Last night, the world was watching the news with bated breath to find out who would become the next leader of the free world. Was it going to be Governor Romney or President Obama? At 11:39 PM, it was announced that President Barack Obama had won a second term in presidency. In fact, he made history by becoming the third President in a row to be re-elected.
Let’s interview: Please answer the questions in the comments section. On Friday, I’ll post my favorite interviews on amanadaebokosia.com. Please forward a photo of yourself to contact@amandaebokosia.com. I’ll post it if selected, and I’ll notify you if chosen. There is no need to confirm a receipt, my e-mail account is a catchall.
Question: Who are you? What is your profession?
Question: Did you watch the election and vote?
Question: Are you happy with the outcome of the election?
Question: Where were you last night at 11:39 PM, when it was reported that President Barack Obama, won a second term of presidency?
Question: How did that make you feel?
Question: When you think of the word power, what is the first thing that comes to mind?
Question: How do you define power?
Question: Do you think the first family embodies, power?
Question: And lastly, what do you do to feel more powerful?
Missed the victory speech by President Barack Obama? Watch it below:
I had a wonderful conversation the other day with a friend. We were discussing the upcoming elections and what it truly means to be a public servant.
Answering the call of service is a duty that requires the availability of all your heart, ears, and mind. You need to be fully committed, passionate, attentive, and most of all open to those who you serve.
It is one of the most noble professions and one that should not be taken lightly. When people invest their trust in leaders, they do so with the purest of intentions with the belief that their trust won’t be jeopardized or forfeited. When you’re serving one person, you’re serving a group of people.
The impact you leave on one person, whether good or bad, will affect someone else. ”I honestly don’t know how he is able to do it all, ” I say when referring to our President. “I know he has a cabinet of individuals who advise him along with his entire administration in running the operations of this country– but still, it’s 24/7. The work.” My friend responds, “Well, look at what you’re doing.” My team is small, but we’re ambitious and we’re learning. I know they’re learning, I’m learning every day. At the root, I serve them first and then everyone else.
It’s not fair to expect grand things out of thin air, you must encourage the heart. You need to nurture those who are building the dream first. A basket isn’t woven by a single strand, but several. Whatever you wish to become, it will certainly take a team. Back to public servants, the work is fulfilling when done with the right intentions, which is to serve the people and community — without expectations of recognition. The greatest public servants I know enlist a group of people who they can call for council, nourishment, and yes–a friendly ear. When you have a community that depends on your leadership for hope, you’re going to need nourishment– to keep up the pace.
The crisp cool air has finally made its invitation. And you know what? Autumn has just arrived, and is quite jealous. Holding no prisoners, the trees are going to be confused with color: spotted brown, yellow hues, and green patches.
So long are the days of summer. The days of cool rides down the Hudson river on a kayak, sweet smells of a freshly cut lawn, sparkly stars flying down our driveway–being chased by nets from overly exuberant children– saying, “Look Mom and Dad, I caught one–a fire fly.”
Those were no ordinary days. Hello autumn.
Padding down the Hudson, I stick my toes one last time out of my kayak and into the river.Drawing from the remnants of summer, I muse. The happiness of it all: lush leaves, pregnant bellies of ripe trees, and gregarious laughter clinging from the ferry boats of Manhattan’s South Ferry Station saying,
“Lolita, we are going to be late!”
“I can hear the festival from here, relax Les — we’re the Jazz festival.”
“Just look at us,” said Lolita as she tucked her blue peacock feather behind her ear.
It seems like a water color painting now. The laced garb, beads, feathered headbands– the boyish cuts, straight out of the “Roaring Twenties.” An adventure of sorts for the young honeybees as they made their way to the nest called, Governors Island.
Boy — has that painting faded.
The water is cool, the air is fresh and the sun has barely glazed its warmth across my body. My skin is prickled –goose bumps. Autumn is such a sneaky girl.
There are so many layers that make up people. We’re now living in this open society, accelerated by the advancement of technology in a digital age. People are so free in sharing everything they can. You name it, someone has possibly seen it. I remember growing up as a child in Philly, being one of the few who had a color printer on my block. I’m 26, just to give you an idea– it was not too long ago. Back then AOL was thriving more than any other internet provider. I remember that people were shy in exposing their identities online, even if they had a website. In my observation, a majority of persons would hide behind these default avatars to use for social platforms. Today, this is definitely not the case.
Silicon Valley is home to the greatest tech companies in the United States, if not world. Facebook is well on its way to achieving a billion members. I’d give it two to three years. In most interviews I’ve read of Mark Zuckerberg, he has always remained firm with the mission of his social media empire. It has not wavered since its inception of being a platform to create a more open society. It’s eerie to see how far of achieving his goal he has delivered.
In doing so, we’ve also created a sense of knowing people based on their digital imprints. It’s intriguing and dangerous all at the same time. Similar to public figures and celebrities, people think they know but have no idea. You can only truly know someone by developing a relationship offline. One that’s not filtered, contrived, or influenced in any way. I worry when I think of children who are impressionable and eager to make friends.
The ability to influence something or someone to help execute a (larger) project. “Larger” in the sense that the impact is so great that it could not have been accomplished if it were done by just one person. Leadership– real leadership is the ability to inspire those around you to invest their energy toward something greater than themselves. You’re working toward a shared vision, everyone is investing their time toward that thing.
Power In Style Series:This series runs every Tuesday on AmandaEbokosia.com. You may send ideas, questions and comments by E-mail: contact@amandaebokosia.com.
001. Read A lot: I’ve learned that in order to improve as a writer, you have to continuously read good material. It’s not easy, but I am finding time because I’m making the time.
002. Live: My post Wednesday spoke about the importance of experiencing life– and making yourself available in the moment of your own “experience.” That means, limited to no tweeting or instagraming in real time. You want to get lost in the moment to rejuvenate your spirit, and be inspired by the world around you. It’s a great way to avoid writer’s block. You must get out there and humble yourself before nature to absorb all its beauty. The thoughts and creativity will soon flow– trust me.
003. Just Write: Free-writing is a great technique to clear your mind and strengthen your voice. Grab a notepad and write whatever is on your mind. Grammatical errors aside, write whatever is on your mind. Keep a journal, online or off– make it a game. You can get a magazine and cut out a bunch of words. Each day, pick a word or a photo and just go ahead and write. Write . write.
NEIL GAIMAN says, “Apart from reading a lot and living, every now and then I run into really good writers who have nothing to say. At that point you want to say, start writing and go get a job somewhere. Go run the world, go do stuff, go get your heart broken and then come back and write some more. Normally what you want to tell people is write. Because for most people who want to be writers, it never occurs to them to do it (be writers) is by writing. All writers have this vague hope that the elves will come into the night and finish any stories for you– and they won’t– it’s only you. So, you have to write and you have to finish things. You have to get them read, start doing things, and that’s really the secret. Put one word after the other — like big bricks onto a wall and sooner or later you look and you see that you managed to build a palace. ”
Jenna Goudreau was on to something with her recent piece, Could Wearing Red Boost Your Earnings ? In the article she highlights different studies, which show women who wear red in certain professions, earn more and are perceived differently among their peers. As cited in article, France’s University South Brittany– gathered data among waitresses in 5 different restaurants who wore either red, blue, black, yellow, and green. The data collected were their earnings over the course of 6 weeks with 722 patrons. The results of the study showed that women who wore red earned 15-26% more by male diners, while female patrons were not affected by the color of the waitresses’ clothes.
Goudreau later explored whether this finding held true in more professional work environments. How much of a role does color hold with our own perception on things or people?
I’ll never forget the day when I heard about Oprah’s Legends Ball. It was an all white/black affair. She surprised her guests when she walked into the room with a bright red Vera Wang gown, fit for a queen.
All I could think back then was, “That’s how a powerful woman let’s her presence be known.”
Image Credit: Oprah.com
Power In Style Series:This series runs every Tuesday on AmandaEbokosia.com. You may send ideas, questions and comments by E-mail: contact@amandaebokosia.com.
Have a question about anything ? Submit your question (here).
Q: Sitawa asks, Do you have any tips on time management?
A:Time management: A fashion that will never go out of style. As an entrepreneur, I find myself always reinventing the wheel (looking for new ways to keep my team and I ahead). I say this as my inbox floods and my calendar is marked with yellow highlights and post-its, I get it. It’s tough to manage time effectively, but it’s not impossible. Sitawa, here are some tips I offer:
EXAMINE FLAWS: Let’s reflect on your typical day. Where do you fall short? Where do you find your time used ineffectively? Are you procrastinating by wasting time on your favorite website or answering way too many e-mails in one session? We want the time we use to count so that we can have more time for ourselves, and yield better work– work that matters. Let’s think about how we can minimize our junk time. My junk time is watching TV during the week. I try to watch my shows over the internet during my “off” days (I have more control). During the week, I focus on productive work throughout the week. The times I used to watch shows during the week, are now replaced with reading and producing new ideas for programs. I try to take the night down by drinking peppermint tea, it relaxes me. Map out where you fall short during your day, and find out ways to minimize that time–the junk time.
SET GOALS:When you set goals for what you wish to accomplish, you’ll have more control over your time. I knew of a Life Coach who recommended setting 5 clear goals a month, while defining a weekly task toward each goal. She felt that making a million “to-dos” were not practical, which is true. You want to set clear monthly goals. You want a few goals that are attainable and a few that are reaching for the stars. In a sense, it’s like applying for college. You have your list of safety schools (schools you’re likely to be accepted in/ tasks you can accomplish easily) and the reach schools (schools that will be a challenge for you to get in/ tasks that are much more difficult to accomplish).
BE PREPARED: I had a graduate adviser who gave me the best advice. I used to come into her office every quarter asking, “How can I make all of this better ?” I was referring to my busy life, life as a student, and work. She asked me, “How do you plan your days ?” When I gave her my calendar, she glanced at it and said, “Where is the time you eat lunch, dinner, laundry, and sleep ? She urged me to pencil it all in–months ahead. Planning ahead will afford you more discipline and focus. TIP: Create a Google Calendar and sync it to all of your technological devices. You can even set certain routines, while activating alerts and reminders for each.
DELEGATE: When you share your responsibilities with others, you decrease the likelihood of being overwhelmed with the time you have to fulfill your duties. You want to continue to do great work to the best of your capabilities, while nurturing yourself with some free time. That only comes when you’re able to relinquish some of your “power” or control. You need to be able to learn how to delegate and share your responsibilities.
Read my article below about mastering the art of delegation:
Q&A Segment Series:The Q&A series runs every Monday on AmandaEbokosia.com. You may ask her anything, and she may feature your question on the website. Only your first name will be published. Submit your question (here)
Eggplants are a great source of fiber. I’ve sauteed it, fried it, and now baked it– Eggplant Parmesan. I did this under the guidance of Yahoo Shine’s contributor, Chef Fabio. He did not follow me into my kitchen physically, but he was there virtually. View his cooking demonstration below, you’ll also see a photo of my creation too Sunday afternoon around 4 PM. Please let me know if you’ve ever incorporated Eggplants into your diet. I’ve been having the most fun cooking and baking with foods that I’d normally pass up in the supermarket.
Have you tried anything new this week? Suggest something for us to try!
Something New Series:The “Something New” series runs every Friday on AmandaEbokosia.com. This series was made because I believe everyone should always have a “first” anything, it gives life new meaning and a sense of excitement.
