Only it seems to me that once in your life before you die you ought to see a country where they don’t talk in English and don’t even want to. ~Thornton Wilder
I ordered a coffee and a little something to eat and savored the warmth and dryness. Somewhere in the background Nat King Cole sang a perky tune. I watched the rain beat down on the road outside and told myself that one day this would be twenty years ago. ~Bill Bryson
I got the most devastating news. A close friend lost her 15-year-old. She had died of a massive asthma attack. Another friend lost his battle with the dreaded virus after months of organ failure. Yet another suffered as a result of multiple injuries to the body. Luckily she survived.
The media is filled with sad tales like these daily. It becomes harder to bear when it’s those close who are affected. Then there are the tales of things of joy! Weddings, births, graduations and those that warm our heart. These life events are customarily planned with huge anticipation.
And so it should be at regular intervals. For essential self-leadership it is important to pause and reflect. Something necessary to everyone at year end. We should take into account the past year’s success and plan to do things different… a necessity to improve your best. I am a firm believer in the fact that if you don’t look back you can’t move forward (well at least) not strategically. So I have always looked back on the path of my own personal journey and professional growth. As the sayings goes:
To stand still is to be left behind
Oh What A Pandemonium
So in 2021 we could not stand still. Deep reflects brought on innovative thinking to get things done safely as in the midst, many lost loved ones or were stalled by lengthy hospitalization. Work-from-home became the norm and association meetings had to continue. Death-by-zoom set in. It became necessary to find ways to bridge the two…in-person and virtual events. Enter the flexibility of the hybrid model and shared office spaces combined with robots to help ease the so-called labor shortage as employees took flight to become their own boss and take control of their time.
The health system seemed to have lost sight of its purpose. We don’t see sick patients. I was shocked when a doctor’s office said this matter-of-factly. No remorse. Then there was travel. On an unavoidable international trip, time ticked away as I spent days to get the mandated round-trip tests. Naturally, flights were missed. Being vaccinated meant nothing as tricksters began buying and selling fake vaccine cards. Sigh… the tricks never fail.
Oh What Fun it is to Ride
Driving is what I did too. Relocation is fun but getting used to a new area is even more enticing. But when you link the two to get things from the old while simultaneously slowly dragging the new across distances, a merged network becomes essential. Time to make a decision.
Book Signings & Events
Book signings at events such as Miami Book Fair, Keiser University’s Fall Festival, Car Show, Island Space Museum, New York Mets and more were the norm for networking and my coaching prowess. Again merging the new with the familiar and faraway must be faced as myriads of travel ensued.
Interviews With Powerful Women In Reggae
Organizing a Women’s History Month talk with Powerful Women in Reggae was one of my favorites. Matriarch / VP Records Founder Miss Patricia Chin launched her book My Reggae Music Journey and Dr. Claire Nelson of the Institute of Caribbean Studies thought it a great opportunity to bring these well-renowned women together. All in one place to discuss success and their journey. A delight indeed. Missed it? Grab your popcorn or a cup of tea and listen in.
Another fave was presenting to graduates of the Northern Caribbean University. An occasion when I presented on the topic Bust The Fear. Students leaned in and listened while anticipating their personal copies of the books Motivational Quotes for New Entrepreneurs and Your Career: Ditch it Switch it. Nothing brings me more joy than helping others develop and be recognized for their hard work as with the annual 30 Under 30 Recognition of young changemakers in Washington DC, where I serve as Chief Judge.
YouTube Interviews
My natural love for interviewing others around my research topic of Success and leadership continued in 2021. Don’t miss out on the top interviews. You can binge watch for personal growth here
What’s Next For 2022?
The inspirational GreenLight series will find a new addition in the form of new book RedLight, as I continue my writing love. My Safe Place was launched earlier this year with reviews that it has provided hope and meaning to many who use it as a daily devotional especially at this trying time of pandemic woes.
Helping aspiring authors publish their book for the first time is also a passion and will continue into 2022. Don’t hesitate to connect if you are interested in writing your own book or if you or someone you know is interested in a mid-life career change and is afraid to take the first step.
Looking back on the past 12 months, the memories made and the goals tackled, I am again thankful. I now look forward to the future and the expectations ahead. Can’t wait to see how it unfolds. Here’s to you and your family as we wish you health, peace, and hope that all will be well in 2022, and beyond.
I write because there’s something in me that needs to come out. I am at peace when I write. Writers write for many different reasons. Some personal, experiential, or environmental. Christine Caldalzo created a pictogram of 10 reasons writers write. Here I share 10:
10 Reasons Writers Write
They love to write
To express their thoughts
To communicate
To share experiences
To tell about events
To share their feelings
To persuade
To teach
To Ask Questions
They want something
Does any of the above resonate with your reason(s) to write? Any missing that you would like to add? Do share. We would love to hear.
Never give up; for even rivers someday wash dams away. ~Arthur Golden
Someday I will do this. Someday I will do that.
How many of us often sit or live at the ‘wishing well’ that someday I’ll do this, or that. Someday I’ll get that perfect body. I’ll have that perfect house, job, spouse, marriage with the perfect kids; go on that dream vacation, and much more! Oh if wishes were horses so many would ride.
Someday is Today
Why not let someday be today? I reflect on the movie Hidden Figures where each of the three women at NASA — Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into space.
The inaugural team at NASA decided to step out and do something that was never done before. From the astronaut, NASA’s president, the judge, and naturally the women. They all stepped out and did something different. And guess what? It worked! Their efforts changed the world (well outer space– orbit)!
Start Here. Start Now
Why not let your someday be today? Start here, start now. Step out. Go do that thing that you’ve always dreamed of. Become an entrepreneur! Write that book! Enrol in that course! Start that blog! Take that vacation! Leave that stressful job! You are capable. You never know what’s out there unless you try.
Don’t wait around for other people to be happy for you. Any happiness you get, you’ve got to make yourself.” – Alice Walker
Reflection, Rest, Relaxation & Renewal
Self-care is important, and so is doing it alone ..yikes! But time alone is important. It Evokes reflection, rest, relaxation and renewal.
Here I share my own favorite list of 9 Things to do by yourself.
Self-Care
Give yourself a mini retreat weekend–eat healthy food, go for a massage, spoil yourself, and really relax!
Meditate. Sit. Be still and devote time to listen to your spiritual thoughts. Breathe.
Have dinner on your own in a nice restaurant… take time to really enjoy the food
Go somewhere in the city where you have never been
Study. Sign up for an online course in any topic you have an interest in and learn something new
Sip a cup of tea and look out the window
Spend a day at a museum or art gallery
Journal. Carve out the time to write up a list of things you would love to do. Declare your dreams and intentions or simply empty out all your thoughts into your notebook.
Travel on your own. Learn something new about yourself.
Spending time alone is one of my absolute pleasures. I’m sure I’m not alone. You may also like to do that as well. I had some planning to do and decided on a whim to jump into my car and drive to the beach. A few hours later, I had mapped out plans for my top goals for the rest of the year! yea! I left feeling totally satisfied to get things done! What seemed like an Irrelevant exercise turned out to be quite productive, in a serene atmosphere.
Jo Chunyan shared a list of things do alone. I decided to pull my top 15 to share.
Journal. Write up a list of things you would love to do. Declare your dreams and intentions or simply empty out all your thoughts into your notebook.
Spend a day at a museum or art gallery
Meditate – sit. Be still and devote time to listen to your spiritual thoughts. Breathe.
Have dinner on your own in a nice restaurant – take time to really enjoy the food
Go for a walk and enjoy breathing the fresh air
See a film at a cinema on your own
Rearrange your wardrobe and discover old clothes again.
Donate old clothes, books and furniture. Make room for the new by clearing out the old.
Go somewhere in the city where you have never been
Give yourself a mini retreat weekend…eat healthy food, go for a massage, spoil yourself and really relax!
Sip a cup of tea and look out the window
Be Athletic. Go for a jog or walk on the beach. Breathe in the salty sea breeze and watch the waves lick the shore.
Study. Sign up for an online course in any topic you have an interest in and learn something new
Take a photo to depict each hour of your day
Travel on your own. Learn something new about yourself.
CNN shared the findings that Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy ((CTE) disease was found in 99% of deceased ex-NFL players. A Rookie NFL 🏈 player said he is willing to die for the game. More directly he said “the football field is the perfect place to die”. Was he being insensitive? Possibly naive like a tethered Toothbrush? Arguments differ.
But it caused me to think …is your passion worth dying for? Substandard? Possibly….but what do you think?
How many of us often sit or live at the ‘wishing well’ that someday I’ll do this, or that. Someday I’ll get that perfect body. I’ll have that perfect house, job, spouse, marriage with the perfect kids; go on that dream vacation, and much more! Oh if wishes were horses so many would ride.
Someday is Today
Why not let someday be today. I reflect on the movie Hidden Figures where each of the three women at NASA — Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into space.
The inaugural team at NASA decided to step out and do something that was never done before. From the astronaut, NASA’s president, the judge, and naturally the women. They all stepped out and did something different. And guess what? It worked! Their efforts changed the world (well outer space– orbit)!
Start Here. Start Now
Why not let your someday be today? Start here, start now. Step out. Go do that thing that you’ve always dreamed of. Become an entrepreneur! Write that book! Enrol in that course! Start that blog! Take that vacation! Leave that stressful job! You are Capable. You never know what’s out there unless you try.
I decided to enroll in Wordpress university. Now looking back it’s one of the best decisions I made
Word Cloud Inspires Direction
To Move Ahead I value your help.
At the start of 2016 I decided to take the plunge into a Blog Renewal. I started my blog back in 2011 with only a few posts a year. My goal sparked, I decided to enroll in wordpress university. Now looking back it’s one of the best decisions I made. I became fully conversant with managing my blog and sharing my thoughts on success, goals, personal development, writing, and more. Even though there is a ton more to learn, I am pleased with my achievement this year.
To you my readers I say THANKS! Thank you for following me. Thank you for participating through your valuable insights. Thanks! Thanks! Thanks!
As we step into a new year and a fresh chapter in our lives my desire remains to inspire because I have been inspired. Will you help me in sharing your preference on topics I should write about? What would you like to hear more of? I truly value your input and insights.
Tough Nickel 
Success Strategies 