Tag: Doubt

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I Guess I’m All Out of Sick Days Now

March 14, 2012March 14, 2012 jcladyluv

Oh how I have missed my blog! I know I haven’t posted since last week and it was completely unintentional. I came down with a really bad cold at the end of last week and I just wasn’t able to produce anything that I felt was worthy of being read and then my daughter had a virus over the weekend, which I in turn was inflicted with on Monday and Tuesday.

Needless to say, I have had more than enough time to realize just how important it is to have back up posts and plans of what to have ready for your blog in case of emergencies or necessary sick days that may need to be taken. In the regular work world where you go to an office from 9 to 5 Monday through Friday you get a set amount of sick days (that’s not to be confused with vacation days) and typically it’s about five. Well it’s been about that many days for me (I don’t count Sunday because I don’t blog on Sundays anyway) so I suppose that means I have completely used up my sick days for the year.

I guess that just means I really don’t have any more excuses but to buckle down and cast that self doubt I have about myself and my abilities out of my mind and do what I know needs to be done as far as my writing career. I have a lot of plans and things to work on and put in motion before this month is over and there is literally no time to waste anymore.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

https://write-2-be.com/

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

The Questions We Ask Ourselves, and God (Part 6): Is There Anything Too Hard For God?

February 18, 2012 jcladyluv

“I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is there anything too hard for me?”

–Jeremiah 32:27

I know this may not be a question many of you out there ever feel the need to ask, nor is it one that I ask too often, but I have asked this question. I have had times that were just so dark (at least it seemed so at the time) and made me fall into such a deep depression and I just thought there was no way to overcome it. I had people tell me to give my burdens to God but somehow I always felt like what I was going through was too much for him to handle.

I joke now to my best friend Ms. L that sometimes I think I ask God for too much and that he may be tired of me coming to him with such little problems. She always told me that there was no such thing. I know that (in my heart) that is true now but there was a time when I really wondered if my requests were too much of a burden on God. I thought to myself that he has sick people to heal, wars to end, homeless people to help, hungry people to feed, there’s no way that he would have time to deal with my petty problems (even though they seemed like the end of the world to me) because there were people more important than me. Ms. L made me understand one day that I was just as important to God as anyone else in this world because he created a purpose for all of us and that there was no problem to great for him.

A lot of times I don’t ask God for help, not because I don’t need it, but because I feel someone else might need him more. I still sometimes feel selfish to think that my minor problems are worthy of pulling God’s attention away from those that really need him. I have to remind myself that I am just as important as anyone else and that he not only can hear their cries for help but that he hears my cries too. I’m not going to lie and say that I am never going to have that question again but I will continue to remind myself of what Ms. L and so many others have told me when I asked aren’t there some things that are just too much for God; that there is nothing that is ever too powerful, too hard, or too small for God to handle. For God nothing is impossible.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

The Questions We Ask Ourselves, and God (Part 5): Why Not Me?

February 17, 2012 jcladyluv

“Don’t put a question mark where God has put a period.”

~Joel Osteen

I know you’ve had those moments. You get yourself all excited about this new opportunity that is waiting for you. You just know that it will be the start of something amazing for your life. But then it doesn’t happen. Not only does it not happen for you but then you keep seeing other people get what they want and you feel slighted. You feel let down and defeated and you think to yourself, why not me?

It is very easy to slip into the land of doubt when you have to stand by and watch everyone else alongside you accomplishing all of their goals and achieving the success you want. You put in all of this work and most of your time, added in with all of your blood, sweat, and tears, and you still seem to never get ahead of the game. Even worse, that person next to you, who more than likely didn’t put in nearly as much time and effort (at least in your mind), is taking steps towards the next level that you feel you should be at. But instead of counting everyone else’s blessings around you, you have to be grateful for your own.

Just as there is a reason for everything to happen, there is also a reason why things don’t happen. Everything that we want in this life is not necessarily meant for us to have. Many times when we are rejected or when the things that we want fall through it is God’s way of protecting us. Those things were not meant for you to have and they were not a part of your journey. You won’t get your blessings longing for the ones that belong to someone else. Your blessings are on their way, you just have to be a little more patient.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

The Company You Keep Could Be Helping You Sabotage Yourself

February 10, 2012 jcladyluv

Number 5 on my list yesterday was ‘Keeping people around you that are not going to give you a swift kick in the ass’ and a part of that is not surrounding yourself with people who constantly try to do everything they can to bring negativity to you. It is always good when you can separate yourself from those that do not support your goals and that do not believe in you. But how do you separate yourself when the people or person who is against you is your family, not just family members, but your own mother.

My mother has never been supportive of my dream of being a writer and she has been very verbal about the fact that she thinks that my pursuing that dream is a huge waste of time. She made her point again today that I am wasting my time with this writing ‘stuff’ as she referred to it.

Years ago that would have bothered me. That would have eaten away at me and seeped inside of my soul with her words eventually starting to be projected in my own voice. That would have sent me into months and months of questioning my dreams and whether I could really make them happen. I would spend months thinking to myself that if my own mother doesn’t believe in me, then who else will.

Like I said, that would have been me years ago. That would have been a form of me self-sabotaging myself by way of my mother’s negativity. Now I know that I can not completely cut my mother off (well I could but she did give birth to me so that would be wrong) but I have learned to distance myself from her. More importantly, when she starts to talk about how my goals and dreams don’t matter and that their not worth the time and effort I am putting into them, I have to learn how to cut her off (respectfully of course) and tell her that I can’t be around the negativity.

I know that you can’t really tune out or walk away from every negative vibe that tries to come within your orbit, but you can’t make your dream a reality if you don’t at least try. Negative energy just breeds more negative energy so if you allow it into your inner circle then you also allow it to influence your spirit. So if you are keeping people around you that are only bringing negative energy to you then it is time to distance yourself from them. Stop sabotaging yourself with the company you are keeping. Until tomorrow…Remember that your kin is not always your kind!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

Make a Pledge To Yourself Today

January 26, 2012 jcladyluv

Okay so I wasn’t really sure what I was going to post about tonight but then as luck would have it I came across something that someone had given me a long time ago. It was a pledge that they had made up for themselves to remind themselves of the goals they have and that they should never give up on them and to strive to better the next day and the day after that. I believe I was having one of those days where I was doubting everything about me and my dreams and my capability of making them happen. So they passed this on to me to lift my spirits and so that I can be reminded by looking at these words every time that I needed to be reminded. So I decided that I would pass these same words along to you. I hope that you get at much out of these words as I have gotten.

A Pledge To Myself

Today I pledge

To be the best possible me

No matter how good I am

I know that I can become better

Today I pledge

To build up the work of yesterday

Which will lead me into

The rewards of tomorrow

Today I pledge

To feed my mind knowledge

My body strength,

And my spirit faith

Today I pledge

To reach new goals,

New challenges

And new horizons

Today I pledge

To listen to the beat of my drummer

Who leads me onward in search of my dreams

Today I pledge to believe in ME

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

So Close and Yet Still So Far

January 20, 2012January 20, 2012 jcladyluv

Have you ever felt like you are so close to something but yet so far away? It seems like I am constantly within reach of something I want only to have it yanked away from me, sometimes slowly and sometimes quicker than I can say ‘how did that just happen’. Some days (like today) it is hard to see that it is all for some rhyme or reason, that God has my best interest at heart. But because I know and believe that to be true, on those days I just have to resign to look forward to the next day when the reason becomes vaguely clear, and then the day after that when things get even clearer.

You know how people always ask the old favorite question, ‘why do bad things happen to good people?’ I was reminded today when I was watching (don’t laugh) The Little House on the Prairie earlier today that God doesn’t always protect good people from misfortune, but what he does do is give them the strength and the willpower to come through it stronger and more determined than ever.

I just have to keep that thought with me throughout all of the road blocks that I will undoubtedly encounter this year. I may be further away from attaining what I want but I am still certainly closer to it then I was yesterday. Until tomorrow…You’re closer then you think you are, stay on the path!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

Where There’s A No There’s a Yes Right Around The Corner

January 18, 2012 jcladyluv

Rejection is a part of the process of becoming a successful writer. I mean unless you have a lot of connections and you know all of the people you need to know to be placed right where you want to be in your career then you are pretty much starting at the bottom of the barrel. That means that you will more than likely be rejected more times than you would care to count. Now if you have nerves of steel and can stare adversity in the eye with a straight face then you will have no problem forging ahead right out of the pile of rejection letters that you are likely to receive before you become that top selling author you desire to be.

However, if you are anything like me, where being rejected makes you rethink every decision you ever made and has you constantly second guessing yourself, then this business (writing) is going to take some getting used to and quite frankly a lot more of a backbone. I’m not talking about having the talent for writing, that’s only about 20% of being a successful writer. It’s the other 80% that takes diligence and determination to really make it as a writer. Now I’ve always been afraid of the rejection, and with writing it’s so much of it, but I know that I can’t give up on my dream.

I was watching an up and coming author who was on the Anderson show yesterday (Amanda Hocking) and she spoke of how she had been rejected at least a thousand times before she went the route of self publishing in which she sold over a million copies on her own and then was eventually picked up by a major publishing house. At first I was taken aback by the amount of rejection she endured but then I was just in awe of how she powered through it and moved her own career forward and look where she is now, on a nationally broadcasted talk show talking about her books.

So from now on I am not going to be discouraged by my rejection letters (I have a small stack growing on my desk) and I am not going to doubt myself every time someone decides to pass on an article. I am not going to stop at one rejection, but rather power through and press on until someone gives me the yes that I know I deserve to hear. Of course when I get my media company up and running I may not even need someone’s yes, I’ll just create my own. Until tomorrow…Don’t let rejection stop you when there’s a yes right around the corner!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

Don’t Throw in the Towel Too Soon

December 19, 2011 jcladyluv

“Don’t let life discourage you; everyone who got where he is had to begin where he was.”

~Richard L. Evans

Did you ever wonder if you gave up on something that you wanted too soon? Sometimes we hang in there so long that we start to get the feeling that maybe we just weren’t meant to achieve that goal or dream we long for. We start to become doubtful and discouraged, and to put it bluntly, we get impatient. We forget (at least I know I do) that there is not a specific time table on when your dreams can come true. More importantly we forget that sometimes we have to put in our dues and struggle to get to the point of our destination. We have to exhibit perseverance and not be too quick to throw in the towel. Remember that if it is in your heart to accomplish your goals and you were given a purpose then it will all be worth the wait in the end. Nothing that is worth having has ever come easy and with great struggles there are also even greater rewards. Don’t give up on your dreams. They are more than likely right around the corner and well within your grasp. Until tomorrow…Don’t throw in the towel just yet!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

The Importance of Finishing

December 1, 2011 jcladyluv

“Winning isn’t always finishing first. Sometimes winning is just finishing.”

~Manuel Diotte

Earlier today I was reflecting on how good I felt about completing National Novel Writing Month yesterday (50,002 words) and I began to think about the fact that if I finished everything as strong and with as much determination and staying power as I did those 50,000 words I might be further along in my journey to being successful. Looking at my list of what I was supposed to accomplish in this entire year I ran over the things I started and just didn’t finish. For whatever reason, be it frustration of it not working fast enough (I admit I need to work on my patience), or just pure self-doubt that I wasn’t good enough to have the success I was trying to carve out. There is something to be said for finishing what you start and not giving up halfway through the mission.

I was listening to the news earlier this morning and they were discussing the whole Herman Cain controversy and there were claims that he was “reassessing” his campaign, which of course people automatically took as him contemplating dropping out of the race. Now before I say this I want to make it clear that I am not a Herman Cain fan, neither of his politics nor how he chooses to govern his personal life, however, having said that, if he is in fact considering dropping out of the race, I do NOT think that he should. Yes he is struggling right now on so many fronts but no person is perfect and the person running for the President of theUnited Statesis not going to be an exception. He started something, and I believe that he should finish what he started. If he doesn’t I am almost certain he will forever wonder what would have been and what could have been if he had just finished.

Now no one likes to lose or have that feeling of defeat. But isn’t it defeat if you have a continuous pattern of starting these grand missions and then never finishing them and seeing them through? I have a notebook full of a lot of things that I got really excited about and jotted down all of these notes and ideas for projects and how I was going to put those ideas and plans into action and then I would hit a snag and it would seem impossible to envision me being able to complete that project. I got it in my head that because I hit that snag, there was no use wasting time on an idea that could never really go anywhere. I just wouldn’t finish.

When I look back on several moments of my life that is where the majority of my mistakes have been. That I didn’t finish. Here’s what I’ve learned from all of those unfinished mistakes. It doesn’t matter if you’ve started something if it never gets completed and put into action. Even if you finish and find it not to be a success, at least you’ve finished. This month I will be making my lists for what I want to accomplish next year. I can tell you that no matter what, I intend to finish whatever it is I start from now on. No more unfinished business for me.

Until next time…Always, Always, Always, finish!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”