My Plans For Super World Domination Start Here

Posted on January 27, 2012 by Super Woman

I’m working diligently with my best friend to coordinate the events for the I Feel Good: Mind, Body and Soul Women’s Conference. I’m proud to say that the plans are going very well. There are always minor hiccups in any plan when you’re dealing with people, such as schedules and finances, but overall I’m very pleased with what is developing thus far. As with anything I do, I think it can be better. I admit that I have some personal issues to contend with where this conference is concerned. Contrary to what anyone may think, this conference is not just about me.  I don’t want people to think that I’m out for myself in this attempt. It wasn’t even my idea. Yes, it’s my Brand, my image, my reputation and my name associated with it, and I’m going to be held accountable if it’s an epic failure and praised if it is a success. However, this is more about the young women in the community who need to see that women can do more than pose nearly nude in mens magazines, strip at strip clubs and have sex with famous men to become famous and rich. It’s about the young women who unfortunately don’t know better and need to see examples of adult women who are successful, fashionable, educated and talented who didn’t get there because of who their father is, who their stepfather is, who their baby daddy is, or who their husband is – but instead, they climbed ladders and over walls because of who they are as women and what they contribute to this world.  It’s about helping young women to define their own beauty beyond how big their behinds are or aren’t, whether their hair is natural or not and showing them examples of beautiful women who look just like them and come in all shapes, sizes and complexions. It’s about showing them that beautiful women are in every industry and that we possess a multitude of talents and knowledge. It’s about redefining our worth, our image and empowering ourselves, so that even if a young woman decides to pose in a mens magazine she does so knowing the ramifications and she (hopefully) owns the copyright to her photos [everyone won't do what we think they should all the time, but let's take baby steps towards something a little more positive].

I want to encourage more woman-ownership, more women in television, more women on reality shows that got to where they are on their own.  There are too many women on television who are only famous because of semen. Yes, that’s what I said. This is not a kiddie website, so let’s be honest. Kim Kardashian, Amber Rose, all of the Basketball Wives, all of the Baseball Wives and all but three cast members of Love and Hip Hop are famous only because of who the men are in their lives. We wouldn’t know who any of them were otherwise.

{Flashback} Remember when women were famous for being talented? Remember when models actually wore clothes in magazines?

I miss those days.

I also want to use this conference to bring more awareness to some of the dangers that young women face and obstacles that they have to endure. We know, but sometimes I feel like we’re too tolerant of what happens to young women as if it’s normal. Young women being raped, abused, kidnapped, killed and going missing is becoming too prevalent. Not just where young Black women or poor young women are concerned. Please don’t think there are color lines drawn here, because there aren’t. This is about woman-kind in general. Our socio-economic and racial differences no longer protect us from harm.

So when I say that I have personal issues where this conference is concerned I truly mean it. This is my Super World. What I do, what I”m working towards in media and what I see possible in this world is personal for me. However, I don’t want my Super World to only have a handful of women in it. I want to help cultivate a generation of Super Women and Super Girls. I want a legacy of a League of Super Women who make a difference in their communities and in the lives of other young women through media and outreach. I want the I Feel Good: Mind, Body and Soul Women’s Conference to grow larger and more popular every year, and last long after I’m no longer here. I take this very personal.

This is MY Super World, but it’s not here just for me. I’m striving for world media domination and I want to build this empire, then pass the torch one day and retire. I’m extremely thankful to everyone stepping up to facilitate workshops and volunteer. We are still in need of more volunteers, we also need financial sponsors, media partners, and vendors who have products and services related to the focus and purpose of the conference. If you’d like information please email us using the Contact Us form on this website or send an email to events@superwomanproductions.com with CONFERENCE  in the subject and provide us with your information and tell us what your interest is (vendor, sponsors, volunteer). A separate website is being developed specifically for the conference in a few weeks. I also need your prayers to keep me focused and energized towards fulfillment of this purpose that is completely in the Master’s Plans. This isn’t easy, not even for Super Woman.

My plans for Super world domination start here, but they don’t end here.      

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Google, We Have A Problem

Posted on January 16, 2012 by Super Woman

There seems to be a tragic misunderstanding of what makes a person or entity relevant on the internet. If you are an artist, a business owner, a musician or a magazine publisher there’s the expectation that you should be found one specific place on the internet so that you can be booked, called or contacted. That place is not Twitter or Facebook. It’s so simple, even a two-year old could do it. It’s called Google. Yes, Google. Twitter and Facebook require that a person sign up and create an account to obtain your information. Everyone doesn’t want to become a follower or a friend in order for them to locate your store, buy your album, magazine or services. Do you realize how much you are limiting yourself, simply by NOT having a website? If you aren’t sure, think about the last time you got a call from someone who said “I saw you on Twitter today, and I wanted to know if I can buy ___.” If that’s happening to you regularly just from your tweets, then by all means, carry on. But if you’re not getting that call, you’re not as relevant as you think you are, even if you’ve hit record numbers of followers.

It doesn’t matter how many fans you have. Some of your fans aren’t as active on Twitter or Facebook as you think they are. They may actually only view your timeline or news feed once a month because that’s how often they sign on to look at their own Twitter and Facebook accounts {Side note: some of your fans are also stalkers or looky-lous and they won’t result in any profits}. Even with the increased use in smart phones, social networking is still limiting the way in which people can locate you. A fan is one thing, a consumer is something completely different. When you’re in business, which one is more important to you? A fan who becomes a consumer will buy more than your mp3 from iTunes. 

I recently pulled out some business cards people gave me and Googled all of the companies. I was utterly amazed at how many business entities, artists, singers and creatives I couldn’t find on the internet outside of Facebook and Twitter. Do all these companies and individuals want to be a secret? Do they want to make money? Do they want people to know their tour dates, office hours, and any other important information that consumers look for? You can’t even find a phone number for them to call and ask them “What is your website?” I’m going to share a business secret with you now. Smart consumers like to do a little research before they get into their cars and drive somewhere. If you operate a business, consumers may actually look for your business address online before venturing out to buy your products. However, if you don’t have a website, you prevent that from happening. And every business doesn’t have a store or static business location. Therefore, if your business is done in a nontraditional office or storefront location, being accessible online becomes even more crucial to your success.

Recently someone on Twitter sent me a link saying “how to become #1 on Google“. I replied and told them (not bragging) that I’m already #1 on Google. How do I know? I learned how to accomplish that a couple of years ago at a technology conference I attended. Unfortunately, I was one of five people of color in attendance at the conference and we were all women. I periodically Google myself [typing s u p e r w o m a n p r o d u c t i o n s]. I type it different ways and even misspell it intentionally sometimes, just to see what others might find if they do the same. My website is the first result, is listed on the first seven pages of Google results consistently and then I remain in the results up until around page thirteen. Don’t believe me? I challenge you to prove me wrong. I’ve even been re-blogged and reposted in other languages. I’m in business directories that I didn’t even know I was in. I had to tell the editor of one business directory to change their listing because they incorrectly listed my business at an address in Troy, Michigan instead of Detroit.  

I don’t know how people do it. By it I mean not exist on the internet outside of social networking sites. It’s a lot easier to co-exist within the confines of social networking than it is to be completely reliant upon it. Does anyone remember MySpace? One minute it was the hottest thing in existence. Now anyone who’s still using it exclusively needs to be put into a time machine and brought into 2012 at the speed of light. The changes that Facebook is constantly making are an attempt to remain on top of the social networking pyramid because it’s hard to be king. They are not making the changes for you. Twitter is… well, #trending, for lack of a better word. It’s fun, but you’re still limited to providing information in 140 or less characters. It can be argued that smart people can say a lot in 140 characters, but it can also be said that not being able to spell out words makes even the smartest person look stupid on Twitter.

So as an entrepreneur, I encourage anyone who calls themselves the same or sells a product or service to increase your audience outside of the constraints of social networking sites and establish a website for yourself, your products and business. If you feel like the financial investment isn’t truly worth the costs associated with establishing a real web presence, you are not serious about being in business. All serious business owners know that it takes money (time, energy and committment) to make money. And if you need help, I have a great website designer that I can refer you to. He helps keep me #1 on Google.

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Refocus and Stay Focused

Posted on January 11, 2012 by Super Woman

After the dawn of a new year, with the Republican primaries and the birth of Jay Z and Beyonce’s baby girl, some people have already begun to lose focus on what is important. Of course the Republican primaries are very important; particularly because we need to know who will be running against President Barack Obama. But the birth of Jay Z and Beyonce’s daughter has been the entire focus of many individuals. Yes, they are pop culture and music icons. Yes, we love them dearly. Yes, they are entertainers who entertain and give back. But, seriously, some of it is going too far. There were already so many people doubting (and hating) on Beyonce’s pregnancy, that the mere act of turning on any entertainment television program gave me a near migraine headache. But now that she has given birth, people are still finding reasons to doubt (and hate). Now people want to know why she had a caesarean instead of a vaginal birth. People want to know why she had a midwife instead of an ob/gyn. People want to know did they really rent out the whole floor of the hospital to keep people from being nosey. Yet, these same people have probably not made any steps or headway towards achieving their own goals. Some of them probably haven’t set any goals at all.

Since I’m working on a major event for 2012 called the I Feel Good: Mind, Body and Soul Women’s Conference (∞), completing my first magazine article due to the editor in a few days (∞) and completing a television spec script (∞), I’m going to give you these words quickly, and then move on to my own tasks, goals and life.

I greatly admire Beyonce and Jay Z as people and entertainers. I often say that I’m a Beyonce looking for a Jay Z , because I admire their relationship and partnership. But I don’t let their lives consume mine. At the end of the day, what they do has very little baring on my life, goals or lack thereof. I have a laundry list of my own talents, issues and goals to focus on this year. Therefore,  if there is something you want to do, but it isn’t getting done, or if you are not achieving your goals, or if you are not improving your community, or yourself as a person, but you have time to decipher the alleged meaning of little Blue Ivy Carter’s name, you should immediately refocus your energy into your own direction and do something more positive for yourself. The same energy that is being put into playing word games with a child’s name and making assumptions about the origin of her name based on (in my opinion) fictitious religious beliefs, is the same energy that can be used to go back to school, start a business, mentor a child in need, volunteer at a nonprofit and many other useful and productive tasks. Jay Z and Beyonce are already multimillionaires and no amount of gossip or innuendo is going to change that. Instead, allow their work ethic and marriage to be motivational and encourage you to strive for higher heights. After all, some of you have named your children stranger names than Blue Ivy and no one referred to you as evil for doing so.

Smooches!

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New Year, New You!

Posted on January 1, 2012 by Super Woman

Every New Year, people make resolutions dependant upon habits they had the previous year. Statistically every year, those same resolutions last approximately until February 1. Making resolutions for New Years is a tradition passed down through our culture. The issue is that the ability to keep those resolutions has not be passed down as well. Personally, I don’t believe in making resolutions of any kind. I believe in making changes, making money and making a difference. As a result, every year instead of making temporary resolutions for my life, I make permanent improvements. I refer to it as my New Year, New You Personal Campaign©.

How do I do this? I self assess myself, my situation, my finances, my life and then I make firm decisions on how to correct the things I do not like and know that I have control of. I make changing things a realistic goal. Then I put an effective, realistic plan in place to achieve my goals. Sounds easy. It can be, once it is put into practice repeatedly. That’s the first key – putting it into practice. Being a person who talks about what you’re going to do is easy. Being a person of action is a little more difficult because it actually requires action on your part.

Many of my goals are related to each other or have other goals dependant upon their achievement. One of my permanent improvement goals include getting into better shape. Not that I’m overweight, but I know that I have to maintain my health and that the better I look, the better I will feel and vice versa. Plus clothes cost too much to replace them if I gain weight. I’ve been there, done that and refuse to do it again. Therefore, my regimen begins immediately. Not tomorrow, not next week - IMMEDIATELY. That is the next key -  NOT procrastinating and making excuses for putting off making those changes because you’re too busy. I know all about being busy. After all, I am Super Woman.

I’m a goal setter and go-getter. Two things that work well together. Living purpose driven is a lifestyle for me. It’s what I do and it’s something I want to pass on to others. Everyone’s purpose is going to be different, I don’t expect everyone to aspire to be me or anyone else. I expect everyone to be their best self. It’s finding your purpose that is most important and making changes in yourself is necessary to do this. As with anything new, it has to be introduced in stages. So if you’re willing to learn, I’m willing to teach. These are the steps to begin journey to a New Year, New You.

Step 1 – Self Assess:

Step 1 is the root of the tree. What things about yourself do you know you need to work on? This is often the hardest part for anyone because it requires that you be completely honest with yourself about yourself. It’s the only way to be successful on this journey. Are you overweight? Do you smoke or drink too much? Are you depressed or lack self-esteem? Are you in an abusive or unhealthy relationship? Do you have a poor attitude? Are you difficult to get along with?

Once you have clearly self assessed yourself, write down the things you recognized about yourself and acknowledge they exist and need to change. Once you have done this, guess what, you have achieved goal number one: ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. Acknowledgement is everyone’s first goal to achieve in this process.

Step 2 - Serenity: 

This step requires prayer. There is a prayer many of us know, but often fail to pay attention to. In Step 2 you need to ask God to grant you the strength to accept the things you cannot change, the courage to change the things you can and the wisdom to know they difference. You need to add this to your prayers on a daily basis. Why is this important? Because I’m willing to bet you wrote something down in Step 1 that you have no control over and left out something that you do. Example, if you wrote down “get married” or ”get a husband” as something you want to change but you’re not even dating or in a relationship, you haven’t properly self assessed yourself. Instead examine why you want a husband or why you want to get married. In Step 1 if you wrote down that you want to get a better job, but didn’t write that you need to go back to school or develop a skill to get a better job, you haven’t properly self assessed yourself. If you wrote down that you want to start a business but didn’t write that you will research business models, you haven’t properly self assessed yourself. Remember Step 1 is the root of the tree. It’s the foundation for achieving. If you didn’t write anything down, I’m here to tell you that you are in deep denial. No one is perfect and many of us aren’t striving to be. But there are at least five things we all could improve upon in order to become better individuals.

Step 3 – Identify the positive:

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. For every negative, there is a positive. Once you have self assessed and began to practice serenity, you can clearly identify positive behaviors to replace any negative ones you currently have. I know you’re thinking that you’ve done this before, but I guarantee you haven’t. Identifying the positive can sometimes be difficult because we spend so much time being one way, that we don’t know how to be another. Complainers complain because they don’t know how not to. Liars lie because they don’t know how to tell the truth. Over eaters overeat because they don’t know how not to. However, just like a negative behavior can begin, so can a positive one. A lot of it is about our own choices. This step may also require that you lose some friends. As much as we like to believe that everyone likes us and wants what is best for us, that just isn’t true all of the time. During your journey to a new you, there will be someone who says something negative to try to dissuade you from continuing. They will give you many reason why you won’t succeed and if you listen to them, you won’t succeed. Those people may have to be dismissed from your life, either temporarily or permanently, in order for you to reach your goals. This is another time when Step 2 will come in handy if you put it into practice.

Step 4 – Become a person of action:

Don’t talk about it, be about it. This is extremely crucial in being successful. Once you have identified the changes you can make, separated out the ones you have no control over (usually other people and their actions or inactions), you can began to seek help and start putting the positive actions into practice. Write the goals down. Put them in you iPhone, iPad, Blackberry… wherever you need to as a constant reminder. But be bold enough in your desire to achieve and take the plunge. People who run marathons started out by taking a walk. Then they made a decision to run. Next they set a goal to enter a marathon and discovered they needed to train. The same thing can be true of anything you want to change or improve in your own life. No excuses. No complaints. Treat it like Nike and just do it. Get into “training”. Train your mind, train your body, train your spirit and change your world.

Step 5 – Have fun with it:

Change doesn’t have to put a gray cloud over your life. Change can be enjoyable, adventurous and fun. Nowhere does it say that a person can’t enjoy change. Change can be hard, but change is GOOD. Without change, there is no growth. I’m speaking from experience when I say this. Keep in mind that just because you are changing doesn’t mean you have to shun others who are not. It may just mean you can’t spend a lot of your time with them. And eventually, those people may no longer remain a part of your life because their season has ended. But if someone sees that you are having an enjoyable time embracing your change instead of crying in a corner, that person might just ask you how you did it. Then you can share these steps with them and the two of you can support each other. You have now become a beacon of light in someone else’s world.

Which leads to the last step…

Step 6 – Get support:

I don’t expect any of you to achieve these goals overnight or even in a year. I’ve been doing this for years now so I can tell you it isn’t Instant-Fix-Your-Life-Mix *just add water. I don’t even want you to read this and believe that. This is a long-term plan and should be repeated every year, or as often as necessary, until you are where you want and, more importantly, need to be. Therefore, if you get stuck on any step in this process, ask for help. Get support and discuss with other like-minded people. In fact, for anyone who is bold enough, I will help you personally. If you put together your Self Assessment and email it to me at ask@superwomanproductions.com I will personally help you set goals and be a supporter of you achieving those goals.

Periodically, through my website I’m going to share with you my New Year, New You Goals and Achievements to help keep you motivated. I will show you that I live what I speak so that you will be encouraged to do the same. Anytime you see an infinity symbol on a page of my website or in a blog post you will know that was one of my goals.

The infinity symbol looks like this: ∞   

◊Happy New Year… Happy New You!

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Welcome the New Year

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Super Woman

In 2010, God gave me a shot in the arm. When He did, He said to me, “Angela, I’m going to give you this shot. It will only hurt for a minute. When it’s over you will feel better, be successful and purpose realized.”

Fast forward to December 2011. I said to God ”This minute of pain has been a whole year.” God then told me that His time is not my time. I’m very glad that time flies. I knew in 2010 I would face difficulties in preparation for prosperity. I just didn’t know it would last for the whole year. I went into the year making necessary changes to my life, my lifestyle, my mindset and I stayed positive. At each turn, there were difficulties in my life that many other people never even saw. In my growth I’ve become knowledgeable that in order to build something up, you first have to tear it down ~ that’s if you want it to be built right. You can’t constantly build on top of foundations that are not solid or structures that are not sound and expect to have success. In our pursuits, we often for that. We want everything to be easy and painless. We want everything to be pretty and perfect. We want our plans to be without flaws and our successes to be without any trials. That is not the reality of my life. I’m sure some of you also know what I mean.

This year has been the worst for me financially. Literally. I have over $92,000 in debt. I have no real assets to speak of and very few tangible items that I own free and clear at this point. I’m not exaggerating. This year has been that difficult for me. The only thing I own of any real value is The Brand and my creativity. Apparently, that’s all I needed to have this year. But there’s already a plan in place to change all of that in 2012 and to add financial stability to my newly rebuilt foundation. God knows that in order for me to truly appreciate what He has for me, He had to take some things away from me. He also made adjustments in my life to make room for something better. Every friend I lost was replaced by a better friend. Ever opportunity I was unable to take advantage of is being replaced by bigger and better opportunities. Every person who decided I wasn’t worth their time or acknowledgement was replaced by people in positions to help me achieve my goals.

The worst year financially, was one of the best businesswise. The year 2011 gave Super Woman recognition. People know who I am. Not thousands of people, but enough. It’s a really wonderful feeling when someone from New York or Atlanta says to me “I’ve heard of you” or “I’ve heard of The Goodie Bag“. It’s nice when the editor of a major publication asks why I didn’t submit my biography for their publication because I’m “doing amazing things”, and I can say it’s because I had more amazing things that I wanted to add to my biography first. I’ll be in that publication in 2012. So what if I didn’t make a lot of money in 2011. I did make a mark. That feels good.

The Super Team is also under construction for 2012. God is bringing people into my life that I can collaborate with outside of my current environment. He’s also blessing the people already on the Super Team in a way that I don’t even think they realize yet. I truly thank God that I’m in the company of very talented and ambitious people who are good at what they do. They inspire me to do what I do even better. It’s hard on me sometimes, having this extremely high level of ambition, but I observe the ones who came before me. I learn from their mistakes and successes. I consult with those who know the industry and I absorb their wisdom. I look for different and efficient ways of doing things that have been done before. And I try to find ways of doing what has never been done before. Why is it taking me so long to get to where I’m going? Because it’s a journey, a process and an experience worthy of hard work and dedication. I’m striving for longevity, not popularity.

I thank God for my tests, my challenges, my tragedies, my hurdles, my mountains and the tools He bestowed upon me to handle them all and evolve even more into the fabulous woman He has created me to be. He gave me many gifts. Some will get me into the room. Some will keep me there. Some will allow me the ability to build new rooms. I know WE’RE nowhere near done. This is just one step of many I have yet to take. I’m ready for what’s next. I welcome the New Year and a new day.

To my Super Team, we will all be driving Bentleys one day soon.

To my Super Fans, I appreciate your support and encouragement throughout this past year. I will always give you something fabulous to look forward to, be entertained by and educated through. You will not be disappointed by what comes from The Brand.

Have a Happy New Year!

See you in 2012!

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This Media Thing Is Not A Game

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Super Woman

I’m often proud of others that I see reaching and striving in media to improve upon the content that we have available to us. Then there are times when I have to ask myself “Where do they do that at?” Being an entrepreneur is hard work. It’s often challenging and the rewards don’t come as fast as you might like, and they are definitely not the rewards you may set out to achieve. Being a media entrepreneur is even more difficult. You have greater challenges because media is already heavily controlled by major networks and radio giants that have been around for years.

◊ This media thing is not a game.

Print media is a strange animal in its own separate environment. With so many magazines being born and dying regularly due to poor business decisions, it’s very important that you have more than a pretty magazine cover. You must also have relevant, substantive, well written content in a magazine. This is primarily important if you want to appeal to people who actually know how to read. Unless of course, your magazine publication is only a pictorial, pretty pictures might be enough for your audience.

As I look around at some of the ventures being put out, I notice that a lot of them don’t understand how to properly do business. Some editors are so quick to get something out there that they fail to do their due diligence with securing their content. They have pretty websites with blank pages, misspelled words, broken or unresponsive links and poor grammar throughout the site. They are trying to establish followers using social networking without a product actually being made available that people can put their hands on. You can’t even Google their publication by name. Some of them have literally relaunched the same magazine multiple times within less than three years because they just don’t seem to get it.  They also don’t know how to tackle the challenges associated with the digital era where people can download and read publications on laptops, tablets and smartphones. I solemnly swear that one day people will learn how to use technology for more than just updating their Facebook status.   

◊ This media thing is not a game.  

We have to do better when it comes to the products and services that we provide in media, particularly within our own community. We also have to be more savvy in our business dealings. You don’t have to charge an arm and a leg for your product because you want to have special paper from China. You can put out a quality media product by using local resources available to you for a fraction of the cost and not have to worry about your product being delayed by customs. A few of the keys to doing well in the media business include having a basic understanding of business, having knowledge of your core demographic and how to reach them, knowing your strengths and weaknesses, and building a talented team of people who aren’t your relatives. Most importantly – be different from what everyone else is. If you appear to just be a  recycled version of your former publication or someone else’s, without bringing something new into the equation, people will lose interest quickly…as in overnight.

◊ This media thing is not a game.  

This media thing is only for strong, decisive people who know how to compensate for anything they lack by having other talented and knowledgeable people connected to them. It’s not about being a dictator and having everyone report back to you so that you can micromanage every facet; particularly when you have no idea of what you’re doing. It’s not about doing the same thing over and over, the same way and expecting different results [that is the definition of insanity]. This media thing is about dispersing information in a way that educates and entertains people intelligently so that you appeal to a wider demographic ~ i.e. the people who make money and make decisions. This media thing is about providing quality content that does more than create divisiveness and drama among individuals. This media thing is more than scripted reality television shows and poorly written material thrown out with the hopes that one percent of the population will like it. This media thing isn’t just about making money, putting your name on a masthead or cutting down trees for the purpose of nothing.  

◊ This media thing is not a game.  

Personally, I’m looking forward to hiring other talented people to work for The Brand so that one day I can take a real vacation. I’m aware that without hiring others, I won’t experience the true growth and success that I’m striving for. I’m thankful for the opportunity to network with like-minded individuals that have worthwhile projects that I can collaborate with them on; both today and in the near future. Growth isn’t singular when you’re a media entrepreneur. Your growth, or lack thereof, impacts others, even when you don’t see it.  

◊ This media thing is not a game.  

An idea is only as good as the work you put behind it. If you’re into this media thing as a hobby, that is your choice. But if you are in this media thing purpose driven, make it worth the time, energy and money for yourself and for consumers. This playground is big enough for many of us to be successful, but this media thing is not a game. If you’re not ready, I suggest that you do your due diligence, research and observe others who are successful and do well in media before throwing yourself in the ring.   

♦Some people only care about their check, and some people care about sh** being the right way. - Jam Master DJ Scratch  

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Counting The Blessings In My Fab Single Life

Posted on November 29, 2011 by Super Woman

I was born and I’ve almost died (more than once). I was in more than my fair share of car accidents and I’m told I am lucky to be able to walk. I’ve been married and I’ve gotten divorced. I’ve had a child and I’ve lost children. I’ve been engaged and proposed to. I’ve had long term and short term relationships. I’ve been the other woman and I’ve been one of many women. I’ve owned businesses that have done well and have failed. I’ve made a lot of money and I’ve lost a lot of money. I’ve struggled and I’ve persevered. I’ve fallen down and I’ve started over. I’ve learned a lot and I’ve forgotten some things. I’ve loved deeply and I’ve been loved. I’ve had my heart broken and I’ve broken a few hearts. I’ve traveled and I’ve seen black sand and white sand beaches.

I’ve met influential people. I’ve walked red carpets and had my picture taken. I’ve had sex with famous men and I’ve had dinner with ‘average joes’. I’ve been flown across the country for romantic weekends and I’ve stayed in for romantic weekends. I’ve been kissed like I’ve never been kissed before, and I’ve been held close and tight with nothing more. I have friends and I have family. I have friends who are like family. If I were to die tomorrow, I know someone would plan my cremation and someone would come to my funeral.

I’ll be thirty seven years young soon. I have LIVED more than some people twice my age have. Although I still have more to accomplish towards my career goals, I am proud of me. If I happen to never get married again, or have another relationship, I’m actually fine with that.

Don’t cry for me because I’m single. When I’m an old woman, I’m going to have a lot of events and experiences to remember that many women will never get the chance to have. I will be able to sit on my porch with my grandchildren, smile and rock, knowing that I have lived a full, fabulous, single life; one that many would envy. If I can proclaim that today, imagine what I will have done by the time I’m forty seven years young. By that time, I will be able to add that I have also changed the world of media and entertainment, leaving something for the next generation to aspire to.

There’s nothing particularly “special” about me. I’m not the most beautiful woman in the world. I’m not the sexiest, the smartest, or the wealthiest woman either [I'm not wealthy at all, in fact. I'm struggling just to become financially "comfortable"]. I don’t own anything spectacular or trendy; there aren’t any custom Louboutin shoes or Hermes scarves in my wardrobe. I’ve never been on TMZ and I haven’t married anyone famous. I don’t always do what’s popular and I despise being like everyone else. I’m just one person that God bestowed greatness upon. I was literally born to do great things (December 25th is my birthday). So if an ordinary woman, such as myself, can become known as Super Woman by using my talents in a humble attempt to live within my purpose, just imagine what you can also do if you strive to live with purpose.  

That is why on Saturday, December 17, 2011 at 8 pm, I’m CELEBRATING ANOTHER YEAR OF BEING FABULOUS at L!V Resto Lounge in Detroit, MI.  I’ve sent my Subscribers, Tweeties and Facebook Fans/Friends an exclusive invitation to attend this event. I have good news in abundance for the new year that I’d like to share as well. So check your email, your Facebook and follow me on Twitter @BestSuperWoman to get the information. RSVP is required and admittance is not guaranteed without it. 

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Love and Basketball

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Super Woman

Basketball has surely been missed. I’m not a huge sports fan, but I do like football and basketball (players). I also like the spectacle of watching a live basketball game at a stadium. I recently noticed that my holiday season this year won’t be the same. I do not have a Detroit Pistons game to attend this year during Thanksgiving with my closest friends. I’m sure I’m not the only person who realizes how much basketball is connected to an event or tradition in our lives. The only thing on television right now related to professional basketball is VH1′s Basketball Wives LA. Trust me, it’s not the same experience at all.  

What amazes me is that although I don’t know much about the team rosters, their specific star players, scores and what not, I do know that basketball is a business. In business you have occasional conflict between employers and employees. And all businesses have had to adjust due to the changes in the economic climate. Many companies have had massive layoffs and closures. Some businesses have gone completely out of business in the last ten years. While other companies have grown into huge behemoths because of our need to save more money, while sacrificing quality (ala Walmart). Everyone has been impacted in one way or another forcing us to sometimes make unpleasant sacrifices and adapt in the face of adversity. To pay or not to pay, has become the question in many households and for many businesses, including the NBA.  

People love basketball. The game, the competitiveness, the hotdogs. Some very memorial movies have been written around the love of basketball over the years [Hoosiers (1986), White Men Can't Jump (1992), Above The Rim (1994), Sunset Park (1996), He Got Game (1998), {my all time favorite} Love and Basketball (2000), Finding Forrester (2000), Coach Carter (2005), Glory Road (2006), and Just Wright (2010)]. Basketball has wrapped its arms around us and baptized our modern culture with its influence in every aspect, from the way we dress to what we eat, from what products and cars we buy to what we name our kids [fast forward a few years from now and see a young LeBron Jenkins starting kindergarten]. It crosses many demographics. It’s not unusal to see some of the biggest names in entertainment, business, banking, technology and manufacturing sitting at any game, in any stadium, at anytime, across the country during basketball season. You might have even sat next to a business mogul or millionaire at the last game you attended. FYI – all wealthy people don’t sit court side and they don’t all make it onto TMZ.

When it comes to professional athletes, I’ve always thought that they get paid a great deal of money to do what they love – play a game – and entertain us. They are one out of one thousand young men with a dream who made it into the position they have. Some of it was based on talent, some of it was determination, but most of it is a blessing. For every Michael Jordan there is a Michael Williams, who played basketball just as well, if not better, but didn’t get the same opportunity. Unfortunately, I also feel that many professional athletes don’t appreciate the place they hold in society because they have been reckless with their money and their morals. So much so that morals clauses and dress codes had to be implemented by the league in an attempt to encourage them to (at least appear to) be more socially responsible and keep their dirt out of the media. Sometimes it works. Other times it doesn’t.

This week the NBA players decided to disband its union so that it can now move forward with a lawsuit against the team owners. This occurs after they declined an offer according to NBA Commissioner David Stern “that does not call for a reduction on contract, does not call for a hard cap, does not call for the absence of guaranteed contracts and will see salaries go from over $5 million to between $7 million and $8 million during the length of the deal”. WOW! Talk about biting the hand! I’m sure that there are many people like me that would LOVE that kind of contract where we work. However, we’re not professional athletes, are we? Many of us will never see a million dollars, let alone FIVE to EIGHT MILLION DOLLARS. For many of us that would be more than enough money to retire on and live off of for the remainder of our lives. Apparently, it’s not good enough for the NBA players. They’ve lived above their means, haven’t saved and haven’t invested wisely. They need more money and more basketball related income. But is it a need, or greed?

This raises many questions. Isn’t the love of money the root of all evil? What happened to the love of the game? Is it possible that so many of the players have squandered their earnings over the years that they wouldn’t be satisfied with any contract other than the one they sought to begin with? Why are the owners responsible for covering the players inability to be financially responsible with the money they already earn? Does your job give you a raise because you gamble or have a house and car you can’t afford to own? None of the players should be hurting financially. Have you see their paychecks and endorsement deals? Even the lowest paid players on each team make high six figure salaries, which is more than most middle class families see in a lifetime. I can’t feel bad for them when I know people who struggle just to pay their rent every month. Did the players also forget that unless fans buy tickets to see them play, they aren’t worth all the zeroes on their paychecks? Who is going to buy tickets to watch a bunch of out of shape basketball players run up and down the court in February 2012 (or later, if they remain greedy) when they can watch NCAA college basketball for less money or for free? Everyone likes FREE STUFF.

Fans who love the game, for the game, have other options. I’ll be watching Love and Basketball this weekend.

Although I’m skeptical and hopeful that an agreement will be reached that will satisfy both sides, I still have love for basketball (players). If worse comes to worse, the owners can always hire replacement players, pay them less money and possibly recruit new talent at the same time. There are many talented and entertaining players playing overseas, in the And 1 Basketball League and even the Harlem Globetrotters. Maybe Michael Williams will finally get a shot at his dream of becoming a professional basketball player. After all, basketball is still a business.

♦ I bet Tom Gores wasn’t expecting this when he bought the Pistons.

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You Spoke, I Listened and Now…

Posted on November 11, 2011 by Super Woman

A few weeks back I was contemplating what I needed to do to further enhance the Super Woman Brand. I developed a survey and asked you, my fans and supporters, for your input. The survey revealed that people generally want more. You want more of Super Woman in your media:  television, radio and magazines. I don’t know how many of you all know me personally or have met me in person, but I found it so interesting that what you want IS what I want to do. I also needed to know that I was going in the right direction with my always bigger than life vision. I recognize that some brand enhancements are going to take longer than others. But I now have a better idea that what I’m doing is accepted and appreciated by you.  KNOWING that someone, somewhere receives me and the words I write. That alone makes it all worth it. KNOWING is half the battle (G.I. Joe).

So it is with great pleasure that I check off something else on my Super-To-Do-List. I am now a writer for an upcoming magazine out of Detroit and Atlanta. This fits in very well with my goals because Detroit is the city of my birth and I plan for Atlanta to become the city of my (business) growth. The magazine owners and editors are professional and have done their due diligence. I don’t know who was more impressed: me with them, or them with me. And I’m not easily impressed at all. But they are impressive people who are knowledgeable of their publication and what they want to do with it. They understand the business side of magazine publishing, versus just wanting to put out pretty paper.

I feel good about this. I think this will be a very creatively lucrative venture for me and for all of you, my readers, my fans and my supporters. There will even be opportunities for some of the women I know who own businesses, are in entertainment, etc., to be interviewed for my article (So don’t turn shy when I call, text or email you). Doing what I love and getting paid for it, so I can provide opportunities for others is my ultimate goal. I just got one step closer to achieving that goal. And I owe it to all of you ♥. 

You spoke, I listened and now I can give you more of what you want from the Super Woman Brand, one step at a time.

More information about the magazine, where to buy it and the launch events taking place in Detroit and Atlanta will be posted on this website, the Super Woman Productions and Publishing Google+  page, the Super Woman Productions and Publishing Facebook page, Essence.com, MingleCity.com, and IndustryBuzzz.com, as the information becomes available. Subscribers to the Super Woman Newsletter will receive the information FIRST, so subscribe to the newsletter today!

*Smooches

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Men Have Hair Issues

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Super Woman

Recently, I’ve seen a lot of articles in magazines, such as Essence, and posts on Facebook and Twitter about women wearing “natural” hair versus weaves, wigs, etc. A lot of these debates are started by men who seem to think they are the authority on how women should look and wear their hair. From a man deciding to give women wearing their “natural” hair discounts to enter his nightclub, to men asking are there any “women who don’t wear a weave left”. None of these men are men who have cosmetology licenses or work in the hair care industry. Therefore, they cannot be trusted as SMEs (subject matter experts) on what is “natural” hair and what isn’t. Men who make their living making women look beautiful, never complain about how women choose to wear their hair. I wonder who I would trust more to give me advice about my tresses: the man with the cosmetology license and the hair salon full of other beautiful women, or the man with his own personal idea of how a woman should wear her hair to please him.

I’m disappointed in Black men, particularly, who harshly judge, minimize and glorify women simply based on how we choose to wear our hair, or on whether or not our hair is “natural” or not. Black men clearly STILL have hair issues when it comes to Black women. It is divisive and superficial. It is one of the reasons Black women harshly judge each other based on hair. Weaves, wigs, press and curls, relaxers, braids, locs – those are a woman’s choice, not the determining factor of a woman’s worth.

Men who do not work in the hair care industry, don’t even know what the true definition of “natural” hair is. They are only going off of their opinion of what it should be. Regardless of how a woman wears her hair, going to the hair salon still costs money, therefore men, I have news for you: You will not save money, by dating a woman just because she wears what you consider “natural” hair. All hair types require care by a professional at some point during its growth. Women with “natural” hair also experience problems such as hair breakage if their hair isn’t properly cared for. Therefore, men, if saving money is your concern, I bid you good luck with that.

I’m becoming tired of men who think that every woman on the planet should be their “type” of woman. If a man likes a woman to have certain qualities, he should date only those types of women. If a man likes a woman who has a certain hair type or texture, he should date only women with that hair type or texture. Every woman isn’t going to fit into every man’s “type”. FYI – you can’t make someone into what or who you want them to be (unless they are easily manipulated and unable to think and make decisions for themselves). Take a woman as she is, or leave her alone. Again, it’s a choice. 

God decided that there should  be a reflection of variety in everything about us. He proved that by making all of us a different skin tone and giving us a different hair texture. None of us is more beautiful in God’s eyes than someone else. We’re ALL made in His image. Aren’t we? Therefore, our hair strands are all natural, regardless of how we decide to wear them. As a woman who has worn my hair many, many ways over my thirty-six years of life, how I decide to wear it currently is completely a personal choice. Which it should always be. Most women are paying for their own hair services anyway. Women with self confidence don’t get their hair done for a man [She don't do it for the man, man never notice - Drake "Fancy"]. We get our hair done for OURSELVES. It just so happens that men get the benefits of us doing so by being blessed to look at us afterwards ♥.

To the men of the world, (particularly Black men), who feel like a woman’s hair and how she chooses to wear it is such a huge factor, because you have hair issues, I say the following and I say it with love:

As women, we are very tolerant of your many PHYSICAL imperfections as men, not to mention some of your emotional imperfections. Please be aware that all of you don’t look like professional athletes, actors and male models. Some of you need to make a lot more frequent trips to the doctor, dentist, barber and gym. But we love you anyway. If you like certain kinds of women, that is your choice. Choose the kind of woman that you like, but please STOP trying to turn all the women of the world into the kind of woman that you like. It’s called having choices and respecting other’s choices. I respect your right, as a man, to choose women with nothing going for them but big butts, who have no brains and can’t cook, if that’s what you like, whether I agree with it or not. Therefore, respect our rights as women to choose to wear our hair the way we want to and change it when we want to. If women ever started judging men as harshly based on something as superficial as your hair, many of you wouldn’t get into the nightclub either.  

♦ I am not my hair, and neither is she.

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