Entrepreneurship Archives

Follow Your Strengths and Less Focus On The Outcome.

2 months ago Artists/ Musicians /Designers / Directors/Producers, Arts, Entrepreneurship, Podcast

These we will be diving deeper during semi-lockdown through our new podcast Your Story Matter.

This is an experiment and you are all invited yay!

“It’s unfortunate that this has happened. No. It’s fortunate that this has happened and I’ve remained unharmed by it — Not shattered by the present or frightened of the future.” — Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 4–49a

If there’s anything I’ve learned through this whole quarantine, semi-lockdown in this city (Montreal, Quebec), it’s that my toddlers will remember that through these hard times, we were more mindful, there was less wasted time and more precious moments together. They will remember that self-care is self-discipline, mental health is a priority and our inner creativity, wisdom, courage and happiness are all within us. We just need the tools and the right guidance to access them any time we need them the most.

I’ve never been as close to my girls as I have been in the past 8 months. My daughters; even when the tears keep falling down without my consent and I swear, I’m trying to make them stop… Even releasing this new podcast yesterday was hard. My mother has been transferred to palliative care. This place is for her to get better care and to be with more professionals since she’s in her last stages of Alzheimer’s and dementia. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. It hurts a lot.

We have seen it all, been there, and cared for her all throughout the last 7 years since she was diagnosed. It’s gotten to the point where we’re no longer able to bring her to the bathroom like we used to when she was still able to walk a couple of months ago. Now, her state seems to be one of less suffering, which I pray is the case. She can’t speak anymore but her eyes say it all so clear. Her laugh is the only thing that hasn’t changed which is her way of letting us know that she’s happy when we are around or that she’s comfortable. Also, that laugh has always been her love language and I’m definitely going to miss hearing it. That’s why I’ve been calling this disease the silent death. Because you have no idea what a person who is really voiceless is going through. They know. Kindness was her lesson to us while she was conscious and then it became deeper if that’s even possible, through her sickness.

I’ve been on my healing journey, but neglecting it lately because I’ve been dealing with a lot of work. We are pivoting this business (yep, I’m re-building the website 🙂 Stay tuned!), new collaborations (hopefully sponsors) are on the horizon, and kids in school during covid-19’s second wave in this city are already drained. It’s detrimental to anyone’s mental health and survival.

I’m grateful for the bad and the good lessons of this year. I’ll be sharing more and I will keep improving on personal development by reading, listening, learning from others’ stories and helping small business owners, BIPOC and the voiceless (children, teachers, essential workers, nurses, people with disabilities and the elderly) as much as I can, while continuing to grow this creative online business from home, working freelance, and providing other services from my team and I 🙂

Aside from running a full-time online business, I have a new book publishing soon, we started our podcast (it took me 5 years to finally let go and do it) and I’ve just been really following my inner creative strengths while being less focused on the outcome. I don’t know what it will mean for the future. I just know that consistent work, emotional courage, creativity, being more conscious of our actions and patience, are key during these times. Also, embracing spiritual activism. Because we all need healing, and we must help others in need and those who are voiceless. Together, let’s discover what else is out there, not just in the external or physical realm.

These platforms will be our journey and also the beacon of light to sustain my girls and myself while we are in semi-lockdown, safe at home. Thank you for your support, for subscribing, following, for your encouraging DM’s, emails, and comments and for sharing the love. It really has been a blessing to have the support of an inspiring and creative ecosystem to help each other thrive in times of adversity.

Love what you do and do what you love…Do it a lot ❤ (My oldest daughter tells me this now when it’s “mom writing/editing book” time). Very grateful for my daughters who are my Why and my motivation to keep going through these tough times — so I can help others achieve the same. #goals2020

https://writersyep.com/media/94468be7d5c6e245950d96afaf41288b

Subscribe so you don’t miss any episodes 🙂

Thank you for your support!

Love and Light,

_AO.

If you liked this blog make sure to subscribe, follow us, leave us what you think in the comments (let’s start real conversations) and share it with someone who needs to read this today. Edited by Vanessa H.

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Currently reading :The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
Much more than simple principles and platitudes, The Power of Now takes readers on an inspiring spiritual journey to…bookshop.org

Follow @angiem_ao and @your_story_matters Podcast ❤ You can view and read the journey : IG, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Thrive Global, HITRECORD

9 Business Lessons Learned While Working In a Restaurant Part-Time and Being a Founder.

3 months ago Culture, Entrepreneurship, Life Wisdom, Money

It was a decent and honest job that I end up loving it. These are my personal experience, not an expert. I’m just a constant learner and a curious person. I’m a creative spiritual human that loves to inspire and help others. ❤

Originally published in Medium.

I’m so grateful for what I’ve been learning, experiencing and struggling this week. Getting ready to release something pretty special from the heart and soul as a mama writer and creative being in December. Can’t wait for you all to read it! But first, podcast @your_storymatters_ release of first few episodes beginning of November! 🙂 along with new launch of other things I’ve been working on and getting other peeps to participate. This 2020 it has being a very tiring, challenging and painful year but one, that we were determined to embrace the suck, stay awake, less anxious and find the good through it all. For now, let’s talk about this new book I’m highly recommending right now. It’s called “The Calling” by Rha goddess ❤ yep! She really is a goddess. (I’m half way and oh so good!)

The words business and money, for some odd reason has some people scare and uncertain than ever before. Well, even more so for those really going through this pandemic and wondering if they will make it this time. These are really hard times folks, please be kind, wear your mask and keep your distance. But also be mindful of what you consume and watch all the time. Now days, I set timers to get off work and put my phone away!. Have mini rewards ready when the to do list it’s half way done. Plus self-care time scheduled when the to-do-list gets done. I’ve been having anxiety, and some low days, yes. Not perfect here. But also, I’ve learned so much through failing, still learning and growing. Our goals around here are changing because so am I. Things are much more meaningful and clear than I ever thought would ever become during this pandemic.

Either way, I’ll be giving more details soon. Sign up to our newsletters! This is a conscious, spiritual, creative awakening experiment and you all are invited to join in the adventure. ❤

While I was working in a restaurant before the world went into quarantine, I learned 9 things that I would’ve never learned if I didn’t work from within (I worked there for about 3 months, then covid-19 caused it to close).

The restaurant and food business is very demanding. It also has a rewarding aspect to it. I’m glad that I was able to experience it at least for a little while. The work, the people, and the surroundings helped me to heal heavy and emotional situations that I was dealing with prior to starting this new job. Surprisingly, it was an enjoyable job that was helping me pay the bills, while I was figuring out my self-healing, single-mom life, and how to successfully build my startup business with my team.

The restaurant it’s called the Green Panthere. I really miss their veggie burgers and their delicious shawarma made of Jackfruit!

It was in the four walls of the restaurant where I came to rediscover my love of working in the service industry; making food and making people laugh felt good. As an empath, I feel a lot. So the distraction to work with my hands and being of service was a different experience. I loved creating vegetarian and vegan meals, as well as delicious and healthy smoothies. As you already know, I love to create; whether it be art, photography and content creation. Specifically, I love to write books (publishing one in December!), blogs, write for others, and of course write here! I also adore researching science and reading like a MTF because it’s just fun to learn, educate, create and inspire others :). If this sounds appealing to you, reach out to me. I would love to hear your story, and see if we can collaborate and help each other.

Do you ever love something so much that you wish that by just doing that all your problems will disappear? That all the BS of life, won’t bother you or affect you anymore? Yep, that’s the goal: being happy, raising smart and kind daughters, reducing my ecological footprint, embracing my inner talents and helping others. How about you? What’s your goal in this life? What changed for you during these times?

I found out that I don’t have to hide anymore that I also love to paint, write poems and songs… 🙂 That is okay to self-publish and be a multi-purpose creative and spiritual person. These are blessing that came out of heartache, dealing with discrimination, racism in my city , pain and grief as my mother degrades from this horrible and silent death “alzheimer’s dementia”.

I’m failing a lot, but learning a lot too. I’m crying more, aka releasing. Listing to understand, feeling more, learning to be patience, to rest, letting go more and just adapting to a fast changing world right now. At the same time, I’m building a habit of being okay with feeling uncomfortable. Go the extra mile, and see what happens. Do what’s right and collaborate with others, with our talents to inspire to fight for a more equitable, just and sustainable systems. For climate and social justice. Leaving space for my feelings to be honored and valid, in order to keep doing this work and inner work (which by the way it’s the F hardest thing to do), self-awareness and personal development are not easy. However, is the best thing you could do for your soul and spirit.

Some writers on Medium and amazing best selling authors can attest to this statement. Other people who own different streams of income online can also give a little insight about this too. It all comes down to two things — which I will discuss in the section below. They are simple to plan but difficult to execute.

Self-Discipline + consistency = Habits for Everything in life.

I decided to share 9 things I’ve learned working in a restaurant, another job and building my startup at the same time. Oh! and also dealing with single mom life and taking care of my dying mother on the weekends (still do).

Just want to remind you all, we put the limitations on our minds that just because something is hard to do or is painful. That automatically, is not worth it or we listen to others telling us “there is no point in doing it” because is not “possible”. Yeah, another thing I learn to do for real, is to let go of Limiting beliefs. Seriously, it sucks joy out of life. In my experience, it was conditioned and enforce by not being in the right environment or surrounding myself with the right crowd. We all learn this the hard way or the easy way.

Before we get into it all, I need to remind you that It is a privilege to be able to survive, earn an income and be healthy during these times. It is what you do with your personal privilege (we all have it in some shape or form) that really matters now and later in the future. More importantly, we are all going through the second wave of this pandemic and living in countries where the government leaders have no clue what they’re doing which is killing a lot of people right now.

Especially, if the leaders are not changing policies and systems that were there before that was deadly for BIPOC, LGBTQ, Trans women, Non-binary, Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, Buddhist, Brown, Asian, African, Haitians, Hispanic, Latinx, Arab and people with disabilities. This year, I have got to experience the reality of a system that does not benefit Single parents and if they are POC is worse.

Here we are, still advocating, working, trying to heal, not feel guilty about taking breaks and fighting for human rights. As artists, we will do anything to use creativity through adversity. Why? Because it matters. Musicians, writers, coaches, speakers, artists, entertainers, and those who are empaths (such as myself) are creators by nature. We are constantly seeking light and truth through our arts. To help others from our inner-creative to feel, to heal, to believe, be inspired and to hope for a better future.

Either way, some days I really wish I could record or take pictures when I take the metro (subway) at night. However, I’ll tell you with words. Every few nights, before I found my apartment, I would take the metro. On the ride, I would notice that the people who were looking super exhausted, tired and defeated were mostly black women and men. You can tell that they are probably working two jobs or three, and that 11pm is their time to be with their families, and god knows what time they go to bed. Then, they wake up and go through the routine all over again. I feel for their children that wish to have more time with their parents, but can’t because their parents have to work to keep a roof over their head, and to have food to eat everyday.

Then I notice white people. You see the hipsters alluding feelings of peacefulness. Then, “Karen” wearing stilettos shoes on a Tuesday night in the middle of a world pandemic. Dear white people: This is something I see, and if you pay attention, listen to your friends POC stories and experiences without cantering back to your own white privileged experiences. You too will notice. It’s all around us. Inequality, racism, sexism, misogyny and white supremacy. These need to be eradicated.

You want to go back to normal? Start by the normalization of dismantling racism. Yes, your skin color right now, if you stand up for BIPOC or any POC then we all have a chance to eradicate the 500 years old system. Start by helping black owned and communities right now. Start by helping and protecting black and any color women. Patriarchy and capitalism are toxic, we all need to embrace feminism, masculinity and those who are born with disabilities. Let women lead for a change. Start by educating better white supremacists, the media, radio and online media about integrating more diversity and teach that being a racist and white supremacy crap will not be accepted or tolerated anymore.

Let’s build a system that empowers people to protect, help heal earth and each other. Create ways for equal opportunities for all of us and not just some of us.

Organic living and how to survive during a pandemic and for later future ones. Mental health should be free, better education example: climate change classes and sustainability lifestyle. No more homelessness. That’s why police funds, TAXING THE RICH and (Quebec province) half of those high taxes we pay in this city alone need to be re-invested on the most vulnerable communities and for the people who are most affected by this pandemic. .

These can be done, it just change is never easy and resistance is the by-product of lack and scarcity mindset. These two are needed in order for capitalism, racism and white supremacy continue to survive. If we all start changing our ways of thinking and acting towards each other. Just imagine.

Remember, kindness, compassion, spirituality, and personal development are free. You just have to rewire your mindset by being comfortable with the uncomfortable. Trust me, is work but is the best thing you’ll ever do. Try it, and go at your own pace. Rushing this process is not ideal, let go of the competition (capitalism thrives on this and causes a lot of mental health issues) and start collaborating with others. Everyone is different. Each of us possess the ability to change, adapt and build resilience through tough times.

Here are 9 lessons that you can start working on because they not only applied for business or work. It applies to everyday life.

1. Instead of being a founder or define yourself as “entrepreneur” , serve Ice cream or Vegetarian Food.

Seriously, the ego and the constant need for validation is draining and it causes a lot of depression plus burnout. Entrepreneur life and success is not this magical luxury place. It’s messy, drawing and tiring af. However, that’s why we choose what we love to do, so our job becomes like play and each hour is a milestone or block reached to our dreams. More importantly, we do it because we love to help others while sustaining ourselves, save money and give back what we no longer need. Then, repeat. So those high mighty rich stay humble, so you have a few people left that still love you and they might show up to your funeral. Death is unavoidable so you might as well enjoy it while you still can. You are here for a purpose, and it is not to spend your days hating, being an ass to others and/or hoarding money. Remember, we are here to serve for a purpose, anything that takes you away from that source. Is a waste.

2. Resilience and abundance are your birthright.

Yep, especially those BIPOC who have been oppressed, marginalized, and completely disregarded your existence by designing an unjust economy, policies, education and government systems. Your love, your melanin skin and your lineage of excellence, creativity, innovation, joy, healing and life wisdoms are key in this revolution. Stay in your power. Ask the universe and your ancestors, but then do the work. Don’t expect them to do it for you. That’s not how law of attraction works. Learn to communicate your intentions and keep your abundance plus vibrations high.

3. Consistency will set you free.

“Consistent actions creates consistent results”.

Christine Kane

This is the hardest for most of us, but don’t give up. Once you start, let go of limiting beliefs, negativity in your mind and your surroundings. Go get it!

4. Quality versus quantity.

Always and forever baby ❤ Keep this in mind whenever you get caught up in the rat race and feel the pressure of everyone is posting and not me!? C’mon, these platforms are designed to consume OUR time. And time is the one thing not refundable, irreversible and absolutely can’t get it back. Spend your time wisely. (This still learning to adjust because is even harder now being in semi-lockdown to not get addicted even though is my job and my teams, but all consumptions have a limit. Find yours because social media for real can destroy yours if you let it. )

5. Sustainability it’s possible in all restaurant and food industry settings. Everyday life really.

The restaurant I was working had a beautiful business model that was all for less waste, sustainability, clean, equitable and inclusive green restaurant practices. It is possible, and we have to keep supporting and encouraging those who are changing their businesses and embracing new equitable, renewable and inclusive work environment.

6. Creativity is energy and it needs to flow.

Resist and it kills joy. Embrace your inner child while also dealing with life and money will flow. Remember that team building, management and operation hold big roles. These departments can thrive in the creativity phase along with digital marketing strategies of any business or organizations. This is the space where magic happens and usually is where I love to be of service 😉

7. Manage your time better to work and your energy.

At the same time, who you share your energy with is important. This one I’m still in the learning process. But take breaks and do things that you love and makes you happy. This took a while to embrace but I’ve realized than in order to continue being a happy and mindful mama to my girls. Breaks and self-love are necessary daily.

8. Give your all in to any job.

Because it builds your habits for your main and fun job you want or are working for in the future.

9. Confidence is born from failure.

Try, learn and fail as many time as possible. These will set you free too.

Then we come back to the reason I highly recommended. Embrace the suck because you might be better than most and if you are not, don’t give up because better days are coming. And that’s reason enough to be grateful.

Now we are well into 2020 — you still haven’t taken action about something you’re excited or even passionate about.

Here’s the thing: you’ll never ‘have the time’ unless you make it.

And now is the perfect time to create the space and take action — so that when business as usual resumes, you will have a plan of action and have the tools to take action.

Let me remind you something. I know this might be tough to hear, but there is never a perfect time to take action on your dreams or any projects that you left behind because you didn’t have “time” during these times.

There will always be projects and tasks and meetings and other things that life throws at you. Even when business as usual is paused — as it is now for most — there are still things to do. Find what sparks joy and happiness. Find something, anything — That makes you happy that you can do it every day, until you get really good at it. That others will start to notice and start asking you for advice or they might need you to do that for them.

Your skill, anything you learn or practice consistently during this period. Will matter in your future. So choose wisely. Take a rest if you need to but, remember, the whole world has stop working, not only so we can stay home and save someone’s life. But, so we got a second chance to recreate, let our planet take a break from our constant BS and toxic practices that by now, we all know it needs to change and find other ways to live this precious life.

Don’t waste it. Is one life and it is yours for short period of time.

Help others as much as you can. Self-love is self-discipline and if you can master that, you can do anything.

Hope this help and remember to be kind to you planet, to you and others.

Thank you for your support!

Love and Light,

_AO.

If you liked this blog make sure to subscribe, follow us, leave us what you think in the comments (let’s start real conversations) and share it with someone that needs to read this today. Edited by Emma P.

★ Support us on BookShop by reading 🙂 and help other bookstores too!

You can view and read the journey : IG, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Thrive Global, HITRECORD and of course, here 🙂

Where are we going next? Podcast @your_story_matters and bringing solutions with other change makers, leaders plus amplifying those who are voiceless. Creativity for intergenerational justice unleashed. Stay tuned!

14 Sustainable Tips to Embrace More During a Pandemic

3 months ago Culture, Health & Wellness, Life Wisdom, Money, Sustainability Matters

Sustainability matters more than ever now.

Originally published on Medium.

First I would like to address that not everyone can embrace sustainability and no waste living. Because not all of us have access, or can benefit from equal opportunities like our white race counterparts. We are all working to dismantle white supremacy that unfortunately is a disease that spreads just like cancer. And it has also created this “white washing” stigma in the green living and sustainability communities, just like in movies, music industry and commercial marketing strategies which they portray only the white race as being sustainable and eco-friendly leaders.

Because they are embracing it on social media and are being invited to participate with high paying brands, they are getting more sales and recognition because their white privilege makes it easy for them to do so. But hey! You do not need to be an environmentalist or any particular race to care and do what’s right for your planet any way you can. Yes! It doesn’t help that economically, BIPOC and any POC have to be labeled as “being brave” and other races get to “live free, enjoy” while others are left to fend for themselves. An unequal and unjust system is not sustainable any more. Our planet and our spirits cannot take this anymore. That’s why we are dismantling it and seeking liberation, healing and re-building a more renewable, cleaner, sustainable and equitable systems.

Let’s start with — Here are some of our favorite Environmentalist, BIPOC and POC accounts you can start supporting, learning from and recommending to brands (especially, those who can be the gatekeepers for others to receive the same equal opportunities as you). Collaboration is the root of healing a system designed to divide. Let’s dismantle and decolonize our minds together.

@greengirlleah + @IntersectionalEnvironmentalist

Leah Thomas is an activist for intersectional environmentalism. Along with her Instagram page, she also has a very informative IG account. Go check it out!

@mikaelaloach

Mikaela Loach is a climate justice and anti-racism activist. Her website has a lot of great information!

@Ajabarber

Aja Barber is a writer and fashion consultant whose focus is race, intersectional feminism, and sustainable and ethical fashion.

@Toritsui_

Tori Tsui is an intersectional climate activist. She runs a podcast called Bad Activist Podcast which focuses on intersectionality, feminism, climate justice, racial justice, and queer rights. Yes!

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson

Dr. Ayana Eliza is a marine biologist who founded @OceanCollectiv and @UrbanOceanLab. She focuses on climate change as a whole along with marine-focused initiatives. She’s also the lovely co-host of the new podcast I’m in love with @how2saveaplanet!

@Browngirl_green

Kristy’s instagram page is very informational on news relating to climate change and intersectionality. She has a podcast and a blog along with other resources on her website!

@Jeromefosterii

Jerome Foster II is an environmental activist, an EIC at The Climate Reporter and the Executive Director at One Million of Us which is a “youth-led voting & advocacy organization that is rallying 1M+ young people to register & turnout to vote in the 2020 election and beyond.”

@Hood_naturalist

Corina Newsome is a biologist who focuses on nature education along with bringing people of color into the outdoors (especially birding!)

@Unlikelyhikers

Unlikely hikers is an Instagram community that brings the “underrepresented outdoor person” into the outdoors. They are “people of size, Black, Indigenous, People of Color, queer, trans and non-binary…people with disabilities and people who utilize the outdoors to aid our mental health”. Love this community ❤

@Melaninbasecamp

Melanin Base Camp is a group that brings people of color into the outdoors. Yei!

@Gogreensavegreen

By Ariel -Teaching people about the environment and how to help. Love her energy and her hilarious stories make my day. Highly recommended!

@Climatediva

By Summer Dean- Climate communicator, model, & imperfect environmentalist ❤

@jhanneu

Making Low Waste + Sustainable Living Inclusive ❤

There are 14 Costless Ways to Live More Sustainably during a pandemic.

I know that it may seem at first that if you want to live more sustainably, you have to buy fancy eco-friendly products and spend loads of money before you can truly call yourself an eco-conscious citizen. The truth is, these 14 costless ways to live more sustainably are super effective and they don’t require any unnecessary consumerism!

Now, why should you care about living sustainably during semi-lockdown?

Because of the environment
Because of your own health (living sustainably usually means cutting out many nasty toxins that pollute your body and make you sick)
You’ll save lots of money! Once you’re done reading the article, you’ll understand how.

Intrigued yet? I sure hope so! Now let’s jump into the 14 costless ways to live more sustainably TODAY.

1. Freeze your food before it goes bad

In the US and North america, about 35% of food goes to waste. Sure, it often isn’t on purpose. Maybe you just miscalculate how much you need and end up throwing out a bunch of rotten food. But if you just freeze all your fruits, veggies, and even prepared meals before they go bad, you’ll save TONS of food in the long run, plus a bunch of money. And use your veggie scraps for veggie broth. Yep, you can literally turn your trash into food! Try keeping a bin of your veggie scraps and once it’s filled, toss the veggies along with some spices in a pot and voilà! You’ve given your scraps a second life!

2. Eat less meat

I know, I know, you’ve probably heard this one before. I’m definitely not pressuring you to go vegetarian or vegan or anything. But something important to know is that the meat industry emits more CO2 than all cars on the road. So if you cut down to eating meat just 2 or at least 3 times a week, that will already make a huge difference!

Example: I love the company Yves. This is my meal prep picture before making chilli that my girls and I love to eat. I still wish there weren’t any plastic-wrapped carrots and tomatoes, but again, not everyone has equal access to certain stores or can afford the stores where these sustainability practices can be embraced. But do tell the store or manager any chance you can. There should not be plastic packaging anymore!

3. Reuse glass jars/bottles

Think about the number of glass jars and bottles you buy and throw out in a year. Now think about how many times they might have come in handy for storing food, drinks, or any other random items. Think hard before throwing out your used jars because the possibilities are literally endless!

4. Bring your reusable shopping bags! Use Reusable Masks!

This is the most sustainable way to bring your groceries home and keep yourself and others safe! Also, it prevents the new polluter now, masks, from being thrown all over the streets, parks and other public places instead of being put in the recycling or garbage. So reusable bags and masks, will not only stop you from using plastic bags and save you tons of money, but you also won’t contribute to the energy and pollution coming from manufacturing a plastic grocery bag and those disposable masks!

5. Reduce your paper towel usage

It’s no secret that most people use paper towels like crazy. I get that it may be difficult to stop using them altogether at first, so try to use just one sheet instead of two next time. And always keep a dish towel in your kitchen for wiping down your hands, counter or dishes. I use old t-shirts, socks, or you can get dish towels from the dollar store. Use your imagination!

6. Don’t use plastic straws

I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of pictures of straws stuck in the bodies of poor marine animals by now. Plastic straws can literally be fatal to them. I haven’t been using them because I carry my own reusable ones. Here is the brand for the ones I use. ❤

7. Opt for paperless billing

Physical letters from banks are such an unnecessary waste of paper, fuel, time, and energy! Especially since you can get all the info you need online. So if you can do without them, definitely let your bank, phone company and any other company that needs to send you something by mail, send things by email if they have this option available. Or let them know that you don’t want to receive useless paper because it is not good for the environment.

8. Sell/Donate/Recycle your old clothing

Textile waste is HUGE, especially with the rise of fast fashion. So next time you’re done with your clothing, try to dispose of them in the most responsible way possible. After all, some people might be thrilled to have some awesome pieces of clothing that are just lying around in your closet collecting dust.

9. Take advantage of the natural light

Try doing most of your reading, writing, or anything that requires light, while the sun is still up high. You’ll save on your electricity bills and save the planet at the same time!

10. Turn off the water more often when you shampoo/shave/brush your teeth

This one I’m sure we’re all guilty of. I’ll admit, I used to love standing in the shower enjoying the warmth for even up to 30 minutes sometimes! But simply reducing the amount of time you keep the water running and turning it off when you don’t necessarily need it, will go a long way. Also, taking baths reduces stress, and you use the same amount of water, therefore you save water to wash yourself with and you are embracing self-care with a nice relaxing bath. Win-win for you and your planet!

11. Wash your hair less often

I personally went from washing my hair nearly every single day (curly hair life) to just once a week and I’ve been loving it! Here is my reel embracing this change. It will take some time to get used to, but in the long term, you’ll save tons of water, products, and packaging. Plus, it’s much healthier for your hair to wash it less often.

12. READ MORE less TV or IPAD.

If you’re a bookworm like me, then you know there’s nothing more amazing than reading any chance you can! Grabbing a new novel and then enjoying it with a cup of tea. But why not visit the library next time? Honestly, I can’t wait until I can go back and enjoy a good day in the library. Here in my city we can go but only stay for 60 mins… And only to grab not many books. However, remember we have a bookshop affiliate that helps us and other local bookstore. Enjoy reading!

13. Turn off the lights when you don’t need them

Seriously, turning off the light when you leave the room is definitely not a huge inconvenience. And you’ll be surprised how much cheaper your electricity bill will be!

14. Don’t use pesticides on your lawn

A perfect lawn is certainly not worth risking your health and polluting the environment. Pesticides used on lawns have been linked to so many serious and deadly diseases that it’s just not worth it. Check out this article by Global Healing on natural pesticide ideas instead.

Yep! so there you have it! 14 absolutely costless ways to live more sustainably. There are more, and I can’t wait to keep on finding it and sharing this journey with you too. It’s really the simple things that make a difference. And as you can tell, not only will you help the environment, you’ll also save loads of money. And honestly, who don’t want to save money and improve their health plus their planet during a world pandemic? Also keep connecting with others? Sharing your experiences can inspire others and we can all grow together. So there’s literally not a single reason NOT to follow these 14 steps I listed here.

I hope you enjoyed this article and that you found the advice valuable. Please let me know what you think in the comments and also what you’d like to read about sustainability, climate change, creativity through adversity, Parenting, and/or creative writing in the future!

Be kind to your planet, to you and others. Leave me in the comments which one is your favorite to do so far and if you have more to recommend. We highly appreciate it ❤

Thank you for your support!

Love and Light,

_AO.

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Did You Know That Manufacturers, and Some Companies, in the United States Must Submit a Toxic Release Inventory Report to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Each Year on July 1st?

4 months ago #GiveBack, Anti-Racism Matters, BioScience, Chemistry, Money, Science & Environment, Social Justice, Sustainability Matters, Yeppin

This Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) report is vital because it can support and inform the decision-makers of companies, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, as well as the public each year.

In the journey of becoming Anti racist, (yes, as a latinx and mix-indigenous/Dominicana, I have lots of decolonization, dismantling of white supremacy, and bias to acknowledge, heal, and to overall change behaviours), decolonizing the mind is not easy work. It’s very deep and personal. And at the same time, fighting for climate change as an environmentalist, writer,founder, single mom and women of color, is on another level.

But it is necessary and painful work that I want to do and encourage you to do the same. We all have inner healing, and dismantle colonized mindset, oppressed, gentrified and discriminated traumas to let go and embrace new information and change. I know change is not easy, we are creatures that love comfort and safety-net. However, real life is not meant to be easy.

We all must work and learn to find joy through the chaos. _AO

Earth was not created and all its organisms living on it, without going through painful and destructive experiences. There was a lot that our planet endured and our ancestors had to go through and adapt to a fast changing environment to get to where we are now. It really is up to us, to do something about what was NOT done well in the past. We have to fix it, all of us. We must research, find the truth and educate ourselves from what we all know by now, was a lie. History doesn’t repeat itself, but intergenerational trauma induce and a cycle system built to benefit some and zero for the other does.

Honestly, if 10 years ago, someone would have asked me if this was ever a possibility to do all of this… I probably would have said “Heck, no way”!

This is where we are in a worldwide pandemic:

We are on the rise of coronavirus again, and those who are more affected are trying to promote already their idea of a vaccine (which estimated time for a proper vaccine to developed and certified tested, has to be until the end of the year of 2021), that most probably is just test-runs; and we the healthy (working outside and being exposed to the virus or the survivors of the virus) are the subjects . With no scientific or result evidence that they work, but yet, political leaders are using it as a beacon of”fake-hope” to keep the public calm.
Children and teachers risking their lives for the sake of “education”, parents working are either from home, or out with the public where they are exposed to the Coronavirus because their jobs allow them to feed their families and keep the mental-slave economy going .
Some countries and cities are still on lockdown since 9 months ago. The world, is on fire while most of us are getting richer and others are trying to survive injustices by police brutality, racism, misogyny, patriarchy, white supremacist, homo/transphobia, a pandemic, climate change and mental health issues.
Traditional media and those who are in power, are making it very clear and not so subtle anymore, for us to STOP questioning their actions, the status quo, the system that keeps them in power and their so called “laws and policies”; which we all know needs to be re-written and changed. As well, it is not really advertised or spoken of, the long term effects this vaccine can create on our bodies since this virus has no cure as of yet. And the long term effects after getting the virus and surviving is another job on top of everything else going on in the world. Listen to the stories of those who survived. Data and numbers cases of survivors who are still having long term symptoms, and probably prolonged health issues, which were not a problem before they got covid-19.
Seniors, Children, Indigenous, Women, Parents, Single parents, Blacks, LGBTQ+, Transwomen and all people of color are suffering and dying faster than our fellow white counterparts during this pandemic. Our white peers are enjoying the privilege that their ancestors left behind (white supremacy, misogyny, racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, patriarchy, capitalist/colonial mindset, Zero sum game bs, rapist, child molesters, police brutality, discrimination, segregation, oppression… I can keep going but do your research “on whiteness” ) for all the rest of us to deal. Now, 400 years later, we are demanding and fighting for justice, for our human rights and building equitable and sustainable systems that enhance our nations and our planet. With or without white people help. It will be amazing that our white peers become our allies. Because you do have the advantage of being born with the prefered skin color for now and use it for good; which is what we have been asking for decades. It feels good to benefit and profit from those who are suffering right now isn’t? Or educate yourself about systemic racism and white supremacy instead of experiencing it everyday? How was your vacation in the middle of a world pandemic? How were you treated in the hospital this year? Yep, check your privilege. Because Enough is enough! WE ARE TIRED! It’s exhausting trying to survive in a world designed Anti-black. Which is ridiculous. We are the by-product of multicultural and mixed races for many generations now.
More jobs, the ability to rent a place in a safe neighbourhood, the right to get proper health care, financial assistance and mental health support are becoming less accessible than it was before for people whose skins are different than white. Those who denied this statement, please educate yourself, people are dying and we don’t have the time or the mental strength anymore to applicate to your wounded ego or feelings.
There are those who are not able to find jobs or work right now; at the same time trying to survive themselves and provide for their loved ones with any means or ways they can. How are you surviving these days?

Honestly, I say and write thank you every single day, because sometimes I know it is a privilege to meditate or yoga, or take a walk for a few minutes. Without feeling guilty of not being a slave working for an economy and system that’s designed to keep us in control and letting them get away with horrible things done to us, the consumers and Earth, our home.

For now, let’s focus on those who need to be held accountable and how to start taking action. Tracking their actions and adding tax accordingly. It’s the fastest and most effective way to get to the core of most problems on this planet right now and making sure our human rights and health are not affected by their corrupted actions.

We are paying and working, supporting companies and industries that are sick, toxic and twisted controlled by wealthy individuals. They also make sure they cover their tracks by paying enough to traditional media and politicians in order to keep the masses (us) distracted (using our psychological and intergenerational trauma to keep us oppressed and controlled. That’s why it is important to decolonize ourselves.Our minds can be easily manipulated if we don’t work on our mental strength too. ) from political bs, entertainment bs, news (keep us divided by lying and using racist and white supremacy tactics) and media power (them). Because the government and policy makers already knew, and always have known how bad climate change will be for all of us. Especially the most vulnerable and communities of people of color. They have the best scientists and research people on payroll that we pay them from our own taxes. They know the policies and regulations are mandatory for a reason. But humanity got distracted for the past 10–20 years.

Here we are. World pandemic, fighting for human rights again! and now, dealing with climate change impacts all in the same year.

2020 is not the problem, is what was already designed to benefit those who profit over inequality, and through the oppression of the most vulnerable communities. We see it through how children’s rights are being violated by ICE immigration and concentration camps. Humans rights violated in China, with genocide camps having muslims and other people locked up. The violations of Women’s rights in the ICE facilities recently reported through a whistleblowers (Thank god that you exist, I know is bad what you do because you get the most heat for speaking up and we are so grateful for your bravery. The universe always rewards the most stubborn souls. Especially those who are meant to show the light and truth. Integrity, compassion and honesty are vital these days. Don’t give up).

Money can buy mostly everything. But I’m telling you there are three things it CAN’T: Integrity, our mindset and hope. These grow, change over time and for the right reasons, giving the right circumstances and environment. Just like a diamond.

However, let’s focus on these corporations and large companies’ gadgets and how they need to report to the population their practises and their initiatives on lowering their environmental and health impact. It’s our basic human rights since we are the citizens paying to live in these countries that are supposed to keep us safe. Let’s start with:

The TRI Report method can ensure for all of us citizens of the country we reside in, that manufactures and industrial systems, are held accountable in the goal to reduce CO2 emissions by 1.5 degrees celsius for the next 10 years. We all know by now, due to Covid-19 and a worldwide pandemic, that certain areas and locations are more vulnerable and exposed to chemical hazards than others. That climate change impact hasn’t stopped because of the Coronavirus. We can clearly see it through many disasters and now, the fires in California.

Meanwhile, some manufacturers and facilities operations are still working during these times too. Due to the non-stop work of these facilities, creating a TRI report for the EPA is now more important than ever; to have to produce a TRI report will ensure that these companies and manufacturers take accountability for their actions. It will keep them aligned with the world goals: to reduce CO2 emissions, plus better management of their release of toxic waste into the land, water, and air.

Image credit: EPA (United States Environment and Protection agency)

Why is TRI important?

TRI tracks the management of certain toxic chemicals that may pose a threat to human health and the environment. This report is very important because it must contain these manufactures and facilities year’s- worth of releases to air (fumes, smoke, dust), water, and in the form of hazardous chemical waste. These companies can maintain their credibility and make sure that their actions align with greener standards. They can also create a leadership-type role, which other companies can view as an example for their future environmental protection policies within their organizations. The positive movement by providing this TRI report can create better acquisition opportunities and better advancement for the organization as well as their internal affairs.

Now, there are three criterias that a facility must meet in the report:

Specific industry sector e.g., manufacturing, mining, electric power generation). Note that federal facilities must report regardless of industry sector if they meet the other two criteria.
Employs 10 or more full-time equivalent employees
Manufactures, processes, or otherwise uses a TRI-listed chemical in quantities above threshold levels in a given year.

Sources: EPA.

The TRI program has expanded significantly since its inception in 1987. The APE agency has issued rules to roughly double the number of chemicals included in the TRI to approximately 767 individually listed chemicals and 33 chemical categories. This includes the PFAS chemicals added by the National Defense Authorization Act in December 2019. As a result, the types of chemicals covered by the TRI list of reportable toxic chemicals can vary from year to year.

In general, the Toxic Release Inventory requirements are to report chemicals covered by the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) Program; those that cause one or more of the following:

Cancer or other chronic human health effects
Significant adverse acute human health effects
Significant adverse environmental effects

image:EPA

Facilities that meet all of these criteria must:

Submit a TRI Form R for each TRI-listed chemical it manufactures, processes, or otherwise uses in quantities above the reporting threshold. (Note: Facilities may be eligible to submit the shorter Form A if they meet certain criteria. See the TRI Reporting Forms and Instructions for details.)
Submit each TRI form to both EPA and the state in which the facility is located (or to the appropriate tribe, if located in Indian country).
Submit each reporting form using TRI-MEweb, EPA’s online TRI reporting application.

If a facility does not exceed an activity threshold for a listed toxic chemical, or is not in a covered NAICS code, or does not have 10 or more full-time employee equivalents, it is not required to report under EPCRA Section 313. However, such facilities may still want to keep records of the amounts of listed toxic chemicals they manufacture, process, or otherwise use, in order to defend against any claim that they failed to report.

The parent regulation of TRI and the general goal of this parent regulation is in order to help with TRI reporting rules. In 1986, Congress passed the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) to support and promote emergency planning and to provide the public with information about releases of toxic chemicals in their community. Section 313 of EPCRA established the Toxics Release Inventory. (source: EPA)

TRI is for industries primarily including manufacturing, metal and coal mining, electric utilities, and commercial hazardous waste treatment. Most recently, the APE Agency has reduced the reporting thresholds for certain persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals in order to be able to provide additional information to the public on these chemicals. (Source: Office of Disease Prevention and Health promotion) For example, Mobile sources emissions, which account for approximately 50% of all air toxics, as well as smaller sources such as gas stations and dry cleaners are not included in TRI.

As mentioned in the Climate Reality Training, “rebuilding with green jobs”, we must put people first, produce green jobs, create a zero carbon society, equity building, and take climate action. Express the need of policy and educational awareness by:

Putting people first.
Ceasing bail outs for fossil fuels.
Fostering a just transition to zero emissions.
Focusing on creating careers and economic opportunities in areas with most need.
Social, Human Rights, and environmental justice
Climate change solutions and greener spaces
Embrace companies and organizations that provide services in sustainability and they create equitable, clean and sustainable practices within their organization and brands that inspire their consumers and their communities to thrive and too.

In other words, TRI properly reporting and including EPA programs can make sure these facilities and companies are held accountable while we are all in the process of creating a greener and healthier sustainable planet. All of this on top of surviving a world pandemic, climate change, human rights and social justice movement.

In one of the training, we had to read an article and express our solutions for climate action. I loved the article:

9 REASONS TO HAVE CLIMATE HOPE IN 2020

For this exercise, I added a 10th reason to have hope for the climate, and something I’ll be potentially presenting in order to create more awareness and hold big polluters accountable for their actions each year here in Montreal, and in the rest of Canada.

I don’t live in the US, but their EPA program and their TRI mandatory report is something I believe is important to enforce and create more awareness. The need to educate more the YOUTH about these programs, climate change, anti-racism, anti-white supremacy, living more sustainability and give them the tools to also educate their peers and families is vital. I’ll definitely be contributing through writing, art and sharing more educational content about climate change and social justice through our channels and podcast episodes, on why Montreal, Quebec, or Canada doesn’t require this report to be mandatory, yet in the USA is vital for obvious reasons of course…

Either way, we will be going into more depth about climate change solution, sharing the story of other companies doing the work, sustainability, why is important to build equitable sustainable and cleaner energy systems, Greener cities, build and amplifying Black and BIPOC Wealth in all systems (education, media, health facilities,agriculture, government, justice system,etc) . It is necessary to keep in check or create programs that track big corporations and manufactures that need to be held accountable for their toxic waste release into land, water and our air in areas of minority and most vulnerable communities around the world.

We want change, and it starts from those who think they have it. The “power to the people” is still very valid and freedom of speech was created in order to defy those in power who we know and clearly can see are not good for our nations and our planet. Our mixed races are beautiful magic and it is time for all of us to embrace our diversity, uniqueness and unconscious inner strength as we unite forces to do what’s right for our planet and ourself.

*Remember we are still raising money for Lebanon, Beirut. Here is why.

Here is the link: https://gf.me/u/ynwzwz (Donate and share)

Thank you for your support!

Love and Light,

_AO.

If you liked this blog make sure to subscribe, follow us, leave us what you think in the comments (let’s start real conversations) and share it with someone that needs to read this today.

Edited by Emma P❤

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La Vida Online

5 months ago Entrepreneurship, Health & Wellness, Life Wisdom, Money, Yeppin

Let go of the old and embrace the good with the bad.

Originally published Medium.

It’s a brutal world but I’m grateful for life, resilience, and love. Embracing vulnerability is not a weakness. It’s only a problem to those who are not meant to be in your life, those who profit and benefit from your silent struggles, and those who have power over you.

We’ve been so conditioned and programmed that even when you know the government and its education, and political system is corrupted with capitalism, white supremacy, the police force, and corrupt corporations, we still believe in our government… even when we know that it’s killing and degrading BIPOC (means Black, indigenous, and people of color), Asians, LGBTQ, women, children’s lives…

In this blog post today and moving forward, I want to let my readers, subscribers, and followers know that I’ll be writing and creating content on the good and the bad. No BS. Why? Because it is better to be your authentic self than to fake it.

Because nobody is happy all the freaking time. Nobody is living their “best life” during a worldwide pandemic… unless you’re a billionaire… (*cough*) WORLD’S BILLIONAIRES LIST.

Jeff Bezos you are a real piece of work man, can you please take some of those billions and reduce the amount of plastic waste in Amazon packaging. To the rest of the humans on this list as well, be kind and start giving to those who need it the most during these times. Human suffering is not by choice, it’s designed, conditioned, and maintained by those with a lot of wealth, greed, lack of empathy and power. Karma is a bitch, those billions won’t save you in the afterlife.

Keep in mind, even the richest people are f’ed up in the head and they know it. But “don’t rush, nobody is posting their failures”, right? That’s why social media channels have been creating mental health issues for most of us for over a decade now. Especially those struggling with self discipline, working from home, those who choose not to workout everyday, those who binge eat, take drugs or alcohol, watch Netflix, or spend hours scrolling through all channels of social media… just to cope with reality.

There are a lot of people right now suffering from serious mental illness, health issues, financial depression, going through rough stuff… and we are supposed to ignore all the suffering and pain of others. And because it’s not “social media, news, entertainment, and unrealistic expectations” it’s not ‘aesthetic enough’…

“We have become ignorant of the truth because it is better to believe in a lie than face the reality.” A.O

I’m done. No mas. Humans need a reality check every now and then. Not only through showing in the ”news” what’s really going on with the world and us. It’s time to change this and it starts with our platforms and networks.

There is a section in the book Dare to Lead by Brene Brown (love this book), #12 Armored Leadership. “When worthiness is a function of productivity, we lose the ability to pump the brakes: the idea of doing something that doesn’t add to the bottom line provokes stress and anxiety.” Then she explains the Daring leadership of Armored, as modeling and supporting rest, play, and recovery are essential core values that enhance creativity and innovation.

This I can relate to by personal experience, and I started to apply this mindset into my daily routines and how I interact with people now. It has helped a lot into listening with understanding, and embracing more vulnerability which as a result, is helping me cope and heal during these times.

So this “fake mentality” stigma that was trending before quarantine… it’s what I’m breaking here. If you’d like to join me and my team on this journey, awesome! Stay real, not superficial. Let’s create spaces where followers and subscribers feel good, value, understood, encouraged, and inspire others with the right mental and emotional support. That good comes with the bad. Physical support has become harder because of social distancing and wearing a mask! However, we should look at this as a way to relearn how to be more compassionate and empathetic since obviously we can now all agree… we have lost that.

You are progressing when you are acknowledging your privilege and using it to help those who are voiceless: when you are wearing your mask, keeping your distance, washing your hands (often!) and encouraging others to embrace more solidarity rather than shaming and degrading each other. Remember, it IS a choice to continue not to educate yourself.

Those who have been doing the inner and outer work, it’s alright, we can find our way back. Together. United and with our inner strength and spiritual guidance from our ancestors. And more importantly, stick with those communities and leaders that embrace the suck and still keep going, learning, making mistakes (we are human) and helping others along the way.

Staying positive doesn’t mean you need to be happy all the time. It’s remaining strong despite the struggles of life, keeping a happy mindset, and continuing to believe that you can achieve anything when you put your mind, heart, and soul into it.

Keep those close to you that are ready to make changes, no BS, and are putting out their reality of life with a little spice and flare 😜.

Man, since I’ve been staying with my sister, writing ✍🏽has come back 🙏🏽❤️. My book is ready and will be published soon.That’s it with writing from notes on my phone while walking in the park near the Lachine canal to the subway. Still looking for apartments. 🤞🏽Wish me luck.

Remember, stay home (It’s a privilege to have one), be safe, be kind to your planet 🌎, to you and others.

Love, A.O. 🦋

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Edited by Vanessa❤

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18 Fun and Creative Ways to Make Money.

5 months ago Culture, Entrepreneurship, Life Wisdom, Money, Science & Environment, Yeppin

Salud, Dinero y Mucho Amor ❤

Originally published Medium.

It seems like it is finally time to get back on track with our own finances and life. We need to start slowly getting into a routine that involves taking care of ourselves, and making sure others are safe too.

We are all realizing the importance of our time and energy; that both need to be spent wisely.

It’s important to try and find creative ways to keep a routine during the 24hrs of the day. Meaning, you can create a work-routine which will allow you to make money during either 16, 8 or 4 hours of the day. Yes, there are people I know that make money, consistently, per month, during that time-frame. However, they have also worked these hours for 10–20 years; building teams, and investing their time and money wisely. All with the goal that they will only have to work 4 hours per day. Don’t get discouraged, if they can do it so can you. Remember, it’s smart-work, and it comes from what you do daily. Do your best in anything you decide to do in your life: help your planet, recycle, reuse, reduce, eat healthy, exercise everyday, clean, declutter your space (so important), write, be grateful, take the time to be with family, friends, read, question everything and learn something new, make self-care a priority for your mental well-being, teach (if you can), and help others too.

These are some of the few essential things for a happy life. Based on personal experience, I found that you can at least get some or most of these done daily, while also balancing your time with the constant external distractions. If you can commit to doing this, then you are on your way to building a healthy and sustainable life for yourself. These are the true diamonds and golds of life in order to find/create inner peace and happiness; take root and produce lovely and beautiful fruits. Meaning, time plus energy = giving back to yourself, families, friends, relationships, jobs, employers, your own business, your teams, and to organizations that you care about.

The external distractions, if you are not careful, can prevent you from achieving your goals and dreams. To name a few: TV, gambling, social media, food, online shopping for things that you don’t need, video games, news, Netflix overload, sex, porn, abuse of alcohol, intense drugs, and so forth. I’m not saying these are all bad, however, some are just ridiculous to even think to do. Unbalanced consumption of these can be detrimental for your mind and body. I suggest to do everything mindfully and in moderation.

Learning our limitations, taming our demons and controlling our bad habits, is inner work. Yep, the hardest type of work: self-discipline.This is why most of us don’t do it, or even avoid it at all costs. Then there is the 1% that work on themselves first before giving to the world. It’s clearly what this pandemic is forcing us all to acknowledge and that we need to work on.

We are very aware these negative traits, as well as our need to think positive, are both essential parts of the human experience. The law of attraction and keeping our authentic vibration high are required in order to continue to live a prolonged, enjoyable, and healthy life. I know this is one of many life lessons that you won’t learn in school. Even though we should.

Honestly, watching the one you love most dying a horrible death can wake you up in a lot of ways. Also, becoming a mother or a new parent. Children can teach us all, a lot. We are just too busy, or letting our egos and narcissistic behaviours make it acceptable to disrespect, ignore, disregard and sometimes allow abusive behaviour towards another human being who is defenseless and completely dependent on an “adult”.

There is more where that came from in my parenting book (publishing very soon). For now, you are reading some of my pieces and can see the journey behind the story.

I’ve been learning a lot during a pandemic. I have been keeping my mom happy, fed, cleaned, and safe on weekends (the only time I can see her). I took on the role as an educator by homeschooling my girls. I am looking for jobs, keeping clients, just sticking to writing more, working on our podcast, content creation, collaboration, helping my brothers and sisters, trying to get people aware of ICE, and that they are children living in cages right now. There are children being traded, trafficking, abuse and all kinds of human atrocities are being done right now.

Yep, just to see what happens. If my voice, my teams, our communities’ voices could be heard, and by us sticking together with a common goal and mission. What happens if communities were to unite and work as one to create a healthy, sustainable and financial wealth network? To create a space not damaged or tampered by politics, corporations, fake news, and propaganda?

Imagine the possibilities if humans meditated more. If we unite and collaborate to build a better future, instead of competing with each other. This is what corporations, the big money makers who control us, our food resources, money and health, all do. Of course, we also have politicians. They don’t want you to think. That’s dangerous for their pockets. However, thinking, questioning, using creativity, reading, and educating oneself is what can set us free. To decide our own destiny. I’m realizing this while I write this on my little sister’s couch in her new lovely apartment. It’s the safest I felt in the past 7–8 months.

While not having a place to call home yet, and my girls not being able to stay with me because this f*cking system is not made for single women entrepreneurs, let alone mothers of color. Opps! Had to discover that the hard way…right?

There are no programs, loans, incentives to progress, that are inclusive and diverse for entrepreneurs, creatives of color or any race rather than white in my city. In Montreal, Quebec, only the racist, sexist, white supremacist, dicriminationatory, police brutality and narcissistic behaviours thrive here. Those who denied this, are very privileged that they don’t even have to think about these at all in their lifetime.

You think the USA is the only one dealing with systemic racism and all the isms? Nah, Canada does also, with all its glory, healthcare and its beautiful landscapes. It has a big, not so silent, highest taxes (still nobody knows why) negative inner evil. It’s called: Quebec.

My life lesson that I want to pass down to you, and whoever is reading this is: you are responsible for building your own boundaries, your wealth, and keep building self-respect for your body, your mind and spirit from the moment you start talking and understanding. This is why EDUCATION and being a present and mindful parent matters a lot. If you don’t, you are letting these external distractions, vampire leeches, negativity, mental illnesses, childhood traumas rule your life; if these take over and replace what comes natural to humans (as mentioned in paragraph 3) as a coping mechanism that helps us deal with difficult realities of life and our constant inner demons.

There is always good with the bad, they are never separated from one another. _Angela de Chevalier Olivo.

These distractions get harder and harder to deal with and balance. As new tech surfaces, as new features on any social media channel to try, and algorithms changing per second; AI keeps learning more and more about human consciousness, as we lose our ability to be more compassionate and empathetic. As more TV shows, series, new movies keep popping up, as we are staying at home more and less time with our friends and family during this pandemic.

Read these two books: The subtle art of not giving a F*ck and Everything Is F*cked: A Book About Hope by Mark Mason.

(stay awake! Those whose missions is to keep voicing the truth, the injustice and all the “system” trying to benefit from those who are voiceless and oppress while the privilege keeps getting richer at the expense of others pains and suffering. We are getting a lot of heat right now. Trust me homeless is nothing compare to getting fined for this and that make no sense, getting put to prison for no reason, and all kind of, “it’s the law”, its how the system works right? It’s Bullshiet and Quebec, Canada, USA, in south america and all countries. Does not like it when people talk, when we take money from their pockets and help those in need instead. When you say, create, write and voice your concerns. aka: storytelling, when use for good. “That’s not trending enough”, It’s not media worthy”… Yeah, truth and getting comfortable by being uncomfortable. It’s not for the weak minded and comformalist. This is for warriors, revolutionaries, leaders of change. If you are awake, and tired of this BS. Keep going, rest and don’t give up. Stick to those who are dismantling the “system” and focusing on finding ways to a more sustainable, equal changes for all of us. Not just some of us. #Nojusticenopeace).

Remember this if you are self-employed too.

Just be careful because external distractions are created unfortunately with good intentions: to advance our economy, keep us informed, entertained, help us cope with our pains (sort of numb it. We learn to ignore and repress our pain, our voices and to conform with the norm or status quo. This is what it means to have a colonized mentality.), and communicate better with the world.

Be mindful and remember that good things, as beautiful as they might seem and feel, also come with consequences. Pay attention to these distractions and take action in order to make sure you protect your time and energy. I know that numbing and avoiding painful situations with fear and doubt is better to deal with while using the external distractions. That’s why they are created, to help you cope, find solutions for you, great opportunity for you… yes, these old traditional marketing strategies plus products or services are designed for you. To make your life “easier” because the system benefits a lot from our pains, struggles and difficult situations that we are programmed to deal with. You will be amazed by how much your body and mind can do, heal and adapt.

By now, you are discovering that a lot of what we’ve been taught from the past, and at least in the recent decades, has been BS compared to what we really should’ve been taught and focus on. I’m so sorry for your pain, and the sense of loss you feel. I feel it too. I just hope you know that time is never wasted. There are lessons to learn by re-learning the new information and keeping records of the bad lessons and why they were false. History does not need to repeat itself. This is a humanity-shame excuse, to keep doing horrible things even though we know better. We need to do better.

I’ve been working on and researching the truth; which is still in progress with lessons being learned. I hope this blog and list below helps you. Share it with someone who can use these lessons to help them deal for now while we all try to survive a world pandemic and help the economy by helping yourself.

For example, the importance of money, taxes, investing, shares, owning property, owning land, bonds, stock market, self-discipline builds accountability with yourself and others. Integrity, human rights, sustainability living, grow your own fruits and vegetables, survive outdoors, diversity, anti-racism and Inclusion practices (kindness, compassion and empathy).

The importance of starting a savings/investing, emergency saving plan money habits that can help you build your own wealth while you are studying and working part-time.

These are key essential things that I wished I learned and that now, thanks to Little Owners, I can start teaching my girls and help this amazing mama spread her knowledge with other children around the world. If you are a parent and want your kiddos to learn financial literacy, and also embrace diversity and inclusion,this is the best series of books for kids that I’ve found so far. I am really happy with these books!

Now, back into finding a job that you can do from home or find a part-time job as an essential worker. Or if you have the means to sustain yourself, have no kids, and still live with your parents — learn a new skill! Practice, get in the field to gain more experience, and continue doing it until you become an expert on that specific skill.

Competition (hate this word)…there is none, this is a limitation programmed in our minds. There is plenty for all if we do what needs to be done right and work together. Constructive criticism and collaboration for your dream job, let alone any job, has never felt more intense than now.

For most of us, coronavirus hit just as we were ready to ascend to the next level of our careers, academics, new teaching position, promotion at work, ready to leave an abusive home, travel the world, getting an new organ transplant, try new treatment for cancer, and change of apartments because you got tricked to move in a place infested with cockroaches (I think I will forever be traumatized about that part of my life which I’m happy that I can leave behind). After finally convincing ourselves that we are ready — and qualified, if not overqualified — to risk it all, we are deep in a world pandemic. By now it feels like that confidence has been pulled out from under us and thrown to the wolves to chew, spit on, and leave us to fend for ourselves.

I’m here to remind you my earthlings, fire always leaves ashes and from those, we have always returned. We just need a little help along the way, and we are doing the work. At least I hope so, the next decade is starting with 2020. There are habits and things we were all doing that will not serve us in the future. It’s hard to admit this, but it is the truth.

Alright, let’s talk about Money! Yay!

Money, you always wish you had a bit more. You know to buy that fancy dress, or new house, or car, to save more for your vacation or dinner date, to pay off your debt faster, or just feel more relaxed about your whole personal financial situation.

The list below are some simple, yet effective and creative ways to make money on the side. I’m not saying, leave your full-time job and do these. Nope, these are options and suggestions you can apply to your daily routines, if you like to make extra money on the side or if you are a student saving your money to pay for school.

These are some that I’m still working on, some friends and followers have suggested that it works for them, and yeah, just a mama passing down knowledge because I know what it feels like when you are broke, alone, and trying to get back up. You are not alone, we are in this together. You can earn a few extra hundreds each month smartly!

Reading lots of books? Writing reviews, joining an affiliate company that follows your values, your favourite books at a reasonable price and they support good causes. Your money talks 😉💸 Ex: A virtuous alternative to Amazon: Bookshop A new online bookstore, Bookshop, we just started this program and it will be managed by my aunt in New York and us (USA only for now), hopes to snatch a tiny percentage of sales away from Amazon. The goal: help support independent bookstores and the wider literary community by providing a “virtuous alternative” to Amazon. A portion of every sale goes to support us and to independent bookstores. The power of choice, not to make those who are already beyond rich, richer and disrupting the status quo. You in?
Become a content creator. Do this mindfully and with moderation because it gets addicting and it can distract you from your real goals and focus. However, you can leverage your passion and talents while also telling the world what you are up to!
Writing, copywriting, painting, digital marketing, digital photography, editing, social media manager, community manager. There are a lot of these jobs online! Essential workers and docs and nurses and caregivers are jobs! Part-time if you want while you work for your dream job or career.
Recycle your old phone(s). You’d be surprised to know that you can actually get some cash if you decide to sell them. A lot of companies offer compensation for recycling old phones which are shipped somewhere to Asia and getting dismantled there. You can check the list of companies and possible earnings here. Ask your family and friends if they’d like to give away their old phones too for a bigger bucks.
Become a part-time mover, cleaner of houses or commercial buildings. The moving option is suitable for guys for large items, but girls are often accepted too to move around fragile stuff and do some minor cleaning. Cleaning companies are in need of staff. Moving and cleaning jobs are typically per request and you can always choose a suitable time for you to do them. Check craigslist and kijiji. Also, keep in mind a lot of moving and cleaning companies allow you to create an account with them for a fee, list your services, rates, working hours etc. and get hired for temporary jobs. I cleaned lots of houses and commercial buildings while also going to school before I moved to New York 9 years ago and saved for 5 months.
Review music for cash. All music lovers will love this job — all you need to do is listen to and review unsigned bands and artists online at Slicethepie. It may take a while to build up your reputation, but you can earn extra $50+ per month for spending 5–10 min a day listening to some aspiring music talents (or not so talents).
Sell your wardrobe. This is a perfect option for women and men! How many dresses or suits do you have that you wore like 3 times and now they’re hidden somewhere deep in your closet? Clothes you no longer wear shouldn’t pile up around the house when they can be turned into cash assets. You can either organize a yard sale yourself (which is kind of a hassle), or better sell the items through ThredUp, which will pay somewhere around $2-$25 for staff from different brands. You can browse around to see how much different items are worth. The best thing about ThredUp is that all you need to do is pack your clothes in a box and then just ship it to them (shipping costs are covered by the company). Also, sell on Ebay or Kijiji.
Test websites for money. A lot of big companies look for feedback on the usability of their websites and you can get paid doing that. Expect to earn somewhere from 10 cents for an assignment taking less than a minute, to $10-$15 when it comes to larger questionnaires requesting more of your time. Here’s a big list of sites where you can create an account and start earning cash. All the payments are typically made via PayPal either at the end of the month or when you have earned a certain sum.
There a lot of side hustle companies need online assistance with their social media, campaigns, email marketing, PR, online courses sales, webinar promotions. Social media butterfly 🦋😉🙌🏽
Get paid $35/hour to drive people around or deliver their food!. Yes, that’s exactly how much you can make with Uber and UberEats. Users can just login from their phone and request a drive in all major cities or food from any restaurants. It’s faster and at least twice cheaper than calling the typical cab. You, as a driver, will get a notification and can take a lift request. You set your own working hours and earn money. Obviously, you’ll need your own car to earn with them and some initial money to pay for the gas.
Do odd jobs at Fiverr. At Fiverr, you can offer any kind of service starting from $5. Register an account, browse around the gigs and offer something similar. Seriously, at this online marketplace you can sell and buy all sorts of things from voiceovers to logo design to editing contracts, blogs or books!
Do data entry jobs. This may include mere copy-pasting, minor text editing, data categorisation, translations and staff alike. You can work a few hours a day and earn some hundred bucks by the end of the month. Obviously, the total payout depends on how fast/good you are. Sign up to ClickWorker if you can tolerate handling some routine tasks in exchange for cash injections.
Teach classes online. If you are particularly good at something, say map design, capable of creating a series of video lessons, you can become a tutor at SkillShare. You’ll be in good company with folks like Seth Godin and James Franco among others. SkillShare tutorials and 30 days teaching challenge will help you create a winning video tutorial. Your earnings will depend on the popularity of your course, but even low attendance will let you earn some decent money. (Working on this with cool and smart peeps. More soon!) You don’t need to have prior teaching experience, just skills and passion about what you do. And the undeniable drive to help, educate, and inspire others to succeed too.
Become a language tutor online. Did you know that English language practice is in high demand in Asia? Sites like Italki.com allows teachers to list their rates and services, schedule classes and provide you with tools to conduct them in real time. You can expect to make $15–20 per hour. If English isn’t your first language, no worries, italiki also invites French, Italian, Chinese, Spanish, Russian and more native speakers to join. You’ll have to fill in a detailed application form, get it approved and afterwards create a professional looking profile, suitable schedule for you and different courses you offer. The service will handle the rest — scheduling, marketing payments and so on.
There is nothing wrong with taking online courses to improve your skills and learning so you can keep growing and thriving. It doesn’t pay right away, but as soon as you are done. Get to work in showing what you’ve learned and apply it to your work skills experience. Udemy is my favorite so far, and it’s where I got my digital marketing certificate :).
Online sex work is a job. Yep, no shame. There are a lot of more lonely peeps now more than ever and phone sex or online sex is on demandd now. Also, data geeks peeps need to work on catching predators and pedaphiles of kids online. Yep, catching the real bad guys online is a job too to find these assholes and bring them to justice.This is a free job but is more rewarding than money because with your help, these companies are able to catch a predator that has molested about 2,000 children. So if that’s not good enough for you than I don’t know 🤷🏽‍♀️ what’s going on with humanity anymore 🤦🏽‍♀️.
Arts, online store setting up from traditional companies that should pivot by now. Sell handmade and vintage items on Etsy. Found some retro clothes in your grandma’s chest or made a few cool brooches your friends admire? Become an Etsy seller to earn money for your crafts. Opening your shop, listing products and prices takes less than 30 minutes. It costs $0.20 to list one item in your shop for 4 month (or till it sells) and Etsy takes 3.5% commission from each sale you make. Mind that fact when setting up the prices. Shipping costs are either to be covered by you or by the buyer (you can set the rates depending on the buyer’s location e.g. free shipping around US; $10.99 shipping to Europe).
Find something you love, build a habit doing that every day until you figure out how to make money out of it. Then save. Then use your rights and voice with your money 💵🙌🏽 Build a team that supports your values and mission. And make creative magic everyday 💫 by your own actions and helping others along the way( be warned, only those who want to be helped and you see that are willing to sacrifice a few hours for greatness rather than settle for mediocre experiences and unfulfilled jobs ✊🏾). Invest in energy that reciprocates. Don’t waste your life and money on people that only want to be there with you once all the work is done. Invest in team and collaboration brands, companies or organizations that are interested in reproducing with you the same energy you put out. Same values, truth and positive thoughts with a little of 🔥 and some hard core truth. Because humanity from time to time. Needs their wake up and life hard core reminders.

We become entitled, selfish, ignorant and very dangerously abusive behaviour towards each other and ourselves. If we let egos take over.

Higher power and higher consciousness requires internal and personal sacrifices and surrendering in order to focus in achieving our goals and objectives. Our dreams.

Yep, it’s not hard to achieve our dreams, but smart work starts with ourselves. Be mindful of the content you create, the amount per day of external distraction you consume, and check that your sanity and dignity is still intact as you figure out this thing called life.

If you liked this blog make sure to subscribe, leave me what you think in the comments (let’s start real conversations) and share it with someone that needs to read this today.

Stay home (It’s a privilege to have one), be safe, be kind to your planet 🌎, to you and others.

Love, A.O. 🦋

Written by Angie Abreu Olivo -Founder, Creative Entrepreneur and Environmentalist Single Mom. Edited by EP.❤

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Entrepreneurship 15

These we will be diving deeper during semi-lockdown through our new podcast Your Story Matter.

It was a decent and honest job that I end up loving it. These are my personal experience, not an expert. I’m just a constant learner and a curious person. I’m a creative spiritual human that loves to inspire and help others. ❤

Self-Discipline + consistency = Habits for Everything in life.

1. Instead of being a founder or define yourself as “entrepreneur” , serve Ice cream or Vegetarian Food.

2. Resilience and abundance are your birthright.

3. Consistency will set you free.

4. Quality versus quantity.

5. Sustainability it’s possible in all restaurant and food industry settings. Everyday life really.

6. Creativity is energy and it needs to flow.

7. Manage your time better to work and your energy.

8. Give your all in to any job.

9. Confidence is born from failure.

Sustainability matters more than ever now.

@jhanneu

There are 14 Costless Ways to Live More Sustainably during a pandemic.

Now, why should you care about living sustainably during semi-lockdown?

1. Freeze your food before it goes bad

2. Eat less meat

3. Reuse glass jars/bottles

4. Bring your reusable shopping bags! Use Reusable Masks!

5. Reduce your paper towel usage

6. Don’t use plastic straws

7. Opt for paperless billing

8. Sell/Donate/Recycle your old clothing

9. Take advantage of the natural light

10. Turn off the water more often when you shampoo/shave/brush your teeth

11. Wash your hair less often

12. READ MORE less TV or IPAD.

13. Turn off the lights when you don’t need them

14. Don’t use pesticides on your lawn

Facilities that meet all of these criteria must:

Let go of the old and embrace the good with the bad.

Salud, Dinero y Mucho Amor ❤

Parenting Book Coming Soon!

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