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Ambitious men; Let’s hear from David

11 Jul

Name | David Morgan

Tell us a random fact about yourself | I have a very rare, unreleased R&B album, fully recorded in my shower.

What is your current occupation? | I’m a full time writer/artist/musician/human. I like to create anything that I possibly can, as much as I can. I currently have a number of projects on soundcloud, with “Genesis” being my latest release.(http://soundcloud.com/DavidFnMorgan).

I am the author of 3 books (Light, Love, and Life) available at www.LightLoveLife.co. The first 2, Light and Love, were self published and the 3rd, Life, my personal favorite, was published by Austere Magazine. I am also into writing video treatments and directing my own visuals. I currently don’t have the proper resources to make things as big as I imagine, but you can watch my videos at www.youtube.com/c/DaveMohicans

Would you class yourself as an ambitious man? | Yea, I guess so

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? | Yea, ever since I was young, I was always determined to make whatever I want to happen, happen. Whether it be tying a blanket around my neck and teaching myself how to fly (hurting myself multiple times in the process lol) or just trying to learn something new, I was always determined to do whatever it took, regardless of what anyone else said. But the moment it hit me that I am truly ambitious is when I realized I was willing to work harder than anyone else for my dreams. What others considered too hard or too tiring, I considered normal. I can’t count how many nights I’ve put sleep to the side in order to finish a song, story, or whatever I was writing at the time. Even in the face of defeat and when things aren’t going exactly how I want, I push through and continue to strive to make my vision a reality. I’ve seen many others quit along the way when it gets tough, but I refuse to fail. After I figured out that no one is going to hold my hand and protect me from the hardships of life, I had no choice but to go hard. I’m not exactly where I’d like to be but I know for fact I’m going to get there. I couldn’t tell you how I know, but I just know. I think that’s what ambition is.

What is your biggest achievement to date? | I would say my biggest achievement is putting myself in a position to be as creative as possible without having to compromise much of my time working for anyone else. It wasn’t easy, but it has been worth it. I had to make the decision that I was not going to do anything that didn’t leave me feeling fulfilled once I was finished. The past 7 years of my life have been dedicated to nothing but creating. I didn’t realize that until recently. Literally everyday, I have created something. It isn’t the most lucrative occupation, but wealth isn’t all about money anyway. It has definitely been a process though. I’ve had days where I question if I’m doing the right thing. If I should just go back to school. If I’m “behind” in terms of “growing up” compared to my peers. Everyone has those dark days, but the sun always comes back up, and when it finally starts shining for me, I realize I am doing exactly what I was made to do. That’s the greatest feeling. I know there’s a lot of people who go their entire lives without knowing what their purpose is. I figured it out early. That’s my biggest achievement.

What is your long term vision for yourself? | My long term vision is to be able to make a sustainable living solely off of creating things and putting positivity into the world. I want to make more music, write more books, create cartoons, clothing, everything! lol Seriously though, there’s a lot of things I would like to do and I pray that life leads me down the path of being able to accomplish it all.  I don’t want to end up making a lot of money but living a life I hate. I’ve made a few life changes. I recently stopped smoking and drinking just to have a clearer vision and more control over how my life goes. I think this will allow me to hold myself fully accountable for my success as well as my mistake. I won’t have any excuses as to why I did something dumb. I may dabble every now and then, probably only when there is something huge to celebrate, but as of right now, I feel great without my vices. As far as a written plan, I’m working on that. I never really know what each day will bring, so I kind of just go with the flow with no laid out steps necessarily, but keeping an end goal in mind. I’m getting better at planning though because it definitely helps.

David Morgan

Photo by Morganne Nikole

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? | I sacrificed getting a degree. I went to Texas Tech University for a couple of years until I finally accepted the fact that my passion for creation was 1000 times stronger than my urge to go to class. There were days I would just skip class completely and record 2 or 3 songs in my dorm room, and it only got “worse” (better in my opinion because I was fine tuning my craft) when I moved into an apartment. To most people, it wasn’t the smartest decision, but I’m 100% sure had I slaved away in school, I wouldn’t be where I am now. I wouldn’t have had the time to write 3 books, or make all these mixtapes, or perform at all the shows I’ve done. I’d probably have a job and a lot more money, yea. But I know for a fact I would not have been able to accomplish what I’ve accomplished so far. I wouldn’t feel fulfilled. By no means am I advising anyone to drop out, but that’s a sacrifice I made that I believe turned out for the better.

What advice can you give to other ambitious men that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? | Don’t second guess yourself. Get rid of all doubt. The most important thing is self-confidence. If you truly believe you can do something and you really want to do it, go for it. Don’t let “No” get in the way. It won’t be easy, but it’ll be worth it.

**Featured image photographed by Najee Rashad**

Want to hear more from David?

Follow him on Twitter Instagram & Snapchat @DavidFnMorgan

Website: www.DavidFnMorgan.com

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Are you ambitious? business minded? or pursuing  your passion?

Want to be apart of this series? Express your interest by emailing quietlyambitious@hotmail.com or messaging here  

 

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Ambitious Men; Let’s hear from OluFela

22 Jun

Name | OluFela Raymond Tusin (Fella) is what everybody calls me. Some call me OluFella

Tell us a random fact about yourself | I LOVE TO COOK

What is your current occupation? | I am Currently a product advisor for Microsoft and a Freelance Photographer

Would you class yourself as an ambitious man? | Yes I would. I am very passionate person about everything that I get involved in. its either all or nothing for me. I don’t believe in “halfassin” Life.

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? |Yes I have always been an ambitious person. But I also believe there have been moments in my life where I push myself to be more ambitious about my endeavours. One of those moments was when I left college to pursue my dreams as a photographer. With so many self-titled photographers these days I believe what separates me from others is my passions and love for capturing people, my ambition to always keep growing learning and inspiring others to do greater things.

What is your biggest achievement to date? | My biggest achievement to date is raising over $7000 towards Livingstone International University (LIU); a privately funded University in Uganda Africa.  I achieved this by volunteering 2 weeks of my personal time and skills to document LIU’s first graduation class ever. I spent 95 percent of my time on the university’s temporary campus documenting the students, professors, deans and other employees surrounding the campus. I also took advantage of my surroundings and shot and documented as much of the locals as possible.

This wouldn’t have been possible to achieve if it wasn’t for the amazing company I work for (Microsoft) pushing each and every one of its employees to volunteer in their communities. For every hour I volunteered, the company matched my time with $25 per hour donation to a charity of my choice.  As I was born in Lagos, Nigeria; I figured what better place to give my time than a country in Africa.

While in Uganda it really took me back to growing up as a kid in Nigeria. I remember hoping; praying and wishing that one day I would have the opportunity to better my family’s lives by getting a better education and a great job. But I also prayed I would have the opportunity to leave Nigeria and see what else the world had to offer me. Fortunately for my family and I, we won a visa lottery and I was presented with everything I ever dreamt of.  As I documented the students and people of Uganda, I could see that same hope for a better future and opportunity in every kid’s eye. That’s what pushes me every day to keep raising awareness for the kids/people in Uganda.

Through my photographs from Uganda and other works, I continue to raise funds for a second trip back to Uganda and also help fund more resources for the kids and people in need in Uganda.

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 What is your long term vision for yourself?| My long term vision for myself is to be one of the people that educates and encourages young minorities in America and all over the world to invest their time and money back into Africa and also help educate the youth in Africa. To achieve these goals, I would have to move to a country in Africa and start a base for young entrepreneurs and educators to come. I don’t have an exact written plan for this yet, but everyday God leads me closer to building it together.

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? | I am willing to sacrifice anything to achieve my vision because my goals won’t just benefit me but it will benefit future generations to come. I have sacrificed a lot. But I would say the biggest thing that I have noticed sacrificing day in and day out is my own personal money. I invest a lot of money into my work. Most people I know have grants and other resources that help them fund their work. But all the money I have comes from either selling art or from my 9-5 job at Microsoft [Thank you Microsoft].

I have also lost a lot of people in my life because of the changes I had to go through mentally and emotionally to become my true self.

 What advice can you give to other ambitious men that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? | Take it a day at a time. God didn’t create the world in one day. Be patient. Don’t just accept the knowledge giving to you, seek it out yourself.

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Please make sure you go and check out Olufela’s amazing photography! Support the cause

www.feleraymond.com

Instagram: peopleofuganda       felaraymond

 

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Ambitious Women; Let’s hear from Nadine

23 May

Name | Nadine Robinson

Tell us a random fact about yourself | I broke my nose in secondary school whilst doing a ‘backdrop’ (which is a trampoline move). However, when I went to the doctors to get my nose checked out he said that I made it straighter… I never knew it was bent?! Moral of that story – keep control of yourself in all situations.

What is your current occupation? | I am currently a student. I am studying English Literature and Media at London South Bank University. With that being said, I consider being a mother my full time job.

Would you class yourself as an ambitious woman? | I would consider myself to be an ambitious woman – 100% I would. I feel that I am a woman who strives to excel in all aspects of life.

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? | Looking back on my younger years I would say that I have always been ambitious. However, my confidence was not a high as some may have believed. During my teenage years I competed in a variety of sports and I feel that made me appreciate and understand the idea of what it meant to be ambitious and determined. Bearing this in mind, it also showed me what is expected of me if I want to be the best at what I am doing. However, I would say that I came into my own once I learnt how to be unapologetic about who I am as a person. I think this is something that comes in time for most people. For me, I started during my process of creating and failing in the blogging world. I attempted to create a blog about my thoughts and feelings on my life and the world around me – but because I was not 100% happy or content with who I was it became a bit of a battle opposed to an enjoyable journey. Fast-forward to 2013 when I started a brand new blog – now entitled Three Reign – I feel I have not only found my voice but I have learnt to be a woman who stands in her truth unashamedly. This for me was my turning point. Once I got to this milestone I began connecting and networking with other talented creatives. This in turn spurred me onto seek opportunities out that would help me reach my future goals within the writing world. Consequently, I got offered some amazing opportunities, such as having a piece of written work published in an American anthology called Love Letters to Our Daughters. All in all, I gained not only the confidence but also the awareness that I am capable of obtain my dreams if I remain true who I am.

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What is your biggest achievement to date? | My biggest achievement will always be my beautiful children. But if I have to choose a specific moment in relation to my writing, it would be having a piece I wrote The Blood Runs Deep during the #BlackLivesMatters movement read during a Black Lives Matters Campaign by the creator of Ain’t I a Woman Collective – Ella Achola. The reason for this is that I don’t read my poetry out loud so to hear it come to life and read in such an emotive manner truly moved me.

What is your long term vision for yourself? | My aim is to go into teaching. On the creative side I would love to publish a book of poetry and affirmations. Hopefully this is something that will organically manifest in the coming years.

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? | I have and am willing to sacrifice my time and energy. We truly do not realise how time and energy is invested making your dreams a reality. I know in the long run that investing in myself with only benefit me. In addition, I am willing to sacrifice a part of myself; as with writing I feel it is important to insert a small amount of who you are into each peace.

What advice can you give to other young women that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? | I would remind them that they have NOTHING to lose! At the end of the day if you never try then you are letting yourself and the world around you know that it is perfectly fine to reside in the realm of failure. We are all capable individuals and for this reason we should never doubt ourselves. Whatever, you feel that your purpose is pursue it, fight for it and create it one day at a time.

Places you can find Nadine

Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Google+

Ambitious women; Let’s hear from Annika

16 Nov

Name| Annika Spalding

Tell us a random fact about yourself| I’m an outgoing introvert. So, at first glance you’ll assume I’m shy and timid, but within a few minutes of talking to me it will be quite the opposite.

What is your current occupation? | Mother, writer and university student.

Would you class yourself as an ambitious woman? | YES!

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? | I have always had ambitions, I can remember being really young and having big dreams like going to university, teaching and being a best-selling author. I have an optimistic outlook and love to try new things, but there was a point in my life where I was ruled by anxiety and low self-esteem. It didn’t completely stop me because I still achieved what I wanted to, but it certainly hindered me. A turning point for me was a couple of years after my mom had died and a job in the paper caught my eye. I was 20 and had worked my way up to being a manager in a bookies, but this job in a women’s organisation was one I had always wanted to do. Domestic violence was an area of interest and even though I didn’t have the employment experience for the role, I decided to go for it anyway. I started on my 21st birthday.

Another turning point was a little over two years ago, in the first year of singlehood and I was still consumed by anxiety and low self-worth. I decided to go to a spoken word event that I had seen on Facebook, something I’d never been to but was intrigued by. That one night changed everything. Being in the company of creative people was inspiring, and I began to take my writing even more seriously than I had before. After attending that event in July 2013, I opened up an incomplete word document that I’d been working on for some time and that month I finished my first book. After that, everything changed.

What is your biggest achievement to date? | This is a hard one, really. I measure my success by the quality of people and experiences I have in my life. I’m a mother so anything and everything to do with my children feels like a big achievement. Parenting isn’t easy, although it isn’t meant to be, but I embrace it regardless and do my best to be a good role model for my children. I’ve published a few books now, spoken at events and even been on the radio, but more recently I’ve started University. I’m really proud of that because I never thought I’d be able to. I mean, I’m 29 now so I’m not quite sharing the same experiences as some of the other students, but it’s amazing that I even get this opportunity to pursue a dream I’ve always had. I believe everything happens for a reason and if I had tried to go to university at 18, I would have failed because I had so much going on at that time.

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Photo Credit: Paul Stringer

What is your long term vision for yourself? | I just want to be happy – and I am. I am on this journey of self-love and self-development, and although I’m not entirely sure where I’ll end up, I know I will be happy. I’m conscious that my children are watching and learning first-hand from me what it means to be a woman in this world, so this motivates me to be authentic and focused on building a legacy for them. I want to continue to follow my passions and have creative freedom at every step I take. I’d like to be known for my personal self-love journey as well as my writing, because they go hand in hand and I like to inspire others.

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? | If I’ve learned anything so far in life, it’s that people are temporary. Everything is temporary really, but some relationships with people aren’t meant to last forever. As you start to experience things and begin to better yourself, you soon realise who is holding you back and who is growing with you. Not everybody will be comfortable with your level of growth but a true friend wouldn’t hinder you. I used to worry too much about what other people thought and whether I fitted in, but I’ve since worked hard on my self-love and learned to validate myself. It’s all very well living to please others but what about you? Why not try and please yourself? I’m not a massively emotional person and I’ve learned not to take everything personal. I’ve lost and gained friends over the years, and I am grateful for all the lessons I’ve learned. Not everybody will contribute positively to your life and I’ve allowed some friendships to dwindle because I recognised that there had been a shift. I want to focus on my children, writing, university, promoting self-love and raising awareness of domestic violence and mental health; if anything or anyone compromises any of that, I’m just not interested.

What advice can you give to other young women that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? | Just do it. Time is the one thing we spend and can’t earn back. So why waste it procrastinating? Sometimes we’re just as scared of getting it right as we are of getting it wrong. I think it’s better to try and see how you get on, rather than always wondering “What if?”. Even if you fail, it’s not actually a loss because you then know what doesn’t work and can try something else. It’s all about perspective. So, don’t think about all the reasons why you can’t do it. Think about all the reasons why you should. It doesn’t have to all happen at once, you just have to start.

Annika’s Social Media | Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

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Ambitious Women; Let’s hear from Shantel

9 Nov

Name | Shantel Rousseau

Tell us a random fact about yourself | Sounds incredibly strange but occasionally I pluck my eyelashes (cringeworthy, I know!). I have long thick lashes and sometimes they grow out of wack – so I pluck the ones that aren’t aligned. I sound crazy, don’t I?! Haha!

What is your current occupation?| Blogger at Simply Shantel & Style Consultant

Would you class yourself as an ambitious woman? | Honestly, I’ve always been ambitious – always wanted to exceed and have certain things but on my own terms, I’m pretty hard-headed like that haha.

What is your biggest achievement to date? | Other than graduating college and starting Simply Shantel – I would say the year I spent doing B2B sales. Direct, cold calling and door knocking sales – it would hard and in the beginning I had a couple of emotional moments, but I got through it and it was the hardest things I’ve ever done.

Shantel Sept 22-5

What is your long term vision for yourself? | My long term vision professionally is to expand my personal brand, Simply Shantel is to grow and develop it further than just the online blog. I’ll be launching my YouTube channel shortly and after that I would like to collaborate further with brands that I align with. A capsule collection then an online store and then a contributing piece in a magazine. Personally, in the next coming years I’d like to buy a property in either Chicago, LA or Miami – get married, have children, relocate to either London or Paris for a bit etc haha!

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision?| Time & Money – I think that’s always the common thread with anyone that’s building/pursuing something. The methods and goals might be different but ultimately, that’s always the biggest sacrifice. Also, security – the security and safety of not building and being an entrepreneur; You can’t have fear and run your own company, it’s like oil and water – it doesn’t mix.

What advice can you give to other young women that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? | I would say feel the fear and do it anyways. It’s so basic and blunt but it’s the only advice that’s 100% truthful from someone who’s been there. I would also say it is critical to your success and development to be around people who are also building their own businesses/empires/brands etc. even if it’s not in the same industry (which would be ideal) it’s important to be around other entrepreneurs. The network is invaluable and no one will really understand your joys and pains like your peers. It’s also advisable to be around those who are doing exactly what you want to and/or smarter than you. If you’re the smartest person in the room – you need to find another room and you are truly the sum of the people closest to you – make sure they replicate what you want for yourself.

Shantel’s Social Media | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest | Website

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Ambitious women; Let’s hear from Jacque

2 Nov

Name| Jacque Amadi

Tell us a random fact about yourself | I’m currently learning Korean, and I plan on visiting next year!

What is your current occupation? | Currently I do a lot of stuff, ha! I own a digital marketing boutique, but I also am an infopreneur, and an online shop owner.

Would you class yourself as an ambitious woman? | For sure! I think it’s possible to design your life to align with your vision, and everything I do is to reach my ultimate goal of being able to uplift and employ young women like myself.

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? | I’ve always been driven to succeed, although there was a short period in college where I wasn’t very motivated to do much of anything. As a former straight A student, college was a huge change and I did give up. I didn’t drop out, but mentally I just didn’t want to be there. However I found my calling in entrepreneurship when I started making and selling bow ties on Tumblr (random, I know) and my passion was renewed! I ended up opening up an online vintage shop and things only went up from there.

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What is your biggest achievement to date? | My biggest achievement? I left my full time job a few months ago, and just recently I finally started making as much on my own as I did there. That’s huge for me!

What is your long term vision for yourself? | Being able to employ other women of color. I don’t care what I’m doing, as long as I’m able to hire those who aren’t always given a fair chance.

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? | I’ve sacrificed money for sure! But now, I’m willing to sacrifice time.

What advice can you give to other young women that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? Remember that life is short. This is morbid but you never know what will happen tomorrow…so do what you can while you’re still here!

Jacque’s Social Media | Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

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Ambitious women; Let’s hear from Leah

9 Oct

Name Leah Binham

Tell us a random fact about yourself I was born 4 weeks premature and weighed the same as two bags of sugar and to top it off my head was massive (still is haha).

What is your current occupation? I am a Visual Merchandiser for home, fashion & beauty and I am also a Lifestyle blogger. For anyone who doesn’t know what a Visual Merchandiser is, I basically implement windows and in-store schemes from the painting, floor covering (glorified decorator/cleaner) to styling, positioning and branding. I also deal with POS such as banners, ticketing, and window graphics which are used for brand events and sales. I coordinate and put in place the launch of beauty/perfume window display promotions on a fortnightly basis.

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Would you class yourself as an ambitious woman? YESSIR I do I do I do  oooooooooo haha… no doubt about

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? I have always wanted to succeed in everything I do and I have ALWAYS gone for what I want no stopping me.  I wanted to move to London I did it, I wanted to be a Visual Merchandiser I did it and I always wanted to go to New York I DID IT ALL. I don’t believe in talking about things all day long just get your behind up and go do it.

What is your biggest achievement to date? My biggest achievement has been losing nearly 5 Stone, changing my lifestyle, becoming vegan and taking hold of my own happiness.

What is your long term vision for yourself? My long term vision is to maintain HAPPINESS 100%, live a simplistic lifestyle and buy bananas by the box every week. I also want to take over the healthy food scene with my brand Cakes & ish. Cakes & ish is a plant based food brand which uses no wheat, dairy, eggs or refined sugars. My biggest aim is to show people that they can have the foods they want but just in a healthier and much more beneficial way. So keep a look out for my funky, cool and quirky food spot one day!

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Display table at the Cakes & Ish taster evening in September

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? If I am really honest I would say that in trying to achieve my vision over the past 2 years or so my social life has been pretty non-existent. I had always wanted to go to New York so back in September 2014 I saved every penny I could for 4 months, all I did was work, gym and home. So interacting with other people was very minimal but it was necessary to do the things I wanted to achieve personally. My vision never ends at one exact point, my vision is the type of life I want to live so I will do everything I can to make it happen and keep it happening.

What advice can you give to other young women that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? If there is something you want instead of listing why you can’t possibly get it find out how to get, then work out how to keep hold of it. We waste a lot of precious time telling ourselves that we CAN’T when that whole time you could be doing what you said you couldn’t. Be yourself, trust yourself, arm yourself with knowledge and become the master of your craft. Remember only we can achieve our goals, dreams and ambitions because it all comes from within.

**Leah is a new friend of mine but since we started speaking we instantly clicked. Since then we speak practically everyday. I love her personality and positive vibes. Her vegan brand is going to do so well! I know it. Check out her awesome blog too for all things vegan and healthy. Make sure you show her some love!**

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Me and her friend helping out at her recent event

Leah’s Instagram 

 

 

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The Ambitious Man; Let’s hear from Dev

28 Sep

As you may remember a couple of weeks ago I finished up the ambitious man series where I interviewed a selection of ambitious men and asked them about the impact it had on their relationships etc (read recap here). I’ve decided to continue this series as a way to show appreciation to some of the good men in our society. The main requirement to be featured in this series is that you must be male and ambitious! If you want to be featured then drop an email to quietlyambitious@hotmail.com or contact me through my Twitter or Facebook ! 

Today I’m excited to share Devon’s contribution to this series. I’ve been inspired from his post and I hope you will be too. Make sure you check out his awesome blog; Cold Knowledge! But readers beware “you’ll either feel him, or you won’t” ! Ha. Enjoy!

image2 Name | Devon Young from Raleigh, NC (via Florence, SC)

Tell us a random fact about yourself. | I was actually born to a military man, in a military hospital, on a military holiday (Veteran’s Day), with my first two initials of my name, (DC) being related to the capital of the United States, where my hospital was located. And then 23 years later I joined the military and in 2013 I officially became a veteran. So needless to say that a large portion of my being is connected somehow to the military.
What is your current occupation? | Right now I currently work for Verizon Business monitoring the network, making it sure it stays up and running basically. I’m that awesome thin line between customers calling to yell at you and them not calling to yell at you basically lol.
Would you class yourself as an ambitious man? | I would to a lesser degree. I agree with the concept of being an ambitious man, but I don’t have the unhealthy obsessions that go along with it. Apart of being an ambitious man, to me, is that you have to learn how to sacrifice to obtain your goals. After doing that for years I’m starting to learn how to work productively. At the very root of it all, I’m always going to be use to working my butt off in anything that I do. Leaving it all out there with no room to question anything is my style, and whenever I set my goals on, I usually achieve because it’s what I really want to do. So do I consider myself an ambitious man? Yes I do, but now it’s like a refined kind of ambition where I’m working smarter, not harder.
Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? | For me ambition was something that was deeply rooted in me by my mother before I could learn to walk. If there was ever a lesson that was taught to me that I had to single out as a defining moment in my life was when I was told at a very young age that no one is going to care about me outside of my family and my race, so I figured I wanted to do things that most black people weren’t doing from my hometown. So I decided to do the opposite from what everyone else was doing and work hard at achieving the one goal in my life that I feel that I didn’t really have and that’s a family of my own, together. So me being ambitious has always been there from birth, because without it, I wouldn’t be me.
What is your biggest achievement to date? | My biggest achievement to date has to be going to Iraq and coming back home in one piece physically. There are few things in life that define us or change us completely for the better. For me going over there woke up the part of me that was hiding behind a wall of complacency and mediocrity. Once I realized what the ultimate goal was for my life, I realized that my self worth wasn’t where I needed it to be. Iraq basically gave me the swift kick in the behind to get me back to being outgoing, fearless and excited about my future once again.

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What is your long term vision for yourself? | This will sound funny, but it’s to be a family man. I had a family growing up but it wasn’t the best of situations at times. I had all the love in the world, but the whole moving around all of the time and having marginal to work with for my brothers and I wasn’t too grand of a thing. I want to be the best father and husband I can be while providing for them in the most stable position that I can provide. That’s the personal vision for myself, career wise I want to be able to run my blog full time while helping others through various posts and other ideas I have yet to announce. I want to actually have a hands on approach and not one where I’m just floundering away behind some desk.
What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? | At the current moment it’s time. I take a lot of it away from other aspects of my life so that I can achieve greater success down the road. I don’t hang with friends or family that much because I’m always doing something or making plans to do something related to my vision for my blog. I think that time will always be the most important thing a person has, that’s why I’m always trying to quantify it and make the best out of every second. Sooner or later everything will fall into place and I can do so much more than what I’m not doing right now in terms of fun and family, but right now, time is of the essence and I don’t really have that much to give to anyone beyond myself.
What advice can you give to other young men that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? | You have to gut check yourself if you really want it. The biggest thing for me when I decided to make my blog into something bigger than what it is was the fact that I just did it without any hesitation. Too often than not most problems you face will arise from a lack of confidence or your mind telling you that it’s too dangerous to do. If you manage to get that little voice in your head to shut up and stop telling you that everything that you either don’t know or never done is dangerous, then you will become one bad man. Don’t listen to the people that tell you no, that tell you your dreams are trivial, or they just simply try to bring you down to their level. At the end of the day, if you believe in something wholeheartedly and you are willing to bust your behind to get it, then nothing in this world will have the power to stop you.

Places can you find Devon

Twitter: @coldknowledge

Insta: @coldknowledge

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Ambitious women; Let’s hear from Natalie A

3 Jul

Name: Natalie Agyeman-Asubonteng

Tell us a random fact about yourself: My flexibility is off point! I can’t touch my toes.

What is your current occupation? I currently work as a Creative Assistant for a media company.

Would you class yourself as an ambitious woman? Yes I do, but putting that ambition into practice is not always easy.

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? I would say that I have been but to a certain extent. It probably wasn’t until summer 2009 that I really started outwardly being ambitious. I finally realised after my degree that knew I wanted to go back into fashion

What is your biggest achievement to date? Being the founder of an outreach initiative in Nottingham called 1-Reach.

What is your long term vision for yourself? The dream is to be a fashion designer. I want to own my own label. One that encourages people to be individuals, rather than blending in with the crowd. I want to empower people through my designs and improve their confidence through the values and ethos of the brand. I also want to inspire people to pursue their dreams through my own journey and through others via my blog (which I really need to keep on top of).

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? Time. Time is one of the biggest things I have had to sacrifice. I’ve had to put time aside to perfect my craft mentally and physically. I’ve been doing some short courses since November last year in fashion design and pattern cutting which have been very beneficial.

I also sacrificed comfort at one point. I was in a secure job and I felt like I had to take that leap of faith and leave because I felt like it wasn’t helping me pursue my dream to fashion.

What advice can you give to other young women that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? Know what YOU want to achieve in life. Don’t go by what your friends, family and other loved ones want you to do. Once you know, as Shia Labeouf says and Nike ‘JUST DO IT!!!!’. Don’t doubt yourself. Be confident. Also… Plan your time properly (sooooo important)!

Thank you for reading. Be sure to check out Natalie’s social media pages!

Natalie’s Blog – Pursue:Inspire: https://pursueinspire.wordpress.com/

Instagram: www.instagram.com/pursueinspire

Pinterest: https://uk.pinterest.com/PursueInspire/

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Ambitious Women; Let’s Hear from Leigh-Ann

19 Jun

Name Leigh-Ann Ncube

Tell us a random fact about yourself As far as I know, I am the only vegetarian in my family and group of friends. It’s been 2 and a half years now since I decided to not eat meat.

What is your current occupation? I am currently working for the council in Essex and I am part of the employment and skills team for young people. I also blog about my experiences in the subjects of life, relationships and personal growth.

Would you class yourself as an ambitious woman? Very much so.

Have you always been ambitious? If not what was the turning point for you? I wouldn’t say I was typically ambitious but I have always been a seeker of truth. I always had questions about life. Like why we have to suffer so much, why we have to believe everything we have been told without questioning. So I would say I was ambitious in my own right. It’s only when I took my journey of self-discovery after I failed my AS exams, when I really felt passionate to make a difference. Hence why I started blogging.

What is your biggest achievement to date? Appearing on TV, talking about something I am passionate about! 

What is your long-term vision for yourself? I see myself utilising my experiences to make a difference. My vision is to inspire people on a larger scale. Mainly about what I blog about, but I know I have a lot more to give.  Only time will tell

What have you sacrificed or willing to sacrifice to achieve your vision? I sacrificed a lot of people who I could no longer relate with to just get to where I am today. I also sacrificed the desire to fit in with what’s seen as normal to stay focused on my own path. That has been the hardest experience because of how lonely I felt. I am still working towards my vision and it’s become a lot easier to see the bigger picture, so it’s all been worth it.

What advice can you give to other young women that want to pursue their dreams but are afraid to do so? Just find what it is that makes you come alive, something you are passionate about (or even interesting) and explore it. Don’t give up and don’t worry too much about what other people think. Fear is normal; feeling like you are not good enough is normal. However never let all of that paralyse you! Always put yourself in a position to grow. Get out of your comfort zone and try things that you think you cannot do. You will surprise yourself. Most importantly, believe you deserve to pursue your dreams.

Leigh-Ann’s Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/becomeyourbliss/feed

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/becomeyourbliss?fref=ts

Blog: http://www.becomeyourbliss.org/

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