Tag: Write 2 Be blog

That Nurturing Presence

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Nurturing Presence

I was talking to someone the other day about my brand and my company, Write 2 Be, and I was explaining the message to her and she responded so positively to it. She conveyed some issues that her daughter has in school with bullying and with feeling that she doesn’t fit it because she’s not quite like the other kids, she’s unique and has an artistic mind, which most people who are not artistic cannot identify with. I could relate to her daughter’s issues because my daughter had been having the same and I too had those issues when I was younger in grade school.

Her mother shared excitement in the mentoring program that I am working on putting together, which centers around the premise of using the arts (which are sadly slowly being removed from our schools) as a way to foster courage and self-love, self-acceptance, and confidence in an individual’s uniqueness. She asked me what was taking so long because the kids growing up need a program like that (specifically in my area). I really could only respond with the fact that I would need a grant for that sort of program and the excuse that I still haven’t gathered up everything to put a grant proposal together for that yet.

It was nice and motivating to hear someone else so excited about what I am doing and what I want my brand to stand for. It got me to thinking about the fact that if more kids had this sort of mentoring program, one telling kids all the things that they can do versus telling them all of the things that they can’t do, or even worse, telling them all of the road blocks that will stand in their way, then maybe we would have more kids confident that they can be somebody and that they can be much more than their current circumstances or possibly more than their current environment (if they are not in a nurturing environment).

I think that if I had someone like that when I was growing up I wouldn’t have done so many stupid things to try and conform and fit in to what everyone else wanted me to be. I think that if someone had told me that I was special and that I was talented and that I could be anything that I wanted to be that it may not have taken so long for me to grasp that fact. I think that I definitely would have had a lot more confidence in myself and in the purpose that God gave me. I might have realized that it was my purpose a lot sooner.

There is nothing better for a child than for them to know that there is someone that believes in them. Even if it is only that one person, their parent(s), their sibling, their friend, that one teacher, or that one person who doesn’t have to, but that takes the time to nurture their gift, it matters. While I know that I am supposed to only be focused on living in the moment, I can’t help but wonder sometimes what would be different if my gifts were nurtured growing up. I know I can’t go back and change what I didn’t have growing up but I can make a difference for other children growing up today by creating that nurturing environment for their talents and gifts, for them to discover their purpose and tell them that they should do nothing less than go for it.

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

Getting My Creative House In Order

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Creativity 2

The space that you have to create in is very important to a writer, or to an artists’ in general. Sure it is said and has been proven that a writer can pretty much write anywhere, whether it’s just in their head while their driving around, or at a coffee shop in the hustle and bustle of everyday strangers. However, the space that a writer has at home or at wherever they choose to call their office, I’ve come to realize is incredibly important.

Looking over at the corner of my room that is designated as my office I am shocked at how out of order I have let it get. There are so many initiatives that I was supposed to take to spark my creativity on a daily, or at least regular basis but my working are does not depict that. My desk is cluttered, far more than I would like it to be, and my bulletin board contains lists of things to get done that just simply haven’t even been halfway accomplished. My vision board that I was supposed to have created by now, well the items to go on the vision board are scattered across my desk somewhere so clear it’s not displayed as it should be. Maybe that is why I am struggling with keeping my eye on the vision that I have and not veering off into the land of self-doubt.

You know how people get when it comes to Spring cleaning and emptying out their closets and getting their house in shape. Well that is how I feel when Fall rolls around about my writing space. I think that I need to take some time in this month of getting back to reigniting my creativity and refresh my creative space. I think that this is definitely something that I have to tackle during this month in order to truly get my creativity going strong again.

If your mind is already cluttered with ideas then there isn’t really a benefit to having a cluttered space in which you are supposed to create in. In a career such as being a writer where ideas and projects can be all over the place, you need something about your creative process to be focused and organized. So this weekend that is going to be one of the many things that I try to put into perspective. I am feeling the surge of creativity flow again, stronger than it has been in recent months, and I want to guard this surge with everything.

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

Creative Breakthrough

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Breakthrough

This month has done exactly what I wanted it to do by focusing more on the actual craft of writing. It has reignited some creativity that I truly was starting to believe I was losing little by little. I had all of these ideas in my head but they just weren’t coming out on paper and they weren’t really coming into focus. These ideas were in bits and pieces trying to formulate themselves and it just wasn’t happening. But somehow when I took this time to focus on the writing itself and not solely on the marketing and the business side of things it seems to have helped those pieces come together.

I have been putting more and more of my ideas down on paper and they are starting to seem like more of a real possibility. I have even started to have a breakthrough on some ideas for my next novel that I have been stuck on up until now. I feel myself coming out of the funk that I was in slowly and even though some of the obstacles that I have right now have not gone away or even clear up, I feel more hopeful about things these days.

I know that with these obstacles, or financial standstills rather, that worrying doesn’t make them go away and it doesn’t display my true faith in God and that he will never allow me to go through anything that I can’t get through. I trust that there is a reason for everything that we go through in this life and that nothing is without purpose. Perhaps I needed this standstill in my creativity to wake me up to the realization that I can’t wait for all of the stars to align perfectly and that I can’t waste any more time.

I’ve been working on not waiting until everything is perfect to begin. I know there are a lot of things that I do imperfectly so a huge part of my problem is that before I submit work anywhere or display an idea I want things to be perfect but when does perfection ever truly happen. I keep putting off doing things because I have convinced myself that unless they’re perfect they just won’t be good enough but that’s just my self-doubt creeping in to my subconscious.

These last couple of weeks of me just concentrating on my creativity within my writing and not stressing so much on the business end have made me remember where the passion I had for writing came from to begin with. Of course I have in no way forgotten that this is my business as well and that I do have to put effort into that but I definitely do not want to forget what made me fall in love with the power of words in the first place. I have to make sure I stay in love with the power of words.

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

The Comfort Zone is Not the Place to Be

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The comfort zone is not the place to be

In my last post I wrote about realizing once and for all that I have to let go of this fear that is paralyzing me. It got me thinking about how hard it is going to be to just shut down all of my fears. I know it’s not something that can happen overnight. I’ve had this fear lying inside me for so long whether it was fear of not succeeding or fear of actually being successful. I’ve been stuck in this comfort zone, which is odd that they call it that because it’s not actually comfortable to be stuck.

It’s not that I like how things are right now, or the lack of progress that I am seeing in my business. But there is a sense of comfort in already knowing how things are going to go. But I don’t want to live in the land of comfort anymore. I want to push the envelope and challenge myself. I don’t want things to be hard but I don’t want things to be completely easy either because I want to set higher bars for myself and rejoice when I meet them.

Comfort-ability is great for a moment but it will never sustain you on your journey to your dreams. There needs to be a shift in my life and I have to commit to this shift, this change and stay on track. I keep getting off the path because I see repeated stops to the land of comfort and on the surface it’s appealing.

In the comfort zone there are no high expectations to be met anymore. You’ve reached your current maximum potential and while it is a celebrated thing to do so, it also stirs a bit of inner conflict. You’ve reached the initial bar you set for your goals so do you maintain those particular goals and unintentionally become stagnant or do you see that bar, raise it higher once you’ve reached it, and push through until you reach the next level of your journey. I think that I inadvertently chose to stay stagnant but it most certainly was never my intention to.

I know that to reach my very big dreams that there are a lot of little goals that have to get accomplished along the way. I also realize that I can’t let fear of change whether it’s good or bad, stop me from moving forward and making progress. Change requires some manner of discomfort because you are going into the unknown. However, a change in direction could be more rewarding than staying on the road you’re most comfortable on. Being comfortable doesn’t get you anywhere close to you destination. It can only really hold you in place as your dream moves further away.

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

Fear Will Not Defeat Me

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Fear will not defeat me 2

I admittedly was a tad bit naïve to think that this going back to basics challenge was going to allow me to somehow negate the usage of the computer completely. Obviously my research is done using the computer, my social media marketing is done with the use of the computer, and of course eventually even what I write on paper has to be typed up on the computer at some point, perfect example, this blog post. I know my plan was to go paperless for the month but I can’t get away from the computer at all. However, I have been writing more using my paper and pen and writing out ideas and plans and it was has been more than I have worked on in a while.

I am discovering things that maybe subconsciously I already realized but just didn’t want to admit to. I always knew I struggled with my fear. It can be quite paralyzing at times. And while I also knew that confidence was another issue of mine, I didn’t even factor in courage into this journey of mine and whether I have enough of it to reach my destiny. I have always said that I may not be confident in myself in regards to anything else but when it came to writing, I was confident in my ability to write.

What I realize now is that this was a lie I was telling to myself. If in fact I was as confident in my ability to write as I have always claimed to be then why do I always stop short of submitting my work and putting my work out there? As I am finding my creative spark again and having a bit of a creative breakthrough I am getting real with myself and the fact that I have to just let go of all of this fear and embrace some courage and confidence. The courage to put my work out there to as many people as humanly possible, and confidence in the fact that although everyone may not love my work, my writing is still good enough.

I have been defeated by so many people and so many things and I think that all of the defeats stacking up really started getting to me and took the fear that I’ve always had and elevated it to the level of being paralyzed by it. Most of all I am realizing that what I have been defeated by most of all is myself and my own negative thoughts swirling around inside my head. So I am going to let the fear go (it will not happen overnight) and just trust in the talent that God instilled in me and trust the purpose that he gave me and embrace everything that lies in store for the journey to my dreams, good or bad.

Yes I included the bad because I know that without the obstacles that are thrown at you along the way you may never know and tap into just how strong you really are. You can’t have a testimony to share with the world without first being tested. I am tired of letting the fear of these obstacles put me in a state of perpetual stillness and I am ready to get moving towards my destiny. I hope that none of you are stuck standing still but if you are, let’s get moving together.

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

Some Things Just Can’t Be Shared

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Some things Cant be shared

“Stop telling your BIG dreams to small-minded people”

~Steve Harvey

I keep seeing the above quote by Steve Harvey pop up in my Facebook timeline as if a sign and Saturday it became so much more relevant to me. It’s interesting when people who don’t have their own business and who don’t have a childhood dream that they’re trying to bring into fruition attempt to tell someone who does what is and isn’t important. Someone actually remarked that an out of town Skate trip was more important than anything else I could possibly have had going on.

Now anyone who is friends with me on Facebook knows that I have developed a big interest in skating (roller skating) and that I really enjoy it and the people that I have met through it a lot. It’s a form of exercise for me and my daughter and it’s a big stress reliever for me when the rest of the world seems to not be going quite the way I want it to go. However, while it has become a lifestyle for others it is not my lifestyle, my lifestyle is writing and things that foster my craft and my business. I am not going to waste (and yes I said waste) money on something when my dream needs my investment.

It is a reminder (a constant one) that I can’t expect everyone to understand how important my business and my craft of writing is to me and my livelihood and my way of living. I can’t expect people who don’t have bigger goals for themselves then just the immediate present and what’s happening right now to understand the mind of a person who has outrageously big dreams that are only the beginnings of an empire.

It does get frustrating when I have to keep explaining that what’s important to others is not necessarily what is important to me but that’s where my problem lies. I shouldn’t have to explain it, in fact I don’t have to keep explaining myself. My big dreams are mine and mine alone and God gave this vision to me so I’m going to stop sharing my vision with people who are simply not like-minded and who wouldn’t understand. Some people’s vision just doesn’t fully expand and I can’t let their lack of understanding in my dream cause me to doubt my vision.

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

Like-Minded Creative Types

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like minded creative types

They say birds of a feather flock together and as a child that saying doesn’t appear to hold a lot of meaning. When you are a kid you think that just because the person that you have dubbed as your new best friend does things that you don’t necessarily agree with and have a few personality traits that you might learn to overlook, that it doesn’t say anything about you and the person that you are. In theory it sounds nice, and perhaps it should be that way, but the reality is that it’s not.

You don’t realize it when you’re that young because you don’t, or rather, you can’t see what other people see and you don’t have that kind of clarity when you’re younger. However, as you get older, the birds of a feather phrase starts to reveal its relevance in your life and it is more stated as place yourself around like-minded people.

As you all know I have been struggling with my creativity lately, not necessarily with coming up with ideas but mostly with the follow through of those ideas, the productivity. After a conversation the other day with a friend who I hadn’t talked to in a while, I realized that one of the problems that I might have brought on myself when it comes to my creativity issues is that that I hadn’t done a good enough job of managing the people around me.

In that conversation the other day we bounced ideas back and forth and mainly I got to discuss a lot of my ideas to someone who hadn’t really heard them before. In many ways it reinvigorated my motivation to follow through with and produce those ideas because obviously I want to see those ideas come to fruition. I felt like that conversation helped a little to pull me up out of the funk that I have been in. It was a conversation about creative ideas with another creative individual who has creative ambitions just like I do.

It also reinforced just how important it is to place yourself around people who want the same things that you do and have the same manner of ambition that you have. Of course I don’t mean the same exact ideas and goals but someone that understands where you’re coming from and that you can bounce off ideas and aspirations off of that’s not going to look at you with a blank clueless stare because they simply don’t get it, not because they aren’t capable of comprehending what you’re saying but because it’s not where their head is at so they don’t get you.

I have met some wonderful people recently, in the last year and a half or so, and they are fun people who have, admittedly helped me open up a little and somewhat come out of my hibernation shell (lol), but their ideas of what’s important aren’t my ideas of what’s important. Their idea of fun is not the same thing as my idea of fun, and their priorities are not in line with what my priorities are. They don’t get my creative side and it’s okay because that’s not their thing but it is mine.

I get tired of explaining myself and my goals and ambitions to people who frankly can’t understand those things. It makes me yearn even more for a creative network around me and I only really have a couple of people that I can express my creative self to. The number one person that I could always express those creative ideas to moved further away to North Carolina and frankly doesn’t seem to have time for me anymore, almost as if she’s forgotten our friendship. This leaves me wanting more creative people in my circle.

I am trying to make steps to interact more with creative people who can enhance my creativity even further and bring out in me things that I may be reluctant to display. That is something that I have already discovered as my month of going back to the basics in my writing has just started. It’s going to be interesting to see what else I discover in this month of simply putting pen to paper and letting the words flow.

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

A Point of Light

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Point of Light

I came across a speech that Tyler Perry made at a conference a couple of weeks ago, nothing too long but as always with anything he has to say it was extremely effective. He spoke about having and being a point of light. Of how we all have that person or those people who have a certain power to pull you out of those deep dark places that your mind can tend to go to when you are struggling along your journey to success. Or that can physically rescue you from a situation that you should no longer be in anymore. He also spoke of how we too can be that point of light for others and that maybe some of us already have been that for people and we may not even realize it. He spoke of how whatever we do in this life should have a purpose, a point, that can help others pull themselves out of that dark place.

After I finished watching his speech I thought about how I hope that I could someday be that for someone else because I could already pinpoint at least three people who have been that point of light for me. Then I thought about my blog and how, even though I am mostly just expressing my own thoughts or opinions about things, sometimes I will come across a comment that someone left me telling me how something I wrote inspired them or helped them that particular day. It gives me chills to think that I might actually be doing what I set out to do when I created my Write 2 Be brand and that all of the ideas that I have for Write 2 Be to inspire others and be a guiding point for those who are cautiously walking along the path of who they are meant to be.

The whole message of Write 2 Be is to get people to understand that you don’t have to worry about what other people or society thinks about, that you should focus on being the very best version of yourself that you can because as much as society can voice their opinion about someone doing this or that, they can’t be that person, they can’t be you. My message is strongly geared at children, particularly those who have been or are being bullied for being different, for being unique, and being special so that these future creative geniuses won’t apologize for being different and so that they don’t feel that they need to be anybody else but who they were born to be. They have that right to be whoever it is they want to be, whoever it is that God placed them on this earth to be.

So I hope that Write 2 Be will be that point of light for these young creative geniuses coming up, and even for the ones who have already created their little niche but struggle with wanting to fit in with everyone else who might not have your unique vision and perspective. I certainly think that Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey, and Cyrus Webb are points of light and of course my best friend who is a media mogul in the making LaMonique Hamilton. They are people who inspire me and show me that if you want something bad enough you can make your dream happen but not only that, that you can help others make their dreams happen as well just by not being afraid to fulfill your purpose and be unapologetically yourself.

So find time this weekend to honor your points of light but also to most importantly be a point of light for others. There is no other more rewarding feeling than knowing that something you did or said helped or inspired someone else, that you were the light that pulled them through, even if only part of the way!

 

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

When Having It All Can No Longer Masks the Pain

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hiding behind a smile

The passing of Robin Williams on Tuesday has understandably left the world shocked and speechless. I personally felt like the world lost a little part of its magic because he was such a funny human being that brought so much joy into people’s lives. Obviously I never met him so I can’t speak to who he was with first-hand knowledge but he was one of those people that you always felt, in watching him, that you could relate to him. He was inspiring to watch and on the days when I just didn’t feel like much of anything he made me laugh.

One of the things that I am hearing most is how it could be possible that someone who made everyone around him laugh so much wasn’t happy himself. If anything good comes from his tragic death it is the open forum that it leaves for us to really take a look at what depression is. I find it striking just how many creative people, writers, comedians, actors and actresses, singers, dancers’, just creative types in general, struggle with depression. What’s even more alarming is that the majority of comedians in particular are said to be masking the reality of their inner pain with the outward satisfaction of making others pain go away with a moment’s laughter.

People don’t talk about depression, as if it is something to be ashamed of. And then there are some who just don’t take depression seriously because it is a disease that you can’t see. I know that I personally suffer from bouts of depression and feelings of hopelessness. A lot of my writing serves as my own brand of therapy to cope and sometimes it helps and others it doesn’t. There were many times in my teens and my early twenties that I just didn’t want to be here on this earth anymore and there were attempts made that weren’t successful (obviously) but it’s just never been something to talk about with people. I am only recently starting to talk to my closest friends about the depression that I suffered and that I sometimes still feel creep up inside of me when things seem to not be going right.

Talking about depression doesn’t make it go away but it certainly does help people who are dealing with it feel less alone. In talking with others you sometimes realize that you aren’t the only one who is suffering with this disease. More importantly we need to open up a discussion about it because it doesn’t just strike in adults, it oftentimes starts when you are a child. Children today are going through so much more than people realize from being bullied, to domestic violence in the home, to feeling like you just are not quite good enough. We need to stop being afraid to talk about this disease or feeling stigmatized by it.

Depression hides behind those smiles that you see on your loved one’s faces and it can be covered up with excuses of being tired or purely exhausted, or even in their loss of appetite or on the flip side that sudden urge to devour every item of food in sight because food doesn’t judge you. Depression does not just jump out at you and shout that it’s there and a lot of times the person struggling through it may not even realize that that is in fact what they are struggling with. So pay attention to your loved ones and don’t just downplay a developing pattern of behavior simply because you’re too busy to pay attention to what may really be going on.

I think that Robins Williams’ death shows us that even the most successful and seemingly happy people can have pain inside them that they can’t see their way past. Depression doesn’t just take place in a certain class, culture, or area. It is everywhere and can strike anyone. For those out there that envy the lifestyle of a celebrity (and I am guilty of this too), you should be reminded that you could be the person that seems to have it all, to have everything that would make almost anyone happy, but that does not mean that you are truly happy and that you don’t suffer. No one has to suffer from this alone. If you know someone who you think could be suffering from depression, don’t try and wait for the right moment to do something about it, there isn’t one. And if you are that person, don’t wait until it’s too late to talk to someone about it. Talking really does help.

 

R.I.P. Robin Williams

Robin Williams

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv

What Are You Waiting For

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What are you waiting for

I saw this wonderful message that was shared through Cyrus Webb’s Facebook page by Shari Alyse about waiting for things to happen in life. It made me think about how I seem to always find myself waiting for that right moment; the right moment to start my business, the right moment to publish my next book, the right moment to launch the next avenue of my business, the right moment to take my magazine into print form bi-monthly.

I realize that I could have accomplished so many things by now if I weren’t waiting for the right time to do something. We don’t get another life to live, we only have this one, and we can either spend it living or waiting for the perfect lives that we want so we can start living that perfect life. The truth is, there is no perfect life, no perfect time, no perfect situation, no perfect scenario and trying to wait until that perfect moment is just going to waste valuable time.

I’m guilty of being a perfectionist and wanting to wait until everything is aligned just right before I even start the process of trying to accomplish a task and I truly feel like that is the reason why I haven’t managed to get half of the things that I wanted done. If we want to live our best possible life then we have to do exactly that, live it. Sitting around and waiting for something to happen or for something to be right in our eyes is not living your life. It is watching everyone else around you live theirs while you’re still sitting there expecting that perfect sign to show up and let you know that you can go get started now.

What are we losing out on when we are waiting for perfect? We are missing the moment that is here now. So in your daily struggle to achieve what’s on your to-do list for this week, or this month, or this year (well the rest of this year), try not to think so much about that perfect moment that may never come. Just start where you are, right now, right in this moment!

 

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

Write 2 Be Media/Write 2 Be Magazine

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

http://write2bemagazine.com/

https://twitter.com/write2bemag

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

https://twitter.com/jcladyluv