One of the most telling things about this journey called life is The Playoffs. In this part of the season/life, it is what separates those who are serious from those who are just playing / those who are talking from those who are walking / the ideas from the execution.

In life, we must aim high and truly value The Playoffs. Fear itself prevents majority of us from participating in The Playoffs. For all of us, The Playoffs can be different challenges and milestones in life, but all in all we must embrace The Playoffs.

The Playoffs define you, it gives you perspective as to your hard work, your plan, and your execution. I truly live for The Playoffs. I continue to push myself to DO MORE, push the limits, no fear of trying new things and overperforming: it builds character. Although your story will be reflective of your journey, your name will be most determined by how you performed in The Playoffs…were you able to overcome adversity? did you get over the hump? were you able to gel with your teammates (read: co-workers, business partners, husband/wife, etc)? 

I challenge everyone [including myself] to embrace The Playoffs, let’s all aim for the top and continue to raise the bar. I heard a wise man once say, your dreams should exceed your potential.

Moral of the story: Go Lakers!

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Health:
  1.    Drink plenty of water.
  2.    Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
  3.    Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
  4.    Live with the 3 E’s — Energy,  Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
  5.    Make time to practice prayer and meditation or yoga.
  6.    Play more games.
  7.    Read more books than you did in 2008.
  8.    Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
  9.    Sleep for 7 hours.
  10.  Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:
  11.  Don’t compare your life to others’. You have no idea what
  their journey is all about.
  12.  Don’t have negative thoughts or things you cannot control.
  Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
  13.  Don’t over do. Keep your limits.
  14.  Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
  15.  Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip.
  16.  Dream more while you are awake.
  17.  Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
  18.  Forget issues of the past. Don’t remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
  19.  Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don’t hate others.
  20.  Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.
  21.  No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
  22.  Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
  23.  Smile and laugh more.
  24.  You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

Society:
  25.  Call your family often.
  26.  Each day give something good to others.
  27.  Forgive everyone for everything.
  28.  Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
  29.  Try to make at least three people smile each day.
  30.  What other people think of you is none of your business.
  31.  Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your family and friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:
  32.  Do the right thing!
  33.  Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
  34.  GOD heals everything.
  35.  However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
  36.  No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
  37.  The best is yet to come.
  38.  When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.
  39.  Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

The Los Angeles Urban League Young Professionals (LAULYP) are “back”, relaunched. Tuesday January 27th (flyer shown below), LAULYP invites all local young professionals out to a kickoff meeting to introduce the new gameplan and administration: a NEW year, a NEW President, a NEW LAULYP!

After graduating from Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University (FAMU) and returning to Los Angeles, as a native of the city, I was compelled to dig in, serve the community, and make a name for Ken Billups. With that said, I joined LAULYP to connect with other young professionals aiming to not only seek out opportunity for self, but also serve the community. Over the years, I have partnered and maintained a relationship with LAULYP: the George Thompson administration, Justin Sanders administration, Felton Newell administration, and now the newly appointed President, [CLIMB Board of Director] Taj Tashombe.

[click here to learn more about Taj Tashombe]

This is certainly good news for the city of Los Angeles and I encourage any/all young professionals to get involved in their local community. As a necessary piece in the urban community, we applaud the efforts of resurgence and action. Let’s continue to support Taj Tashombe and the LAULYPs by getting involved and spreading the word. I’ll see you at the meeting…

A NEW year, a NEW President, a NEW LAULYP!

Special Guest Speaker
Dr Anthony Maddox
Chief of Staff, Los Angeles Urban League

Meet your new Board Members:

Taj Tashombe, President
Johanne Vaval, Vice President
Rashida Purifoy, Secretary
Daniel Prince, Treasurer
Cory Wynn, Marketing and Public Relations Chairperson
Michelle Merriweather, Community Service and Programs Chairperson

Don’t sit on the sidelines…Answer the Call to SERVE…

Be a part of the MOVEMENT!

Join for a limited time for $40 (annual membership)
That’s the 20% “we are in a reccession” discount

Mix and Mingle with members, old and new, immediately following the General Body Meeting!

Seven
555 7th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013

By David Smallwood (Urban Influence Magazine)

You’ve come up with a brilliant idea that’s going to make you millions and get you featured on “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.” You’re going to be an entrepreneur.

But first, one of the first things you have to figure out is what kind of business are you going to set up? Are you going it alone as a sole proprietor or taking on a partner? Do you need to incorporate yourself?

One of the most important considerations in selecting the structure is deciding which will best serve you at tax time, according to the experts at www.entrepreneur.com. You need the structure that protects your business and family assets in case of any liability, in addition to giving you the best tax breaks.

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by Victoria Anderson

I recently read that the secret to understanding a city and it’s people is to learn what is the Word of the Street? According to this author, every city has a single word that defines it and identifies most of the people that live there. For example, many may agree that the word for the cities below might be :

Los Angeles = Success

New York = Achieve

Vegas = Debauchery

The gist is that every city, and its people, have a word which defines it. For example, when many people think of New York they may think Achieve; or for Vegas one might think Debauchery or Sin City!!!

My word? Frankly, I struggled to come up with just one!  And though I’m still tossing it around a bit, the closest I’ve come to being able to define ‘my word’ is…solution-ize.

I am forever: thinking, reflecting, analyzing, doing–with most things my mind works in what I call a ‘4 step process’ : 1) analyze to understand 2) problem-solve to generate alternatives 3) “solution-ize” and 4) resolve or compromise. Oh, and I am so prone to over stimulating, lol.

Let me tell you, this can be kind of annoying–even to me– given that being 3 ‘thoughts’ ahead takes me out of the present.

Don’t get me wrong. There are times when this works and makes sense. However, there are plenty of times when it SO does not. And it causes me to miss or overlook the details, or focus too much on the future.

I think there is a serious need for me to think/do less, and just BE more. My goal–yes, I’m aware this may defeat the purpose of thinking less just a tiny bit–is to have a new word ‘define’ me . If defining it, means I will be more of it, then this is at least a step in the right direction. Right??  So, what is that new word, you ask?

If this is, in fact the case, then my “in progress word” is:

BE

…as in: present, in-the-now, at-hand, in-the-moment–fully and completely here and aware of the current stuff I am doing or experiencing.

With that, what is your word?!

by Victoria Anderson

Victoria is a Human Resources Professional, and currently works as a HR Manager for General Mills—Yoplait Division. Prior to joining General Mills, she spent 4 years as a HR Manager with Pepsi. Victoria received her Master’s Degree from the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign) in HR Management & Labor Relations; and her Bachelors of Science in Industrial/Organization Psychology from ISU.

For kicks, she enjoys spending traveling, writing, spending time with friends, and trying just about anything new. 

By Asher Mathew

There is no single book that covers all that we need to know to succeed in Corporate America, but no matter which facet of Corporate America you are involved in there are guidelines to build a career centered on respect and integrity. My favorite set of guidelines was articulated by Kwame Jackson, runner-up on the first and best season of The Apprentice. Following are some lessons from the boardroom by Kwame Jackson slightly modified by my experience:

1. NO FEAR

    - Look people in their eyes when you speak to them. There is no reason to fear someone because of status and/or title. Looking at them sets a tone of mutual respect that will go along way in communicating self-confidence.

2. BE ACCOUNTABLE

   - Don’t twist the truth. If you messed up dont hide the events, talk about them as they happened and explain your judgement, you will be forgiven (maybe not in the way you expect). It is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.

3. NEVER FORGET THE TEAM

    - Business, Family, Friends…know who got you here and thank them. 

   - Back people up and spread the credit, not the blame. One of the best ways to build lasting relationships and demostrate true leadership is to make other people shine, there is no greater satisfaction in life than to help someone get to where they want to be.

4. TAKE CALCULATED RISK - “Wait for your pitch!” 

    - Go with your gut, and have the logic train to back it up. I am a firm believer of using logic to understand all possible outomes of a situation but taking the one that your gut feeling drives you to. 

    - Don’t be afraid to go for what you want! You only live once so why not shoot for the stars. 

5. STRAIGHT TALK - “CANDID DIPLOMACY”

    - Call them like you see them! Ofcourse choice of words is important to deliver good/bad news, but never sugarcoat the intensity of the situation.  

6. BE YOURSELF

    - I hate fake people!

    - Do what’s important to you, not anyone else

    - Prove things to yourself, not anyone else

7. LEADERS ARE NOT ALWAYS OUT IN FRONT 

    - Play your position..identify your strengths and weaknesses and act accordingly 

8. KNOW WHEN TO SHUT UP

    - Two ears and one mouth, use them in proportion…definitely from Sales 101

    - Listen, Observe, Process, Act…

9. PLAN YOUR WORK & WORK YOUR PLAN

    - Have a road map..time and again I have planned a generic road map, it is good to have both short term and long term goals but even more important to understand that live will bring your surprises so be prepared and know that hope is not a strategy.

    - Get smart people, smarter than you, put them in the right place, and get the hell out of the way. A simple management technique.

    - Know what you want out of life…this probably is the most important lesson, knowing what you want shapes who you are and what you’ll be…

10. STAY POSITIVE & PERSEVERE

    - Life is not what happens to you but how you react…

    - Where God closes a door, he opens a window, just look for the draft…have faith!

Video Links:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-6hxgbatnA

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRXA5AnpNAQ

Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4kyaoLTW_k

I hope this serves as a basic foundation for success not just in Coporate America but Life.

by Jullien Gordon

If you guessed a raise and a promotion, you’re only partially right. The only two things your employees really want are to to feel valued and and to create value. Virgin and Johnson & Johnson have developed company cultures that put employees above shareholders. In his book “Losing My Virginity”, Richard Bronson, Founder and CEO of Virgin, states “Convention dictates that a company looks after its shareholders first, its customers next and last of all worries about its employees. Virgin does the opposite.

If you start off with a happy, well-motivated workforce, you’re far more likely to have happy customers. In due course the resulting profits will make shareholders happy.” Johnson & Johnson’s 60 year old Credo places employees second after customers, but before community and shareholders. Both companies recognize that their employees are their most valuable assets and thus create organizational cultures that allow employees to demonstrate their value.

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by Jullien Gordon

Attracting and Retaining Great People

Two dedicated team members is better than five dedicated team members and and one undedicated one. Undedicated people have the ability to kill the productivity of everyone on the team to their level of dead-ication. They may have been committed in the beginning, but over time, things change and people change and their commitment to the vision may not be as strong for whatever reason.

It’s nothing personal to give them the boot, but the CEO must always remember that the vision is more important than any individual while at the same time recognizing that his/her team is the most valuable thing to that vision. People tend to join organizations for one or more of three reasons: the vision, the team, the technology.

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