This book is getting my life together! I’m actually becoming a little more comfortable with being 20 something and all the craziness that comes with it. What I once thought was dumb, annoying, frustrating and unnecessary is now normal and human.
You can purchase 101 Secrets For Your Twenties
by Paul Angone here.
I’m a sap and I LOVE love. Since Valentine’s Day is only a few days away, I had to share my thoughts on love with you. How do you feel about it? Share with me in the comments below.
I believe we have to see it, to believe it. Now some may think the opposite. But if you have the power to see it, to SEE the life you want, you’ll believe it, and you’ll go after it. Thoughts here and I’d love to know your thoughts as well! What is your vision? Meet me in the comments below.
With love,
Diamonde
(this is how I looked writing this post, I wanted to sleep ;/)
As I write this, my eyelids are heavy from my 5:30a alarm clock, my stomach’s growling, the inner “Dime” wants go out and party with her roommate, I desperately want to watch tonight’s episode of “Being Mary Jane” and genuinely wish I could sleep in tomorrow. But my to-do lists, my work schedule, my homework and my trainer all said, “Girl, BYE! You’ve got work to do.”
I honestly debated writing this post because I reaaally wanted to be watching “Being Mary Jane” right now and figured I just wouldn’t have time to write. I was willing, for a moment, to put television over my work. But just the thought of not having a post up, stressed me out. If I want to be a writer and a broadcast journalist, then I have to be that. I have to do what writers do, which is WRITE. I have to do what broadcast journalists do, SPEAK. But if I want to be an EXTRAORDINARY writer, then I have to write EXTRAORDINARY content. EXTRAORDINARY content takes EXTRAORDINARY effort and, you guessed it, EXTRAORDINARY discipline. Which is why I’m here, writing, right now. Which is why you have a post to read.
An EXTRAORDINARY life requires EXTRAORDINARY sacrifice. Sometimes, we have to show up to work when we would rather sleep. We have to show up to the gym when we would rather eat. We have to show up to our purpose when we would rather sit back and wait until tomorrow. But that’s sacrifice. That’s a requirement to living an EXTRAORDINARY life. We have to be our own disciplinarian. Sometimes, we have to hold ourselves accountable. So I’m here. Showing up. Writing when I would rather, at this point, be sleep.
But thank God for DVR because I get to record “Being Mary Jane.”
With love,
Diamonde
Challenge yourself this weekend. Step outside your safety zone. You know the saying, “Where there’s risk, there’s a reward.”
I know you’ve heard about mission statements for businesses and if you’re a business owner, you probably have your own mission statement for your company. However if you don’t know what a mission statement is – here you go:
According to Wikipedia: “A mission statement is a statement of the purpose of a company, organization or person, its reason for existing. The mission statement should guide the actions of the organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a path, and guide decision-making. It provides “the framework or context within which the company’s strategies are formulated.” It’s like a goal for what the company wants to do for the world.”
But did you see that? REASON FOR EXISTING. GUIDE DECISON-MAKING. Essentially, a personal mission statement is like your life’s purpose in statement form. It’s a way for you to declare your purpose and really begin to LIVE IT. If you don’t have a personal mission statement, today, I’m helping you learn how to create your own and jump start on the path to becoming the person you want to be.
Once you create your mission statement, share it with me in the comments below!
With love,
Diamonde
It always seems like the beginning of the year is the most hectic. We’re adjusting to new schedules, new goals, and it can honestly be just plain difficult to adjust getting back to work after a couple of lazy days and turnt up nights. Believe me, I understand this. Either way, we somehow have to manage to pull it all back together so we can get started with our year.
A good friend of mine asked me the other day, “Girl, how do you stay organized and productive when you have so much going on?” It’s funny because I never think about it that way. I just know what I want to do and what I have to do to get what I need to done. However, it hasn’t always been like this. I remember the days of trying to REMEMBER everything. You know how far that got me? It got me to Target to buy an agenda and then to figure out some more ways to get it all done which I’m going to share with you:
1. Write it down. Period. If there’s something you need to do, whether it’s an appointment, a conference call, walking the dog, or even going to the grocery store. WRITE IT DOWN. You can write it in your agenda, type it in your notes on your phone, put a sticky note on your mirror, either way, it should be in your eye’s view. We’re bombarded with a wealth of information daily so that little visual reminder is undeniably going to help you remember what you need to do.
2. Add it to a schedule. With work, school, school and work, we like to think we’re too busy, but we have the same 24 hours as our girl, Bey, so in real life, we have plenty of time. We just have to organize our time in a schedule. Maybe you need to make 5:30p your designated time to walk the dog and then allot 6p for you to read that book you were supposed to finish last year. (GUILTY) You almost have to schedule everything, even your down time.
3. Work your hardest during your peak hours. I’m a morning person so I’m my most productive when I first wake up. If you’re a night owl, create a schedule that allows you to do your best work, household chores or whatever it may be, before you go to sleep.
4. Meditate. Sit in stillness for a few minutes or just have a moment where you’re literally just sitting there, thinking. Gather your thoughts. Take a deep breath. Just be for a moment. You’ll feel refreshed and ready to get back to work. (You’ll probably have to add that to your schedule, too lol)
5. Mark off what you’ve completed for the day. At the end of each day, reflect back on what you’ve accomplished. You’ll be able to gauge how productive you were compared to how productive you planned to be. Once you see that, you can plan how you can better utilize your time.
With love,
Diamonde
2014 – you came so fast! I wasn’t expecting you so soon. Time really does fly when you’re having fun or maybe it’s because I’m getting older? Either way, 2014 is here.
I spent part of my New Year’s Eve in church with my friend, Fatiana, and before service began, we reflected on our last 365 days. We talked about personal triumphs in our careers, in our love lives (currently – non-existent), our spiritual development, Pledge To Be Bella and so much more. All we could really do is smile and laugh. We’ve come a loooooooong way since 2012 and it feels REALLY REALLY good. Thinking about the fact that we’ve actually done many of the things we said we were going to do is such a proud moment.
As I prepare for 2014 with the mindset of living more intentionally, I wanted to make it a point to have a theme word or phrase for this year. So I decided on the phrase, “Challenge Yourself & Finish”. This year, I want to be challenged. I want to continuously push myself past my perceived limits. I want tougher work outs, better content, better videos, more quality events for Pledge To Be Bella and more complex recipes to cook. All of these things pose a challenge for me being that I’m going back to school and will also be working full-time. But I want the challenge. Better yet, I need the challenge. Not only that, I want to carry out all my plans. I want to finish what I start. I’ve battled for a long time with starting projects and not finishing them. However, this year, I’m challenging myself to finish.
Through challenges, we grow. We get smarter. We become wiser. We make better decisions. We learn. Isn’t that what life’s all about? On the other side of that challenge is a better you. When I work through these challenges, on the other side, will lie a better me. That’s the motivation.
Now it’s your turn. All you need is one word (or phrase) that can become the theme for your amazing 2014. Think about it. What’s something you want to do more of this year? Whatever it is, make that the theme for the next 12 months. When you figure out your theme, hang it up in your room, add it to your vision board or write it on your mirror, in case you need a quick reminder. I’m interested in knowing your word (or phrase), share it with me in the comments below!
Happy 2014!
This year has truly been my best year. I’ve had a job, lost a job, created a growing community, lived the single life, but most importantly, I’ve learned so much. I’ve learned some of the most important lessons, I feel like, a 20-something-year-old can learn in her 20’s and for that, I am grateful. Here’s my 13 things that 2013 taught me. Let me know what you think.
Do we have some things in common? What did you learn?
the real diamonde 