Posted on Sunday, January 10, 2016

How To Achieve Your Goals, Dreams & Resolutions in One Year…

Hello World,

It’s been a while since I’ve gotten really personal on this space but since it is a New Year, the time of the year that many of us reserve to reassess our personal and professional goals, dreams, resolutions, etc., I have decided to let you into my head…

I have LOTS of dreams, but two are most important to me….one is personal and one is professional and only God and my husband know all about them right now and they will remain that way for now…

However, back in 2008, I also had LOTS of dreams and similarly to what is going on in my life now, two of them – (one was personal and one was professional) surpassed the rest…As I shared in a previous post in 2013, but did not share then, “I wanted to meet and get married to the man God kept for me, and I wanted to be a published author.” In 2008, it seemed nothing I did got me any closer to my dreams, but as I look back, God was leading me to the realization of my dreams…I just couldn’t see it then…

So let me take you back to 2007-2008…I was 34 years old and had gotten reacquainted with a man I dated in college. We had a lot a fun when we dated in college but we just didn’t work out as a couple. However, we had kept in touch here and there over the years, and we decided to give it a try again. Being the storyteller that I am, it seemed like the perfect ending to a long and winding story. College fun turns into lasting love…But that is not what happened…For all of the things we had in common and all of the fun we still had, he was not a churchgoing Christian man and that was a deal breaker for me…He was not an atheist, but he just didn’t think it was necessary to go to church…Nothing I did, said or prayed changed that so we broke up, and I was heartbroken…

So I did what made sense for me to do right then…I turned my pain into profit and pitched an article to UPSCALE magazine about why black men don’t go to church…An editor liked and approved the idea, and I happily tracked down sources for the article…One of those sources was Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu, the author of book “Adam! Where Are You?: Why Most Black Men Don’t Go to Church” Now, here is where the story gets kinda spooky or super spiritual depending on how you look at it. I read his book before I interviewed him, and I was shocked to read one of the illustrations in his book about someone who was looking for a black man in church. This illustration featured a woman named Jackie who was 34 years old and had made all of the “right moves” but was still unable to meet the right churchgoing man…Hello, my name was (is) Jackie, I was 34 and I had felt I had made all of the “right moves” and still hadn’t met the churchgoing man of my dreams…I knew then that the interview was one of those pebbles that God throws down on your path to let you know that you are moving in the right direction…After I interviewed Dr. Kunjufu, I told him I was a lot like the “Jackie” in his book and even he was surprised that we shared some of the exact same qualities…In fact, he later e-mailed these words to me – “I enjoyed our interview, and I believe God has your husband waiting for you!” By the way, my article was published in the August 2008 issue of UPSCALE magazine…

Meanwhile, I also felt stalled in my professional life…I mean I had some wonderful things going on…I had secured freelance writing opportunities that made it possible for me not to have the traditional 9 to 5 gig and I was profoundly grateful, but I had wanted to be a published book author since I was a little girl…And it seemed that every door I tried to walk through to make it happen was eventually slammed in my face…In 2007, I had gone to a writers conference in Philadelphia and had attracted the attention of the senior acquisitions editor of my DREAM publishing company…He enthusiastically took my book proposal and promised he would be in touch soon…He kept his promise and within a couple of weeks, he e-mailed me…I thought it had to be good news because only good news comes that fast…but it wasn’t…He e-mailed these words to me – “I read over your book proposal, My Journey, but my marketing department tells me that this is a hard kind of book for them to sell nationally, and so I have to reject it. Sorry.” I bet he wasn’t as sorry as I was…I was salty about that…

But I also realized that if I had gotten the attention of the senior acquisitions editor, I had something to offer even if it wasn’t quite right yet…At that same conference, I had pitched my book “My Journey” (which is what the book was called then…What a boring title!) to someone else in the publishing industry, and I had used the words “after the altar call” in the pitch…She told me I should rename my book “After the Altar Call.” Also, at that same conference, I learned about having a “platform” and why every nonfiction author had to have one…By the following year, I decided I was going to be the next blogger who turned it into a book…After the Altar Call was born in September 2008…

It would take TWO MORE YEARS before these two dreams would come into fruition… By 2010, I had dated more men but those relationships hadn’t worked out either…But there was a guy at my church who I knew I had a crush on me, but he wasn’t my usual type so I never took him seriously…by then, I thought well, I will give him a chance…That guy revealed himself to be my husband in 2010…Also, after two years of blogging, it occurred to me that if my story and platform weren’t enough by themselves maybe I should include the stories and platforms of other women in a new book proposal for After the Altar Call: The Sisters’ Guide to Developing a Personal Relationship With God…That was the key that unlocked a door that had been previously slammed in my face…I secured a book deal that year…

So how do you achieve your goals, dreams & resolutions in one year?

Well, there is good news and bad news…In my experience, some of the best goals, dreams and resolutions can be achieved in one year, but it usually takes years to get there…But the good news is if you trust in God and in His timing, you will receive God’s best for you…It goes back to my favorite verse:

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Any thoughts?

Posted on Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Retrospect: 2015 in Posts…

Hello World,

In just one measly day (although a lot can happen in a day), 2015 will be a part of our past, and 2016 will be our present and future! I don’t know about you, but it is only when I truly contemplate all the days of the year from January through December that I realize that so much has been packed into 365 days! This year has been a momentous one for my humble corner of the World Wide Web that I affectionately refer to as After the Altar Call. If you please, let’s take a retrospective look at what God has done here!

January 2015 – I always bring in the New Year in church because it is where I get guidance for the year! During this year’s Watch Night Service, the pastor focused on Hebrews 13: 5-6. Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. I wasn’t sure what these verses meant for me which you can read about in “Two Signs Your New Year May Not Be Off to the Best Start…”But now that the year is nearly over, I do understand what God is saying to me through those verses. Here are some of my insights for me: 1. Don’t be jealous of other people and what they have going on because the Lord controls your destiny as He does for everyone else. He has placed you where you are supposed to be and rejoice for that! 2. So much emphasis is placed on networking and building the right relationships. While those skills are important, the most powerful relationship you can have is the one you have with Jesus because He can open doors that no one can shut!

February 2015 – I’ve always wanted to attend a celebrity awards show so this year I decided to do just that. Although I attended the 23rd Annual Trumpet Awards Ceremony in January, I didn’t write my post “My Red Carpet Coverage of the 2015 Trumpet Awards/Watch It on TV One THIS Saturday…”until February when the show aired on TV One. And not only did I attend, I decided to be red carpet ready as well! There I am on the red carpet!

March 2015 – I was blessed to interview Atlanta’s First Black Lady Ms. Bunnie Jackson-Ransom, president and CEO of firstClass, Inc., a full-service public relations and marketing firm, about her book Getting The Word Out: How To Market Your Ministry: Communication Tools & Tactics You Need For Evangelism in “Atlanta’s First Black First Lady Pens New Church for Churches…”

April 2015 – I started recapping Mary Mary’s reality show in March, but I did the majority of my recaps in April. Here is one of my favorite recaps of the show -“Is Tina Testifying Too Much? : Mary Mary Season 4, Episode 5 Recap…”

May 2015 – When I began recapping Mary Mary’s reality show in March, I had no idea that I would be able to interview Tina Campbell, and what an interview it was! Check out “Mitchell Solarek is NOT Tina Campbell’s Manager & More: My Interview With Mary Mary’s Tina Campbell!”

June 2015 – This month was HUGE for this blog as I relaunched it as I decided to mainly focus on “blogging the cross section of faith, relationships and pop culture!” (Yes, that is my new tagline 🙂 See above!) I took head shots for the blog, rewrote my bio and updated my theme ! I’ve always wanted to be a celebrity/lifestyle journalist (from a faith perspective which came later) so I hired myself 🙂 ) My first post once I relaunched my blog was “Tamela Mann Shares About ‘The Gospel Tradition: In Performance At The White House’ & More: MY INTERVIEW…”

July 2015 – So when I was in college, I used to bump (that means play) certain artists and groups on Boombox and my Walkman (Wow, that was back in the day) in my door room and out and about over and over again. One of those groups was SWV (Sisters With Voices)! That is why I was so excited to interview Coko of SWV in the blog post “SWV’s Coko Talks About Her New Radio Show, Girl Group & How She & Her Hubby Maintain Their Weight Loss.”

August 2015 – It is always encouraging to see other authors do well because being a writer in today’s times can be very discouraging! This month best-selling author ReShonda Tate Billingsley realized a dream come true as her book “Let The Church Say Amen” became a BET movie, which I live tweeted! Check out my interview with her about how her book became a movie in The Making of the BET Movie & ReShonda Tate Billingsley’s “Let The Church Say Amen!”

September 2015 – As I said, I love my celebrities, but I have special love for Christian celebrities! It was definitely one of the highlights of the year to be able to interview David Oyelowo about his movie “Captive.” Check out the interview in “Actor David Oyelowo Captures Brian Nichols in Hostage Crisis Movie ‘Captive’: My Interview (With Audio).” His repertoire is very impressive as he has been in “Selma” as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “The Butler” and “The Help!”

October 2015 – My new interview series “Resilience & the Bible” was launched this month. In this interview series, I hope to demonstrate how Scriptures can be used to bounce back from the trials we all have to go through from time to time. My first interview as “Resilience & the Bible: How to Use Scriptures to Bounce Back From – Rebellious Teenagers.”

November 2015 – My favorite post of this month was “How Do You Deal With Beggars on the Street Asking for Money?” Honestly, I’m still dealing with this issue. Pray for me…

December 2015 – It was a blessing to write this post “Interdenominational Theological Center Triumphant After Accreditation Scare, Honors Civil Rights Icons at Global Transformers Gala (PHOTOS included).”

Other highlights of 2015: Being featured on The Atlanta Journal Constitution website – ajc.com and becoming a blogger for BibleGateway!

God has truly blessed this blog! May 2016 be a blessing to you! God bless you…

Any thoughts?

Posted on Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Finance Expert Terrell Dinkins Hopes to Bridge Gender Wealth Gap Through New Book “One Bucket at a Time”

Join Dinkins at Her Book Launch Party at The Commerce Club THIS Thursday!

Hello World,

‘Tis the season to spend! But if you’re careful, you can still have some money to spare after Christmas!

Ever since I worked with a financial coach back in 2009, I’m all about staying on top of my finances! That’s why I’m excited about introducing you to financial advisor and wealth empowerment speaker Terrell Dinkins, MBA, who has written a new book to help empower women when it comes to their finances. One Bucket at a Time: A Woman’s Guide to Creating Wealth , which costs $15.99, will be available starting Thursday, December 17, 2015, when the public has an opportunity to meet and have books signed by the author during a book launch party just in time for the holiday season. The event takes place from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at The Commerce Club at 191 Peachtree Street NE, 49th floor, in Atlanta. The first 50 attendees to buy a book will receive a special gift! To register for this free event, go to eventbrite.com.

Below is my interview with Terrell Dinkins.

1.How did you come up with the name of your book “One Bucket at a Time?” What does it mean?

The buckets represent the multiple streams of income we should create or fill throughout our lifetime to carry us throughout retirement and beyond. There is order in when we should fill our buckets. I explain the importance of this order in my book. Each bucket of money we create will be used at different intervals throughout our lifetime. There is also meaning to my book cover. The rain represents saving and being prepared for the storms we might encounter in life.

2. What inspired you to write your book? Tell us about the process of writing your book. How long did it take? How did you conduct your research?

A business colleague encouraged me to write the book sooner rather than later. Writing this book was on my bucket list (no pun intended). I just had not planned on doing it so soon. When my business colleague heard the message that I gave to my clients (my bucket approach system to wealth building) she said, “You need to write a book. The message should not be reserved just for your clients.” It took me about six months to write the book and conduct my research. The statistical data I included came from various sources, to include other authors and articles I have found. I reference all of my sources in the book. I also include my personal story and other encounters and experiences I have had with clients to teach lessons to others.

3. What do you hope women will take away from the book?

I hope women will realize that they must act now to prepare for the future. So much of the financial household weight will have to be carried alone due to divorce, widowhood or being single. Be smart about your financial choices and learn how to create balance between lifestyle and saving for a rainy day.

4. How did you get interested in building wealth and financial empowerment? What personal experiences fueled your interest in these topics?

Ever since I can remember, I have always been intrigued about wealth building. As a child, I daydreamed like any other child about what it would feel like to not have to worry about money and, of course, live in a big house (typical childlike thoughts). I always did a pretty good job handling my money. I’ve always been a saver (yes, even in kindergarten). My mother always told me to make sure I put something to the side just in case there was an emergency. I listened. No particular personal experiences fueled my interest. The interest has always been a part of me.

5. What happens during your “Women and Wealth” workshops? How often and where do you host them? What is the cost?

I come up with different financial topics that I think might interest women and talk about them over wine and hors d’oeuvres. As an example, one of my presentation topics was called “Don’t Leave it All at The Mall.” I presented this topic during the holiday shopping season as a reminder to women of the importance of keeping a budget for holiday spending. When I started my practice, I thought having a free workshop would help me reach more women and it did. I was told by a few male colleagues that I was wasting my time. I never felt like I was wasting my time. I found a few women who wanted to change their financial situation and that was what mattered the most. The workshops were held once a quarter at my office. I did have to cut back on the workshops because my practice did grow and I no longer have the extra time that I used to have because of the growth of my practice. The workshops also led to my speaking and sitting on panels for other organizations. Speaking to other groups still allows me to get my message out without having to host the events on my own. Because they were free, you did have the occasional person who showed up at every event because they were free. Not many, but a few.

6. What is the No. 1 habit or behavior that women can do right now to get them on the path to building wealth and financial empowerment?

Create a budget. If you do have a budget, review it every month when you pay your bills. Make revisions to the budget and don’t set it in January and forget it for the rest of the year.

7. Since it is the Christmas season, what is one tip that can be used to save at Christmas time?

Set a dollar amount that you plan on spending for all of your holiday gifts. Once you come up with this amount, determine who will get what percentage of the pie.

Terrell Dinkins is a financial rep with Peachtree Planning Corporation in Atlanta. She graduated from Georgia Southern College with a BBA in finance (minor: banking), and earned an MBA from Mercer University Stetson School of Business and Economics in Atlanta. An Atlanta native, Terrell completed the Executive Financial Planning Program from the University of Georgia Terry College of Business in Atlanta.

Terrell is an active member in civic and community organizations to include the Lake Spivey Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, Inc., Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. (Tau Epsilon Omega Chapter), and The Twenty Pearls Foundation.

For more information about Terrell, go to terrelldinkins.com or onebucketnation.com.

Any thoughts?