Start with Hope, Grow with Action - Some of My Favorite Resources for Life + Business

I remember being Full of Hope in that moment.

It was an early Sunday morning in Newport Beach, California, September 2018. I walked down to the shore to watch the sunrise and journal some thoughts that were spinning in my head before I had to catch a flight back to New Orleans. My sweet new friend and branding photographer, Angie McPherson, was admiring the morning too. She offered to capture this moment for me and I'm so glad she did.

She and I had officially met just days before as we attended an event put on by our mentor Jasmine Star. We were honored to be selected by Jasmine along with 8 other entrepreneurs for what she called a “Brand Builder” workshop.

In the course of a day, she walked us through a step by step process of how to build and grow our brands online.

At the time, my jewelry line hadn’t even launched yet. I was scared that there were too many things to learn and do before I could officially launch. I was letting fear slow me down. And honestly, I felt like a fraud as I sat among all of these women who were years into their businesses.

That feeling lifted pretty fast as these amazing women shared that they didn’t have everything figured out either… and neither did Jasmine. It’s easy to assume that others have it all figured out from the very beginning but the truth is no one does. We all need each other’s support and guidance to navigate not just business but life.

As I sat across from Jasmine at lunch, I think she could sense that I was overwhelmed. She looked at me with her kind eyes and gave me the simplest advice that immediately put me at ease. She told me to focus on the launch and everything else would come in time. She reassured me that I didn’t have to have everything figured out perfectly. 

She instructed me to use the plane ride home to list all the things that needed to happen to actually launch my brand and anything that didn’t have to do with the launch would need to wait.

By simply letting me know that it’s ok to not have everything figured out and pushing me to focus on actionable steps to get my jewelry out into the world, she gave me hope!

“Hope for the future is power in the present.”  - John Maxwell

That hope fueled my fire to focus! From that point on I had one mission:

Launch. The. Dang. Business! 

In exactly one month, I officially launched my jewelry brand!

It’s been just over a year now and do I have every detail figured out? No. But boy have I learned a lot in the past year. The thing that is most amazing is that I’m learning a lot from women who are building their dreams too. Women who have shared resources and insight. I’ve never felt so encouraged and supported.

I’m so happy that I didn’t let fear stop me from pursuing this dream of mine.

I know you may have a dream too!! It may seem like a big audacious lofty pipe dream. You may even be scared to tell people about it because of what they might think.

I know because I felt that way too.

I can tell you that, your future will be as big and bright as you make it. The key is harnessing the power from the hope you see for your future self. The hope in the impact you can make in your family and in your community.

You don't have to have it all figured out to start. In fact, if we waited until we had it all figured out no one would start a business, run a marathon, become a teacher. We would all just be waiting instead of living.

So if you have a big dream here is your reminder. The same reminder I needed. Have Hope, but Take action!

It doesn’t have to be perfect... it never will be. But the journey... there’s magic in the journey.

I can’t wait to see what you create!!

In the spirit of sharing like so many women have done for me… Here are a few of my favorite resources that can jump-start your dream life and career. 

1. If you need tools to help you formulate a road map to your dream check out the book Girl Stop Apologizing from Rachel Hollis. She lays out a great process to get you from here to there. Basically, All Things Rachel Hollis and Hollis Co. are setting my heart on fire this year!
2. If your dream includes a business that will have an online presence definitely check out Jasmine Star. She is a branding guru and an all-out awesome human being!! She has great free resources on her website. Check it out!
3. Another great tool for your business would be Karen Jayne Blattenbauer’s How To Be A Media Darling book on handling your own Public Relations.
4. One resource I use daily for my life and business is Corie Clark’s Purposeful Planner. This is a very intentional planner that will keep you organized, prepared and productive as you crush your goals. Corie is kindly offering 10% off for my friends! Go to corieclarkshop.com and Use the code: Crystalyn
5. The only way we can do any of this is if we take care of ourselves first! So I’m excited about this new book called No-Brainer. My Friend Amber Langley Gill provides Simple Hacks to Increase Energy, Improve productivity and Reduce brain fog.
6. One of my current favorite podcasts: Our Money Life by Janine and Ryan Mix These two are insightful and witty and really break finance in a way that’s easy to understand.

I sure hope you enjoy these resources as much as I have.

Cheers to Hope and Action! Here we come 2020