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Woman Wednesday: Chanel

February 20, 2019Posted in Uncategorized, womenTagged advice, art, beauty, beauty blog, beauty inside and out, blog, blogger, blogs, business, empowerment blog, entrepreneur, entrepreneur blog, environment, family, fashion, feminism, happy, home, inspiration, inspire, inspire blog, inspiring mom, learning, life, love yourself, makeup, mother blog, motivation, motivational blog, motivational words, next generation, photography, photos, professional photography, real life, self-love, story, support small business, support women, trends, True Life, true story, woman, woman crush wednesday, woman entrepreneur, woman stories, woman story, woman support, woman wednesday, women, women empowerment, women supporting women, women wednesday, womens rights, womens storiesLeave a comment

*Note: Woman Wednesday is a part of our blog. Each Woman Wednesday post will feature a woman who would like to share information in the hopes of inspiring and motivating other women. Comments are welcome below.

Q and A with Chanel, Annapolis, Maryland

“Staying true to yourself is important in any industry. It’s easy for others to laugh or joke or not take you seriously, so try and tune out those voices. No one else is responsible for your happiness or life successes.”

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: I am passionate about empowering women in the form of positive thinking, learning independent lifestyle habits to allow us to not have to fully rely on anyone else, and body positivity. I am currently a lifestyle, boudoir, and wedding photographer. This career allows me to meet so many different people. We have a self-love project going on right now. I also have spent two years working as a distributor for a makeup company, Senegence International. This has opened many doors from opening a team of over 120 ladies all over the USA and helping others learn makeup skills with a cruelty-free brand.

Pictured: Chanel ready to take some amazing photos!

Pictured: Some shots of Chanel promoting self-love.

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Pictured: Photos Chanel took while collaborating with My Lilianas.

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: My younger years were focused around finding myself. I studied early childhood education in college, but I never fully dove in. My passion became photography.

My parents have a huge influence on my life. They’ve encouraged me to make my own path, money, and success since high school. I immediately worked multiple jobs from 15 and up. Savings was my main focus versus spending money on some of the things that friends were. It helped fund the start of multiple businesses. My mom is very much into makeup and helping women find confidence within themselves. She’s constantly showering others with praise. My dad is a businessman who has paved a way of multiple streams of income, hard work, and goal setting.

Pictured: Chanel, her husband, and their three children.

Q: What is something valuable you’ve learned that you’d like others to know?

A: Staying true to yourself is important in any industry. It’s easy for others to laugh or joke or not take you seriously, so try and tune out those voices. No one else is responsible for your happiness or life successes. Making goals and understanding that plans will change is crucial in finding growth. I also feel it’s important for women to make their own money, save some for life-changing events, and invest in themselves and their family. I would love for ladies to learn that you can honestly become anyone you want to be. Whether it’s a teacher, photographer, life coach, makeup artist, or something else entirely.

Pictured: Chanel and her friends, Brittani and Kristin.

Q: What does feminism mean to you?

A: I feel it means not letting others have a hold on you. Feminism means knowing you’re the one in charge of your life’s outcome. One of the hardest things for me to see in relationships and marriages is a male figure seeking dominance over someone based on income or working status. Or when couples separate seeing a female say she has nothing to her own name or has nothing for herself. I hope to one day design a course for ladies in high school and college to help encourage women to protect themselves.

Pictured: Chanel and her daughter.

You can check out the variety of services Chanel provides by clicking here.

Chanel Photography services, click here.

Chanel’s SeneSite, click here.

Chanel & My Lilianas would love to hear from you! Comment below!

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Woman Wednesday: Leire

February 13, 2019February 18, 2019Posted in Uncategorized, womenTagged advice, appreciation, art, Basque, Basque Country, blog, Blog around the world, blog stories, blogger, bloggers, blogs, brand with purpose, cool, environment, Espana, Espanol, family, feminism, girl, gymnastics, happy, home, inspiration, inspire, inspiring story, learning, life, my lilianas, photography, photos, real girl, role model, role model for girls, role models, spain, story, travel, trends, True Life, true stories, woman, woman blog, women, women blog, women wednesday, worldLeave a comment

Q and A with Leire H., Barcelona, Spain (originally from Bilbao, Spain)

“Time has made me realize that it is good to try to be the best you can be and give the very best you can, but failure is permitted. And it is failure that made me learn many times.”

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: I try to be passionate about everything I do. I work in Barcelona, Spain, as a human resources recruiter for a Dutch company. I like working with people because I think it is very enriching. There is a quote I love that says, “I learned more of what I know from people than from books.” Very similar to that, I love psychology. I always try to understand why people behave, feel, and think as they do. Apart from that, my real passion is aviation and traveling. My last trip was to Canada last summer, and I am already planning this year’s trips: France and Malaysia!

I am lucky to have an amazing family who loved and supported me more than anybody did and will ever do. My parents were also very strict with me and my studies especially. I remember my childhood as a very happy period, though, and I am convinced that I am who I am today because of them.

Q: What is something valuable you’ve learned that you’d like others to know?

A: I have learned to enjoy every moment. I wish I could go back to my 16-year-old self and tell her that nothing in life is as important as you think it is when you think about it. Everything in life moves on and changes, and everything is about different stages.

Also, I have always been very self-demanding, and that leads to many frustrations that spawn from me trying to be perfect in all aspects. I used to practice rhythmic gymnastics, which is an extremely hard sport. Time has made me realize that it is good to try to be the best you can be and give the very best you can, but failure is permitted. And it is failure that made me learn many times. I would also recommend everybody to enjoy every moment in life. We tend to look for happiness in our “ideal” world, leaving aside the moments that shape actual happiness.

Q: What does feminism mean to you?

A: For me, feminism is simply the equality of women and men. I think there has been a misconception by a small part of society, who thinks that feminism means hating men and defending women are superior to men. I think they are doing no favor to real feminism. It is much simpler than that: We are all human beings.

However, if we [women] are as intelligent, capable, and empowered as men, why can’t we qualify for the same work position in every part of the world? Why do we have to walk afraid when we go back home alone in the night? Education (not only at school, but at home) should have an essential role in achieving equality but unfortunately, we are far from that. I hope we see change in the near future.

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Woman Wednesday: Jen

December 26, 2018Posted in Uncategorized, womenTagged advice, animals, blog, blogs, book, brand, business, cats, college, comfort, constant learning, cool, dogs, dreams, education, educational, environment, family, fashion, feminism, for women, friendship, future, happy, home, inspiration, job, learning, life, life lessons, mass media, memories, money, motivation, people, photography, reading, search engine optimization, SEO, shorts, stories, story, teaching, tech, technology, tips, travel, trends, true stories, university, womenLeave a comment

Q and A with Jen, Green Bay, Wisconsin

“You can do what you set your mind to. Everything takes work, and learning is a constant part of life. If your dream is to one day own a business that makes money, you need to make sure you have all the skills and knowledge to make that happen.”

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: In a few words, my passions are my family (including my collies and cat), my business, and flyball. I own Candy Social Media. I am a digital marketer helping real estate agents and mortgage brokers generate exclusive prequalified leads. I also offer social media management, social media strategy, and social media marketing and consulting. My main focus, however, is on generating leads for real estate agents.

I found this passion when I realized that my previous passion for technology simply wasn’t there anymore. I felt the fire burning out. Back in 2003, I was overwhelmed with technology, and I was excited to help people. I finished my degree in network security from the local technical college. I was president of the computer science club there for two years while attending college. I really enjoyed being in charge of the club, and I enjoyed the extra responsibilities involved of being president. I moved on to get my bachelor’s degree in business management. I enjoyed learning about business management. I yearned to be in front of technology. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it and learn more about it. From 2007, I have worked in the technology field in various roles from being level 1 support to network administrator. All of these required some sort of certification requiring me to renew it every three years. As if spending 10k on my education wasn’t enough, Corporate America wanted me to spend another $500 to $10,000 dollars to show that I know my stuff.

Pictured: Jen and her collie, Candy.

I was tired of not being recognized for my knowledge and education that I worked hard for. I wasn’t able to move up in management positions because of my lack of certification. One day, the job that I enjoyed required the support team to learn to programme of C++ or C#. I knew that it was too detailed for me to do. I quit my job and decided that I wanted to work for myself. I wanted a career change.

I saw this 9-5 killer ad on Facebook. I signed up for the webinar. I didn’t have the money to pay for the course, but I talked with other people who joined the course. It changed their lives, and they were able to make a living. The business involved creating websites that focused on Search Engine Optimization (SEO). SEO is difficult to keep up with because of the fact that almost every second, it’s changing. By the time I finally knew what I was doing, something new came out. I tried that for about 6 months. It didn’t work out. I went back to work for someone else at a college. The people there showed me that I didn’t have a passion for helping people in technology. I was reminded that I didn’t want to work for someone else. I wanted to make myself money; I did not want to make money for someone else. I saw another ad for a social media manager. People pay you to play on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, et cetera. I spent the last year learning about how to engage, the software required, the content required, et cetera. This is all great, but you aren’t making money from your knowledge. It’s an expensive hobby. From there, I signed up for one more class of how to prospect your clients and reaching out to our potential clients. Then I jumped in!

Up until about October, I was friends with a digital marketer who was looking for different people to complete his challenges. I signed up for his challenge and immediately was blown away. The first thing I learned was sales. I learned about how to get the clients. And from October, I have been able to gain the knowledge and confidence for me to put myself out there connecting with real estate agents and mortgage brokers. I was too scared to reach out to clients. I thought if I friended them on Facebook and made nice with them and offering them advice about social media, they will ask me to be their social media manager. Nope. This isn’t the way things work. You have to put yourself out there constantly to make yourself known. I have reached out more to potential clients in the past three days than I have in the past year.

Outside of business, I am passionate about health and pets! I have three collies and one cat. My company is named after my dog, Candy. Candy is a 14-month-old border collie who gets to travel the country with me (attending flyball seminars and tournaments). Flyball is the past time passion that I enjoy doing when I am not working. It’s something that makes me happy. I was able to train Candy from my past experience training with Gunner. Gunner is a 2-year-old border collie who knows flyball, but he seems to have a jock mentality [laughs].

Q: How has your past experience shaped you?

A: All of my past experiences and education and personality really helped to develop who I am today. The motivation and ambition have to be there every day. Also, never let your disability get in the way of your dreams! I have a stuttering disability and rather than hiding behind it, I use it to my advantage to work harder! I am sacrificing time being spent on training my dogs and time with my boyfriend, but in the end, I am putting time into my company, which means that I am putting time into myself. I am finally living the life that I want to without having to worry about paying those bills or worrying about my cell phone bill being cut off! And it’s nice knowing that if I need an extra day off, I don’t have to call my boss hoping that she or he will give me the time off.

Q: What would you like others to learn from your story?

A: You can do what you set your mind to. Everything takes work, and learning is a constant part of life. If your dream is to one day own a business that makes money, you need to make sure you have all the skills and knowledge needed to make that happen. If you would like to do what I do, you will also need the right software. It is also important to have the capital to put into your business. I worked a part-time job to have money to put into my business.

Also, always make time for those who matter in your life.

Happy Holidays from my family to yours!

Join Jen’s Social Women Group! Click here!

Click here to check out Candy Social Media.

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Woman Wednesday: Leilani & The Little Things

December 19, 2018December 19, 2018Posted in Uncategorized, womenTagged advice, author, blogger, book, books, business, cool, empowering, environment, family, feminism, growth mindset, happiness, happy, home, how to publish, inspiration, inspiring, job, learning, life, mindset, people, photography, photos, positiivity, positive, positive mindset, role model, self publishing, spread smiles, stories, trends, womenLeave a comment

“I wrote this book about the little things. These are the little things in life we look over day by day, although they are always there. These are the little things that got me through the storm. These are the little things I want to share with you to cheer you up when you need a friend or when you need a reminder or a little sprinkle of sunshine. If we learn to see the world differently, our days may be a little brighter. If we learn to see the good, the world becomes a better place to live.” –Leilani Romero, author of “The Little Things”

The holidays are right around the corner! Although it’s all very exciting, it can also be stressful. Sometimes, we just need to remind ourselves of the little things in life.

You may remember Leilani Romero from one of our first Woman Wednesdays! We invited her back to discuss her book (which is now published), the self-publishing process (how to publish a book), and what motivated her to create and publish this book called, “The Little Things.”

Also, we get to see a sneak peek inside her book that is exclusively being shown here (and here only)! Keep reading for more:

Pictured: Lemons in watercolor by Leilani Romero (a sneak peek inside “The Little Things”).

Q: What is “The Little Things“?

A: “The Little Things” is a collection of happy things in one book! It is a yellow pocket of all things good, and it is a reminder of happy. This little book will lift your spirits, brighten your day, cheer up your soul, and encourage kindness. With the power of positivity, the world can change… I believe, one smile at a time. Meditate on these things, and good will come.

Q: What is the self-publishing process like?

A: For those who have always wondered how the book publishing process works, it isn’t as difficult as it may seem! I have always said I wanted to publish one day, but I wasn’t sure how it would all go. Like all big projects, you have to take it one step at a time. Here are the steps that I have taken:

Write and illustrate – Get all your ideas out there (the good and bad). As for illustrations, I created those by hand using watercolors and then scanned them in to digitize.

Edit – Find a good editor who will understand your vision and trust the process. I am lucky enough to have an amazing brother (who is also a published writer) to edit my book!

Find a printer – There are so many printers to choose from these days and not all force you to print in bulk. These days, some vendors will also handle the printing (ex. Amazon or Blurb)!

Get an ISBN – Depending on the printer, this process might be included with the vendor, or you can independently purchase the ISBN on your own.

Design the book by page and format – As a designer, I designed my own in Adobe In Design, but some printers can handle the PDF creation process for you!

Print the darn thing!

Launch on a jump-starting platform – I decided to have my 30-day campaign on Indiegogo, but there are quite a few others, such as Kickstarter!

Apply to sell your book in stores, local shops, and online.

I hope this helps anyone who is interested in or considering the self-publishing route!

Pictured: “The Little Things” exclusive “sneak peek” of what can be found inside.

Q: Why did you write this book?

A: A few years back, I was seriously struggling in the world. With creativity comes frustration, self-criticism, and heartbreak. Behind all the glitter-covered castles I built, were often anxious times that included 3:00 AM tears pouring down (that hard work and dedication brought along with them). Without these, there would be no success, growth, or marvelous magic. Fittingly so, I created this book at the end of college, not only as a project but as a suitable end to an era. In life, there’s good little things and bad little things. And these can pile up. These good little things may be some that are taken for granted. Truth be told, in life, we never know what others are going through. I, for one, am a bubbly soul by nature, and because of this, I have often times felt the expectation or burden to always appear so. The reality is that we all have our good days and gray ones too. And that’s okay.

I wrote this book about the little things. This book is about the little things in life we look over day by day, although they are always there. These are the little things that got me through the storm. These are the little things I want to share with you. To cheer you up when you need a friend or when you need a reminder or a little sprinkle of sunshine. The good is so much bigger than the bad.

I took great care to hand paint and illustrate and write all 64 pages. 64 pages of beauty, 64 pages of good. These are pages created to promote mindfulness and good mental health. These pages are meant to remind you of the small parts of your day that can make a huge difference in your quality of life –the genuine and the wonderful. These pages, I created, with the purpose of making others happy.

If we learn to see the world differently, our days may be a little brighter. If we learn to see the good, the world becomes a better place to live.

Pictured: Sunflower watercolor painting, a sneak peek inside “The Little Things,” by Leilani Romero.

Q: What would you like others to learn from your story?

A: Our day-to-day lives are full of little things. Unfortunately, research and personal experience have shown that we tend to fixate on the negatives and brush small positivities to the side.

My goal when hand-painting and writing this 64-page book was to collect reminders of all the little soul-filling, uplifting, and encouraging moments – the little things – that we may take for granted. Whether you turn to any page or flip through over time, “The Little Things” makes the perfect bedside or coffee table book to pick up throughout the day. Once I have enough funding, I will be able to get this book into local stores and online shops (like Barnes & Noble). A successful first book will allow me to continue to write new books and pursue my dreams of illustration.

Pictured: “The Little Things” exclusive “sneak peek” of what can be found inside.

There are only a few days left of Leilani’s Indiegogo book sale!

To purchase a copy of “The Little Things,” click here.

To follow Leilani’s blog, click here.

Leilani & My Lilianas would love to hear from you! Comment below!

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Woman Wednesday: Kristin

December 12, 2018December 12, 2018Posted in Uncategorized, womenTagged advice, blog, blogger, blogs, book, business, by women, by women for women, college, comfort, cool, dreams, education, educational, environment, family, fashion blog, fashion blogger, fashion diary, fashion journal, feminism, for women, friendship, future, happy, home, inspiration, job, life, life lessons, mass media, memories, money, motivation, movies, people, photography, photos, reading, shorts, stories, story, teaching, tips, travel, true stories, tv, woman blog, woman crush, woman crush wednesday, women, women bloggers, women crush, women crush wednesday, women empowering women, women empowerment, women empowerment blog, women empowerment bloggerLeave a comment

Q and A with Kristin, Blogger of The Tiny Red Tornado, Annapolis, Maryland

“There will always be so many outside opinions of people that think they know better or think they know you, but nobody knows you better than you. Also, nobody knows your vision better than you! Trust in yourself.”

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: This is a tough question; I have so many passions! My two biggest passions are women’s empowerment and art. My mom is a fiercely independent person, and my dad has always allowed her the freedom to be that. Throughout my entire life, I have appreciated that my parents were very clear that I could do whatever I set my mind to as long as I worked hard. They made it even more clear that I could do it by myself. Although my mother was super great at the encouragement part, she was not so great when it came to fashion choices. This one outfit always sticks out in my head; it consisted of purple corduroy pants and a white turtleneck with poodles all over it. It was, and it still is, 100% the most hideous outfit ever known to humankind. I am convinced that outfit is the reason I am so deeply passionate about art, more specifically, the beauty and fashion industry.

Right now, I am a store manager of an ALDO shoe store by day and a lifestyle blogger at The Tiny Red Tornado by night. It is the holiday season in retail; a lot of my time is spent at my store. In regards to my blog, I am currently working on a body positivity series centered around women’s empowerment and self-love. This is very special to me because all women of all sizes have felt some sort of discomfort in their own skin for various reasons. It is my hope that we can all come together on this one issue and show the world that there is more to women than the outward appearance. We are CEOs and mothers. We are hardcore businesswomen, and at the same time, we can be guests at a stuffed animal tea party. We play with the big dogs, and we play with Thomas the Tank Engine. We watch Ted Talks and we watch Mickey Mouse Playhouse. Full disclosure, I am not a mom. I am an aunt to a wonderful ginger dude. My mom is a working mom, my sister is a working mom, and I am a working aunt. There are days I babysit all day long, and I am typing up things for my blog while watching Moana on repeat and pushing toy trucks around the floor. We can do it all, and we should love ourselves while we do it!

Q: What is something valuable you’ve learned that you’d like others to know?

A: Trust yourself. You know what is best for you and for your passion, whatever that may be. There will always be so many outside opinions of people that think they know better or think they know you, but nobody knows you better than you. Also, nobody knows your vision better than you!

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: My younger years! Oh gosh, I loved my childhood! I don’t have any sad stories that shaped me or brought me to my passion. I have two very loving parents that let a small girl dream big and supported her through that. I also grew up with two super cool sisters that were my built-in best friends. My parents helped me pay for a summer program when I was in high school at the fashion school I later attended! I did a fashion merchandising and design program for high schoolers at VCU Arts, and it was genuinely life-changing. I was obsessed with the school, with the city, and with the education. I had always wanted to go to fashion school after high school, but my very practical dad could not see how that would support me in life, and he viewed it more as a hobby. Long story short, I applied to VCU Arts, and I was accepted and off to fashion school. I went with my dad cheering me on every step of the way! Honestly, my parents and my sisters are my biggest supporters. My little sister has always looked up to me (even though physically she looks down because I am the shortest of all three of us). We have always been close. Most of the time, she is the person I hang out with. My older sister has always been an old soul, so a lot of times she would act as a mother to me. She is the one I have had my definite ups and downs with throughout life, but I think it is because we are way more similar than we would like to admit. I would never admit this to her face, but I admire her. She made a life plan for herself at age three, and she fulfilled everything she set out to do. I have issues sticking to a diet, and she has never missed a step!

Similar to my older sister and I, my mom and I have not always seen eye to eye. We found our footing around the time I turned 21, and for that, I am forever grateful. We have a lot in common that I didn’t always realize. Some of it great and some of it not so great, but weirdly the not so great stuff bonds us in a way that only we understand. My dad is the person I get my personality from. My childhood was amazing, and I have many things that have shaped me into who I am today, but nothing more than my dad. He taught me the value of a dollar, the value of hard work, and the value of myself. My family and I found out that my dad is battling Melanoma. I would say that this is the biggest thing that has shaped me because it puts life into a whole new perspective. My passions are still the same, but now they mean even more to me because my dad has always supported them even when he may not have understood. I work hard for myself because I have dreamed since I was a little girl to build a business doing something I love, but also to do something meaningful that helps others. I work hard for my dad and for my family because life is short and they believe in me. Even on my days when I am exhausted and ready to fall asleep at my computer, I keep typing because my support system is downstairs cheering me on.

Q: What would you like others to learn from your story?

A: If there is only one thing you gain from my story, then I hope you learn that you can do whatever you want to do as long as you work hard and keep a solid support system while doing it! Secondly, you can fall in love and have a family, but still be a feminist.

Photography by: Chanel Photography

Q: What does feminism mean to you?

A: This is my favorite question! I am a pretty hardcore feminist! I get so angry when people frown upon feminism or call women who identify themselves as a feminist, “man-haters.” I don’t hate men. I do not run around screaming that women are superior to men, and I certainly don’t demand things that I haven’t worked hard for and are well deserved. I define feminism as someone who believes in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes. We are equals. One is not superior to the other. I am a feminist because I believe that women are members of society that deserve a voice, and that voice deserves to be heard. We are strong, courageous, capable, and intelligent. Feminism is being independent and loving yourself for that. It is believing in yourself that you can do it all on your own and then doing it! Feminism is empowering and supporting other women.