Living Strong: The Flip Side of Adversity

In The Realm Of Peace, Stress Finds No Lease

As we are ending 2023, many of us plan for the new year, new me. We look forward to setting new goals, dreams, aspirations and even new focal point. We hope to wipe our plate clean of all the draining, hard stressors that has caused us pain. To look forward to something new is not a bad thing, but have we considered looking at the stressors not as something to toss or forget but to help us look at what areas in our heart and life do we need to realign and refocus to build a healthy foundation to alleviate the stress. Many times, we can be the source of our stress by carrying unnecessary burdens or attempting to control something that is out of our control or just wasn’t for us to fix. By us not acknowledging it or calling it out, we attempt to make a new foundation over shaky ground. Let’s discuss what it means to face the root of stress to create a firm ground to flourish and thrive in and on a new foundation into the new year.
“Therapy is more about building new associations, making new, healthier default pathways. It is almost as if therapy is taking your two-lane dirt road and building a four-lane freeway alongside it. The old road stays, but you don’t use it much anymore. Therapy is building a better alternative, a new default. And that takes repetition, and time, honestly, it works best if someone understands how the brain changes. This is why understanding how trauma impacts our health is essential for everyone.” ~ Dr. Bruce Perry

Encore Being The Best Version Of You

Success is not a destination. It is a life-long strategy of empowerment that builds on strengths, minimizes weaknesses, and focuses on the people and points of life that are most important. To reach our potential, we must be intentional about personal, spiritual, and mental growth. Join me in a conversation with Yvonne Richardson, entrepreneur, master stylist, mentor, content creator, and…. My “accountability partner” for growth! It’s time for R.E.A.L. Talk (Relationships, Elevation, Attitude, and Leadership) that’s not just around “goal setting” but getting a growth mindset.

Encore How One Handbag Carried A Woman To Major Success

MinkeeBlue Founder and designer, Sherrill Mosee, set out to solve a problem she calls the “overload bag syndrome.” She wanted to create an organizational fashion bag for busy women whose roles changed throughout the day. Mosee put her degree in engineering to work and came up with the patented MinkeeBlue design. During MinkeeBlues' first launch, Sherrill experienced a ton of orders and ordered 1200 bags but 30% of them were defective therefore she lost a lot of revenue. How do you manage the highs, lows, and losses of running a business and creating a powerful brand that revolutionizes the way consumers think about a product?

Lens of Grace: Seeing Motherhood, Trauma & Grief Thru Photography

Embark on a profound visual and emotional journey in this episode of Lens of Grace' Join us as we delve into the intricate layers of rediscovering motherhood, coping with grief, and finding grace through the transformative power of photography. Each frame captures the nuanced essence of parenthood, navigating the depths of sorrow, and ultimately discovering a path to grace. This episode unfolds as a poignant exploration of the universal themes of love, loss, and resilience, inviting you to witness the profound beauty that emerges through the lens.

Breaking Generational Curses

How do you deal with dysfunctional love and negative words from your past?
How did those experiences affect the way you approach relationships yourself and others now?
Let’s talk about breaking free from toxic mindsets and negativity legacies passed down to us. Breaking, dropping, and leaving habits that no longer serve us - even though they may have been given to us to survive.
We are talking about practical steps and moments to actively work towards breaking these cycles and cultivating growth, thriving opportunities, and creating turning points with Michele Steele.

Encore Disruption Is Necessary For Destiny

Some people are uncomfortable with the disruption that change causes, but the disruption is necessary if anything is going to change. After our first year of hosting Flip Side Stories with amazing guests, the power of leveraging disruptions to navigate discomfort and access destiny moments has never been more relevant for me. Join me for our one year anniversary show and highlights from the top ten shows. Change is the only constant in life and I have learned so much form guests this year about resilience in change and moving forward. If you have felt like quitting? Have you thought the last interruption derailed your opportunities? Are you exhausted from uncertainty and change? I am picking the most powerful lessons from past quests that have kept me moving forward in this new adventure… creating my Flip Side moments on the other side of uncertainty, discomfort, and vulnerability. Tune in for bright spots, clear strategies, and the chance to change perspective and push forward in your passion.

Real Leaders - Relate, Grow, Listen

We all crave connection and belonging. Our conversation will focus on how intentionally prioritizing connection creates an atmosphere of belonging for the staff we partner with and the families we serve. When our programs were afforded the opportunity for coaching from a trauma-informed lens, we understood this must also include the program leadership. We highly value the idea of professional and personal growth, and we realize that we must be willing to be vulnerable to the growth process in order to partner with our staff to grow in their own ways. In turn, our home visitors partner with families in this same growth process, so one of the core concepts we have embraced is that our work is a parallel process.
We value the relationships we have with each other and with each individual staff member. We imbed strategies into our work to ensure there is space for relationship building. We utilize reflective supervision on a consistent basis to make every effort for each person to feel seen, heard and valued. Reflective supervision is a concrete example of where we listen with the intention of hearing that person’s perspective, and we actively listen for opportunities for affirmation. Apart from individual relationships, we work to create a culture of community care, a place where all staff members feel safe and open to exploring change in the way we do our work. We are grateful to have the opportunity to be part of this work with the groups of people we are privileged to work with, and we have learned to focus not as much on what we do, but how we do it. We know it is who we are as people that makes the difference to all of our relationships, both in work environments and outside of work.

Encore Flipping powerless to Power-FULL

Have you felt “less” than yourself lately… hopeless, helpless, powerless. When everything feels turned upside down, even in that moment, we can shift our thought life from obstacle to opportunity. This season has had me encounter so many people devastated by turmoil, and I found myself struggling to remain an influence and not get infected by helplessness and hopelessness. So I have found myself returning to life lessons that have brought me through and FILLED my soul in the process. So it’s just you and me kid this week! I am sharing my story, my strategies, and my life lessons on Flipping powerless to Power-FULL. You get the mic and can ask me your questions… no, I may not know your story but I know your story is not meant to end here. So this week let’s lean in together, ask the hard questions, and get strategic about intentional areas that catapulted our growth , even when it was uncomfortable.

From Adversity to Authenticity: Unmasking the True Self

Life's journey brings adversity, challenging our spirit and resilience. Among inspiring stories, Dr. Norma Hollis shines, charting a path from setbacks to self-awareness.
Norma's path wasn't paved with privileges or golden chances. Starting in non-profits, she transitioned to entrepreneurship, taking risks and defining her path.
In cities like Detroit, Norma underscored childhood development's significance. Believing early years shape futures, she launched a process to detect early learning problems, helping many children in academics.
Norma also saw a gap in the speaking arena: underrepresented Black voices. She founded a speaker bureau, becoming the first Black woman to own one representing Black speakers.
Business presents hurdles and uncertainties. But for Norma, every obstacle was growth. Her Authenticity Grid and the concept of Return on Authenticity (ROA) merged personal growth with organizational achievement.
Over 25 years, Norma's determination faced tests. Her unwavering vision and resilience transformed challenges into lessons, becoming a source of inspiration for budding entrepreneurs.
Today, Dr. Norma Hollis stands for perseverance and genuine pursuit. Her story transcends business; it's about personal evolution amidst chaos and the power of authenticity.
This article invites readers to step into Norma's world, embracing her journey and lessons. It's a tale of authenticity, confronting adversity, and a message that it's never too late for self-discovery.
For those seeking hope, Norma's journey is a beacon.

The Pastors’ Diaries

We all have heard the saying that ‘Hurt People, Hurt People’ but what happens when those
hurt people are our leaders, our encouragers and our pastors? How do those who have been wounded the most by the church, make sure they don’t in turn hurt the church? Pastors’ deal with a high level of pressure to perform and behave perfectly as they have been placed on a pedestal.
The pastor must be healthy in order to lead a healthy church. Understanding the unrealistic demands that pastors are to be perfect, is what keeps them from being transparent, authentic and able to get the help they made need themselves. Pastors must embrace humility, seek grace and learn to forgive themselves as well as those they have been called to shepherd.
The Pastors’ Diaries gives us a transparent look behind the pulpit into the lives of those who have been called to pastor and their personal challenges that could lead to tragedy if left unattended.