Tag Archives: positive thinking

12 Tips for Overcoming Your Fear of Going into Business

Posted on by
1

This is 2014, I celebrate 27 years of being in business for myself.  In this series I share twelve  tips on how to not be afraid to go into business.  The first four are: Facing Fear, Having A Compelling Why?, Opportunity, and Timing.

  1. To Fear or Not to Fear Is Not the Deciding Factor:  I started my business in 1987 and I can’t honestly say that I wasn’t afraid back then, for I’m sure I felt something venturing into the unknown.  I could name that energy excitement or name it fear.  But, what I’d like to say about fear is, even if you are afraid, DO IT ANYWAY! You will be afraid sometimes; that’s life.  The only way to overcome fear is to face it. If you allow all of those negative “What If” questions to take hold, you’ll never go into business.   Sometimes that fear is cathartic; other times it’s cancerous.  If it points out essential knowledge, skills, and resources you need, acknowledge it and then figure out how to get what you need.
  2. Our decisions are either FEAR-based or FAITH-based, one excites you, the other paralyzes you.  But in the end, fear is only a thought.  You have to consciously focus on that thought in order for it to derail you.  So the solution is clear. Don’t focus on what you fear or don’t want!  If you want to start a business, you have a lot to be thinking about, the name, the business structure, the product, the team, the marketing (benefits), the money, the audience, the delivery method etc.  Will you go it alone or will you choose at network marketing company. Once you decide you have something viable to offer, focus on that and you’ll have very little time left over to just worry.
  3. Must Have A Compelling Why?– Begin by asking yourself the question, “Why do I want to go into business?” The answer to that question must be compelling enough to carry you through the fear, the doubt, the naysayers, the frustration, and the despair that you will no doubt experience at some time.  My “WHY” was that I wanted to work at home, to be able to guide and protect my kids.  I didn’t know how I was going to do it at that time.  In retrospect, none of that really mattered anyway.  The universe takes care of ‘how’ for committed faithful people.  I just had to DECIDE to do it and set a goal.  If you’ve got something that the world needs, share it! My compelling ‘WHY’ was to save my kids and I didn’t want them to be latch-key kids.  My “WHY” kept me going through the fear.
  4. Seize the Opportunity and Just Do It!= There will never be a perfect time to go into business.  Although I had set a 6-year goal to go into business, I actually accomplished it within a couple of years.  I had to decide to do it and then start doing it. I’d like to say I had a great plan, but I didn’t at first.  Some read a book about how to drive and then drive.  Others, like myself watch other people and then just do it.  I learned how to be in business by “just jumping in.  It was “sink or swim,” so I learned how to swim.  Now if you’ve got the option to dip your feet in the water, by all means, do that if that will ease your fear.  Now, I’ve found that only serious wholehearted and unlimited faith, hard work, and tenacity will keep you going, but first you’ve got to get going.
  5. Don’t Wait for the Perfect Time– There never will be a perfect time.  And, it was not the perfect time for me either.  I was 7 months pregnant, laid off from my job, had a teen on drugs,  had no money to start a business, and within a couple of months I would be giving birth to my 5th child.  But, I didn’t allow excuses into the equation;  I focused on my ‘WHY.”  I had to act like I was in business.  So I started telling folks, setting up my office, and preparing myself.  Word, got around and I got some business and was “in business.  Continue

I’m Barbara Talley, The Poet who speaks and inspires.   To find more about me, check out my promo sheet or visit  my website.

Why African Americans Need to Learn Strategies for Building Wealth?

Posted on by
Reply

This is Black History Month, so I’m focusing this article on African Americans but the knowledge contained herein can benefit anyone.  The wealth gap is widening and African Americans need to learn new strategies for building wealth. “Median black household income was 59% of median white household income in 2011, up modestly from 55% in 1967; as recently as 2007, black income was 63% of white income.” [Source: PEW] It is often said that African Americans are a nation of consumers instead of creators. However, our survival depends on us changing from primarily being consumers to being the suppliers and creators of the products and services we consume.

money

African Americans have a projected buying power of $1.1 trillion by 2015. That’s a lot of dough to be distributed. Wealth is not a dirty or evil word reserved for those who are lucky, greedy, or lazy and seeking to take advantage of others!  Wealth is a vital birthright that offers the freedom to make choices that allow us to live joyful and fulfilling lives. Everyone has the right to life in dignity and to pursue their dreams.  

Watching my stepmother get denied medical services at age 85, and watching her toes blacken and almost rot off as she screamed in pain, taught me a very valuable lesson. Poverty is not pretty, spiritual, or dignified. She could not afford the care she desperately needed to live in dignity and I was powerless to help her. It takes money to help those you love, to choose the medical care of your choice, to buy the materials, training, and resources we need to excel in our crafts, to invest in our businesses, to give to charity, to tithe generously, to eat healthily, to travel, to vacation, to be there mentally for our families, or to live in safe and beautiful neighborhoods.

Growing up, I had only been trained how to trade time for dollars, which rarely if ever, builds wealth. At times my father was an entrepreneur, and during those times we worked even harder. I realized that if I kept following that old paradigm I would be destined to end up like those written about in a recent Forbes article, The Greatest Retirement Crisis in American History, which dismally projects that 75%  of those now approaching retirement have less than $30,000 in savings. And, that paltry amount won’t last that long, with the average nursing home stay (God forbid) being around $248.00 a day or $90,000 a year. So for that reason,  as well as, the dollar declining since 1972, and the cost of living projected to double over the next decade, the vast majority of people today are forced to delay their retirement. I did not grow up around wealth nor did my parents talk about wealth or teach me about it. They taught me to work hard, so I know how to do that. They worked hard their entire lives and still only barely eked out a living and died practically penniless.  They could not teach me what they did not know.  They did not know that the only way to build wealth was to have money work for you or people work for you.  That explains why the majority of small black entrepreneurs fail to build wealth either. They are primarily sole proprietors and thus still trading time for money.  To continue to part two, click here.

Warren Buffet advises aspiring wealth builders to have multiple streams of income.  Speaking, authorship, and training is my passion work.  I love doing it! But, I’ve learned that if I stop speaking or training, the income also stops.  I too want the freedom that comes with wealth, to be able to work with populations who can’t afford me, to be able to help my children and grandchildren, and to not have to worry about retirement after raising six children and working over 50 years already. 

Email me for more information about how to bring me in to speak to your group, OR train your employees. Luck has very little to do with wealth, but timing has everything to do with it. What if you had been able to be part of the beginning of Google, Facebook, and Microsoft?  How would your life be different now? You missed them but you haven’t missed them all. Email me to learn more about Talkfusion, a disruptive technology poised to be the next billion dollar brand. I’ll direct you to an on-line presentation that explains it all.

Barbara Talley
To your wealth
barbara.talley@gmail.com

Seven Life Lessons from Priming the Pump

Posted on by
Reply

hand pump fountainDo you remember the  60’s show, Green Acres with Eddie Albert and Zsa Zsa Gabor?  He wanted the farm life and she wanted the city life. I’ve tried both, and I prefer the suburbs!  I  grew up in the country, pumping water, chopping wood, making fires, and with all sorts of  chores. I’d like to say that, “Those were the good ole days, but they were not.”  Times were hard and we worked even harder. Now of course there are few things I miss. First are the people in life back then that are no longer with me anymore, a mother, father, brothers, friends.  Next was the weeping willow tree that I would lie under and dream. Those days did however teach me to work hard.  They also taught me the value of indoor plumbing and furnace heat. (LOL!) Looking back, it makes me appreciate even more what I have now.

I will also always have the memories of “priming the pump” to remind of the value of saving a little, working hard, having the willingness to sacrifice now for the bigger goal in the future, and to remember to take time out to enjoy what I’ve worked for.  The lessons I learned are:

    1. Always Have Faith and Certitude. Smart people rarely go after a goal that they don’t believe in.  We understand that we can’t (or won’t) run towards a goal that we have no faith that we can reach.  If we do, our steps are tentative and unsure. Luckily, we did not doubt as children.  We were showed how to pump and told to do it, and we did, time after time.  We believed; even though we could not see the water underground, we believed that the water was always there. All we had to do was work for it.  You too must also have complete faith and certitude that you have greatness within you and in the goal you are pursuing.  Faith is the key to starting, persevering, and finishing.
    2. Don’t Allow Yourself to Get Empty. We learned to always save a little water to prime the pump for the next time.  We never used our last bit of water, before re-filling our containers.  This relates to our goals in this way. Take care of yourself. It’s okay to help and serve others, but don’t deplete every ounce of your energy.  When you are worn-out, you are subject to all sorts of mental, physical, and spiritual illnesses. My sister would always say, “Stay prayed up!” You’ve got to protect yourself.  If you allow yourself to get too run down or too sick, or too hopeless, it becomes harder (and in some cases) almost impossible to regain your strength, your faith,  or to reach your goals.
    3. You Have to Put Something In Before You Get Anything Out. All of the lessons are important, but this one is the deal breaker. We knew that we had to sacrifice in advance to get something better later.  We had to sacrifice our water, our time, and our energy before we could expect something in return. There is a lesson in this for you too. You don’t get something for nothing. There is no credit in the well of life, meaning “Give me now and I’ll pay later.”  You must pay the piper first. Now the interesting thing was, sometimes if we hadn’t planned well, we’d have to use our last bit of water.  We’d pour the last bit we had into the pump in order to get more.  We were willing to make that sacrifice. The lesson was simple. If we weren’t willing to give it up our water, we would not be able to tap into the unlimited!
    4. You Must Be Ready; No Procrastination Allowed.  Now imagine this, once you’ve poured your limited (or last) supply of water into the pump, then you have to start pumping vigorously.  If you don’t start pumping (and pumping hard), you not only risk not getting any new water, but you will have just lost what little you had of the old.  Once we made the decision to prime the pump, we had to be ready. No procrastination was allowed. There was no time to do something else, make an excuse, or think about it. You had to see it through.
    5. Don’t Stop Until You Reach Your Goal.  Persevering with the pumping was the most critical stage. It didn’t matter how tired you were, how hot or cold it was outside, how you felt, how people felt about you, or anything at that point. You had to focus on pumping and persevere until you saw the results you sought. Sometimes we were lucky, we’d pump a little and waters would start flowing immediately.  Other times, we would pump and pump and not seem to get any results.  Sometimes we would have to add a little more water, some times we had to pump even harder, and other times you just have to pump longer.  The key is that we do what we had to do.  Excuses and quitting were never options.
    6. Give Back! We also learned to keep a certain jug set aside just for priming and we’d fill it before we would habitually fill the other containers so we wouldn’t forget.  The lesson, always give back and save a little.
    7. Enjoy Your Spoils.  Once the water starts flowing, it’s hard to stop it!  Victory is sweet! You have tapped into an unlimited underground reservoir. The fresh water under the ground was always so cold and refreshing especially on a very hot day.  On the cold days, that’s a whole different story.  It just meant that you got to go inside in the warmth and make some hot cocoa or something. Either way, we’d met our goal and that felt good!

That’s it!  Now go prime your own pump and reap your own rewards.

Barbara

Infuse Every Intention with Positive Energy

Posted on by
3

mastermind carnegieDale Carnegie wrote, “It is the mind that makes the body rich. No man can become rich without enriching others.” Isn’t that the highest goal of our life, to enrich our lives by enriching others? We are powerful; our every thought, word, and action stems from an intention and has a far reaching effect. Each effect is either enriching others or depleting them. Each time you think a thought, open your mouth to speak, or act, you are sending powerful energy out into the world. You then become part of what is healing our world or part of what is hurting it.

Each of us is born with something valuable to share with the world. You matter; I matter; everyone matters. Much of the mental illness, depression, and confusion people experience today is because they don’t realize how much they matter. The daily onslaught of negativity, fault-finding, and discouragement has convinced them that they don’t matter. They mistakenly were looking on the outside for validation of their worth when the answers are inside. Each of us was born to share; everyone’s contribution matters! Find out what that is and share it!

In the Bible it states that after everything was created, God said, “That is good!”  That means each of us has good in us. Let’s make every moment reverent by looking for the good in others and encouraging them.

Wouldn’t it be great if we all were habitual “good finders” instead of “fault finders?”

Each step, each word, each thought, and each action must be infused with grace, kindness, and love for others. Human beings were created to honor, respect, and worship our Creator by honoring and respecting His Creation. I am in no way equating myself to the Omnipotent One, but I don’t think you can honor someone and dishonor what they’ve created and value.

As a mother, a person who wants to show me respect would lose that if they disrespected my children or my creations.  And, if they respected and showed kindness to my children, they would gain favor with me.  I think it must also be so with our Creator. How can we say we worship God (Yah, Allah, or whatever name  we associate with that Most Great Spirit), and yet disrespect, dishonor, and discourage His creation?

Three ways to help you figure out what your unique contribution (if you don’t know) is:

1) What do you enjoy doing? (The world needs more joyful servants who serve with love, kindness, and joy.)

2) What needs does the world have that you can satisfy?  (Find a need and fill it.)

3) What does your spirit inspire you to do during your prayer and meditation? (Don’t know? Ask!)

 “Work done in the spirit of service and to excellence is worship!”

This quote paraphrased from the Baha’i Writings sums it all up for me.

Barbara

Happy New Year!!!

Posted on by
Reply
Happy New Year from Barbara Talley

Happy New Year from Barbara Talley, Speaker, Author, and Poet (The Poet Speaks)

How many times have you said, read, or heard this greeting, “Happy New Year?” Probably too many to count.  And yet, how many times have you stopped to think about what will actually make you happy in this coming new year?

When you stop to really think about it, these words offer a blessing and perhaps a promise to all that say, hear, and heed them.  Everyone has heard of the benefits inherent in affirmations. Well, “Happy New Year” is a wonderful affirmation. Most however don’t really think about the blessings and promises inherent in this familiar greeting.  But, let’s change that; let’s focus on these three simple words: three thoughts, three promises; three reminders for the coming year!

HAPPY

The first blessing, promise, or affirmation is to be happy. Each of us must be clear about what makes us happy and focus on doing more of that. To get the answer, we must first ask the question:

“What do I think (know) will make me happy?”  What you think about, you bring about!

Have you really thought about what makes you happy and allowed yourself to want it and bring it about? So many allow others to talk us out of our true dreams and desires. And, have you thought about how to make others happy? Too much thinking on only one’s own happiness can make you selfish.  Too much thinking on only what makes others happy can make you a resentful, unhappy sacrificial martyr. That doesn’t make you happy either. We have to have balance. Being aware and concerned about our own happiness and that of others is intertwined anyway.  Did you know that by being happy, you help others to be happy?  Happiness is just as contagious as unhappiness. Did you know that there is a science to being happy?

Deepak Chopra described two types of happiness, the first was the happiness that we get from “getting what we want.”  The second is the happiness we get from just “being our authentic spiritual selves” by acknowledging who we are and developing/sharing the gifts within us.  The first type of happiness is dependent on outside events, circumstances, and people; the second is independent of these and more stable. The Chopra Center is offering a free 8-week course on happiness.  You might want to check it out.  Because in the end, isn’t happiness our ultimate goal?

NEW

The second promise is NEW! Things, ideas, and people change and some no longer serve a useful purpose in your life.  Sometimes accepting the “new” means letting go of the “old”.  Isn’t it great that we get to learn from the past and start anew, building on the knowledge gained from the past?  Newness is built into the fabric of our universe. Each day when the sun rises we get a new day or gift of 24 brand new hours.  We get a new month twelve times a year.  And we get a new year every 12 months, 52 weeks, or 365 (approximate) days.

NEW implies a fresh opportunity. We get to start a new chapter in our lives.  Some people approach the “new” year with the same old fears, hangups, habits, limiting beliefs and baggage from the preceding year. This is an opportunity or milestone to ‘let go!” The new year is an opportunity to draw a line in the sand and to say, “I’m starting all over; letting go; or becoming more serious or committed to the dreams and aspirations I’ve chosen.  No one wants to feel like a quitter or that they are giving up, and making changes now helps you to avoid that stigma. A new year gives us that opportunity.  And while we don’t have to wait for the turning of the calendar page to turn over a new leaf, it is a special time that we have support, reminders, and the inspiration to do so.  Some things in your life need to be ‘new’ and some things needs to be “renewed”, reaffirmed and recommitted to.  You decide!

YEAR

2014 is the gift of another year to make our mark, to make a difference, and to make our lives and the lives of those around us more meaningful.  What do you want to accomplish this year?  What are you committing to accomplish this year?  What do you want to become?  What do you want to give?  What do you want to feel, attract, or experience? Bless yourself by taking some time right now (or carving out in the near future) to decide how you are going to spend this brand new year!  Make sure your goals are SMART. In my next post, I’ll share about how to make SMARTER GOALS. Until then, “Happy New Year!”

Barbara