development tool that I’ve used over the past two years to help me stay present to the possibility of living my ideal life.
A few years ago, I was at an event in DC and there was a photographer there taking pictures of the speakers and the attendees. As the event was ending, several of the attendees approached the photographer to inquire about her services for their own events. What a fantastic opportunity for a freelancer, right? She said sheepishly, “I don’t have any business cards on me.” Still wanting to get to know her, the people who had gathered around her further inquired about her day job. The photographer then proceeded to tell the small crowd all about her current position, her jerk of a boss and how much her life basically sucked. Not surprisingly, it wasn’t long before everyone walked away, muttering, “my, my look at the time…”
I tell you this story because it’s a prime example of missing a golden networking opportunity. The photographer at the event had a captive audience that wanted to hear more about her services, practically slapping her smack dab in the face. And not only did she not have business cards, but she gave the attendees a negative vibe when she started talking about her crappy job. I get a lot of questions from women in our HBW community about networking and the best advice I can give is to BE PREPARED. In today’s post, I share some simple tips for what you can do to capitalize on your own golden networking opportunity. Because sometimes, you only get one chance!
This past weekend at our Happy Black Woman Retreat in DC, we had a fun vision board party where we cut up magazines and got creative with putting our life goals into picture form. One of the best moments for me was getting to see everyone’s completed vision boards hung up on the wall at the end of the first day!
Have you ever heard of vision boards?
A vision board is a powerful visualization tool that you can use as inspiration for your journey toward your ideal life. Some people refer to it as a “dream board” or an “inspiration board.” No matter what you call it, it’s basically a collage of pictures, words and quotes that serve to remind you of your passion and purpose.
As an example, below is a photo of MY new vision board that I created along with the group at our HBW retreat. (Can you guess what the images on my board represent?)
As you can see, you don’t have to be an artist to make a vision board! All you need are a few basic supplies and instructions to get started.
“A good intention clothes itself with sudden power.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Even though I work from home, the beginning of the week always feels “busy.” As soon as I wake up on Mondays, I sense looming deadlines. All I hear in my brain is go go go ring ring ring do do do. Needless to say, it’s not the most conscious way to enter the week!
To help me get centered in my life and work, I like to start the week off by setting a positive intention.
This is a practice that extends from my years of writing poetry. One of my professors would always instruct us to “get centered” by sitting still in a quiet place before beginning to write. Setting weekly intentions has helped me reduce the feeling of overwhelm in my business. There’s always so much to do – so many emails to respond to, so many great projects to work on, so many people to connect with, etc. This strategy has helped me to get focused and stay productive each and every week.
When should you set your weekly intention? Well, it’s best if you can do this exercise at the beginning of the week, on a Sunday or Monday. But you can and should feel free to do it on any day and at any time you have a moment to sit down and be still.
In today’s video post, I share three ways to remove negative energy from your life. Once you remove these energetic blocks, you are able to create more space for happiness and success.
In the video, I outline these three ways to release negative energy from your life:
The people you allow into your life can have a profound influence on your thoughts and actions. As a result, if you’re surrounded by negative people most of the time, your progress in life can be hindered. When you hang around people that constantly complain and gossip, it drags you down into the dumps with them as well. Do what you have to do to remove these folks from your life (or at least limit your exposure to them), whether that means not sitting next to them at lunch in the company cafeteria, declining their invitations to hang out or unfriending them on social media.
Media can have a very strong effect on how we think and behave. That’s what most commercials, TV shows and news broadcasts are really all about. Watch what you watch! All the reality TV isn’t just “entertainment”, it can be detrimental to your mindset and serve as an excuse to judge people you don’t even know. And when it comes to the news, remember that if you put too much fear-based information into your brain (which is what most “news” is these days), you will begin to worry more and develop a more cynical worldview.
Rosetta Thurman is a nationally-recognized author, speaker, mentor and coach dedicated to helping women create their ideal lives.