Insights Into Cultural Understanding

One of the things that I get to do is to attend fund raising events. They are often events where people talk about the good deeds that their organization performs on behalf of young mothers, boys or girls at risk etc. Rarely have I been to an event where those who are the beneficiaries were so clearly present and vocal about the difference that this organization has made in their lives.

This morning I attended a breakfast for “Girls for a Change” where girls talked about their young lives and the issues they face and what really matters to them. Their issues are those that we all know about and yet when hearing from these very young people that the support given to “Girls for a Change” has given their lives renewed purpose and direction I wonder why is it that we are not doing more.

There was a direct appeal for funding, no gimmicks, no raffles, no expensive dinner, no internationally know speaker motivating us, just the beneficiaries, the young girls who need the help. Here is a link to a short video that makes the case for supporting this group better then I can.

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Scottsdale, AZ.: “Positively Powerful Women Celebrate!” is an event scheduled for May 16 and 17 at the Chaparral Suites Resort, 5001 N. Scottsdale Road.

The purpose of the event is for the empowerment of all women and the celebration of their accomplishments in ways that inspire others to live their dreams. The event is geared for entrepreneurial businesswomen, corporate executives, educators, trainers, homemakers, trainers, students and community-minded women.

Dr. Joel Martin, president of Triad West, Inc. will be the keynote presenter and workshop facilitator. She has worked with hundreds of thousands of individuals in Fortune 500 companies, non-profit and entrepreneurial organizations across many industries in the U.S. She has also worked internationally in South Africa, France, the UK, Latvia, Finland, Malaysia, Russia and China.

A powerful speaker, she uses behavioral science business applications and experiential education to inspire those who attend her workshops. She is the author of the book How to Be a Positively Powerful Person. She has been featured on the Today Show and in the NY Times, Essence, U.S. News and World Report, Black Enterprise, Working Women and Fortune magazine. She appears in the transformational film The Answer. She has earned a Masters degree in Psychology, a PhD. In Communications and is a Wharton Business School Fellow.

The May 16 program begins at 5:30 with a dinner sponsored by eWomen Network and presentation of the Positively Powerful Awards. At 9 am a continental breakfast with networking opportunities will kickoff the May 17 schedule which concludes at 6 pm. The program is highly interactive, fun and participatory.

Event sponsors include eWomen Network, Southwest Gas Corporation, Anheuser Busch Budweiser, APS, and Dial Corporation - A Henkel Company. When asked why he was sponsoring the inaugural event, Garry Walters, Administrator/Community & Consumer Affairs, Southwest Gas Corporation said,

Joel is an award winning diversity supplier, who is a member of the Southwest Gas Supplier Diversity network. Sponsoring this “Positively Powerful Women Celebrate! Retreat” is the right thing to do. We are recognizing our relationship with Triad West Inc. and the return on investment this provides Southwest Gas. We have a jewel in Joel Martin. Her expertise and resources need to be utilized for this and the greater good.”

Cybel Martin, award winning cinematographer and lecturer, will be filming the 2-day event for educational purposes.

For information, registration and scholarships contact www.triadwest.com or call 480-563-5585. The cost for the 2-day event is $250 before May 1 and $290 after. The cost includes the Friday evening dinner, and Saturday breakfast, lunch and reception featuring the sampling of new Budweiser Light With Lime.

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The Power of Vision Creation

from my Book

“How To Be A Positively Powerful Person” 

There is nothing more fulfilling for me than facilitating the breakthrough process for people as they make real what they previously thought and believed was impossible for them. The change is…amazing. They show passion. They exude energy, confidence, and self-esteem. I believe that the world would be a better place if everyone lived their dreams. A dream is a fantasy, a nice idea. A vision is a dream plus the commitment to do what it takes to achieve the vision. It requires action. How can you make your dreams come true – and your vision a reality? Knowing the ten steps is critical to becoming a positively powerful person. All the steps are necessary. They are sequential yet overlapping. Each step is a cornerstone in the foundation of your action plan. The ?It? is your vision. Step One: Imagine It. Step Two: Believe in It. Step Three: Talk about It. Step Four: Commit to It. Step Five: Plan It. Step Six: Enroll in It. Step Seven: Do It. Step Eight: Check It. Step Nine: Complete It. And Step Ten: Celebrate It! If you can dream It, you can achieve It. Believe It. If you don‘t think you have a vision, it is perfectly all right! We all have dreams that we would turn into a vision if we could. Your dreams still exist in your consciousness. All you need to do is awaken them. These few questions will assist you: If I had three wishes guaranteed to come true, I would _____ (Fill in the blank.) Or, my favorite: If I could devote my life to serving others and still have the money and lifestyle I needed, I would successfully be, do, or have__________ (Fill in the blank!)

Here is an over view of each of the steps.

Step One: Imagine It - All success begins with the imagination, which is ?the ability to confront and deal with reality by using the creative power of the mind.? Research indicates that the more details you can imagine and incorporate into your vision, the better. These pictures are part of your mental ?files‘ as you make-believe and see your goals.

Step Two: Believe in It - The most important person to believe in your ability to accomplish your vision is you. The founder of the modern automobile, Henry Ford, said, ?”If you think you can or you think you can‘t, you are probably right.” So believe.

Step Three: Talk about It - Communicate the internal meaning or direction of your vision in an external way. Let‘s say your dream is to have a new home. You deserve it and believe in it. You make it your vision. Using your imaginative power, you begin to see your home–what it looks like, what color it is, how many rooms it has, etc. When you talk about it, you look at blueprints, go online to identify builders, look in magazines to get pictures, share your vision with your family and friends, and visit model homes. By talking about it through language, actions, and other representational symbols of your vision, you sharpen your focus on your vision‘s goals.

Step Four: Commit to It - Commitment is not about thinking, wishing, hoping, trying, or self-sacrifice. Commitment is being bold and bound–mind, body, and spirit–to what matters to you, then declaring it into being. An example of one of the most powerful declarations I ever made was saying ?I do? to my husband on October 10, 1970 during our wedding ceremony. Life changed forever for me from that point on. Those two words were the declaration and demonstration of my commitment.

Step Five: Plan It - After you‘ve committed and declared, the next step is to set your short-term goals and make an action plan. Here you put your attention on your intentions.

Step Six: Enroll in It - You can’t create your vision by yourself. Success is created with and through others. There are three communication skills that will serve you well: Networking which involves creating connective relationships; enrollment, creating partnership in the vision; and alignment, building a harmonious synergistic team. Enrolling is creating value WIIFT — ?what‘s in it for them.? It is one of the highest forms of communication. When Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his speech in Washington, DC and spoke the words, ?I have a dream,? he enrolled men and women of all races in a stand for racial equality—so much so that his vision lived on to empower others. Your ability to enroll others in you/your vision directly influences your outcomes.

Step Seven: Do It - Imagine three birds sitting on a fence. Three decide to fly away. How many fly away? The answer? None. It takes more than deciding, it takes action. Have you ever had a great idea and done nothing about it? Very likely this was the step where you stopped pursuing your vision. All visions happen because of the actions of a positively powerful person with faith.

Step Eight: Check It - A useful mantra I use in speaking about results is that ?you either have the results you say you want, or the reasons, stories, and excuses why not.?

Step Nine: Complete It - Have all of the major success factors been accomplished? This is the time to ask whether there is anything else that you can do in the time you have allowed. If there is do it. Then relax.

Step Ten: Celebrate It! - Completion is not the final step. There needs to be time for celebration. Many people (workaholics, people who don‘t acknowledge themselves) neglect this step as they move on to their next project. Don‘t. You deserve to take time to give yourself positive reinforcement. Give back to yourself and the people that supported you so that there is no burnout from lack of appreciation. They will remember your gratitude…and you will get a burst of renewed energy as a result of celebrating. Congratulations!

Give yourself a pat on the back.While these steps won‘t guarantee success, you now have a plan for your progress. Let me know how I can support you in developing your vision and making your dreams come true faster. Imagine your world then.
Joel Martin, Ph.D. is a motivational speaker, coach, consultant, and training professional. Her newest productions are the Positively Powerful Women Celebrate! Dinner, Awards, And Workshops and Vision eLearning Program dedicated to assisting others with making their dreams come true. To learn how to receive her computer-based programs, books, CDs, The Answer DVD, speaking, or company‘s services, contact Triad West Inc. (480) 563-5585, 9616 East Southwind Lane, Scottsdale, AZ 85262. www.triadwest.com

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While at the AZ Black Film Showcase, I attended the screening of the new film Kings of the Evening. If you have an opportunity to see this do. It’s a touching story that takes place in the 1930’s when times were tough especially for Black Americans. Inspired by a tradition from The Republic of South Africa, the film portrays a community where Black men dressed in their best for a competition and “the glory of strutting their stuff with pride and style”. I’ll be back with more news on this from a cultural perspective and on the actors and crew but this is a start for you. Look for this film!

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All of the many ways one can shape the public perception of a culture through film were alive and well this month. From a visionary film maker and producer, marketing professional, events producer, to actors. If you weren’t in AZ for the Black Film Showcase, you should have been.

I interviewed Director Lee Daniels (Shadowboxer, Monster’s Ball, The Woodsman) who gave us the guerrilla film production background for his brilliant films and what it took to really get them produced. I found him to be upfront and candid, humorous and human. He’s a spiritual man. And spirited! The audience and I loved his verbatim’s. He directed the superstar Helen Mirren with grace, style and expletives deleted when needed he said. He shared his process for production and came prepared with audition tapes of a exceptionally gifted new actor starring in his upcoming film “Push” and out takes of her with Mo’nique. It was so real and raw, I asked (choked up) how it would end…but I won’t tell you here, you’ll have to see it for yourself in the theater. He also brought footage from “Tennessee” featuring Mariah Carey. Lee is amazing in how he casts his films and this songbird’s role is no exception. I’ll be there for anything attached to his name in the movies, you be there too. He deserves the Academy Award recognition and Cannes Film Festival wins.

Some distressing news though for Lee Daniels fans - he said only two more films, one of these would be a musical, and then he wants to teach. No more than two more films? Youch! He’s already involved with the Ghetto Film School.

When I interviewed Award winning actor Lynn Whitfield (Thin Line Between Love And Hate, Tyler Perry’s Madea, The Josephine Baker Story), she showed a humorous side that I have never seen before. She’s always a great and beautiful actress displaying a fine edge of intensity but this side of Lynn was fun. We saw her on the big screen in the video highlights of her career to date (check out “Kings of the Evening“!). Lynn shared some ‘for real’ remarks on the competition for roles, how she almost gave up in those early days before she became a star, and her love and appreciation of her beautiful daughter.

Lynn once again made history. She won Showcase Oscar Micheaux Award. This is the first time a woman actor has won the coveted honor in the seven years of its existence. Going back a bit, both Lynn and Lee have created successful productions that people in general want to see. Oscar would be pleased.

Oscar Micheaux, the first African-American to produce a feature-length film (The Homesteader (1919) in 1920) and a sound feature-length film (The Exile (1931) in 1931), is not a major figure in American film just for these milestones, but because his oeuvre is a window onto the American psyche as regards race and its deleterious effects on individuals and society. He also is a pioneer of independent cinema. Though the end products of his labors often were technically crude due to budgetary constraints, Micheaux the filmmaker is a symbol of the artist triumphing over long odds to bring his vision to the public at large while serving in the socially important role of critical spirit.

I also moderated a panel discussion with Hollywood insiders Felicia Bell, Jenean Glover, and actor Linara Washington. Felicia is a marketing and film distribution phenom. Jenean is a talent manager and consultant with her own company Screen Partners, Inc. and Linara, an actor in the film “Kings of the Evening” which had its Arizona premiere at the Showcase. What did the audience hear about what it takes to make it behind the camera where the office is and in front of the camera? Here are a few highlights: Never give up, learn how the money is made in films, and give yourself a time line. From a big money, big money perspective as Tyler Perry and others are proving, never underestimate the power of a cultural group’s desire to see a relevant, revealing, and reliable portrayal. Felicia and Jenean are making decisions for their organizations that are as green as dollars bills.

There was a dynamic Q and A with everyone. I asked tough questions and the audience did too. And like I said, “you should have been there!”

The mission of the Arizona Black Film Showcase is to become the premier, national media arts event dedicated to supporting Black film professionals through educational and networking opportunities. Founder Joanna De’Shay believes that “Black Film is American Film” and that Black Films have a significant impact on the broader Film and Television Industry and I share this vision with her. Her annual, competitive film showcase has supported, celebrated, and promoted the dynamic works of Black filmmakers locally and nationally for the past seven years.

My time and my company’s production efforts will be focused on women in May. Specifically, Scottsdale AZ, Chaparral Suites Resorts, the Positively Powerful Women Celebrate dinner, awards, and personal development workshop May 16 and 17. Another not to be missed event. And yes, we will be filming it for educational purposes. If you would like to become a sponsor, purchase the film, attend, register your Mom, receive a scholarship (we have a limited amount, first come first served) call Joel Martin, President Triad West Inc. Positively Powerful Events. For information call (480) 563-5585 or click here.

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