Tag: Success

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From the Outside Looking In

January 13, 2012 jcladyluv

It is funny how the people closest to you can see things in you and possibilities for you that you never even had in mind for yourself. We plan things for our life and never count on the unexpected opportunities that pop up along the way. You know those things that you never thought you would be good at but that somehow fit right into you niche that you are carving out for yourself.

Ms. L has foreseen something for me that somehow fits right into my other plans for my Media Company and that might actually help elevate things to the next level but it is something that I never even thought about doing before. I must admit (she’s going to say I told you so later) that her foresight could be quite lucrative if it is as successful as she thinks it could be. But I am just afraid that because it’s something I could never see myself doing, that other people will look at me with that judgmental look and the lingering questions in their mind of ‘how can she possibly be successful at this’. Why not, it’s the same question I have for myself.

But I promised her that I would give it some thought (and I don’t want to say what it is until I’m sure that I would actually do it) and that I would stop putting that wall up for myself and telling myself that I can’t do something before I even try. Sometimes Ms. L sees things in the bigger picture that I never even saw and it’s amazing what the opinion from someone on the outside looking in can mean to your projected future. I think I like Ms. L’s view of my projected future. Until tomorrow…What do you project for your future?

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 Support Around You

January 11, 2012 jcladyluv

Ms. L wrote a blog post the other night about hustling hard for what you want out of life. I will say that she has got to be the best hustler I know. When she sets her mind to something and decides that it’s going to happen, she makes it happen, one way or another. She is a perfect example of the type of friend and person in general that you want surrounding you when you are on a mission to greatness. They say that birds of a feather flock together and when I was in high school I never understood what that really meant, nor how true that statement was.

My mother used to hear about certain people that I associated with in high school doing something they didn’t have any business doing, and she would just automatically assume that I was doing the same things (which I wasn’t). She said that if you surround yourself with certain types of people then that’s the type of person people will think you are. At the time I thought that it was her being highly judgmental and unfair. I felt that if you liked someone or at least a lot of their attributes then there shouldn’t be a problem being their friend even if the two of you were total opposites on everything. I learned as I grew into an adult that my mother (I cringe as I say this) was right.

You don’t want the people in your circle to be exactly like you (that would just be boring) but you do want them to be people who understand you and your goals and ambitions and who are as ambitious about whatever they want as you are. You want people surrounding you that are like-minded and that are going to push you when you need a push. You need people who have their own sense of direction and motivate you to find and follow yours.

A writer in particular needs a good source of support and motivation in the people that they associate with. While I have other good supportive people in my circle that motivate me in various ways (as I hopefully motivate them), none of them I admire quite as much as Ms. L. Her post the other night about hustling harder (and our conversation that came afterwards) gave me great encouragement and motivation.

I am probably not the best hustler in terms of going after everything I want with extreme vigor but because I am not, it is good to have someone in my corner, in my circle, who is. Someone who can be a model example of the kind of hustling I should be doing. Surrounding yourself with the right people, as a writer, is vitally important and should be something that you should definitely reevaluate if you haven’t before. I thank Ms. L for being the kind of friend and fellow writer that I can take a multitude of notes from and for not being stingy with your secrets along your pathway to success. I hope all of you out there have someone in your circle that pushes you to be your very best. Until tomorrow…If you haven’t already, make sure you have your support team in place!

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 Gift of Giving

December 23, 2011December 23, 2011 jcladyluv

“At the end of life we will not be judged by how many diplomas we have received, how much money we have made, how many great things we have done. We will be judged by ‘I was hungry and you gave me food to eat, I was naked and you clothed me, I was homeless and you took me in. Hungry not only for bread — but hungry for love. Naked not only for clothing — but naked for human dignity and respect. Homeless not only for want of a room of bricks — but homeless because of rejection.”
~Mother Teresa

When Christmas comes around every year we get so caught up in worrying about what gift we are going to get for which person and whether or not we will be able to get everything that the kids wrote down on their lists or dropped hints about way back around Halloween. I admit that I am guilty of being determined to get every single little thing on my daughter’s list (knowing that I can’t possibly in good conscience get everything). I admit that it is for the sheer joy of seeing her face light up as the gifts go under the tree and on Christmas morning when she thinks I’m a rock star because I actually made the attempt to get everything she wanted.

Now I have explained to my daughter that Christmas is not in fact about getting gifts (as society has made it out to be) but I think that when she continually sees adds and cartoons and other children so focused on getting gifts that it’s still hard for her to understand what Christmas really means. They say this is the season of giving but I’m not sure that whoever said that meant gifts of toys and all sorts of material possessions. There is so much that we have to give to this world and our children then just the latest toys or electronics and video games.

There are a lot of reasons that I would like to be wealthy but one of the main reasons for me is so that I can be in a position to help people who are struggling and need it the most. I was watching the news this morning and there was a woman who talked about her foundation that she started to help the families of the wounded and deceased navy seals who died or were injured in the war inIraq. All I could think of in watching this story was ‘I wish there was something that I could do to help’. In fact I would love to be able to be someone else’s Christmas Angel for once.

I got to thinking about all of the many different foundations out there put in place to help others and made a small list which I included below. I think that everyone should compose a small list of what they would do to help if they could. Maybe it will inspire someone out there who has forgotten what the true meaning of Christmas is to be reminded once again.

Make a Wish Foundation
Local Homeless Shelter
Habitat for Humanity
UNICEF
Locks of Love
The People inHaiti
The People in Japan
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
The International Child Art Foundation (ICAF)

These are just a few of the organizations that I have wanted to help in one way or another for quite some time now. This gives me even more motivation to see my dreams through, so that I can firmly place myself in a position to be able to help others struggle just a little less so they can see their dreams become a reality and then hopefully they would one day be able to do the same for someone else. What organizations would you place on your list? Until tomorrow…Remember that we are all worth more than just the things that we possess.

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

Let’s Talk About Courage (Pt. 2)

December 17, 2011 jcladyluv

“One isn’t necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.”

~Maya Angelou

I think that creative people are very special. I say this not just because I am a creative person and that I surround myself with nothing but people who are also immersed in their own creativity. I say this because being someone who’s life’s purpose centers around the creative arts is not really something that one can learn or that can even be taught if it is not ingrained somewhere deep inside of them. Take a singer for instance. You can give someone vocal lessons and the techniques and coaching that they may need to make their voice better and stronger, but if that natural talent and ability was never there in the first place, if it did not live deep inside of them, then it would never be able to be taught.

There’s something else that lives inside of a person who is creative at heart, courage. I think that being a creative person takes massive amounts of courage; the courage to withstand rejection, the courage to be patient and never give up while waiting for your turn, the courage to step out there and take the risk of being rejected to begin with, the courage to sacrifice comfort ability to serve your purpose no matter how crazy your loved ones may think you are.

It takes courage to be your true self even if it is not what is expected of you or what is perceived as something that will be a more immediate success. So today’s message is for all of you out there who are fulfilling your creative aspirations and enduring people looking at you or questioning your choices as if you’ve lost all of your senses. Keep wearing that badge of courage because in the end it will pay off and you will be glad that you remained true to yourself. Until tomorrow…“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the resistance to give in to that fear.” (Mark Twain)

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

A Brief Note For the Day

December 14, 2011 jcladyluv

Okay I am going to be really brief today. I really wanted to talk about success today but after the suicides I did in the gym this morning, followed by the hour on the treadmill, and coupled with the weights on top of that, my body is completely tired. But I didn’t want to let the day go by without posting anything at all so I found this wonderful quote that I wanted to share with you all. Hope it speaks to you like it spoke to me.

“If you wish success in life, make perseverance your bosom friend, experience your wise counselor, caution your elder brother, and hope your guardian angel.”
~Jospeph Addison

Until tomorrow…Be blessed!

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

No Shortcuts

December 13, 2011 jcladyluv

We all seek something meaningful out of life. We have a sense of purpose that is sometimes beyond all rationality. And when it seems like it will take forever for us to reach that destination that we are striving to get to, we all sometimes wish that we could just wake up one day and be there, right where we feel we need to be in life. Unfortunately life does not work that way. Or maybe it’s fortunate for us that it doesn’t.

I was watching my soap opera today (Young and the Restless) and something was said on there that really struck a chord with me. What good is reaching your destination without having the experience of getting there? What good is it, it means nothing, and you learn nothing? I never thought of it like that.

If I were to just wake up one day and have it all handed to me, everything that I want in this life, without having the struggle of actually getting to those proud and joyful moments, then would it mean as much? Without all of the blood, sweat, and tears put into making my dreams come true, would they mean as much and would I work just as hard to hold onto them? I can say that I would but I don’t know that.

Sometimes it is the struggle of the journey that makes the end result worth every bit of hardship that you went through. Sometimes there are no shortcuts in life, and I am discovering (though it took me a while to realize) that taking the long way to your destination can sometimes be the best thing you could ever do to satisfy your purpose. Until tomorrow…Don’t always go looking for the shorter way around things.

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

While I’m Planning, God is Laughing (a lot)

December 9, 2011 jcladyluv

Writers are supposed to be established by a certain age right? By the age of thirty-one you would expect them to be published, either with articles in national magazines or a book on the shelves of every bookstore. If not that then they would certainly be working in a magazine or a newspaper getting first hand experience in their craft and getting the chance to use it on a daily basis. If you’re lucky you would have some five or six figure book deal that ends up being turned into a phenomenal movie and you’ve finally made it to the bestsellers list.

Yes I always thought that at this age (31) that I would be already inNew York, working for some national magazine, or a publishing company as an editor with my own book deals in the work simultaneously. But as you all know, life (and God) often times has very different plans for you that you didn’t anticipate. You know they say when we plan, God laughs. Well he must have been having a really good laugh with me for the last few years now. I am certainly not where I would like to be within my career but perhaps I am where I need to be and wherever God has planned for me to be.

I was reading a magazine interview with Walter Mosley and what I never knew about him was that he didn’t even start writing until he was 34 years old and wasn’t first published until he was about 38 years old. Now he is 59 with 34 books published (so far). This gave me hope. There is still time for me to make the mark on the literary and media world like I want and perhaps God’s plan for me included a long lengthy journey of good old fashion struggle on my way to success (probably along with a lesson in patience—cause I really need to work on that). I am hopeful that my journey will be worth it in the end and confident that I will carry out exactly the plan that God has tailor made for me, at the precise time he plans for it to be carried out. Until tomorrow…Don’t give up hope, his plan IS your plan too!

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

Hidden on Purpose

December 5, 2011December 5, 2011 jcladyluv

“The greatest thing about being hidden is that you can be underestimated.”

~Tyler Perry

I admit that I am guilty of watching (probably what most writers would consider) way too much T.V. I am a soap opera junky and I love movies (mostly suspense and drama), and yes I love my drama TV shows as well, such as Law and Order SVU and Unforgettable and many others. I know the saying is that if you want to carve out more time to write and be an all around better writer then you need to cut out the unnecessary time wasters, which most would (arguably) consider television to be one of them. But I have my reasons for watching so much television.

I watch it not so much for the entertainment value (okay I will admit soap operas are entertaining to me) but from the standpoint of a writer. I watch with the knowledge that I would love to write for a lot of these shows and quite frankly in terms of soap operas I think that being a lifetime watcher of a lot of them I would be a great asset as a writer because they change writers so often I think that the new writers don’t research the show and its history very well. Some of the inconsistencies are really just ridiculous.

I sit back and look at some of these shows and movies thinking I could write stuff like that, hell I can write some things better than that. And then I find myself being a tad bit (okay maybe a lot) envious. I wonder, why is my talent going unnoticed? Why are there so-called writers (you know the ones, those with good story but bad writing technique) who are making millions of dollars off a book, and then movie when I not only have good stories but I can actually convey them well in written form. Why am I going unnoticed?

Every time I get this feeling of envy (which I know that it is wrong to be even somewhat envious of others successes) I remind myself of something I came across on Tyler Perry’s website in his inspirational corner. He does these motivational segments via video and sends out emails of them every so often. There was one particular video segment that made me see things a little differently. He spoke about a friend of his who also wondered why his talents and his hard work continued to go unnoticed and he couldn’t seem to get to where he was trying to get to. That he would get close but then it just wouldn’t pan out somehow.

Tyler’s words of wisdom to his friend, was that maybe he was being hidden on purpose. He told him that it just wasn’t his time to be seen yet. He said “sometimes in life, God wants your story to be such a miracle that she shuts down every avenue, so that you can only go to him for the answer.” He pointed out that there is an appointed time for everything and that everything that is supposed to happen in your life will happen.

The best thing that he said that really stuck with me was that “if you walk in the path that you are supposed to at this point in time, then at the right time, God will reveal you, your talents, and everything you’ve done to the world.” So when I am sitting back and wondering what all of my hard work and good writing is for when it continues to go unnoticed, I just have to keep thinking to myself, it’s not my time to be seen yet.

I am going to continue to walk in the path in which I am supposed to walk, carrying out the purpose that God put me on this earth for, knowing that when God feels it is my time to be seen then I will shine the brightest that I could ever possibly shine. Of course I have to keep reminding myself of this constantly when I am feeling a little envious of those writers who are already where I feel I should be right now. I suppose I should just feel pure joy for those who are shining and being seen right now because they are paving the way for me to be seen when it is my time and when it is my time I will certainly be ready. Until tomorrow…Get ready, your time is coming too!

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”