The Thing That Leads To The Thing

Written by Markia Brown on December 7, 2022. Posted in Business, Featured, Influential People, Lifestyle, Uncategorized.

“You may be called to do something…but you don’t have to do it forever.”

Dr. Arriel Cymone has accomplished things some of us have never even aspired towards. She’s an accomplished chemist. Earning her Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry, she has served as a forensic chemist and expert witness for government agencies, trained FBI agents, and worked as an adjunct chemistry professor. “But there was more,” says Dr. Arriel Cymone. “I had done all of these things, and I was happy and blessed, to be sure, but I didn’t feel full. I didn’t feel fulfilled.”

Finding your more

Chemistry was always in the cards for Arriel. After receiving her first chemistry set at seven, she was hooked! She spent her days in the driveway mixing things and documenting the reactions. Once she realized how good at it she was, she dug in deeper, pursuing her passion throughout school and the early parts of her career.

“I wasn’t unhappy. It wasn’t discontentment,” says Arriel when talking about her pivot into becoming a life coach. “One of my favorite quotes is by Mark Twain. He said, ‘the two most important days of your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why.’ I found my purpose, my why.”

And now, she’s teaching others how to find theirs.

As an abundant life coach, Dr. Arriel Cymone combined the analytical skills she learned from her time as a chemist, and her experience in her own journey to finding purpose, to create the Concierge Coaching Laboratory. “In laboratories, we mix things up. In the Concierge Coaching Laboratory, we’ll be mixing up all the bomb.com things about you and extracting everything holding you back, so you can live a full life, walking in your purpose. This recipe for success provides a personalized approach to your problems so that you feel like the king and queen you are!”

Create the dream life you deserve

Dr. Arriel teaches that your purpose and your dream are not as different as you think. These two things are closely related, and through her concierge services, such as Rise Up And Reign or her From Hoe To Housewife program, she will help you identify both and give you the tools you need to live a richer and more fulfilled life, starting with the life you’re living now.

Dr. Arriel Cymone has done it all, with over 15 years of professional experience and her personal journey toward her purpose, she combines them to help you excel, not just succeed.

Want to visit her website? Click here.

New Beginnings: Dating After A Life of Abuse

Written by Markia Brown on December 6, 2022. Posted in Health and Beauty, Influential People, Lifestyle.

There is life after abuse. But is there love?

Laura Charanza is doing something bold, something daring, something brave…she’s dating again, and this time, she’s taking us along for the ride.

This January, Laura’s new book, The New Truth About Dating, will show us the good, the funny, and the terrible on the latest journey in her life: finding love after healing from an abusive relationship.

Ugly Love & New Beginnings

Laura’s love story starts well before the first page of her latest book. To honestly tell her story, we’ll have to go back to her first book, Amazon bestseller Ugly Love: A Survivor’s Story of Narcissistic Abuse.

Laura Charanza is a former television news journalist, having worked for CBS and ABC affiliates across the country. She’s a #boymom. She’s an accomplished author and public speaker.

She’s also a survivor of 40 years of narcissistic abuse.

From realizing one of her parents was a narcissist to coming to terms with the fact that she married one, Laura told her story beautifully and empoweringly. She not only lived through such a traumatic experience but also chose to share her story with the world, which requires an enormous amount of strength that she attributes largely to her faith and wanting to help others. Laura said, “my strength came when I hit rock bottom, and there was nowhere to go but up. And I thought, maybe if one person can benefit from my story, what I’ve been through, I might as well share it.”

And share it she did.

In 2018, the release of her first book inspired so many people with her survival story that it cracked Amazon’s Top 500 self-help books list. But that wasn’t the end of her journey.

It took her five years to leave her ex-husband, but her story didn’t stop with leaving. It was only the beginning.

Are You Ready To Start Dating?

Dating post-COVID is a daunting task by itself. Dating post-COVID after abuse? Downright terrifying.

So, how do you learn to trust again? How do you know you’re ready?

Laura’s short answer: “You’ll feel it.”

One of the things Laura addresses in her upcoming book is the importance of healing before looking for love. After all, how can you tell someone else how you want to be loved if you genuinely don’t know? “What makes dating a mess is the junk you’re carrying from your past, triggering you,” she says. “If you bring all that junk to the table and both parties have too much, there’s no room left for you to build on.”

In The New Truth About Dating, Laura says that the most significant indicator that you’re ready to date is that you feel ready to date. “You don’t have to give them your heart on the first date,” says Laura. “But the only way you’ll truly know you’re ready is by exploring those feelings.”

Red Flags Don’t Change Colors

A part of Laura’s healing process was identifying the habits and personality traits of a narcissist that she ignored in her relationship. Not to beat herself up but to know what to do the next time she comes across someone with those habits and traits. In her latest book, through a collection of her stories, tips, and general dating advice, Laura addresses some of those red flags. “Red flags are warning signs. Things like love bombing and being overly controlling, in hindsight, I see it for what it was. But what does it look like at that moment? What do you do?”

Laura uses her dating experiences as teachable moments to be candid about the reality of dating and not what social media tends to romanticize. She talks about being ghosted, her brief online experience, and how she can keep her optimism about finding love after bad dates. She empowers readers by teaching them how to handle rejection, not be so vulnerable early on, and, most importantly, how to enjoy the journey.

Want more tips?

Laura’s latest book, The New Truth About Dating, will be available on Amazon this January! Just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Can’t wait for the book?

Laura just launched her self-titled YouTube channel. In her videos, Laura discusses topics such as recognizing narcissism, leaving behind toxic relationships and dating.

Visit her website here!

For The Culture, By A Black Woman

Written by Markia Brown on November 8, 2022. Posted in Business, Entertainment, Influential People, Uncategorized.

The plight of the black creative is not a new one.

From In Living Color and Martin to Vine, Twitter, and now TikTok, black creatives and black culture have set the trends. However, the paychecks, and the recognition, often don’t reflect that. Black creatives are making significantly less than their non-black counterparts, and that’s if they’re even being paid at all. Black creativity is often stifled or censored to pander to a specific (non-black) audience. Not only that, but they constantly deal with non-black creators stealing their content and becoming overnight sensations while they are often not even credited. Remember the “Addison Rae does TikTok dances on The Tonight Show” debacle? Are we doomed to keep repeating this cycle generation after generation? Not if Angel has anything to say about it.

The first black woman-owned podcast network.

Angel Livas has worked in the media and entertainment industry for over 20 years. She’s worked with all kinds of talent in television and radio, from Larry King to Tamar Braxton, from local radio stations to NBC. Her work has even been nominated for an NAACP award. After years of watching how the industry treated black creatives and how it affected the audiences, Angel decided to create the change she wished to see in the industry by launching the first black woman-owned podcast network.

Angel saw the impact that black creatives and black culture have had on the industry for decades and decided that instead of asking for more seats at the table…she would build her own.

Angel created The ALIVE Podcast Network (TAP-N) with the black creative and receiver at the heart of the platform. “It’s our job to be a voice and give a voice to people who feel like they don’t have that, and give them outlets to receive things they need.” Says Angel. “These big organizations don’t care how it impacts the community. They’re not set up for black people to thrive.” TAP-N not only gives black creatives editorial control of their content, but they will also offer talent development opportunities through masterminds and other events focused on the progression and monetization of the creative and their brand.

What kind of podcast do you need to join TAP-N? Spoiler alert: A black one.

From educational podcasts that break down business formation and wealth management strategies to comedic content to laugh with at the end of a long day, TAP-N wants to help you build and, most importantly, monetize your podcast. You need to have an authentic voice, be yourself! Believe in what you’re creating and your podcast’s message to the world.

The future of podcasting.

While TAP-N focuses primarily on the creative advancement of the black community, what Angel is accomplishing on a larger scale, is establishing a framework for other communities to learn from to create similar programs. She aims to help different cultures “create a unique experience for their content relevant to them.”

To learn more about ALIVE Podcast Network and become a subscriber, visit https://alivepodcastnetwork.com/ and follow @alivepodcastapp on all social platforms.

Author: Markia Brown