d-mars.com Business Journal 88

Business Journal Inspire, Inform & Educate

November 2014

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Making the Right Choice

Making the Right Choice to Live Your Best Life NOW!

By Kachelle Kelly There’s an old Indian Proverb that says, “Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today.”

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Decision Making: A Critical Skill Today’s Employers are Seeking

By Mikal Powers Every day business leaders are faced with important decisions that will impact the future of their company or workforce.

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Loretta Stewart, Founder

Imani Life & Financial Services Helps Individuals Plan for their Future

FAILURE - Can Live With It… Can’t Live Without It!

By Noel Pinnock Three-time Grammy® award winner Donnie McClurkin We Fall Down lyrics are definitely on target with this month’s edition of d-mars.com Business Journal partly because McClurkin was able to successfully capture the essence of catching, correcting and learning from the power of failure or the errors of our ways.

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Pamela Ellis, President/ CEO of Smahrt Solutions

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Ultimate “Smahrt” Girl: From Small Town to Big Business Join our e-mail list for the latest updates @ d-mars.com

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North Houston Frontiers Club Provides Resources for Houston’s Youth

I’ve found that in business opportunities will constantly emerge or situations develop that make you revise your plans along the way.

– Benjamin Cohen

November 2014

Journal Behind The

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Publisher’s Message

Keith J. Davis, Sr.

SR. PUBLISHER Keith J. Davis, Sr.

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT Kevin Davis

VICE PRESIDENT Kim Floyd

ASSOCIATE EDITOR Valerie Jones

ACCOUNTING MANAGER Eugenie Doualla

Office Manager Johnny Ray Davis, Jr.

In the business world, every decision – whether it’s in which employee to hire or the right time to expand – should be weighed very carefully. Some companies hire professional consultants to help them in certain areas.

Our cover story focuses on a woman who tailored her business around helping companies make the right decisions. Pamela Ellis followed her lifelong vision when she established Smahrt Solutions, and subsequently, her nonprofit Smahrt Girl Foundation. Read her story as well as other stories in this issue to help guide you in making the right choices in business.

As always again, thank you for your continued support of d-mars.com. When you support d-mars.com, you are supporting more than just our company; you are supporting the communities in which we live and work. Working together, we can succeed in making positive things happen.

SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES C.T. Foster Eric D. Goodwine Tiffany Black

CONTENTS

PHOTOGRAPHY L.C. Poullard Grady Carter Tony Gaines

MULTIMEDIA DIRECTOR Andrea Hennekes

online support specialist Anthony Torregosa

LAYOUT & GRAPHIC DESIGNER Angel Rosa

DISTRIBUTION Booker T. Davis, Jr. Rockie Hayden

Ultimate “Smahrt” Girl: From Small Town to Big Business.................................................................................................................... 4 Making the Right Choice to Live Your Best Life NOW!............................................................................................................................. 6 North Houston Frontiers Club Provides Resources for Houston’s Youth......................................................................................... 8 Imani Life & Financial Services Helps Individuals Plan for their Future..........................................................................................10 Decision Making: A Critical Skill Today’s Employers are Seeking....................................................................................................... 12 Council Member Larry Green Kicks Off “(K)lean It Up, Green It Up” Campaign............................................................................... 14 Expand and Enhance Your Job Search with Social Media.................................................................................................................... 14 FAILURE - Can Live With It…Can’t Live Without It!....................................................................................................................................16 Did You Know?...................................................................................................................................................................................................16 Old Folks Saying….............................................................................................................................................................................................16

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Valerie Jones Kachelle Kelly Mikal Powers d-mars.com News Provider Noel Pinnock

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Experience Our World of Advertising, Marketing, Media and Communication

4 November 2014

“Other than being anointed and appointed and being a good steward – that’s at the core of everything I do – I think what has really contributed to the growth of Smahrt Solutions is our keen focus. We don’t try to be everything to everybody. We do HR technology, so that’s what we’re known for.”

– Pamela Ellis

Ultimate “Smahrt” Girl: From Small Town to Big Business

By Valerie Jones Associate Editor

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ome people believe in luck…they feel that whatever happens to them in life – whether good or bad – is the result of some sort of force that shapes circumstances, events or opportunities in their lives.

And then there are others, such as Pamela Ellis, who are simply “anointed and appointed.”

Ellis, a small town native who had big dreams – entrepreneurship, giving back and impacting the lives of young girls – is the founder and president of

Smahrt Solutions, Inc., a management consulting firm that provides strategic planning and program management in four primary areas: Human Resource Management, Technology, Business Strategy and Project Management.

Under Ellis’ direction, Smahrt Solutions has become one of the fastest-growing minority woman-owned technology companies in Texas. Currently at the top of her game, Ellis remembers the path she took to get here.

Journey toto Becoming the the BossBoss Journey Becoming Ellis was raised in Columbus, Texas, a small town 75 miles west of Houston with a population of less than 5,000.

“My mother always told me, ‘I want

you to grow up and be somebody…do something with your life,’” Ellis said.

“At the time, I didn’t know what that meant. My mother didn’t even know what that meant. She just wanted me to be better and do better than herself.”

At age 12, Ellis went to California to live with her father, who had long separated from her mother. She lived with her father for two and a half years. During that time, her life changed forever.

While living with her father, she attended an all-girl private school. She was exposed to other Black girls who were smart, pretty and ambitious. This was much different than the predominantly all-White public school in Co-

lumbus and the modest lifestyle she lived with her mother, who made a living as a cook.

“I went from living in a small town and just passing with my grades to being told I had to make straight As,” she said. “I remember asking my dad why I had to make straight As. I would see the same person going to the same grade whether they made As or Bs. My dad told me, ‘you’re not going to make Cs because you’re not a C student.’ No one had ever demanded that I make an A. He saw so much more in me than anybody ever had.”

Ellis chose to attend the University of Houston and knew two things about her career when she entered col-

Experience Our World of Advertising Marketing, Media and Communication

November 2014

lege: she wanted to be in charge and she wanted to make a lot of money.

Ruling out careers in medicine or engineering because she didn’t like math or science, Ellis finally decided on social sciences and earned a degree in psychology.

“I spent a lot of time in the career planning and placement office trying to figure out what I could do with my degree, even took some assessment tests.

I decided to start down the path of Human Resources,” she said.

Ellis wanted to be in charge and in order to do so, she knew she would have to be promoted.

“That didn’t always work for me. I would get great jobs, but for different reasons, I wouldn’t always get promoted.

So, I would move on to other companies,” she said. “I would start at a company, set a goal, achieve it and move on.”

God ordered Ellis’ steps and she gained invaluable experience in HR at various companies. She landed a position at Union Bank of California as assistant vice president of human resources. In this position, she had to hire a lot of consultants and was blown away the first time she received a bill for one of the consultants.

Pamela Ellis shares 3 things a business must possess in order to be successful

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“I almost fell out of my chair!” Ellis said.

“It hit me! Consulting! I needed to switch gears. Consulting would be my business.”

Ellis, who was living in California at the time, decided to move back to Houston.

“I’ll never forget sitting on that plane saying to myself, ‘this will be my last job I accept from a company as an employee,’” she said. “I felt it all in my toes, bones, etc. I knew it was the last job I was taking because I saw what kind of money was out there. My goal had become crystal clear.”

Ellis began working hard for an energy trading company in Houston, but after the 9/11 attack, the company began to lay off employees. Ellis had just bought a house and couldn’t take the risk of getting laid off. Fortunately, a former coworker offered her a position at a different company. Seeking stability, Ellis went to her boss, prepared to turn in her resignation.

“They wouldn’t accept it. They assured me they had no intentions of laying me off and to prove it, they put it in writing and provided me a salary increase and retention bonus,” Ellis said. “So I stayed on for six more months.”

After six months, Ellis’ company retained her for another three months.

Each time, she was depositing the bonus into the bank.

“After the next three months, they tried to retain me again. I told them no, but I said, ‘here’s what I will do. I will stay and be a consultant for you. I pro-

posed a contractual agreement between us,’” Ellis said. “They agreed and that’s when I launched my own business.”

Doing thethe Smahrt WayWay DoingBusiness Business Smahrt Ellis launched Smahrt Solutions in 2003.

“God will hold it together until you get it together,” Ellis said. “I was trying to move to a different job and God was steady telling me to be patient. He gave me the bonuses to bank so that when I delved out on my own, I wasn’t under any pressure. When I did start my company, I started with a client in my hand, money in the bank and a good relationship.”

Ellis has managed the growth of Smahrt Solutions (spelled with an ‘hr’ to emphasize the Human Resource focus) into a key service provider to Fortune 1000 companies in the Greater Houston area and nationwide.

“Other than being anointed and appointed and being a good steward – that’s at the core of everything I do – I think what has really contributed to the growth is our keen focus,” Ellis said. “We don’t try to be everything to everybody. We do HR technology, so that’s what we’re known for.”

Ironically, during the period in which the economy was doing poorly, around 2008-2010, Smahrt Solutions’ revenue increased. This was because even though many companies were laying off employees, the work still needed to get done.

And how would the work get done? By utilizing technology.

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he business must offer a solution. – Who needs your services and why?

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That’s where Smahrt Solutions saved the day.

“There was a need for companies, large and small, to streamline and align their businesses with modern technology to do things faster, cheaper and more efficiently,” Ellis said. “Companies needed to leverage technology to get more done and cut costs.”

Ellis offered this example: I instruct a company to develop a process in which one person is going to enter data one time and it will be distributed throughout the company. Nobody will ever have to re-key or re-enter that information. It will never leave the system. If a company was to use this solution with a social security number, it would allow for only one person to handle that social security number…ever. No one would ever see it. For one, that would help cut down on identity theft.

That’s the way to leverage technology to the advantage of one’s business…that’s a smahrt solution.

“I really didn’t have a lot of the pains starting my business that most start-ups have. My challenge comes with growing it,” Ellis said. “My challenge has been figuring out how to get more bandwidth to take on more clients.”

Ellis’ entrepreneurial endeavors keep her busy. She is constantly traveling, sometimes three different states in one week. But to her, it’s all worth it.

“I do live my dream every day. My dream was to make money and be in charge,” she said. “I know that Smahrt Solutions is doing what it’s supposed to do when the lights are on and the phone is ringing. I know we’re successful because we have repeat business, we don’t have to work as hard to acquire business and we’re equipped to take on new business. That’s how we know we’re doing something right.”

Philanthropic Passion: Philanthropic Passion: The Smahrt GirlThe Foundation Smahrt Girl Foundation While Ellis’ career goals were attained through Smahrt Solutions, there was another goal she wanted to achieve…to pursue her passion of helping young girls.

Coming from a small town, Ellis understood that young girls from small towns do not always have the resources or opportunities available as do girls from larger cities. In an effort to give back, she began a scholarship fund where she could help young girls financially. But she wasn’t satisfied with that.

“I realized you could write a check and give financially, but you weren’t really poring into girls or preparing them for what they needed outside of education,” she said. “You can obtain academic success but that is not enough. You must have the confidence, determination and perseverance to achieve success. I wanted to teach girls how to live the life of their dreams. Is it really a degree you need for that? And what kind of degree?

So that’s where my passion truly was.”

That’s when the Smahrt Girl Foundation (SGF) began to take shape; it was established in 2009. Ellis wanted to help with the development of young girls, not just make sure they had money to attend college.

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business owner must have the total emotional package.

– This includes patience, perseverance and motivation. You have to be able to stay the course because there are going to be bad days…sometimes weeks. But you have to know that this is what you’re destined to do.

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“I was really my own inspiration because I had a dream but no resources and no mentor and I always thought it was because I grew up in a small town with limited exposure and few resources. They just can’t teach what they don’t know.”

SGF provides mentorship and special programs to encourage positive and sound decision making, promote self-respect and confidence and teach life skills to young women between the ages of 12-20 who live in rural communities and urban areas.

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“Starting a nonprofit is similar to starting a business. My advice would be to first, figure out your client and service you’d like to provide,” Ellis said.

“If you really just want to be philanthropic about it, you can give money to someone else’s foundation and avoid the headache. Your job is to determine the need…why does there need to be another nonprofit foundation?”

For Ellis, SGF was filling a void.

“I didn’t know and don’t know to this day of a foundation that really focuses on girls in rural communities – girls in these really small towns who have no one – no access to resources or role models,” she said. “They don’t know how, but they want to get out of that small town. They want to do something.”

SGF hosts several events, including a Prom Dress Drive held last spring, in which more than 100 young girls were able to find beautiful prom dresses, shoes and accessories free of charge.

“I remember a young man – he couldn’t be older than 21 – brought his little sister, who was a senior in high school to the Prom Dress Drive.

Their mother was dying and the young man promised his mother that he would take care of his sister. He said, ‘my sister is a straight A student and she deserves to go to prom.’ We were able to dress her from head to toe with the donations. It was beautiful to be able to help not just the girl, but the mother as well. Another lady came to the Prom Dress Drive with three girls – one was her daughter, one girl belonged to her sister who was incarcerated and one belonged to her sister who was deceased. She told me she had three dresses to find and that if she found at least one, she’d be grateful. We found three.”

Ellis knows firsthand that starting a nonprofit is a lot of work and can be emotionally draining at times.

“Sometimes your efforts don’t work. It’s sad to see when you spend so much time with a girl and she just goes off and does the wrong thing.

That’s hurtful, but you can’t take it personal,” she said. “If you help just one girl to become the next physician or person to develop a cure for cancer, then you have done a good job.”

Between Smahrt Solutions and the nonprofit arm Smahrt Girl Foundation, Ellis has her hands full, but she has no plans on stopping soon. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

Y

ou must be customer-focused.

– This is not about you. If you go into business to look good, be important or make it about you, then you’re not going to be successful.

“I see myself taking the Smahrt Girl Foundation on a national level, hopefully even global,” Ellis said. “My passion is developing and helping women. So five years from now – maybe sooner – I’ll take Smahrt Girl Foundation over full time and expand the programs and curriculum to possibly implement into school systems.

I will always have a nonprofit. That was my promise to God as a little girl.”

Experience Our World of Advertising, Marketing, Media and Communication

6 November 2014

Making the Right Choice to Live Your Best Life NOW!

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By Kachelle Kelly

Contributing Writer

here’s an old Indian Proverb that says, “Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today.” Sometimes our past hinders us from being all that we can be today. We can hold on to regret for the negative things that have happened in our lives far too long. Unfortunately, some people take this regret to their graves. What a waste of human potential.

We all are designed to win in life, in relationships, in business and in our careers.

However, that potential can be stolen or given away at any time when we don’t recognize how precious we are to the world.

Have you ever seen the cartoon of the little boy that says, “God don’t make no junk?” It is absolutely true. You have a winner’s DNA. You just have to deliberately tap into it to fulfill your divine des-

tiny here on earth. It’s all about choice.

Do you choose to believe that you have an undisputable destiny? Or do you choose to believe that the negative things that have happened to you in life have put you on the pathway to destruction?

People use all kinds of excuses to postpone their meeting with destiny. Some use age, education, weight, finances, physical disability or mental disability to justify their lack of achievement.

Even so, for just as many excuses, there are people who have accomplished great things regardless of their roadblock.

Determination and perseverance are some of the key ingredients that a winner possesses when they purpose to live their best lives now. If you want something bad enough, you can accomplish anything once you become aware you have the right tools to overcome any obstacle that may get in your way. You

can become virtually unstoppable.

Your internal compass leads you to your destiny. It is your GPS for success!

Frankly, you are the only one that can deter you from being unstoppable. You can choose to delay your effort by waiting for just the right time or for everything to be perfect before you proceed. Sometimes it involves you finding the confidence and courage to move forward regardless of the obstacles in your way.

Ask yourself if you sincerely feel that you have expended your full potential or walked in your destiny. If that answer is “no,” then you still have some work to do.

Just remember that it’s not too late to be all that God designed you to be. That’s the only place where you will experience the sweet fragrance of lasting success.

Making the choice to live your best life now ensures that you and your imminent destiny will divinely collide. You can do it if you CHOOSE to do so. Just remember you have the power to make it so. Don’t let another second go by without you doing precisely that.

If you are interested in more ways to set business goals, prepare for the future or need business accountability, contact me for more information on coaching services at kk@ kachellekelly.com. Follow me on Instagram @kachellekelly.

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November 2014

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8 November 2014

North Houston Frontiers Club Provides Resources for Houston’s Youth

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here’s something great to be said about a community that truly cares about its next generation of leaders. The North Houston Frontiers Club (NHFC) – a nonprofit 501(c)(3) service organization – is a perfect example of community members dedicated to creating the best possible future generation by equipping high school seniors with the assistance they need to be successful.

Each year, the NHFC keeps its commitment to the community by providing educational and monetary assistance to exceptional and deserving students in the greater Houston area. Comprised of 20 African American men and women volunteers, the NHFC hosts the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Breakfast annually to support its scholarship program. This year’s breakfast will take place January 19, 2015 at Hilton Americas-Houston.

Since inception in 1986, the NHFC has helped students achieve success through its minority scholarship program, which to date has awarded more than $1.2 million to college bound high school seniors. The 2014 breakfast garnered proceeds that funded 22 students with $1,000 scholarships each and four students with $500 scholarships each.

The Keynote Speaker for the breakfast

will be radio host Tom Joyner of Radio One. Doug Abernethy, Vice President of Radio One, and Vanessa Reed, Assistant Vice President of Comerica Bank are the Honorary Chairs. During the breakfast, the prestigious Dr. Martin Luther King,

Jr. Drum Major Award will be presented to Dale Lockett, Director of Creative Services and Community Marketing for KHOU11.

For more information about the NHFC or the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memo-

rial Breakfast and Minority Scholarship Program, visit www.nhfrontiers.com.

Experience Our World of Advertising Marketing, Media and Communication

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10 November 2014

Imani Life & Financial Services Helps Individuals Plan for their Future

By Valerie Jones

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Associate Editor

inances are arguably one of the biggest reasons for divorce in the United States as well as probably one of the most misunderstood areas among the general population. Many have argued that financial literacy be a required curriculum in K-12 institutions, while some believe financial education falls solely on parents.

Regardless of how the knowledge is acquired, personal finance is something that every individual will experience in their lifetime – with each decision having a profound effect on a person’s life.

When it comes to financial education – it’s really the sooner, the better.

No one knows that better than Loretta Stewart. She always considered herself financially savvy…at an early age she had a savings account with six months of her expenses, 401(k) plan, life insurance, a house and great credit. It wasn’t until after obtaining her insurance license that she realized she still was not doing enough in regards to saving for her retirement.

“I did not have a financial plan or a retirement strategy plan other than the 401(k) at my workplace. I even had the same life insurance policy since the age of 19 which no longer met my needs due to different live events,” Stewart said. “I realized that just saving in the 401(k) at my workplace was not enough.”

After leaving her job in 1996, Stewart entrusted her 401(k) account to a financial advisor who later left her broke – she lost over 30 percent of her retirement savings due to the market volatility. Her advisor never conducted any annual reviews and never bothered to contact her regarding her account.

Although it was an unfortunate incident, Stewart learned a valuable lesson: be sure to review all of your accounts annually and be careful with whom you entrust to handle your finances.

Rather than be angry or bitter, Stewart used the experience as motivation.

She decided to step out on faith and pursue a career in the insurance industry. She founded Imani Life & Financial Services and specialized in disability, cancer, critical illness, mortgage protection and life insurance policies. It was right before she earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Management when Stewart incorporated financial products to assist individuals in creating financial plans to help them accumulate wealth and protect their assets. She wanted to make sure what happened to her in prior years – losing most of her retirement savings – did not happen to anyone else.

“In 2008, when the market crashed my clients called me to find out how much they had lost, and I was proud to

tell them they had not lost anything,” she said. “In fact, they were still earning 5 percent on their money and they also had a guarantee interest rate so they would always accumulate growth on their money.”

It was then Stewart realized the power of the services she offered. So she stepped out on faith again and expanded her practice to focus primarily on financial planning services – offering products that mirror the market, but are not actually in the market. This allows her clients’ money to grow without the

negative impact of the market.

“Everyone needs a financial plan, so when choosing a financial advisor, do not just pick a person because they seem nice or your parents/friends used them.

You want a person that will provide sound financial advice and is not just product-centered,” Stewart said. “There are plenty of products available that can meet your needs, but your decision should be based on whether your advisor is putting your needs first, determining what is best for you based on where you are in your life and recommend

products that are appropriate for you. A good financial advisor truly provides financial advice, determines their clients’ needs and has access to top products that are available in the industry to help you meet your financial goals.”

As founder and owner of Imani Life & Financial Services, Stewart creates financial plans and designs financial strategies for individuals, whether employed or self-employed, using a proven system that helps her determine which services/ solutions will meet her clients’ needs to help them achieve their financial goals.

She believes in providing financial advice suitable for her client’s needs today as well as later in life. She has access to the top products in the industry which can provide her clients with high bonuses, uncapped strategies without market loss, tax-free income and guaranteed lifetime income. She assists individuals in setting up Traditional and Roth IRAs, 403(b) plans for teachers, tax-free college funds, emergency funds and pension plans for self-employed individuals or anyone without a retirement plan at their workplace.

She noticed the biggest problem as it relates to saving is that people are not saving at all, not saving enough or not saving early enough. Stewart helps remedy this through education and by showing clients the power of saving early. She hosts free financial literacy workshops at federal agencies, schools, libraries, churches, daycares, hair salons and barbershops. She also hosts private business receptions in clients’ homes with 20 guest or more.

“The question that I hear most often is how much should I save for retirement. I usually tell my clients to save at least the first hour of their pay, which I equate to paying yourself first. I have some clients who are 55 years old and want to save $50 per pay period…that’s not enough!” Stewart said. “Many people look at saving for retirement as another bill. If you want to look at it that way, make sure that bill is the first one you pay every month.”

Stewart has more than a decade of experience in the financial industry and a passion for educating others. Though her main focus is on helping individuals who have already retired or will be retiring in the next two years, she also hosts several events to educate beauticians and barbers on how to create a tax-free pension plan for themselves.

Stewart named her business Imani, which means Faith in Swahili. That was the basis of how she started her business, by stepping out on faith. She was able to take her own life lessons and use them as a catalyst to start her own business, helping individuals and families to have faith in their financial future. It’s what Stewart was destined to do, but more importantly, it’s what she loves to do.

Experience Our World of Advertising Marketing, Media and Communication

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12 November 2014

Decision Making: A Critical Skill Today’s Employers are Seeking

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By Mikal Powers Contributing Writer

very day business leaders are faced with important decisions that will impact the future of their company or workforce. Making smart, ethical decisions when the pressure is on can be the difference between a mid-level manager and someone who can rise to the top and lead an organization. In fact, strategic decision-making is so critical that business schools have begun emphasizing leadership development to address the needs of today’s corporations.

While employers have identified the skills gap in America as a lack of job seekers with the technical or hard skills necessary to compete in many areas of the economy, such as Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, employers

are also noting a shortage in employees with the soft skills like leadership and communication that are needed to handle the challenges of tomorrow’s competitive business landscape.

Recognizing the need for business leaders to stay savvy in an increasingly competitive and challenging economic climate, University of Phoenix offers resources, including events highlighting the latest trends impacting business and shared best practices to help Houston companies be nimble and competitive to further strengthen our local economy.

In addition to making the “right” decisions to compete globally, employers need professionals who are problem solvers and critical thinkers. University of Phoenix provides curriculum that prepares students in the functional areas of business, allowing students to develop the managerial skills necessary to be effective in today’s rapidly changing business en-

vironment. Curriculum is focused on strengthening students’ decision-making and leadership skills.

Whether a current or aspiring business owner, here are a few tips to help focus decision-making as a business owner:

Define and prioritize the decisions that need to be made and identify priority areas that are key for growth.

Some areas may be strategic and “big picture,” and others may be decisions that impact the day-to-day.

Take inventory of factors that go into each decision. Identify who may play a role, how often it occurs and what information is available to support a particular decision.

Visualize outcomes of the decision.

Do a reality check. Cross off outcomes that most likely will not occur.

Act on it. Once you’ve narrowed down the list of possible outcomes, act on it and execute the decision.

Mikal Powers is campus director at University of Phoenix Houston Campus overseeing campus operations. Powers earned a bachelor’s degree in business management and a master’s degree in business administration from University of Phoenix. He spent five years as a Helicopter Search and Rescue Swimmer and Operations Petty Officer in the U.S. Navy. After earning his degree, Powers attended the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and became a reserve officer for South Texas where he is committed to keeping communities safe and assisting residents in need.

Experience Our World of Advertising Marketing, Media and Communication

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14 November 2014

Council Member Larry Green Kicks Off “(K)lean It Up, Green It Up” Campaign

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ouston City Council Member for District K Larry Green officially kicked off his “(K)lean It Up, Green It Up” initiative at a community kick-off event in Southwest Houston. Taking place at the Fountain of Praise’s Fountain Life Center, the kick-off served as the catalyst for an initiative that will look to create a cleaner community for District K residents, as well as establish the district as one of the ‘greenest’ communities in the city.

“This campaign is dedicated to the improvement of District K in hopes of creating a better community for generations to come,” said Council Member Green. “(K)lean It Up, Green It Up will require strong community buy-in, and we’ve already begun to build a strong coalition of support across the city. Together, we can make District K a cleaner, greener, more beautiful place to live – now let’s get to work!”

The community kick-off drew large crowds throughout the day and featured

local vendors, representatives from various city departments and local community leaders. Following remarks from Council Member Green, the Fountain of Praise’s nationally-renowned drill team entertained event-goers with a “(K)lean It Up, Green It Up” themed performance.

“Today’s event was a great way to kick

off this campaign,” said Council Member Green. “We are thrilled that today’s event drew so much interest throughout the community, and we’ll need this incredible level of community buy-in to make this initiative the success we know it can be.” “(K)lean It Up, Green It Up” is an ini-

tiative focused on beautifying District K through tree plantings, the development of community gardens, an increased focus on recycling and opening community farmer’s markets, amongst other green initiatives. For more information on the campaign, please visit www.

KleanItUpGreenItUp.org.

Expand and Enhance Your Job Search with Social Media By d-mars.com News Provider

I

f social media isn’t at the top of your list when starting your jobsearching endeavors, you might find the process slow and tedious. That’s because social networks are the way nearly all U.S. companies are finding new employees, according to Jobvite.

As you finalize your resume and create drafts for cover letters, be sure to plan your social media strategy as well.

“Make sure you have a social media strategy to augment traditional methods such as face-to-face networking and informational interviews,” said Lyndsay Cooper, career services director for The Art Institute of Tennessee-Nashville, which is a branch of The Art Institute of Atlanta.

Check out the following tips to give yourself an edge in your job search.

• Brand consistency. Make sure your profile is professional and reflects the job you’re looking for across all social media platforms. Ensure your privacy settings are secure (especially on Facebook).

On LinkedIn, make sure your profile is complete with skills and recommendations. On Twitter, link to your website, blog or online resume. And don’t forget Pinterest, YouTube, Google+ and Foursquare.

• Know your audience. Your audience on Facebook is different from your audience on Twitter or LinkedIn, so make sure your updates reflect that.

On LinkedIn, share articles and blogs

on industry-related topics. On Facebook, post more personal (but not too detailed) updates to remind your friends that you’re in the job market.

• Be proactive. Use social media to connect with recruiters, employers and employees of companies you’d like to work for. Join—and participate in—or-

ganizations, groups and blogs in your industry or alumni groups. Become an industry expert or thought leader.

• Research. Use social media to create your target list of companies, then research those companies and their employees. Use hashtags on Twitter to find jobs. For example, if you are interested

in fashion, search #fashionjobs. Sites like Twellow let you search people’s bios and the URLs in their bios; you can easily find, follow and engage key employees of those companies so they get to know you before you approach them for a job.

Prepare for a job interview by using social media to research the interviewer and find common topics to break the ice.

• Network online. Expand your network and engage others with similar interests by posting, sharing/forwarding, tweeting and retweeting relevant articles and blogs. This raises your online profile, and encourages others to do the same for you. Twitter works well for this.

• Know your online profile. Google yourself and make sure what you see is what you want it to be. Go to Klout.com so you can see your “klout” score, which reports how influential and engaged you are across platforms. Another great site is wefollow.com, a Twitter directory organized by shared interests or categories.

Users can add themselves to the categories that best fit their interests.

Today, employers use LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and other social media to identify, recruit and check out new employees. The Internet has helped level the job search playing field by offering access to resources which enable you to identify and prepare for career opportunities. But it’s also offered employers access to more talented job candidates.

A smart social media strategy can help you stand out and land the job you seek.

- (BPT)

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16 November 2014

FAILURE - Can Live With Did You Know?

It…Can’t Live Without It!

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By Noel Pinnock

Contributing Writer

hree-time Grammy® award winner Donnie McClurkin We Fall Down lyrics are definitely on target with this month’s edition of d-mars.com Business Journal partly because McClurkin was able to successfully capture the essence of catching, correcting and learning from the power of failure or the errors of our ways.

McClurkin wrote: “We fall down, but we get up…we fall down, but we get up, for a saint is just a sinner who fell down, but we couldn’t stay there…”

The incomparable William Shakespeare is infamous for saying, “To err is human.” The verb “err” means to do something wrong; to make a mistake is “to err.” “To err is human” because all people (“humans”) make mistakes. Unfortunately, we are programmed at an early age to think that failure is bad and this belief prevents individuals and organizations alike from effectively learning from missteps.

As children, we learn at some point that admitting failure means taking blame! How can we respond constructively to failures without giving rise to an “anything-goes” attitude? Executives, when asked, reported how many of the failures in their organizations are truly blameworthy. Their answers are usually in single digits – 2% to 5%, but when asked how many are treated as blameworthy, they say (after a pause or chuckle) – 70% to 90%. Amy Edmondson and Mark D. Cannon (Harvard Business School) writes: “It hardly needs to be said that organizations (individuals) cannot learn from failures if people do not discuss and analyze them. Yet this remains an important insight. The learning that is potentially available may not be realized unless thoughtful analysis and discussion of failure occurs. For example, for Kaiser [Permanente’s] Dr. [Kim] Adcock, it is not enough just to know that a particular physician is making more than the acceptable number of errors [in misread x-rays]. Unless deeper analysis of the nature of the radiologist’s errors is conducted, it is difficult to learn what needs to be corrected. On a larger scale, the U.S. Army is known for conducting After Action Reviews that enable participants to analyze, discuss and learn from both the successes and failures of a variety of military initiatives. Similarly, hospitals

use “Morbidity and Mortality” (M&M) conferences (in which physicians convene to discuss significant mistakes or unexpected deaths) as a forum for identifying, discussing and learning from failures.

This analysis can only be effective if people speak up openly about what they know and if others listen, enabling a new understanding of what happened to emerge in the assembled group.”

You see, hindsight is always 20/20, but in order to realize the power that is produced in failure we must first be able to acknowledge it; second, analyze it; and third, learn from it. German theoretical physicist Albert Einstein once stated, “We can’t solve yesterday’s problems at the same level of thinking we are at when we created them.” In order to get back up, as McClurkin exhorts, when we have fallen down requires a change in our beliefs as well as in our thinking because when we change our beliefs, we change our thoughts, and when we change our thoughts; we change our feelings and when we change our feelings; we change our actions. At the end of the day, top of the morning, it’s about taking action after the error, failure, short fall, opportunity for improvement (OFIs) or whatever word or phrase you find acceptable in your lexicon. Those that catch, correct and learn from failure before others will succeed, but those that wallow in the blame game will not.

Now that we know now that failure is not fatal, let’s examine what life looks like after one does encounter this inevitable dynamic through the lens of forgiveness. Forgiveness is a vital force in the failure recovery process. It is vital because we can’t carry stones in our pockets and expect to run at optimal speeds. Again, Shakespeare wrote, to err is human, but he also stated in the same breath that “to forgive is divine.” Forgiveness is reciprocal my friends because to receive it, one must give it and to accept it is to move your life progressively forward. After all, we fall down but we can’t stay there…we have to get back up, but getting back up doesn’t end the process.

It simply begins the process of catching, correcting and learning from the force that made us fall in the first place. So, there you have it…get at it and rediscover the power in failure! www.noelpinnock.com

E

Photo Credit: Biography.com

lected on November 7, 1967 and taking office January 1, 1968, Carl Burton Stokes became mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, making him the first Black mayor of a major U.S. city.

Stokes was a good student, but dropped out of high school. He joined the U.S. Army at the age of 18 and after being discharged in 1946, Stokes returned to his hometown of Cleveland and earned his high school diploma in 1947.

Stokes eventually earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and went on to graduate from ClevelandMarshall College of Law. He was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1957 and served as assistant prosecutor for four years and became partner in the law firm of Stokes, Stokes, Character and Terry. He continued his law practice into his political career in which he was also successful.

“An empty wagon makes a lot of noise.”

A person who uses many words (or talks a lot) does so to make up for the lack of substance.

Rebecca was a third-year college student pursuing her degree in Communications. Now Rebecca wasn’t the best student.

She consistently missed class and rarely made better than a C on her exams. However, she knew that in order to earn her bachelor’s degree in communications, she had to pass certain classes with a B or higher. When it was time for her to present her final in her Mass Communications class, Rebecca had to stand before the class and discuss what role mass communications have played in epidemics such as HIV/AIDS, swine flu and most recently the Ebola virus. She wasn’t well-prepared for the presentation, but figured she could talk her way around it. Instead, the opposite occurred. She began babbling and getting off topic in her attempt to make it seem as if she knew what she was talking about. The class grew bored and Rebecca’s professor was not amused. She interrupted Rebecca in the middle of her presentation and let her know that she did not need to continue. The professor then went on to comment, “it’s clear you have no idea of what the topic is really about. Empty wagons make a lot of noise.”

If you have an Old Folks Saying you’d like to submit for consideration in our d-mars.com Business Journal, please email them to editor@d-mars.com. Be sure to include your name, the Old Folks Saying and the meaning.

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