Superwoman?

Many times ambitious girls like to play the role of "Superwoman", or at least trying to come close.  We're all guilty.  We want to do everything and be everywhere, sometimes spreading ourselves entirely too thin.  It not only takes a toll on our emotional health and stress levels, but it can also begin to effect the quality and timeliness of our work. 

Myself for example. This semester I had 17 hours, 2 internships, a job, was on 2 different executive boards for organizations on my campus, and attempted to do help out with many other projects "on the side".  I have this sense of self that believes I can do anything and everything...at the same time.  I don't like feeling like I can't do something, so to prove to myself and others that I can I will attempt to do it all. Last semester I also had 17 hours, 2 internships, 2 executive  boards, and a pageant at the same time.  Blame my ambition. ;)

What did I learn?  Do NOT spread yourself so thin.  Just because you don't pick up every project that comes your way doesn't mean you can't do it, it just means you already have your hands full.  When taking on so much, it can be hard to give every project your 100%, even if you're fully capable.

So choose your activities wisely and always take into consideration the other things that you already have to fit into your schedule.  I almost hate saying this because I have a sense of pride that doesn't allow me not to try.  It's almost as if I've grown so used to doing everything, if I did lighten up my load I wouldn't feel as productive. 

So this holiday break I'm definitely going to take some "me" time and re-prioritize some things for next semester.  I've also got to realize superwoman was a fictional character, and as a human being sometimes I will feel a bit overwhelmed. It happens.

Random Rant. I'm human. It's my blog.

Hope my Ambitious Girls had a great 2010 and that they finish strong. =)

Find Your Incredible.

So it has been entirely too long since my last post.  Class, exams, internships, campaigns, work. And even found a little time to play during our homecoming.  But I'm back, checking in.  Just wanted to share with my Ambitious Girls one of my fave songs.  Incredible by Choklate...it's amazing.  Check it out.  Promise promise I'll have another update soon. =)

"I'd be a fool to not embrace, to not chase, my...incredible."

Girl Crush!

Now before any of you get the wrong idea, what is MY definition of a Girl Crush?  Beautiful, intelligent, inspiring women who I truly respect and admire for their work ethic and accomplishments...especially those closely related to my line of work; PR!

Sooo I wanted to share with you three of my official Girl Crushes (more to come I just didn't want to hit you with them all at once)...be looking for individual features on some of them btw...if I don't get carried away and tell all in this one post!

And for the record...I'll never admire anyone as much as I admire my mother. A woman of extreme strength, spirituality and faith.  She truly raised me to be an extraordinary woman of God.  To be a poised, polished and pretty.  To be intelligent, intellectual, articulate and AMBITIOUS!  Words really can't express how I feel about this woman, she is more than perfect in my eyes. =)

Nicole Garner (@thegarnercircle): President and CEO of The Garner Circle PR, an Atlanta-based PR, lifestyle marketing and event execution agency with with offices in both New York and Los Angeles, ranks highly as one of the most innovative and out of the box agencies on record. Specializes in fashion, beauty, entertainment & lifestyle. Some of her accomplishments include Top 30 most influential women in the city of Atlanta, Power 30 Under 30, High Heels in High Places National Honor, Online PR award for the launch of the $50,000 sneaker for generating over one million mentions, and fastest growing PR firm in the SE region. I have been following this woman's every move since I was about 18, I've been trying to get like her ever since.

Ashley Small (@AshleyRSmall): President of Medley Incorporated, a public relations, new media, and special events firm that specializes in building brands in the luxury sector, including fashion, lifestyle, travel & hospitality, publishing and entertainment industries.  I had the pleasure of interning with Ashley and Medley, Inc and I absolutely LOVED every moment!  It was SO hands on and personal yet she gave me room for my own creative growth at the same time  She is an amazing entrepreneur with a beautiful spirit, she taught me sooo much (idk if she knows that), and I really do admire her.  Ashley also serves as the Jones Magazine social media and promotions manager.  I had the opportunity to be apart of some amazing events and promotions and also meet the cast (she was a cast member as well) during the 1st season of the magazine's reality show "'Keeping Up With the Joneses'" that aired on Centric TV earlier this year.  I was able to write my 1st official press release with Medley along with creating my 1st official media kits. I have great portfolio material and experience thanks to Ashley and Medley!!!

Christal Jordan (@EnchantedPR): An award-winning author, journalist and media trainer as well as the President of Enchanted PR, one of the leading entertainment PR boutiques in the southeast specializing in music, entertainment, and art.  I had the opportunity of interning with Miss Jordan as well.  One word: BOSS!  She is a busy woman and I had to be PERSISTANT to snag this internship. Thanks to her I know the importance of persistance and going after what you want until you get it.  I approached her via email in January 2010...and after 3 months, 2 interns, a few conference calls later and completing a preliminary assignment, I came on board as an intern/associate with the firm in early April right in the midst of Enchanted client Chilli's (TLC) VH1 Reality show "What Chilli Wants". We got right to work! {Be PERSISTANT Ambitious Girls!!!} I truly admire Christal from afar as I watch her juggle her extremely successful business and take care of her family at the same time (she has 2 children).  I've heard so many stories and stigmas about women in entertainment PR of how it can be nearly impossible to raise a family and handle your responsibilities as a PR practitioner at the same time.  Well guess what? Author, entrepreneur,  publicist, event planner, radio show host, talk show host, media trainer, and MOTHER at the same time....she does this. She has received countless awards and recognition for her expertise including the SEA award for Best Music Industry Executive. 13+ years in the game and this Ambitious woman does it WELL!  I have such a positive insight and inspiration to follow my dreams and also have a family now, when some male professors told me it was impossible as a woman and I'd have to plan and choose . Thank You Christal!

 I sure hope all my Ambitious Girls enjoyed and were inspired a bit. =)

There May Be a Reason Why...

One of my all time favorite poems!  I'd read the piece before but I fell in love with it when my good friend used it in her talent while competing in the Miss Black & Gold pageant our freshman year at University of Miami.  I even used it in my own talent when I competed in the Miss Black & Gold pageant at University of Houston after I transferred.  Thanks Tierra! ;)   Some people love it, some hate it, but it just SCREAMS power to me...and you knooow I had to emphasize my favorite part.



Enjoy...Ambitious Girls. =)

Ego Trippin

Nikki Giovanni



I was born in the congo
I walked to the fertile crescent and built
the sphinx
I designed a pyramid so tough that a star
that only glows every one hundred years falls
into the center giving divine perfect light
I am bad

I sat on the throne
drinking nectar with allah
I got hot and sent an ice age to europe
to cool my thirst
My oldest daughter is nefertiti
the tears from my birth pains
created the nile
I am a beautiful woman

I gazed on the forest and burned
out the sahara desert
with a packet of goat's meat
and a change of clothes
I crossed it in two hours
I am a gazelle so swift
so swift you can't catch me

For a birthday present when he was three
I gave my son hannibal an elephant
He gave me rome for mother's day
My strength flows ever on

My son noah built new/ark and
I stood proudly at the helm
as we sailed on a soft summer day
I turned myself into myself and was
jesus
men intone my loving name
All praises All praises
I am the one who would save

I sowed diamonds in my back yard
My bowels deliver uranium
the filings from my fingernails are
semi-precious jewels
On a trip north
I caught a cold and blew
My nose giving oil to the arab world
I am so hip even my errors are correct
I sailed west to reach east and had to round off
the earth as I went
The hair from my head thinned and gold was laid
across three continents

I am so perfect so divine so ethereal so surreal
I cannot be comprehended except by my permission

I mean...I...can fly
like a bird in the sky...

P.S. be patient with me on the features, I've got a GOOD one coming ASAP! ;)

Where There is Woman...There is Magic.

For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow is Enuff  is a choreopoem/stage play originally choreographed to music that explores issues of sexism, racism, poverty, and other similar issues from a black woman’s point of view.  There is a character for each color of the rainbow, and also a lady in brown.  In my opinion, For Colored Girls discusses pertinent issues that black women have dealt with in both past and present, and also issues we will continue to face in the future.  I see the piece as timeless.

When I read it at the age of 20, I felt like I found a little piece of myself in each character’s identity.  It is extremely hard to not feel a connection with one or more of these perfectly imperfect ladies.  From stories of anger and heartbreak, to finding an identity, to coping with harsh realities, there is a story or poem for every woman both young and old.  I read For Colored Girls once all the way through, but I pick it up often and flip to whichever excerpt I feel most closely relates to my mood or reality at that particular time. It never gets old to me.  Read it and you’ll find yourself transforming into Lady in Red or Lady in Blue, or whosoever you choose. They laugh.  They cry.  They Scream. They shout. They dance.  And I do the same when I read sometimes.  It is really that captivating.   The storylines may sound depressing, but the undertone screams beauty, maturity, strength and positivity amidst a harsh reality. Every ambitious girl should read it.  

What I love most is that the women deal with and express emotions so openly in the book that some black women usually suppress behind this facade of toughness, yet the strength in each woman is still evident.

My copy is special to me because like a lot of the books I read, it is a hand me down from one of my parents.  Weathered pages that have turned yellow.  Still in the ancient typewriter font, with my mother’s personal notes and thoughts from when she read it decades ago in the margins.  Copyright 1975.  =)

Unlike my parents, I have never seen the stage play so until I do this is the next best thing.   When I found out that a film adaptation would be made of Ntozake Shang’s For Colored Girls I was excited.   Then I thought twice about the so-called mastermind behind the film, Tyler Perry.  The play explores race, gender, sex, rape, abortion, abandonment and domestic violence all through poetry and very much from a feminist perspective.  Needless to say I was a bit uneasy about a man, especially Tyler Perry taking on this project. To be honest, I feel a certain way about some of his films and plays, and For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow is Enuff definitely explores more complex themes than he usually portrays in his work.  I just can’t get excited about the same characters and predictable plots of angry and bitter professional black women who have everything in the world (degrees, careers, wealth, establishment) besides a man, and who miraculously fall in love with their chauffeur or the mechanic from around the way. Really, Tyler?  Oh…and then there is that gallivanting grandmother who lives up to every negative stereotype known to my race, but I digress.  Please Tyler Perry…don’t mess something so sacred up.

In theatres November 5.  Go see it. But read it first please, Ambitious Girl.

"i found god in myself
and i loved her
i loved her fiercely"
— Ntozake Shange

Go Girl...Ambition....Ambition...

Welcome....to The Ambitious Girl's Blog.  I desire...to inspire...lift women higher.  Be bold. Be fearless.  Your possibilities are endless.

This blog is for the women who are well on their way, taking a step to secure their success everyday. Those that aren't simply knocking on doors, but busting through the walls. The women who truly believe that they will never fall. Those with a purpose and an active plan, the ladies that know intelligence and intellect go hand in hand.

Stay updated and gain insight from features on truly ambitious women. Innovators. Entrepreneurs. CEOs.  Fashion Designers. Writers. Women in Corporate America. Ministers. Politicians. Philanthropists.  Women from all walks of life that share the common trait of extreme ambition. Those that have taken charge of their fate and are excelling in every aspect of life. 

Positive Affirmations.  Insightful Conversations.

First feature coming soon. =)

But in the meantime...I'll leave my ambitious girls with this quote, one of my favorites. ;)

“If a woman is sufficiently ambitious, determined and gifted - there is practically nothing she can't do”-Helen Lawrenson

Signed,

The Ambitious Girl-Iman Garrett-Price