By: Alexandria Traylor| baesandbombshells.com
As you may know, BAES is an acronym for Building An Empire Strategically. Here around Baes & Bombshells, I may say build you empire a million and five times. It does not help you to build if you don’t even know how to get started. Your empire can literally be anything that you aspire to do or be, your passion project, a purpose filled dream that you have set out to accomplish. Your empire can be starting your own non-profit, your small business, your online boutique, your beauty lounge, or simply being the best in your chosen career field. I am here to tell you to just start. If you need to research schools that off post graduate degrees, do it today. If you need to submit certain documentation for your non-profit organization to be tax-exempt, do it today. If you need to email someone to make a bridge towards networking, do it today. Take the leap, after you read this article of course!
1.Trash the Habit of Comparison
Step one to begin building your empire is to trash all forms of comparison. Take an inventory of the sources of your comparison. What influences you to say “I want that”, “I wish I was at that place in my life”, “why couldn’t I be like xyz”? Even if these statements aren’t this blatant, I am positive we have all thought this way. My source of comparison was simple, social media. I took a break from Snapchat for about a month, and now all of my social media app notifications are turned off on my phone. This has allowed me to focus on the life that I am building and create my own value system not based on what society and pop culture has broadcasted. You are enough. This is a mantra that I often recite to myself time and time again. Major Key Alert (DJ Khaled voice), begin exactly where you are! Carefully plan your start then, just go for it. Stop attempting to make excuses for why you cannot begin tomorrow, today, or even right now. Excuses are invalid here. When you happen to glance over and see someone else doing the same thing, don’t allow that to disqualify what you can build with your own experience. Your expertise is in your experience. While listening to a MyTaughtMe Podcast (LINK) with Myleik Teele and Necole of XONecole.com (LINK), the duo emphasized others don’t often willingly broadcast their mistakes or blunders. What we see is the highlight reel. When you think about that fact, it makes comparison sound absolutely absurd. You are comparing your pitfalls, your conundrums, and your valleys to all of someone else’s high points, their “mama I made it” moments. It just doesn’t make sense. Let the Jones’s be the Jones’s while you do you!
2.Take the Risk!
You are worth it. You will never have more passion or enthusiasm than you do right now in this moment. Your empire begins with you being brave enough to take the risk. Believe in your own innate abilities. Don’t worry about will someone else believe in what you are attempting to do. Those that are meant to receive what you have to give will connect with you. Second guessing yourself will have you looking over the peak before you decide to take the leap. In bungee jumping, the instructor asks you to look straight ahead. From where you are, you are able to see the beauty of the summit and fully participate in all of the sights, sounds, and feelings. If you look down, at the height or the risk, your thoughts will cloud your mind with the fear of “what ifs”. After taking the leap, it is true that the wind of opposition will be in your face. It also rings true that you will experience a feeling of pure excitement and joy. Usually when you go for it, the results are better than you imagined. After the jump concludes, you won’t regret it! The resources that you currently have are enough to take the plunge. Finesse what you have. We tend to over analyze the outcome when fear mounts. Think about where you would be now if you began despite your fears. Our faith increase is built within the risk. After you map out your plan, calculate the risks. Invest in proven products, methods, and mindsets. You owe it to yourself to commit to the risk.
3.Commit to Completion
When you commit to the risk, be sure to have the end goal in mind. Stephen Covey says to, “begin with the end in mind” in the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (LINK). Commit to doing the work because your will never reach the completion of your empire without putting in the proper amount of work. In the process of outlining your game plan, build in reminders of why you began in the first place in order to keep you inspired to your commitment. The reminders can literally take any form. Figure out what you need to do to tie those loose ends and create a check list for yourself. On this check list, ensure that you are as detailed as possible. Draft everything that you possibly need and figure that ish out! If you find yourself facing a stumbling block, strategically figure a way out of it. When I say strategize, I mean take the time out to formulate a plan of escape before the obstacle appears. For example, I batch write all of my blog posts. This way if I am sick or something happens in my personal life, my content will still be popping! In your determination to reach the end goal, you will be committed to figuring everything else out in between. Your accountability and reliability lies within your determination to complete your mission. You will more than likely surprise yourself when you have reached your end goal. You will be proud of how far you came and find out that you now have more steam to plow ahead. In your commitment, you can now take steps to level up and go even further with your passion project. I promise, you will pick up the necessary knowledge en route on your journey.
