The best decision that I made this year was on November 6, 2012…I made the decision to vote for Barack Obama. Although I was hesitant in voting, because politics can often be discouraging, I took a leap of faith “just in case” my vote DID count. As a woman, I know that I can make decisions and choices about my body without the fear that my rights may be wiped away. That’s a POWERFUL feeling to have and I’m thankful to those that encouraged me to vote during this election. If you missed Obama’s 2012 victory speech, here it is and enjoy watching OUR president accept the highest honor as Commander-in-Chief:
This is an amazing story of passion, struggle, fortitude and above all, endurance! No one ever said that following your dreams would be easy and Toni Braxton’s story is a perfect example of working hard for everything that you have. (Thanks for sharing, The Jasmine Brand) Check out the full version of Vh1’s Behind the Music: Toni Braxton.
Some may laugh at Drake for obtaining his high school diploma at the age of 26, but I commend him for reaching his goal. His uncle taught him the importance of following through and it is what motivated him to go back and do something that most wouldn’t have the courage to do. His speech is an example of why I built my site; to motivate others to follow their dreams and to EXPERIENCE their journey to the fullest. Drake explains,
I had left a gaping whole in my story of following through…we figured out how I could close my chapter of following through. Sometimes it’s about going there, not getting there. Sometimes it’s the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination. And sometimes when you get there, you’ll look back and you’ll realize that you wish you could go there again because all of the experiences that you went through are the reason that you are who you are today.
When you know where he’s come from…you’d never think it would be easy for him to succeed in this world. Born and raised in the Bronx, NY, Jonathan is 1 of 6 siblings and is beginning to find his way. At a young age, he and his brothers and sisters lost their father (my Uncle) in what is still an unsolved murder. Some odd years later, they would lose their mother. Being raised by my grandparents, he has managed to graduate high school and get a full scholarship to Franklin & Marshall, where he won the prestigious award for the best documentary in his class. It amazes me that he possesses so much resilience, determination and passion after everything that he has endured. He probably doesn’t even know it, but he is one of my light sources. To know that my baby cousin (not so baby anymore) is so strong…there’s never an excuse for me to not push hard as well.
Now, onto the exciting news! Jonathan has managed to WOW the big-wigs and he was the winner of MTV’s Intern Army Mission. In short, a selected few who made the cut, were able to compete for the number one spot and win a fully paid trip to the VMA’s in LA! Each intern had to make gorilla style videos promoting the VMA’s and were judged on overall creativity (I’ve posted one of his mission videos below). YES! My baby cousin (I gotta stop saying that) came out on top!!! I know for a fact that many people, young and old, can learn so much from this brilliant soul, so I wanted to pick Jonathan’s brain so that others could get an idea of how he got to where he is now!
Photo by Will Sampson
Briefly explain what you actually do for MTV.
So I interned with TV Land. I did a lot of editing and trimming of a variety of sitcoms such as Everybody Loves Raymond, The Nanny, and many other sitcoms in order to create promos. I resized and placed logos on these promos and sent them to be approved and aired. I pulled and recorded footage onto tapes. I also transferred footage from these tapes onto computers which I cut and put onto TV Land’s server for future use. I also attended audio/video sessions and performed production runs to deliver materials. I even shadowed current staff Production Assistants and performed any production related duties needed for shoots, edit/audio sessions,or delivery.
What was the challenge that you had to succeed in, in order to win the internship?
Well besides overcoming the stress of the short deadline we were given for each mission, I had to really impose myself into large crowds, and really persuade new yorkers ( and you know how they can be) to listen to me for a second, and hear what I had to say. Although a struggle, I just brought forth my charisma and that took the crowds.
What did the prize include?
The prizes were: The Grand Prize winner (1st place) won a free paid trip to the Video Music Awards out in LA. That included a free flight, hotel, and tickets to the VMA’s, along with one friend. The contest included 5 missions and we were judged overall on consistent creativity. Each round had a first place winner, and then all five were judged. MTV hires about 500 interns throughout all their networks, and all of these were a possible candidate for this contest.
What does this mean for your future affiliation with MTV? Does it guarantee an internship?
This win only proved to Viacom that I am a strong and hardworking individual. At the end of my internship, I was ecstatic to find out that I had a job offer after graduation. I am still keeping my options open, but this was an amazing offer.
How did you get such an awesome opportunity to work at MTV?
I got the job at TV Land through my scholarship program known as the Posse foundation. A program that was recognized by president Obama, they recruit young/diverse leaders throughout several major cities, and put them in top liberal art schools. This program has a huge and very powerful network of companies and jobs, whom all love working with Posse students.
What are your long-term goals?
My long-term goals, besides get a job, is to be successful in anything I choose to do. Always be a thinker and find new ways to innovate. I want to direct films, and hopefully make movies. Even direct and write my own TV Series is another option. Whichever happens, I know for sure I want to show my experiences through the scope of film and help others tell their story when their voice is unheard.
How do you think you managed to find so much success, despite your tragedies/hardships in life?
I think I find my successes in just staying focused on the prize. What I went through was tough, and those tough things start to wear you down, but when there’s motivation for something bigger and better, then you refuse to be pulled down. Life doesn’t have to be sad or angry. I try to always focus on the best side of things which I guess makes me optimistic. And also realizing that patience is important keeps me focused. It’s easy to just give up because it doesn’t work out immediately. Success for me is a plant and pay off system. You “plant” your opportunity and it needs hard work and time to flower.
It’s an amazing feeling to be able to share when things are going great for my family! I am SO proud and honored to watch him succeed in life and be the happiest that he can be!
Usher brings sexy back in his latest video, Dive. From kissing, to grabbing, to squeezing, he and Victoria Secrets model, Chanel Iman, hold nothing back (which does make me kind of jealous since Usher is my love lol). Check out his latest, and very sexy, video below!
Did you ever feel like you wanted more out of life? Did you ever feel like you had a story to tell that could help others? Did you ever go against the norm and jump out on faith because YOU had faith in yourself? If you can answer “yes” to these questions, then you’ve taken the first steps in discovering your power…the power to inspire, the power to motivate, the power to be GREAT! I was at a point in my life, as you all know, where I began to crave success and I wanted so much more out of my LIFE! Randomly one day, I did a search for John Starks because I thought he’d be a great person to interview. For whatever reason, there wasn’t much current information on him, but I came across a photo. A photo of him and a gentleman named, Jim Hernandez, at an event. So, I sat for a minute and I pondered on this…hmmm, barely any information on one of the greatest NBA players for the Knicks, but this guy has a picture with him? Who IS this guy? I began reading things like “motivational speaker talks with youth…” and “Jim Hernandez speaks to high school class…” and then it started to click. This wasn’t just a random person that I had come across, this was the person who was going to kick start my passion to continue on my journey with a purpose.
He has no clue (well, now he does), but he began to motivate me before I even had the chance to speak with him. So, I knew what my next step had to be…to reach out and give him kudos for just merely having a presence in the world that is built on inspiring others…and that’s exactly what I did. I also had the urge to share his success and passion with my readers! So without further ado, I introduce to you, Jim Hernandez, motivational speaker/mogul in the making. Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico and raised in the South Bronx, NY (no he’s not a distant relative lol), he spends his time traveling all around the United States encouraging and building up our youth. He teaches them to think BIG and to consider sharing THEIR stories and one day becoming a motivational speaker as well. With so many things discouraging our young people and the exposure that they get to violence and drugs and poverty, it is his goal to show them a different way! Check out what he has to say to the Dreamworld:
Did your environment (neighborhood, school, family, etc.) give you the motivation to want more or did you possess an inner-desire?
It was a combination of it all. My neighborhood, school, community, friends, all of my peers always looked up to the SAME people. We ALL admired rappers, actors and athletes. But what was it about all the people that we admired that made them successful? They learned how to manage and develop their talents. I always knew there was more to life than working 9 to 5, putting money in a 401k and just growing old. I didn’t only know this, I understood this and I WANTED MORE. My family is a HUGE support system and always encourage me to go out and do my thing. I get my drive from my mother and my personality from my father.
How does one go about discovering what their dream is?
A LOT of reading and surrounding yourself with positive, powerful, influential individuals. You have to have a different state of mind which is different from everything you have done before which has NOT produced the results you have desired. Understand that if you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse. If you’re not growing, you’re declining. You have to understand the only difference between winning and losing is taking the first step. Take that step towards what you believe in. This applies to any area of life, do not be afraid to fail. Take risks: If you win, you will be happy; if you lose, you will be wise. There is a lesson in all that you do. Invest time into yourself, invest time into your God-given talent and once you do that, then and only then will your PURPOSE present itself to you.
Has your success as a motivational speaker provided a life where you don’t need a traditional 9-5?
Yes it has. I have had the blessing to live out my dream because I believed in myself and was not afraid to fail. One of my favorite author’s, Tim Ferris, who wrote “The Four- hour Work Week” allowed me to look at life from a different perspective. I call it the “What’s the worst that can happen” point of view. If I leave my job and things don’t work out what’s the worst that can happen? I have to get another job, I may get evicted, things may not work out. Whatever the “Worst case scenario” was it didn’t involve me getting killed or hurting someone else. So … Why NOT take a leap of faith and that is exactly how I went about it. I still have the resignation letter from the day I quit too.
What do you think contributes to your success, allowing your audience to trust your words?
I am not afraid to be myself and share my story. I am very honest and transparent and allow that to pour out of me when I am on stage. We ALL have unique stories and this is something that I realized at the age of 25 while on this journey. I keep things SIMPLE. My mantra is Be REAL. Be RELATABLE. Be READY.
What do you think is your God-given purpose in life?
I notice that when I speak, people listen. It’s something that I realized early on. People value my opinion and the advice I share with them. When I first began searching for myself and my God-given talent, what I saw was that other people around me were inspired, others were motivated and encouraged to do the same thing. That is when the LIGHT-BULB over my head went off. I wanted to take that and enhance it, I want to share my story and my wisdom with more and more people. My God-given purpose is to simply SPARK the imagination and creativity in the mind of as many people as possible till my job here on this earth is done.
What do you say to the young person in the audience who doesn’t think they can be successful or overcome their circumstances?
I would first ask them WHY do they think that they cannot be successful or overcome their circumstances. It is not always about what you say to a person. Also take the time out to listen. Some people already KNOW what has to be done but just don’t believe in themselves enough to do it. Sometimes it may be a lack of guidance, direction or maybe even a positive role model in their lives that is keeping them from reaching their potential. Encouragement, support or even a listening ear will push a person just enough to help them embark on their journey thru LIFE.
But remember, you are as you THINK. Many of us base what we THINK off of what we see, know and are taught to believe. The young person in the audience would first have to be open to the message and let it into his heart and mind before any transformation can begin.
What are your long-term career goals?
Speaking to a million youths, bringing awareness to Motivational Speaking in urban communities allowing the youth to share their stories through public speaking, travel to as many places around the world as possible, create a financial life-style space for my family & myself and just continue to have as much fun as possible as I continue this journey.
What’s something funny/quirky about you that most don’t know?
I am a super-hero on my spare time. Shhhhhhhhhh …
We can all use an extra PUSH and sometimes all we have to do to get it is, LISTEN! Thank you for joining the Dreamworld, I hope you got the inspiration you needed today!
Want to see Jim in action? Check out the below video or visit www.jimspeak.com:
Danithedreamgirl 