This week’s Business Question was sent in by Amy Jackson who resides in Oklahoma City:
How do I find my Purpose /Passion? Is it a feeling? Are there questions that I can ask myself to arrive at this conclusion?
Omar Tyree Answers:
That’s a very timely question, and I was asked one very similar to it this past weekend at a Hip Hop Conference at Hood University in Fredericks, Maryland. A young lady asked me, “How do I motivate the young kids who I work with at educational centers, who just don’t seem to have any motivation?”
I responded very honestly that motivation from an outside source is the hardest thing in the world to accomplish. We all have to create our own motivation through a hunger to achieve something specific. And the motivation has to become internalized. So the question then becomes, “How do we turn on someone else’s fire?” Now, of course, we often hear stories about people being motivated to succeed at certain endeavors because someone told them that they couldn’t. However, I guarantee you that those individuals were already motivated, and typically, these self-motivated people use outside challenges as extra motivation. But what about when there is zero motivation, Passion, or Purpose to begin with?
So the reality to your questions is yes, Passion is an emotional feeling of movement that some of us have lost when it comes to career goals of Purpose, because we have not been around it on a regular basis. What I’m saying here is that Passion and Purpose starts at home, and moves into the spaces that we work, play, and congregate in. So if you do indeed lack an emotion of Movement and a Passion for Purpose, then you may actually be hanging in the wrong space and around the wrong people. You’ll now need to learn how to choose the people, places and things that will push you forward to DO SOMETHING! And if you don’t want that feeling of Movement developed inside yourself from those around you, then you may need to check your own desire.
That is what I told the young woman this past weekend at the Hip Hop Conference. You have to be a motivating factor for the young people around you. And you tell them to “Go get it!” no matter what it is, until they get tired of hearing your mouth. Then you say it to them again. So The Equation here is manifesting your Love of life. You have to find your own go button. What things turn on your fire? Make a list of your likes and dislikes in terms of career goals. And when you’re finished, make your decision to go get what you want and stop procrastinating. Do it NOW or continue to be the cause of your own downfall.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Building Support Takes Consistency
This week’s Business Question of the week was sent in by J. Forbes from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
How did you locate your support? What’s your sorting process?
Omar Tyree Answers:
That sounds like a three-part question. First, you have the public and consumer Support for your products and services, and then you have your Support of staff members, who help you to execute professional and company goals. But from the set up of your question, I’m assuming that you’re referring to the latter form of Support, where an entrepreneur or company builds their professional and supportive “team.”
Initially, I didn’t have a Support team at all. I paid independent contractors to do independent work, based on their skills and price. So, I paid book editors, artists, graphic designers, photographers, even folks to help me to ship boxes of books, all based on need. But I could not consider them a part of my Support “team” until I could count on them with regularity. And that’s pretty easy to do. Over time, those individuals who you can count on will still be there for you.
I began to call on the same people to do certain jobs. And the next thing I knew, I had a constant editor, photographer, and airbrush artist, who I could count on every time to perform to my liking. Then I attracted a literary agent, who became a teammate based on her success at being able to land major publishing deals. After that, I attracted a lawyer, who went out of his way to Support my new goals of creativity and business expansion.
As my own success story rolled forward, I attracted an events manager, who joined my team based on his ability to book paid speaking events. Then I linked up with a financial wealth manager, who wanted to help me raise the finances that I need to bring my books to life on the silver screen. And once I started my nonprofit literacy program, I began to attract Support members who are ready and willing to help me raise funds to teach kids the importance of reading. But we’re talking about a period of over 17-years. And the Support team continues to grow.
So, the reality of The Equation of building Support is that it takes time, accountability, and trust for you to know who works well with you. There is no short cut around that. Your “team” will be based on who you continue to attract and work with consistently toward success. Many other relationships will fall apart based on clashing personalities and or unsuccessful goals. And every individual entrepreneur is forced to find out, in their own time, who will be and will remain a consistent line of Support in their endeavors.
How did you locate your support? What’s your sorting process?
Omar Tyree Answers:
That sounds like a three-part question. First, you have the public and consumer Support for your products and services, and then you have your Support of staff members, who help you to execute professional and company goals. But from the set up of your question, I’m assuming that you’re referring to the latter form of Support, where an entrepreneur or company builds their professional and supportive “team.”
Initially, I didn’t have a Support team at all. I paid independent contractors to do independent work, based on their skills and price. So, I paid book editors, artists, graphic designers, photographers, even folks to help me to ship boxes of books, all based on need. But I could not consider them a part of my Support “team” until I could count on them with regularity. And that’s pretty easy to do. Over time, those individuals who you can count on will still be there for you.
I began to call on the same people to do certain jobs. And the next thing I knew, I had a constant editor, photographer, and airbrush artist, who I could count on every time to perform to my liking. Then I attracted a literary agent, who became a teammate based on her success at being able to land major publishing deals. After that, I attracted a lawyer, who went out of his way to Support my new goals of creativity and business expansion.
As my own success story rolled forward, I attracted an events manager, who joined my team based on his ability to book paid speaking events. Then I linked up with a financial wealth manager, who wanted to help me raise the finances that I need to bring my books to life on the silver screen. And once I started my nonprofit literacy program, I began to attract Support members who are ready and willing to help me raise funds to teach kids the importance of reading. But we’re talking about a period of over 17-years. And the Support team continues to grow.
So, the reality of The Equation of building Support is that it takes time, accountability, and trust for you to know who works well with you. There is no short cut around that. Your “team” will be based on who you continue to attract and work with consistently toward success. Many other relationships will fall apart based on clashing personalities and or unsuccessful goals. And every individual entrepreneur is forced to find out, in their own time, who will be and will remain a consistent line of Support in their endeavors.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Create Small Successes towards Your Ultimate Goal
In this week’s Equation of Making Money series, the Business Question of the Week is asked by J. Chang from sunny Southern California:
At the beginning of each year people write down goals and make resolutions but do not stick to them. What is the difference between the 3 percenters like Robert Kyosaki and Donald Trump who stick to their goals and dream big, and others who lose their steam after a month or two?
Omar Tyree Answers:
That’s a million-dollar question indeed, J. And the answer lies in our own personalities. Some people begin to make goals and stick to them very earlier on in life, where others don’t. With the two men that you have named, they were both introduced to solid, everyday business principles before they even turned teenagers. So business comprehension is very natural for both men. So you can expect them to stick to their goals. They always have! They’ve been trained that way.
However, if you have not been introduced to early business practices and execution, and you’ve pretty much had a make-it-up-as-I-go-along existence, then what you can do now is put yourself in the company of those individuals around you who DO stick to their goals. And don’t just ask them how they do it, become regular hang-out friends or assistants of these individuals if you can, to pick their brains on an everyday level.
What you’ll then find is that these organized, stick-to-it drivers, generally have written down or made mental outlines of what they need to do to accomplish their goals, step by step. They also adapt well to changes that occur in their program. They understand that they are not working on an over-night-project, and they know full well that things take time to happen. The Donald Trump’s and Robert Kiyosaki’s of the world have developed the winning poise to see their plans through because they have been successful before.
So what we all need to do here is create small successes toward our ultimate goals that will drive us on an everyday basis, which can be very tedious for those who are not used to consistency in their lives.
In The Equation, Consistency is the final element of the first component of Love. Individuals who have learned to Love have certain advantages over those who did not. But that does not mean that we all can’t learn to Love. So get busy hanging out with more passionate people and have some of their fiery, stick-to-it Red to rub off on you!
At the beginning of each year people write down goals and make resolutions but do not stick to them. What is the difference between the 3 percenters like Robert Kyosaki and Donald Trump who stick to their goals and dream big, and others who lose their steam after a month or two?
Omar Tyree Answers:
That’s a million-dollar question indeed, J. And the answer lies in our own personalities. Some people begin to make goals and stick to them very earlier on in life, where others don’t. With the two men that you have named, they were both introduced to solid, everyday business principles before they even turned teenagers. So business comprehension is very natural for both men. So you can expect them to stick to their goals. They always have! They’ve been trained that way.
However, if you have not been introduced to early business practices and execution, and you’ve pretty much had a make-it-up-as-I-go-along existence, then what you can do now is put yourself in the company of those individuals around you who DO stick to their goals. And don’t just ask them how they do it, become regular hang-out friends or assistants of these individuals if you can, to pick their brains on an everyday level.
What you’ll then find is that these organized, stick-to-it drivers, generally have written down or made mental outlines of what they need to do to accomplish their goals, step by step. They also adapt well to changes that occur in their program. They understand that they are not working on an over-night-project, and they know full well that things take time to happen. The Donald Trump’s and Robert Kiyosaki’s of the world have developed the winning poise to see their plans through because they have been successful before.
So what we all need to do here is create small successes toward our ultimate goals that will drive us on an everyday basis, which can be very tedious for those who are not used to consistency in their lives.
In The Equation, Consistency is the final element of the first component of Love. Individuals who have learned to Love have certain advantages over those who did not. But that does not mean that we all can’t learn to Love. So get busy hanging out with more passionate people and have some of their fiery, stick-to-it Red to rub off on you!
Monday, March 9, 2009
“Leslie” Soon to Hit the Big Screen
This week’s “Business Question of the Week” is posed by Bessie McElvaine, who resides in Charlotte, NC:
I just finished reading your book Leslie and enjoyed it a lot. Is there a strong possibility that you will do a sequel?
Omar Tyree Answers:
Well, Bessie, you’re in luck. For the most part, we want to answer strictly “business” questions in this weekly Equation blog, but in this particular case, and with this particular book title of Leslie, you have actually chosen my next big business adventure into feature film production. The book Leslie was written as a movie idea nearly a decade ago, and now we are extremely close to realizing this great New Orleans-based novel as my first feature film production. And that is indeed “big business.”
With all that’s going on with the world economy these days, American films miraculously continue to make money, with already $1 billion dollars alone in January 2009, and a reported 22% business increase from 2008 at this time, while nearly every other business, outside of Wendy’s and McDonald’s - because we all have to eat – tanks.
With that being said, the idea of Leslie was originally thought up as a trilogy, where I would write not one, not two, but three books in a Leslie series. But I never wrote the sequel book because I wanted to wait for enough people to read the first book. Well, with a great film production now in the works, as soon as we acquire the green-light capital needed to start the Leslie film production down in New Orleans, Louisiana, for this summer, I will then begin an immediate discussion with the publishing houses about the sequel and trilogy books, which would be pushed a lot stronger by the extreme marking power of an expected film.
So The Equation for this week’s question encompasses all 4 components, beginning with your Love for Leslie as a novel, my Art of creating Leslie in the first place, and now adapting it into a screenplay, the new Support that we expect to receive for the novel produced as a feature film, and the Business investors that we still need for it all to happen.
So stay tuned to my web site announcements between now and June to see if we are really on our way toward Leslie the film, which immediately kicks in the sequel, as well as the trilogy.
I just finished reading your book Leslie and enjoyed it a lot. Is there a strong possibility that you will do a sequel?
Omar Tyree Answers:
Well, Bessie, you’re in luck. For the most part, we want to answer strictly “business” questions in this weekly Equation blog, but in this particular case, and with this particular book title of Leslie, you have actually chosen my next big business adventure into feature film production. The book Leslie was written as a movie idea nearly a decade ago, and now we are extremely close to realizing this great New Orleans-based novel as my first feature film production. And that is indeed “big business.”
With all that’s going on with the world economy these days, American films miraculously continue to make money, with already $1 billion dollars alone in January 2009, and a reported 22% business increase from 2008 at this time, while nearly every other business, outside of Wendy’s and McDonald’s - because we all have to eat – tanks.
With that being said, the idea of Leslie was originally thought up as a trilogy, where I would write not one, not two, but three books in a Leslie series. But I never wrote the sequel book because I wanted to wait for enough people to read the first book. Well, with a great film production now in the works, as soon as we acquire the green-light capital needed to start the Leslie film production down in New Orleans, Louisiana, for this summer, I will then begin an immediate discussion with the publishing houses about the sequel and trilogy books, which would be pushed a lot stronger by the extreme marking power of an expected film.
So The Equation for this week’s question encompasses all 4 components, beginning with your Love for Leslie as a novel, my Art of creating Leslie in the first place, and now adapting it into a screenplay, the new Support that we expect to receive for the novel produced as a feature film, and the Business investors that we still need for it all to happen.
So stay tuned to my web site announcements between now and June to see if we are really on our way toward Leslie the film, which immediately kicks in the sequel, as well as the trilogy.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Want a Book Deal from a Major Publishing Company, Learn to Hustle
This week we turn to the Big Apple for the “Business Question of the Week,” Nicole Little from New York asks:
What advice would you give to a self-published author looking to get a book deal from a major publishing company? What are some steps that a self-published author needs to take to position his or herself for a book deal?
Omar Tyree Answers
Nicole, as the famous song and acronym from a Staten Island, New York, rap group called the Wu-Tang Clan goes, “Cash Rules Everything Around Me / CREAMed it / the money / dollar, dollar bill, y’all!”
When I was picked up for my first, historical 2-book deal with Simon & Schuster, it was because I had already sold 25,000 books on my own, which represented more than $250,000 generated in the publishing industry with my name attached to it. So it became a no-brainer. “If this kid can move $250,000 worth of product on his own, imagine what he can do with us behind him.”
With that being said, as a self-published author, you have to learn how to HUSTLE, with marketing, promoting, sales, and hopefully a good book that creates a lot of buzz through word-of-mouth.
Just to name a few self-published authors outside of myself in the African-American publishing arena who went on to become major brand names are; E. Lynn Harris, Michael Baisden, Terri Woods, and Vickie Stringer. And although Terry McMillan, Zane, and Carl Weber were not self-published, they utilized much of same business savvy and marketing tools that self-published authors used to push their works and create major followings.
So, similar to last week’s blog, The Equation for success in any business is the accumulation of Green SUPPORT! You must have it in order to survive and to move forward. And once you have shown that you can indeed gather a large number of supporters for your work, you will have no problem getting a major publishing house to sit down at the deal table and talk serious numbers with you.
Now, if you would also like to know more about what steps to take to make those bigger sales happen through time-tested ideas, well, you’re talking to a man who has been there and done that himself, so now ask me about my publishing “Master’s Degree” program @ (www.OmarTyree.com). But that’s only if you’re serious about moving forward!
What advice would you give to a self-published author looking to get a book deal from a major publishing company? What are some steps that a self-published author needs to take to position his or herself for a book deal?
Omar Tyree Answers
Nicole, as the famous song and acronym from a Staten Island, New York, rap group called the Wu-Tang Clan goes, “Cash Rules Everything Around Me / CREAMed it / the money / dollar, dollar bill, y’all!”
When I was picked up for my first, historical 2-book deal with Simon & Schuster, it was because I had already sold 25,000 books on my own, which represented more than $250,000 generated in the publishing industry with my name attached to it. So it became a no-brainer. “If this kid can move $250,000 worth of product on his own, imagine what he can do with us behind him.”
With that being said, as a self-published author, you have to learn how to HUSTLE, with marketing, promoting, sales, and hopefully a good book that creates a lot of buzz through word-of-mouth.
Just to name a few self-published authors outside of myself in the African-American publishing arena who went on to become major brand names are; E. Lynn Harris, Michael Baisden, Terri Woods, and Vickie Stringer. And although Terry McMillan, Zane, and Carl Weber were not self-published, they utilized much of same business savvy and marketing tools that self-published authors used to push their works and create major followings.
So, similar to last week’s blog, The Equation for success in any business is the accumulation of Green SUPPORT! You must have it in order to survive and to move forward. And once you have shown that you can indeed gather a large number of supporters for your work, you will have no problem getting a major publishing house to sit down at the deal table and talk serious numbers with you.
Now, if you would also like to know more about what steps to take to make those bigger sales happen through time-tested ideas, well, you’re talking to a man who has been there and done that himself, so now ask me about my publishing “Master’s Degree” program @ (www.OmarTyree.com). But that’s only if you’re serious about moving forward!
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