Monthly Archives: August 2016

Posted on by
Reply

the words "Just keep blogging..." in black letters, four times

One of the hardest things about blogging is to keep your blogs going without burning out. We all get busy and weary at times and it can begin to wear us down. The key to blogging is longevity and showing up with content is the challenge. But it’s often like hitting a wall. Maybe your blogs are becoming mundane and you feel that you have no more to say. So why should you bother blogging?

The answer is because there is so much to gain and there is a return on investment. Consider expanding on your ideas and taking them in a new direction. My motivation is to keep things exciting and think of new ways to express myself. This is something I have decided to do with my blogs and it has brought about a whole new level of excitement for me. Don’t try to go it alone; there are so many resources and collaboration that we can utilize.

So how do we continue to encourage ourselves to show up? Just like anything else, if we try, we can keep going.

And don’t worry if your blog is short. Just as long as you keep writing, there will be a return on investment.

Who is BkMSCC?

Posted on by
Reply

Today I spoke with Latywonna Thornton, my board member who is a Co-Founder of Brooklyn Multi-Service Community Center Corp and founder of TKG. She was a teacher of the East New York community and is a parent of a growing child in Ocean Hill. I asked her a few questions about her current initiatives.

five young women in white T-shirts

1. Who are What is BkMSCC?
BKMSCC is a tax exempt 501C3 organization that provides multi-cultural arts, after school programs, summer enrichment, business development, senior citizen services and more to different communities in Brooklyn.

2. What are your goals?
My goals are to help improve the quality in the lives of many community members by offering transporting services to the seniors and children from events, workshops, showcases, seminars, and fundraisers. To also assist people through workshops preparing for job readiness, financial budgeting, social responsibilities, health awareness, environmental cleanliness, and foster togetherness.

3. What is your main focus?
My main focus is to help the organization grow and enhance the lives of community members by creating services and more opportunities for advancement at the Brooklyn Multi-Service Center Corp.

a girl getting her face painted

4. If you can do anything in the world what would you do?
If I could do anything in the world right now I would put a stop to world hunger and homelessness.

5.What community do you service?
I service Brownsville, East New York, And Bushwicka young woman standing by a table covered in non-perishable food

6. I know you are the founded of TKG, an organization with close relations with BKMSCC. Can you tell me about that and their efforts.
Thornton-Kilpatrick & Gold Transportation also known as TKG is a prestigious white glove commuter service that works closely with BKMSCC. TKG’s mission is to provide safe and exceptional door to door transportation for senior citizens, adults and children. It is with honor that we serve our members and customers with high quality satisfaction and commitment. We also offer a prevention of community deterioration program for environmental cleanliness.

7. What events do you have coming up?
Some of our upcoming events this year include August 27th “Back to School Drive, September 10th “Film Screening”, October 15th “How to start a Business”, November 10th”Financial Workshop”.

flyer of a school-supply drive event

8. Where can we find you on social media. You can find us by visiting www.bkmscc.org or Facebook @BkMSCC Instagram & Twitter @BrooklynMSCC. TKG Transportation is on Facebook as well.

The Power of the Avocado

Posted on by
Reply
olympic size pool

Image by: fina1908

This summer has been an extra special one with the help of Summer Olympics. I have always been greatly fond of the summer games that are played during the Olympics. As a child, I struggled a lot with many issues that were caused by the chaos that consumed my childhood. My mother was a single parent, my father had left when I was only two years old so I only have a few memories of him most of which were not positive ones. I was the middle child and I never really felt that I had a place in my family, I was never noticed. I just lived in the shadow of my older sister and in some ways I feel the same way. My mother never really showed much affection, she was never one to say ” I love you” or “I’m proud of you”. She mostly favored my older sister so I never felt significant to this world or to my family, I just blended in.

During my adolescence, my mother had decided that we, my sisters and I, needed to find a hobby or a sport to utilize our free time with and somehow we decided on swimming. Words cannot even begin to describe how much swimming has made an impact on my life, it gave me a reason to live. For a certain extent of my life, it gave me purpose as I had never felt that I had such a calling for something. It defined me and I constantly wanted to be better in every single stroke.

Now as I watch the Olympics and I am reminded of how swimming honestly saved my life. I do not know where I would be without having the ability to swim. Since the Olympics is taking place in Brazil this year. I have been inspired by Brazilian cuisine which is widely influenced by the use of avocados. Brazil uses avocados in both traditional meals and desserts because of its rich texture and delicious flavor.

Below is a recipe for an Avocado Creme Brulee:

Creme Brulee de Abacate

*Serves 4*
Ingredients:
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
2 avocados, peeled, pitted and sliced
Fresh Lemon Juice to taste
1/2 cup sugar for topping
Kitchen Torch
Directions:
1) Place the condensed milk and avocados into a food processor and process until the mixture is a smooth and even consistency.
2) Slowly add the lemon juice to taste.
3) Using a spatula, scrape the mixture into four ramekins, making sure it is nice and flat inside the ramekin. Let them chill for 3-4 hours in the refrigerator.
4) Right before serving, spread a thin layer of sugar evenly over the tops of each one.
5) Ignite your kitchen torch and melt the sugar slowly and evenly. Do this until the layer of sugar browns and begins melting and bubbling.
6) Allow to cool for 2 before serving.
7) Serve and enjoy!

Adapted from Easy Brazilian Recipes

Comment on a moment that changed your life and made your life have purpose. And if you haven’t had that moment yet I want you to understand that life itself has purpose and that you were given this life to live for a reason.

Blogology: Standing out

Posted on by
Reply

Now days every time you open up you computer you’re inundated with blogs and vlogs and everything in between but with so much volume how do you make your work stand out? Well as discussed previously you need to secure things like your theme, posting schedule and word choice but there are other ways to be unique to your readers and potential audience.

Personal Touch

When somebody you know personally reads something from you it’s likely that they notice your style of writing and personal details and appreciate them. Similarly regular readers of your blog will become familiar with your writing and come to enjoy your touches of personality in each post. So even if you’re writing about a familiar subject or a broad topic your personal touches add a new spin and a fresh view.

 

Speak in the first person

When you choose to speak third person or from a distanced point of view the post lacks a personal or real life connection. Writing from a place of experience or sincerity will show and will resonate with readers to hopefully come back for future posts.

 

Cliff Hangers

When you title your posts and write a few sentences about it you should always use descriptive and intriguing language. Make the audience interested enough to read along but don’t give enough away where they wont read the entire post.

Whenever we do something that is the at the moment thing like blogging we strive to be the best and to get recognition for our efforts. It doesn’t happen over night and it takes a fair amount of dedication to do, but it is doable. If you’re committed and passionate about your writing it will show. For more tips and tricks check out my previous blog posts or follow me on twitter!

A Blogging Tip I Want to Share with You

Posted on by
3
a laptop on a desk

Image Credit: Aquila Style

It was about five years ago when I was blogging for a food blogging community known as IReallyLikeFood (currently non existent) where I was on a team with bloggers like The Buzz, but I was specifically on a team of food bloggers and every blogger had their own original and authentic voice, background, and style.

At the start of my internship, I was going through a rough time in my life because my grandpa became ill and passed away two weeks after I started at this internship. I started out as an editorial intern where I was given a project for 2-3 months and I had to write 8 blog posts per week when there’s only seven days a week, but I did it. We also had an internal weekly calendar where each blogger had their own excel sheet and where they can copy + paste the links/topics for each post. Week after week, my stats and views were skyrocketing high to the point where I made the Top Contributor list on numerous occasions.

After I completed 2-3 months of my internship, I met with my manager over coffee where we discussed my evaluation and the progress of my blog posts. She had a couple of questions about my topics/ideas because it seemed like I was a machine of endless, fun, trendy, and cultural blog posts. I blogged about anything from a restaurant experience, Starbucks vs. Dunkin Donuts, my infatuation with Thai food, food photography, my obsession with clams, Chinese food and etc.

My manager was very impressed with how versatile I was and etc. The best blogging tip/words of wisdom I learned from her was that she told me to ALWAYS remember that I have an endless inspiring figures and inspiration where I can easily be inspired to create a blog post. She said it truly shared in my blog posts because I do share a lot of the dishes that my mom makes and there are instances where I always drive my blog post back to my Chinese and family roots.

If you’re a blogger and your reading this, I want you to ALWAYS  remember that the next blog post is at arms length or at your finger tips. You may not realize it now, but you will. Sometimes the simplest person, event, or things in your life can be the trigger to you creating the next blog post. DON’T be afraid of who or what is in your life and just be inspired by what you have in your life or what has happened in your life. NEVER  forget your biggest supporters, readers, and events in your life and always surround yourself with ideas, inspiration, and keep yourself abreast of what’s going on in your passion.

 

Posted on by
Reply

"Watch your tone." in white letters

Image Credit

By now having read all the blogs about blogging, you probably realize that it’s not just “a walk in the park”. To make it successful, you need to put some thought into it. Even more so if you want to do it for a living. One area that I previously struggled was with the tone of my blogs. Initially, my writing style was stiff. I use to write in a strictly formal way. After all, having spent so many years of writing term papers and professional documents for work, it was what I was used to.

But I realized that people are more likely to listen to a friend talking than a person giving a lecture. It doesn’t matter what the subject is, you can still have a conversational tone that will make your blog more approachable and enjoyable.  Like me, if your blogs are of a professional and career orientated nature, it can still have a conversational tone.

So now I write the way I talk— in a more conversational way that connects with my audience. This way, my blogs are much more approachable. Writing, as if I am talking to someone, makes my message more effective. But if you’re not used to it and this is hard for you, here are a few ways to get better at it:

  1. Record yourself talking to a friend. Explain something to your friend and talk naturally as you normally would. Then listen to your conversation. Did you sound clear or were you confusing?
  1. Use contractions when possible. That means when you can say something in a shorter way, use it. For example, “don’t” instead of “do not” and “or “that’s” instead of “that is”.
  1. Use shorter sentences and paragraphs—something I am always trying to remember. Break up your sentences by using commas, semicolons and ellipses instead of being redundant.
  1. Start sentences with “and”, “but”, or “So”. It’s perfectly correct to do so.  Starting a sentence with “and” or “but” lets that sentence stand out from the others while still carrying over the thought from a previous sentence.
  1. Lastly, use common words. Yes, my blogs are about professional development but it doesn’t mean I can’t make things as simple as possible for my readers.

Conclusion

There’s much more I could say but I don’t want to overwhelm you. So don’t panic. Practice and you will get it just right.

The Purpose of Social Monitoring

Posted on by
Reply
a series of logos for social media platforms

Image by: Sean MacEntee

Depending on the blogger, one of the easiest and most difficult things about blogging is creating your blog. Unfortunately, this is a contradicting choice because it can be difficult to have the courage to start a blog and be comfortable with sharing your thoughts for the internet world to view at their own leisure. For those of you who are struggling with this dilemma, I want to encourage you to follow your dreams, blogging in its many forms is the most enjoyable experience I have ever had in my life. It has allowed me to have a greater acceptance of myself and I have learned a lot about who I am. Whether if you are choosing to start blogging through written posts, photographs, or videos; each and every form of blogging can captivate an audience to relate to your life experiences. So if you have been wondering and wanting to blog for a long time, I would suggest that you give it a chance and take a leap of faith. Blogging is extremely fulfilling in that it shares moments in life that were either positive or negative to benefit every reader, watcher, or listener.

But for those of you that have already chosen to start blogging, it begs the question of “what comes next?” while starting the blog could’ve been the easiest part the upkeep can be the most difficult as you have to make sure that your blog stays relevant for readers to continue reading. However, there is a very important detail that I have left out … how do you attract readers in the first place. The answer is simple, aside from utilizing your social media to constantly alert your readers of when you upload a new post, social monitoring enables you to understand what readers are interested in. Social monitoring helps you as a blogger gain the knowledge of seeing what are the trending topics as well as the insights of your possible readers by zeroing in on their interests. There are many free or low-cost options to be able to do social monitoring effectively. It allows to listen in to what others are posting about in social media, various blog posts, or public forums. You can easily see what others are conversating about on the internet to guide you in what to talk about in future posts or to just gain a perspective on the audience’s interests.

So with the use of this information, I hope it helps to encourage you to post in the future and will help you be successful. Good Luck and Happy Blogging!

Blogology 101: Open new doors with your words

Posted on by
1

As a writer, and especially as a blogger, your words will be seen by dozens of eyes and evoke positive or negative reactions. If you have a knack or a love for writing as I do you want your words to be able to speak over the chatter of others and make a difference. You want to be heard. So how do you do that? Well besides having a gift you need to pay close attention to your word choice and over and under tones. A writer’s choice of words and overall vocabulary is huge in how a reader will relate to and enjoy the piece as a whole so it’s important to expand your reach with words. Think about times when you hear prominent figures speak or read things they’ve written, it’s easy to pull memorable quotes and points from it because it is so strongly written. Here are a few ways you can beef up your own vocabulary,

Read, read READ!

Reading is an excellent way to expand your word bank. Try and pick up things you wouldn’t typically go for like picking up the Wall Street Journal over the post and instead of reading ABC online read CNN or fox. The larger the publication and the topic the more likely you are to encounter new vocabulary words.

Befriend a thesaurus

Growing up we all learned what a thesaurus was and how to use it but how many of us actually still do? Another way to boost up your word bank is to write an entire blog post and then go back and read it over selecting five or six words you can swap out for another word that will explain it better.

Relearn your skills

This may sound silly but it works. Take up a new understanding of something you’ve become familiar with and relearn how it works. Doing this will help you explain things in a new light and with new words. Being able to explain things in multiple ways makes your vocabulary stronger too.

Overall your choice of words can make or break your piece. If a piece is too choppy or the vocabulary is too loose it makes it hard to read. Think about the things you dislike when you’re reading something and make points to avoid them. Effort in your writing shows and readers will appreciate it, so making your vocabulary bank wealthier can only benefit you.