Briana, I Am

  It’s that time of year again! The summer is coming to an end, September is almost half way done (whew) and fall is right around the corner. You know what that means…the end is near! No, not THAT end (I hope). I’m talking about the end of the year! 2017 is nearing to a close and for many this can be either a good or bad thing. A good thing because a new year means new opportunities and a chance to reset and start fresh, and a bad thing if you look at the previous months, look at your goals and realize that the year probably did not go as well as you originally hoped. No matter where you stand, we all have a chance to finish stronger than we started and end this year with a bang!  In basketball, the 4 th quarter can be the most intense. The tension is high, the players are tired, but their adrenaline and determination pushes them to give their all until the last second of the game. A lot can change in those final minutes! A team can go from a twenty point lead to losing t

Nine...Four...Eight...One...B-Day! Yes, it is that wonderful day of the year where BeyHive members from near and far will celebrate the musical powerhouse herself...Beyoncé! Throughout the years Bey has given us hit after hit, anthem after anthem and has made girl power on ongoing trend in her music. Since her breakout single Crazy in Love, we have seen have seen her grown as an artist and more importantly, as a woman. Curated by my good sis Jasmine (twitter: @j_chole), check out  The Evolution of Beyoncé below! 1.   Crazy in Love, Beyoncé ft. Jay-Z (2003)  Baby Bey came out swinging with this one! Making her debut as a solo artist, Beyoncé made her mark with Crazy in Love. She had no shame making her love known like most of us do at a young age, no matter how CRAZY we may look in doing so! This song established her as a solo artist and helped make Bey even more of a household name. Go Baby Bey! 2. Me, Myself and I, Beyoncé (2003) Every woman has a moment when

  Lately I have been feeling a strong need to change my life. I want and need to shake things up, do something different to take myself to the next level. There are a few things that I have realized are getting in my way of that. Habits. They are so easy to develop and oh so hard to change. We all have habits and routines that we practice every day. From smoking, to biting fingernails, using profanity, drinking coffee, constantly checking social media first thing in the morning and I could go on but the list is truly endless. Anything can be considered a habit no matter how big or small it may seem. I am dealing with a terrible habit myself that I am so desperately trying hard to kick…   Here goes...   I am a snoozer and I sleep until the last possible second before getting up for work…   Whew! It felt good to get that off my chest! But, it’s true. I moved closer to work and my habit has only gotten worse. I can literally sleep in until about 7:22am, rush to take a

image source, Black Girls Rock 2017 It's that time of year again for Black Girls and Women to come together from near and far to celebrate US at the annual Black Girls Rock ceremony! Founded by Model and former DJ Beverly Bond, the movement and annual award show highlights black women and girls doing their thing in all walks of life! Whether they are calling shots in business, killing it in movies and television or helping to make the world a better place through Philanthropy, Black Girls and Women are killing the game and deserved to be recognized because...WE ROCK! Taraji P. Henson, Black Girls Rock 2017. (Source: Paras Griffin/Getty Images North America) Hosted by the oh so talented, oh so fabulous Taraji P. Henson, this year's Black Girl's Rock ceremony focuses on love - something that we all need today with the political climate we have been experiencing. With all that has been going on that has not stopped black women from making strides and making thing

Day in and day out we take care of others. We work, we make sure our friends are okay, we care for people in our household, and if you have kids, the responsibility of taking care of your babies is never ending! With all the roles we take on, it’s very easy to forget about Self Care and making sure we are taken care of. Yes, we love taking care of others. For a lot of us, being nurturing comes naturally out of love and care for those in our life. While there is nothing at all wrong with taking care of the people we love, there is something wrong with forgetting to care for ourselves. When I’m going a million miles a minute every day I constantly remind myself that I cannot pour from an empty cup. I can’t be what I need to be to those in my life if I am not properly caring for and being what I need to myself. I try to practice self care a few times out of the week as often as I can! With a busy schedule, my personal needs change from week to week depending on what I have going on. So

Issa Rae, Insecure, 2016 image source Can I admit that life scares me? Not always, but definitely from time to time. One moment I'm confident and rolling with the punches taking things as they come and the next thing I know I am panicking, having slight anxiety and worried about what will, or won't, happen next. As one can imagine, this gets frustrating! I in no way live my life in fear, but uncertainty drives me crazy sometimes. I want to know everything right now. I want to know where my career will end up, if I will reach my goals, if I'll ever get married, what my kids will look like, or if I will even get to see these things happen in my life at all. I know, it's a lot to take on all at once. Whew! One of the ways I have dealt with this fear of the unknown is to focus on the now. My mind wanders constantly. All day, every day. I am always thinking about what's next, what the next day will bring, if something will or will not happen and thinking 20 step

Pressure. We all feel it from time to time. It makes diamonds, right? At least that has been the saying for as long as I could remember. But what about when pressure makes things, people and situations crack. I myself have been feeling a lot of pressure lately. Mostly self inflicted, but pressure none the less. The pressure to reach my financial goals by the end of the year, quickly find a better job that pays more, be present for my friends/family/significant other, and most importantly for myself has me under a lot of pressure and some days it’s heavier than others while others it’s easier to manage. My boyfriend and I went to church this past  Sunday  and it is no surprise that Pastor Furtick spoke directly to me regarding this issue. Luckily, I was able to walk away with a better perspective to help me navigate through the pressure and actually find the power in it all. Pressure can be looked at from both a positive and negative perspective. In a good way, it can push and moti