vision

How to overcome imposter syndrome

How to overcome imposter syndrome

Leonna is the owner of Shake Culture Dance where she choreographs dance classes within her own organisation and other’s. She also directs music videos for Christian hip-hop artists, offers dance fitness classes for adults and children, and more

In fact, she did an amazing dance fitness class at last year’s Media Magic retreat and will be doing the same this year too

Prior to attending Media Magic, there were plenty of platforms that she wanted to go on but they seemed out of reach

Or that she “could only dream about” them

Because of factors like imposter syndrome (which is something I wrote about in my recent article with Addicted2Success (Imposter Syndrome Is Rooted in Your Past But Here’s How You Can Rewire It), by the way)

This was brought about by limiting beliefs like telling “[ourselves] that we're not worthy of getting somewhere” or “friends… family or the people that have known us for our whole life who say ‘Maybe don't dream too big, or maybe just settle..’”

By the end of the retreat, however, she said: “Entrepreneurs with imposter syndrome should come to this retreat [because] sometimes you just need a little push and that retreat, for me personally, was that push to know that not only I can think of it, but I could actually do it...”. According to Leonna, what led to this transformation was…

Why communicating your why is so important

Why communicating your why is so important

When the ladies attended Media Magic, in Tulum (Mexico) last July, only 33% of them knew their why

I know this because of the results they got from my PR readiness assessment

This means that, at that point, they did not know what kind of impact they wanted to maķe in the world through PR

Which is an issue because not only does knowing your why keep you going when life be life-ing, in general, it helps you to remain steadfast ìn the face of having pitches ignored, rejected or ghosted

By the end of the retreat, though, I had them assess themselves again and the results revealed that 100% of them knew how to do this. What led to this success was…

How to unlock your full potential

How to unlock your full potential

I’m currently reading Crushing by T.D. Jakes
One of the concepts that stood out to me is how he talks about the fact that change, negative situations or what he calls the “crushing," can ultimately turn out to be for our good

In it, he quotes John 12:24
Where Jesus says “unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit”

When Jesus said this, He was talking about Himself and the fact that He would have to die and rise again so He could free us from sin. But this process is also true for us
Here's how 👇🏾

How hate can give your life meaning

How hate can give your life meaning

When I was little, I would sit glued to the TV for hours upon hours watching my favourite shows during my spare time

Shout out to you if you also grew up watching Nickelodeon, The Disney Channel and Cartoon Network!

Up to today I still remember many theme songs, but do you know what else I still remember?

Why you need a North Star

Why you need a North Star

Years ago, my good sis Michelle told me I have the gift of communication

When she said this, I thought, “Yeah, I have a way of communicating, I can speak to others, teach, write, and use my gifts to convey big ideas”

But what I’ve also come to realise over the years is that my gift of communication fuels my curiosity about language

Hi, I’m Nina, and I’m a word nerd

I get curious when I hear or see a word that I’ve never come across before or suddenly have the urge to know where the origins of a phrase comes from

Even if I’ve heard it lots of times in the past

One such phrase is “North Star”

We often hear people talk about something being their North Star

I’ve always understood what this phrase meant as the thing that gives us purpose or fuels us towards a particular goal

Or our why

But, recently, I’ve been curious about why we say “North Star” in the first place

Here’s what Google told me:

How to build and keep momentum

How to build and keep momentum

Recently, I had the pleasure of being interviewed on the Melanted and Proud podcast. It was a great experience that allowed me to pause, sit down, and reflect on my journey so far in terms of the challenges I’ve overcome to get to where I am today

From launching The Far Above Rubies Collection in its first iteration as a blog, to then learning PR to get more eyes on it, to coaching people on PR, and, ultimately, turning it into a luxury retreat business

For example, I’ve experienced the death of family and friends, my parents have been sick (sometimes at the same time and sometimes right before a launch). I’ve also experienced health issues, depression, anxiety, and feeling unmotivated. I’ve had to navigate the loss of friendships, money being funny, limiting beliefs, and, at times, family and friends not seeing the vision

Although I didn’t get to go through everything, just talking about and looking back on some of the things I’ve achieved, I realised that I’d accomplished so much while navigating life

A question that stuck out to me was: “What kept you going, and why haven’t you given up?”

To which I answered:

How to stay committed to your goals

How to stay committed to your goals

In Summer 2023, I went to Germany for my friend's beautiful wedding. In the few weeks leading up to her big day, my dear friend and soon-to-be bride, Kelly, asked if I could read a prayer at her ceremony
I was honoured, and of course, I said YES!

My first thought when she asked me was that all I needed to do was read a verse from The Bible
I was a little mistaken and would soon realise this, thanks to a message from the best man.

Fast-forward to a couple of messages later, and worry starting to kick in (lol)

Why, you ask?

Because I learned that it wasn't a reading of the word that Kelly needed from me. She wanted me to write a few lines that I would say in front of the congregation!

I won't lie; I was a little nervous because I was wondering what I could possibly say to the bride and groom

I took a few days to think about it, and these are the words that came to my heart and landed on my page:

Why mentorship is important

Why mentorship is important

When the ladies attended Media Magic, in Tulum (Mexico) last July, 0% of them knew how to get relevant PR opportunities

I know this because of the results they got from my PR readiness assessment

This means that, at that point, I could have given them the exact language, structure and anatomy of a successful pitch but it would have meant nothing because they didn't then know how to pitch platforms where their ideal clients were actually hanging out

Which is an issue because showing up on such podcasts, magazines, stages and so on leads to not getting a return on your efforts or investment

By the end of the retreat, though, I had them assess themselves again and the results revealed that 100% of them knew how to do this

What led to this success was…