I am a member of a self-improvement program through which I actually get paid to improve myself. Sounds too good to be true, I know, but it is true. This is the program that got me up and improving myself, truly recognizing that I was capable of so much more than I thought I was.

You Are The Project is a revolutionary program that is all about your self-improvement. Each individual person sets goals that they want to accomplish and the program makes sure they stay on track to accomplish those goals. The kicker is you can actually get paid to improve yourself! Imagine that: having a job where you get paid to improve yourself!

Below are all the things I have accomplished while being a member of this wonderful program.

While being a part of YATP, I have written my first book with my second one not far behind, I have lost 25 pounds and been able to keep it off whereas 95% of diets fail. I work out at the gym 2-3 times a week and I eat healthy which is much different than before. My heart rate has gone down from 88 bpm to 64 bpm. I can do 8 full arm pull ups, which is amazing for a woman! I went from running an over 10 min mile to a 6:58 mile. I have truly began to focus my energy on things that matter to me, no more wasting precious time on insignificant things. I have developed new skills, such as: working as a voice over actress; I have voiced radio commercials, cartoon characters, etc. I became a certified weight loss management coach, I am a speaker, I also learned chromakey technology. I read more informative books, which is a big step up from my over 600 dvds I previously owned.

As you can see, this program has literally changed my life for the better. It is my duty to tell others about this wonderful program that is making America a more productive and happy country. If you haven't realized it by now, happiness comes from progress! The more a person accomplishes the goals they set for themselves, the more proud and happy they become. That's why this program is genius! What better job is there than to get paid to improve yourself? There isn't one...

You can join my team and be a part of this new culture that is all about health and happiness through goal accomplishments. I warn you: this is not for the average lazy person. You must be willing to work for what you truly want! You can contact me directly by email: [email protected] or if you are in Vegas you can come to our office on Monday or Friday when we give free presentations about the program. Here is the link to the website: www.youaretheproject.com

What are you waiting for? Start improving your life today!

-Shenteria Marie

This post is my way of spreading some motivation and inspiration to you. 

I am Shenteria, I grew up in East St. Louis and Washington Park, IL. In 2013 and 2014, ESTL was named the most dangerous city in America*. These cities became much worse as years passed, as a child growing up there things were not as horrific, thank God. I grew up poor and yet I have not allowed that to stop me from creating the life I want for myself. My advice: make and accept no excuses, keep moving forward, and get the most out of life!

Today, I am a first time author, I am a voice over actress, I am a branding entrepreneur, I am a speaker, and I work from home. I am nurturing my creativity through all these avenues and loving every second of it. I have created the life I love and I am living it fully! This is my way of saying it does not matter where you came from what matters is that you create the future you want. Your life is in your hands, you can achieve if you believe in yourself and take the action to make it to where you want to be. Don't settle for less, recognize that you deserve more and then go get it! Take control of your life and stop allowing fears to control your every move. YOU ARE WORTHY! 

I fear for those young people growing up in ESTL today, which is why I wrote my book. I recognize that it is up to the parents and adults within the community to make the city better. Young people are not creating a brighter future because they are growing up in such sad, depressing areas with very little hope. Something has to be done to help those young people, they deserve a real chance at having a life. I will be sending a copy of my book to the mayor of East St. Louis as I would like to call attention to these major problems so they can be fixed. There needs to be more unity within the community, people must become more aware and less passive. It is up to the citizens to make their city better for everyone. I wrote a book about these issues because I genuinely care about the well being of people within lower income communities because I was one of those people. I know what it feels like when you don't believe in yourself, when you have no thoughts of having a positive, bright future. I want to help in any way possible to make things better for those people who need and deserve hope.

-Shenteria Marie   

*According to Wikipedia: In 2014 the murder rate of the city of East St. Louis was 101.8 per 100,000 people, which was higher than that of Honduras, the country with the highest murder rate in the world, at 90.4 per 100,000 people. 

As Bruce Lee said, "To hell with circumstances, I create opportunities."

The more I improve myself and work on my goals, the happier I become. Happiness begins within, satisfaction of one's own actions, it cannot be provided from another person or any thing. As I work on my goals, I feel pride within myself for working on them and finally accomplishing those goals. I feel this is important for everyone, we all need to be proud of ourselves every now and then. The more we build ourselves up, the more we have the ability to lift others as well. 

This year I became a first time author and began speaking in front of a smaller crowd every Monday and Wednesday in Vegas. Initially, the speaking took me out of my comfort zone as I was not used to speaking in front of people. I have now become much more comfortable and actually look forward to doing it, I am proud of myself for overcoming that fear. This shows true progress. My next step is to speak in front of larger crowds (a fear I mentioned in the last post). I am far less fearful of it now and I am quite sure that I will do pretty good at it. The best way I can think of to let go of that fear is to see myself in Immaculee's shoes. Her experience in Rwanda is my reminder that this life is easy, it is not difficult and I will live to see another day. So I'd better speak up now and not allow fear to control me.

Think about your goals and accomplishments, when was the last time you felt proud of yourself? If it's been a while, then I suggest setting some goals for yourself and gradually work on accomplishing them. Life is yours for the taking, conquer your fears and accomplish your goals. Do it for you! 

​-Shenteria Marie

I recently had the privilege of reading a book that completely transformed the way I look at my life. This book is titled 'Left To Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwanda Holocaust' by Immaculee Ilibagiza. A friend of mine referred it to me then gave me his copy to read. Initially, I was still in the process of getting my book published therefore it took me about 3 weeks to finally sit down and read this life changing book. 

Left To Tell is the amazing story of one woman's journey of survival during the 1994 Rwanda genocide in Africa. By the grace of God and her faith, this brave woman survived 3 months in probably the tiniest bathroom ever with 7 other women while people were hunting them down to kill them. During this genocide, 1 million Tutsi's were killed by their fellow tribesmen the Hutu's, which means it was people who knew her that were hunting her down. I could not imagine going through such a horrific situation. I have never shed so many tears from reading a book until this one crossed my path.

The reason the title of this post is "Read this book and let go of your fears" is because it truly put things into perspective for me. In 1994, I was turning 7 years old, I was safe and sound here in America while the Tutsi's were being slaughtered by people they knew. My heart wept for Immaculee throughout the entire book as I read about how her family was taken from this world. As humans, we often times forget that the tiny problems we have are minuscule compared to what others have gone through. This book has made me extremely thankful for the life that I have and allowed me to really release a lot of fear that was holding me back. Fear is so stupid when you think about the possibility of never being able to see the light of day again. Fear is so stupid when you put yourself in this woman's shoes by reading her words and imagine experiencing what she did.

I must admit that my fear was speaking in front of a large group of people. I am now working on making that fear into my strength as I work towards becoming a speaker to spread the message contained within my book out to the world. Every time I speak somewhere I will be sure to mention this powerful book that forced me to let go of the ridiculous fear I had that was holding me back. 

I encourage everyone reading this to purchase a copy of this book and place yourself in Immaculee's position. (I have included 2 ways to purchase below) If you allow her words to touch your heart, I promise you will never look at life in the same way again. I purchased my own copy a few days before I returned the one I borrowed and I will definitely be reading it again and again. Life is too short to have fears, life is too beautiful to not enjoy it. Live your life and be happy, it is a gift.

-Shenteria Marie

Today I did my first webinar with the Nevada Women's Business Center. The webinar is titled 'Self-Published Author' and I provide tips for anyone wanting to self-publish a book. The host, Kathleen, included a lot of information as well in terms of marketing and getting your book done in audio format. Click the link below and be taken to the webinar which you can view on YouTube. Be sure to give a like and share the video if you find some valuable information. You can reach Kathleen at www.nevadawbc.com

Link to webinar: ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMJYIuwVlpg&feature=player_embedded

Below is a documentary about my former hometown, East St. Louis, Illinois. It is sad when you see the amount of corruption within the police force and the appointed politicians. Beyond that is the citizens who must get out and educate themselves so they can seriously help themselves and their children. Lack of education is a MAJOR PROBLEM also lack of direction or goals.

I have lived in this city, I've seen first hand the hopelessness that exists within it. I wrote my book to help those who are still living in quiet desperation. I wrote my book to help young people growing up to truly realize that they are valuable and they can have a positive future. I wrote my book to address many problems as well as the solutions to them so that we can fix them.

​Watch this documentary and see if it doesn't open your eyes to what is really happening. THE PEOPLE HAVE TO HELP THEMSELVES. Education is IMPORTANT! I'm sure they prefer to not leave their lives in someone else's hands, therefore they must educate themselves. A lot of these people are being taken advantage of simply because they are uneducated. They must WAKE UP.

I have booked a radio show and webinar with the Nevada Women's Business Center! The radio show will be this Thursday, the 15th and the webinar will be next Friday on the 23rd. Below is the link to connect you to the webinar, you can book a spot for free so you can watch online.

Both the radio show and webinar will be more informative including tips for anyone interested in self-publishing their first book. Tune in as it could be very helpful for you. I honestly feel that everyone has a book within them, whether it be their life story, a fiction work of art, or even a collection of poems to bring awareness or spread positive thoughts. 

Start writing today, stay focused, dedicated, and determined to complete your book and you will do it. It definitely takes much time and effort, but the reward is worth it. 

Link to webinar: Self-Published Author  

I can not speak enough about how powerfully calming meditation is. I have made it my business to get up every morning and meditate and it has truly helped me think clearly. This can be very helpful for writers especially in terms of getting their message across more effectively. I highly recommend everyone to set a schedule to meditate at least once a day. It may seem time consuming at first, but when you have a routine down you will realize how life changing it truly is. Meditation helps me center myself, to connect with God and think about the bigger picture of what life is truly about. It makes me more patient, understanding, and opens me up to release any fears. 

This video has a few tips for anyone looking to move forward from the position of just employee, to becoming a manager, supervisor, or becoming an entrepreneur. In today's world, you cannot be soft spoken, you must be these 4 very important words. Find out what they are in this informative video.

I love being creative! After finishing up my work yesterday, I began creating a new promo video for Growing Up Black in America. I was thinking of the best way to incorporate Katy Perry's song 'ROAR' as it is the theme song of my life. Some of the lyrics include, "I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath, scared to rock the boat and make a mess. So I sat quietly, agreed politely. I guess that I forgot I had a choice I let you push me past the breaking point. I stood for nothing, so I fell for everything. You held me down, but I got up, already brushing off the dust. You hear my voice, you hear that sound, like thunder gonna shake your ground. You held me down, but I got up. Get ready cause I've had enough. I see it all, I see it now. I got the eye of the tiger, the fighter, dancing through the fire. 'Cause I am a champion and you're gonna hear me ROAR. Louder, louder than a lion cause I am a champion and you're gonna hear me ROAR." This is currently my favorite song and it describes my life so much. I also sat quietly, almost mute and did not voice my opinion. Therefore, everyone else's opinion clouded my judgment. NO MORE. MY BOOK IS MY ROAR! So below is the video, it is copyrighted content so YouTube will block it, therefore it will not be posted on social media. I'm not making any money whatsoever from the video and will not because it is not my material it all belongs to Katy Perry. I only added myself and the book into the video with a few special effects. ENJOY! I had fun putting this together. ​