Hey Guys!

If you’ve been following my site for a while, you know how I am when I have been away. I start off with this paragraph about how sorry I am for staying away for so long and how I hated the thought of not posting much. Then I’ll say the last thing I want to do is let my supporters down by not sharing enough content. Then I’ll write a heartfelt message and I’ll feel really good about it. My mission will be to remain an inspiration and messenger to others who are reading this right now.

I will write it.

I will post it.

I will engage and talk to people sharing different perspectives and life stories.

I will feel very good about my finished work on my site leaving me happy that I have such a wonderful platform that has expanded over the years.

I will feel all of these things…and then BOOM! I go back into my introverted shell. I go back into my daily routine of work life. I find my “life remote control” and shut off again from the world leaving people wondering, “why isn’t Oprah writing? Why isn’t she posting any of her work? How come she can’t be consistent in her writing like she should?!”

Trust me, I know people may have the questions, but very few ask why I’m not writing when they know I should be. Sometimes I have an answer and sometimes I don’t. The most important thing is that my excuses don’t matter. They really don’t.

The harsh reality is I wasn’t writing like I should because I got so deep in a sunken place in my personal life where I felt like my words didn’t matter anymore…so who cares if I post or not? Who will care if I don’t post or write for months? No one will notice, right?

People did notice. And those people knocked some sense into my head. The people in your life who shame you in a good way and don’t mind telling you to pursue your dreams are more vital than we can imagine. The ones who ask about your self-care. The ones who hold you accountable for what you say that you’re going to do. The ones who call you out on your bull**** when they know you can do better. Those people are important! Keep them around and love on them like they love on you. Motivate them like they motivate you.

I have learned that you have to be surrounded by IRON to become IRON.

Some days I feel like iron, ready for anything and feeling like Wonder Woman. I feel so fearless and free! There is nothing I can’t do. Man, I love those days!

Then something unfortunate happens turning me in MUSH instantly. I have a bad day. I have a bad week. I have a bad thought. Something bad happens in my life. Something happens that causes a bad reaction, and suddenly I don’t feel like iron anymore…

It’s crazy how one bad thought or bad experience can threaten the person we are supposed to be.

It’s crazy how we question our worth when bad things happen to us.

A few months ago, my cousin told me she read the book Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes. She told me that I HAVE to read this book. As an avid reader, I already had a hardcover copy of it sitting comfortably on my book shelf for years. FOR YEARS. After she told me how much she enjoyed it, I told her I would take a stab at it and start reading it. I mean, why not? I picked the book up from the shelf skimming the pages reading the synopsis first. It intrigued me, so I started reading the book that same day.

Year of Yes was definitely like a fast car speeding right in my direction. It made me uncomfortable because of all the relatable things Shonda was battling with and some parts were like looking in a MIRROR. In the first chapter, Shonda’s oldest sister Dolores flat out told her, “You never say YES to anything.”

I cringed when I read that part because it dawned on me that I also fit that shoe. That statement was my ugly and necessary truth.

I AM THAT PERSON. The person who never says YES to anything! Where is the CHAMPION in me?

This book already had me in a choke hold by Chapter 6 and that’s all I could handle the first day. I had to stop reading and instantly start praying. As I prepared my dinner that night, the words from the chapters were still sinking mentally in my head. I prayed about the new found wisdom that just grabbed me. So, I wrote my thoughts down in my prayer journal and made a promise to myself that I shall be more intentional about my life goals.

“You never yes to anything.”

Overall, the book was amazing and I learned so much about Shonda Rhimes’s journey that I didn’t know. Year of Yes is definitely a gem I will probably read again in my lifetime because its so inspiring, yet the honest truth in a nutshell. Year of Yes taught me to be more bold and more smart in making decisions. It is also a gentle reminder of how far you can go with the art of discipline.

“Saying no has gotten me here.

Here sucks.

Saying yes might be my way to someplace better.

If not a way to someplace better, at least to someplace different.”

Shonda Rhimes, “Year of Yes”

“Yes to everything scary.

“Yes to everything that takes me out of my comfort zone.

Yes to everything that feels like it might be crazy.

Yes to everything that feels out of character.

Yes to everything that feels goofy.

Yes to everyting.

Everything.

Say yes.

Yes!”

s”

Shonda Rhimes, “Year of Yes”

In 2024, let’s say YES to the things that scare us and things that get us out of our comfort zones!

Until next time,

Zip.