MY GO TO SCRIPTURES

Do you have days when you need something to increase your mood? I do from time to time. Here are some of my favorite scriptures that help me maintain my sanity when I need it most:

1. "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future". Jeremiah 29:11
2. "Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord". Psalm 27:14
3. "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind". 2 Timothy 1:7
4. "I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry". Psalm 40:1 
5. "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world". 1 John 4:4

During my darkest and saddest days, the days when I was young and trying to find a future in this country, Psalm 40 carried me through. 

One Love

Danni

MY LOVE LANGUAGE LESSON

Today I contemplated the concept of love languages and it dawned on me that many of my struggles in relationships is the expectation that I have of others. I often find myself expecting the other person to display their love towards me the way I display mine. Looking back now, I missed the other person's display of love. For example my husband loves when I hug him but I am not the hugging type and instead would prefer a long conversation with him either in person or on the phone. I had to learn to hug him more and without request and he has learned to chat with me every morning while we're commuting separately to work.

One of the most important lessons I've learned is to take time to learn and appreciate the love languages of my loved ones. And also when I show them appreciation using their love language they usually return the favor in my love language. 

One Love

Danni

FIGHTING FOR THOSE MOMENTS

My oldest daughter requested that I lie next to her in bed as she fell asleep. I did think of saying no, which I am sure she would understand. But instead I hugged her until she fell asleep. It's those tiny moments, those little things, that makes life precious. 

I encourage you today to fight for those moments. Work will always be work, and the mundane things that we value as important will always be there. Those precious times with our loved ones, are the moments we never get to repeat, we can have similar experiences, but it's never the same. Determine what those precious, irreplaceable moments are and FIGHT for them.

One Love

Danni

ALL THAT YOU NEED YOU GOT

Have you ever seen the progress of someone and say to yourself, "if only I had those opportunities I would have been as successfully". Or maybe you say to yourself,  "if God would just grant me this one blessing,  I would make the most of it". Well you are not alone in those thoughts and feelings.  

Here are a few action items to move you closer to your purpose.  

• First pray for alignment with God's will and purpose for your life. 
• Remember that all the tools you need you already possess.  
• Assess your current skills, talents and opportunities and maximize on them. 
• Work on determining who you want to become in this season.  Grow from what you go through.
• Pray and ask God for guidance. 

One Love

Danni

LIFE LESSONS FROM SHELLY-ANN FRASER PRYCE

A few weeks ago I watched a video of Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce at her son's elementary school's field (sports) day. If you don't know who Shelly Ann is, she a track superstar,  Olympic champion, world champion and one of the fastest women in the world.  At this particular event parents were asked to compete against each other in a 100m track race. Shelly Ann competed and of course she won. I found it interesting that she would even compete. But it got me thinking and here are the lessons I learned from that event. 

1. Boldly show your greatness regardless of who is at the table. Never make yourself seem small to please others. Shelly Ann never held back, even in a small friendly competition, she ran with her all as if she was on the world stage. 
2. Rise to the challenge, never back down, even when competing with someone who is considered greater than you. The moms who took on the challenge to race with Shelly Ann knew exactly what she brought to the table but they competed anyway. 
3. Always chase greatness. As these women ran they knew the bar was high and that motivated them to put their all into the competition. It is so important to surround yourself with greatness and to set the bar high for your accomplishments. 
4. Don't look back, stay focused, keep moving forward, you may just run your personal best. 

One Love

Danni

ELIMINATING NEGATIVE HABITS

 

It's not always easy to break free from those habits that hold us hostage. We sometimes self sabotage, we break our promises, we step back into cycles that do not serve us and in the end we feel unhappy, broken and guilty.  

Here are some steps I have taken to break free of some negative habits:

1. Being very clear on why I believe this habit is not serving me anymore. 
2. Thinking about the way I feel after engaging in this activity. 
3. Having a clearly defined goal. It's all about that goal and also having it written on paper. 
4. After determining the goal determine the steps needed to accomplish that goal. 
5. Removing myself from situations and scenarios that will promote that activity. 

Break free from those habits that hold is hostage. 

One Love

Danni

WAITING FOR THE BIG WIN

I am a big picture person, I will tell you the vision and you will figure out the details. My hubby will tell you how we argue from time to time about me not wanting to listen to the details of a story. I am always in a rush to get to the end. 

We live in a world where we want instant gratification. We are always desiring to have our wants and needs met instantly. However, there are times we have no other option but to wait. 

Our dreams and aspirations are no different.  Goals are rarely achieved quickly.  Success is not defined by the win,  although society makes it seem that way,  it is defined by the process leading up to the win.  Every great athlete will tell you that the unseen hours of practice and preparation is what made them great.  

One Love

Danni

FIGHTING FAIR WITH YOUR SPOUSE

When you are in a partnership with someone conflicts and disagreements are inevitable. Some people, myself included, hate conflict but is not afraid of it. However, I believe there is a science to fighting and resolving conflict that is more constructive and can help us grow. Here are some tips that I have used that have helped me to fight fairly. 

1. Taking a step back and determining the real reason for the argument. Is it the current issue being discussed or other things in the past leading up to that moment? Once that is understood I can determine the best way to address the situation. 

2. Not being afraid of apologizing when I am wrong. Sometimes I have to let that ego go.

3. Understanding that life and death is in the power of the tongue and I cannot take back my words. 

4. Choosing my responses versus reacting to my spouses behavior or words. 

5. Seeking to understand and spending time listening versus aggressively trying to get my point across. 

6. The biggest thing for me personally, is understanding the danger of using my words specifically to inflict pain. We both have the power to shred each other with our words. And if it were to go there it would inflict more pain versus resolving a problem. Once you begin fighting with a desire to hurt someone they now have your permission to retaliate. That to me is no way to solve a situation.

One Love

Danni

LESSONS LEARNED AS A MOM

Motherhood is an amazing gift that God has blessed me with. My husband and I can spend hours talking about all the cute little things our kids say and do. But as any mom knows, being a parent at times can be exhausting. Here are some lessons I had to learn as a mom that has helped to prevent burn out. 

1. I am a whole person outside of my kids. I should never neglect the things that bring me joy. 

2. I should hold my kids accountable for their actions. 

3. Avoid taking on their tasks, if they can do for themselves. Of course you can be flexible but on a whole they need to be responsible. 

4. Set boundaries, rules and expectations. And follow through on your word. 

5. Give them age appropriate responsibilities. 

6. It is not OK to disobey regardless of the age.  

7. Let them understand that their actions bring consequences good or bad. 

8. Let them have goals for themselves and work with them to accomplish these goals. 

9. Let them learn to resolve their own problems and make decisions. 

10. Let kids be kids. Let them play and have fun.

11. Understand that kids are not adults, their decisions at times will not be the best. Do not judge them by adult standards. 

One Love

Danni

MAXIMIZING YOUR CURRENT SEASON

A few days ago Kaity outlined to me all the challenges she had in school which to her seemed insurmountable. My question to her was, how do you change that and what is your role in making a difference? Your biggest struggle maybe your biggest superpower. 

If you know me on a more intimate level you know real estate is my jam. Owning more multifamily properties is my daily obsession. But as I began praying for what I wanted more of, I kept getting this thought, " what value does this season serve, and how is my current situation my super power"?

So I began becoming more intentional about getting out of debt, managing my money and paying more attention to the property I currently own. Once I got into that mindset and began taking massive action I began receiving massive blessings.

My challenge to you is to find the opportunities in your season. Make the best use of that season, trust yourself, work hard, look for a need and fill it, use this season to become a master at something. 

 

Maximize your season

 

One Love

Danni

 

LETS DEFINE FAILURE

A few nights ago I got home, fed the kids, gave my three year old a bath, curled up for story time, watched them fall asleep then left for the gym. 

Earlier that evening I was listening to a podcast and the person being interviewed was asked how she found the courage to consistently run long distances. Her answer to that question was,” I just start”.

As Kaity was drifting off to sleep I said to her, Kaity, it is getting so late I may just exercise downstairs. But something in her voice and the question she asked made me reconsider breaking the promise I made to myself. Her question was "so your not gonna go to the gym?" It was non-judgmental but I knew I had to show up to her the way  I expect her to show up. 

How do I define failure? Failure is repeatedly not keeping the promises we make to ourselves. 

It is simple just start, for some the weight of the journey immobilizes us. In those situations keep your head focused only on the next step. So in my case it did not matter how long I needed to run on the treadmill, all I needed to do was start and keep going one step at a time. 

Keep going. Continue keeping those promises you make to yourself.

 

One Love

Danni

 

SIX MONTHS TO LIVE

Today my three year old called me and said "mommy lets sit and talk". That took me by surprise so I sat and listened to her sometimes incoherent blabber. As she happily chatted, it dawned on me that I would never get that moment in time back. So instead to finding a reason to get away, I sat and listened as intently as I could. 

If you had only a few more months to live what would you do differently moving forward? How would you address relationships, would they be more meaningful to you? If you could relive your life, would you do things differently? 

The beauty of life is that each day we live we have the opportunity to live it the way we want. Especially if we are in a society where we are free. Do not wait for a diagnosis or a terrible incident to have a change of behavior. Live your life, love your friends and family, worship God, run your business and make your money, dance, laugh and have fun as if we have six months to live. 

 

THE REASON I'VE BEEN BANGING MY HEAD

So today I had a full conversation with myself out loud about being unhappy. I am unhappy. I am not unhappy all the time, but  I am in a very pivotal period in my life and I know that the source of these feelings is me not acting in my purpose and holding on to the thoughts, behaviors, friends and career choices that no longer serve me. It is time for me to make certain boss moves and I am reluctant and unwilling because of fear. 

It is important to know when God is nudging you. I'm at the point where He is not just nudging me, God is stirring me up inside out and it is driving me insane. 

Whenever you are in that space of dis-ease remove yourself from that current situation. You have outgrown it. That situation no longer serves you. You are instead serving your fear and your lack of faith.

Stepping out and into the place where you are destined to be will bring you joy and the abundance you deserve. 

 

One Love

Danni

 

PROVEN TECHNIQUE FOR MORE PRODUCTIVITY

The average person has little or no time to get things done these days. I have been experimenting with my time lately and have devised what I call the fifteen minutes rule for making me more effective at the things that I need to get done. 

This is how the fifteen minute rule works. Identify an area that you believe you need improvement in or something that you want to get done. Lets assume you want to get more fit. Block out time throughout your day and integrate fifteen minute workout sessions at intervals throughout the day, it may be fifteen minutes when you get up in the morning, fifteen minutes in the evening, fifteen minutes after lunch and maybe other times during the day if your job or work schedule allows. 

I have used the fifteen minute rule to complete folding my clothes or getting rid of a pile of unsorted mail. 

Give the fifteen minute rule a try and please leave me a comment and let me know if it was effective.

 

One Love

Danni

 

A REALTOR A MOM A DAUGHTER OF THE NORTHSHORE

BEING AND FEELING GRATEFUL

A few weeks ago my two older kids and I were driving through a really nice wealthy neighborhood. As we drove Kaity and I kept admiring the homes and commenting on the ones we liked. After a few minutes of this Jared chimed in very loudly and with much annoyance in his voice" why not just love your own house"? That instantly caused me to self reflect. 

I took three very important lessons from this moment.

1.  To be aware of how I present myself to my children. Admiring another home or something that someone else has does not mean you do not love your own. But that is exactly how my five year old interpreted it. Kids tend to lean into our behaviors vs our words.
2.  Be grateful with my blessings. Nothing is ever 100% perfect. I must find joy and beauty in life and the love that surrounds me and enjoy and feel the blessings these things bring into my life. 
3. Striving for or desiring bigger and better things in my life should not compromise my feeling of gratitude. 

One Love

Danni

A REALTOR A MOM A DAUGHTER OF THE NORTHSHORE. 

NO MOUNTAINS TOO HIGH

 

One of the things I love about my journey is the people who came along with me. 

Almost twenty years ago I left Jamaica for school in the US. But prior to that, I had started college in Jamaica and met some of the most amazing, hard working, girlfriends on this earth. 

Today I am celebrating one of my girlfriends. She is  the friend who like me ended up in NY and had to grow up and mature quickly. That girlfriend is someone I have grown to love, trust and respect. What I admire more than anything is her drive and determination. Talk about swimming upstream and making it, her life was never easy, but she pushed, and fought, and swam and today I am happy to say....Friend congrats on being accepted at an Ivy League to complete your PhD. You inspire and motivate me to be my absolute best. 

I love you.

One Love

Danni

CHANGE YOUR WORDS CHANGE YOUR OUTCOME

 

Today I sat stuck in traffic for over two hours. It was frustrating, long and boring. I had my three year old with me which complicated the matter even more. 

In my frustration I muttered to myself. I GOT to sit in this traffic again. I GOT to sit here stuck in the car with my baby girl. I had to leave work early for a doctor’s appointment and now I GOT to reschedule my appointment. 

What if we changed our self talk by exchanging GOT and instead say GET. 

Truth be told exchanging the word got for the word get allows us to view things from a different perspective. So instead of " I GOT to wake up", instead " I GET to wake up. Instead of "I GOT to pick my kids up from school, I GET to pick my kids up from school. Instead of I GOT to go to work, I GET to go to work. 

Many people didn't GET the privileges that we GOT.

Be thankful.

 

One Love

Danni

 

INCREASE YOUR POTENTIAL WITH POSITIVE SELF TALK

It may seem weird when people speak about the power of affirmations and positive self talk. But I honestly can testify that thinking and speaking positively to and about yourself will absolutely change your perception of self and who you become in the process. 

I tested this for myself. I was very insecure about my knowledge and expertise at work and always doubted myself to speak up in meetings or even second guessed myself with simple tasks such as sending emails. 

Here are some self talk and action steps or techniques that I have used in order to boost my confidence.

1. I tell myself that I do not have to be an expert at everything. No one is. 

2. I say to myself sometimes out loud " Danielle you know what you are doing, be confident and do not doubt yourself.

3. I tell myself that everyone makes mistakes.

4. I am finding ways to learn, grow and improve at my craft and skillset, this has increased my knowledge and my confidence

5. Here are some questions I ask myself before bed or in the morning .

• What are the four things I am grateful for today?
• What the four tasks I want to accomplish today?
• What are the four things that if I engage in these four activities I will win the day?
• What are four ways I can serve someone else or give back today? 
• What are four ways I can show appreciation to my loved ones today? 
• How do I want to show up to the world today?

6. I set limits on the habits I wish to disassociate from but have a hard time controlling.

7. Last but not least, I pray about it. Very and most important step. 

Please share your helpful techniques for affirming yourself.

 One Love

Danni

TODAY MY ASSIGNMENT IS.....

 

I felt impressed to tell this story because there is someone out there who needs to hear it. 

Before dating my husband I dated someone who I believed I wanted to marry. It was during a season in my life when I was hungry maybe too hungry for love and companionship, not to mention I felt I was getting old and it was time. When it became clear to me that this was not God’s purpose for my life I kept trying to make it work. I begged God, I reasoned with God, I prayed, I fasted I felt it needed to work my way and on my terms. But when God has a purpose for you, trust Him. One day in my season of prayer God spoke to me and told me to turn my bible to Psalm 27:14. “Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. It became clear to me that day that I needed to trust Him. Fast forward a few years and God blessed me with my life partner.

My goal today is to lead you into a season of prayer. God always opens our eyes to His purpose when we prayerfully ask with a genuine heart. “If anyone lacks wisdom ask God for it” James 1:5.

What are you yearning for in this season of your life? Ask God for it. He will open your eyes and ears to His will for you.

Lets take this week and focus in on wisdom and purpose from God. Prayerfully seek Him this week. Feel free to share your results with me privately or leave a comment for others to see.

 

One Love

Danni

THE YEAR OF HEALTH AND WELLNESS

My day started at 4am, did my morning worship for half hour, worked for an hour, out the door and at the gym by 5:45am, home by 6:45am, off to take my little princess to school by 7:30am. Thats the mom life. 

One of my emphasis this year is to step up my health game. I had a conversation with my girlfriend about diet and exercise and how in the US there is this emphasis more on appearance versus health. I would encourage focusing more on health and less on size or appearance. 

Earlier this year I had my annual blood work done and boy was I surprised the changes that happened in my body over the course of a year. These changes, (not positive ones) were a big wake up call for me as it uncovered the results of me not being more intentional about my health.

Take the time to get a quick blood work if you have not already done so, use that as your baseline and begin your journey to a healthier new you. 

One Love

Danni

CONSISTENCY IS KEY

 

Last year I sold a home to a client that I had been in contact with for four years!!!!! Imagine that. The reason I was able to be the realtor of choice was because I stayed in touch, I checked in, I followed up. When you are in the sales business being consistent, persistent and staying in touch is your only lifeline. For four years every week, I consistently sent my client listings of homes for sale. 

Its good ole February and I totally understand that you have been working at those goals, saving, hitting up the gym, praying and fasting and all you are hearing are crickets. Do not feel down, do not loose focus, be consistent. Learn to play the goal over and over in your head, just be consistent. One day, the success will come and it will absolutely take you by surprise, but it will not come by you being wishy woshy, it will only come when you are consistent.

One Love

Danni

GOING INTO MONK MODE

A few weeks ago I challenged myself to take a social media break. I felt uncomfortable with the thought that my boredom always led to me scrolling through Facebook or the gram. So its not surprising that the idea of going into monk mode interests me.

Going into monk mode is hard work. It takes a lot of discipline to unplug from the things we are naturally drawn to, and instead tuning into those things that bring us closer to our goals. 

Lets give ourselves a monk mode challenge for a week, unplug from social, our cells and other distractions and instead fill those times with the things that bring us success such as reading a book, use that week to focus in and double down on those dusty old goals set four weeks ago. 

Keep me posted on progress

 

One Love 

Danni

 

 

LIMITED VS LIMITLESS SECURITY

A few days ago while walking to my car I thought to myself what brought me to this place at this time. What thought patterns, what decisions, what’s fears and insecurities, what strengths brought me to this moment in time. It was almost 6pm, I am on my way to my car, I had not seen my kids since 7am and I felt that question in my head, am I an available mom, is this really what I want to be my daily lifestyle? Is this how I want to show up to my kids? 

 

Many of us have these challenging questions as we review our decisions and see how we played the game of life. We went about life choosing security. Security is doing what everyone else does and expects us to do, security is staying within and conforming to the stories we were told about ourselves, security is choosing the job that pays the bills even though it does not align with who we know we are inside. Security is challenging ourselves to a point and no further. That security is limited security. 

 

Limitless security is unsecure at first. Its challenging ourselves outside of our comfort zone. It is taking a leap of faith, its coloring outside the box, its getting in arguments and disagreements with our loved ones who see our decisions as out of line and none conforming. Limitless security is being afraid but doing what we know is the best decision anyway. But on the other side of those challenges, pain, fear, fights and faith is the blessing of security that is limitless.

 

I challenge you to take the challenge.

 

One Love

Danni

 

FEARLESS AND CONFIDENT

Not sure if I told you but I absolutely love the book of Joshua chapter 1 in the bible. Here is the reason why. I exist in a state of fear, and this fear carries over into many decisions or mostly indecisions and at times can be interpreted as being lackadaisical or nonchalant. I hate my fear, I really do. So in 2023 I’m grasping hold of Joshua chapter 1. 

 

Here are some verses to help you in your fight with internal fear and feelings of inferiority:

 

1. Verse 3; "I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses."

 

2. Verse 5; "No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you."

 

3. Verse 6; "Be strong and courageous."

 

4. Verse 7; "Be strong and very courageous.

 

5. Verse 9; Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Be fearless, be confident, be YOU.

One Love

Danni

 

 

 

WHAT I DID ON NEW YEARS DAY

It has been a long time since we caught up. I must say, getting to pen and paper these days is hard. However, pen and paper aside I have to say, there are tough times ahead for the American economy and the world economy. As if covid isn't enough, add recession, RSV and the flu, it is tough. 

So this year on January 1st, 2023 my hubby and I decided to work on our monthly budget. We started by writing down all our bills and charitable contributions, our kids extra curricular activities and the list goes on. It was an eye opening experience. I always wrote my bills on paper, in a journal but this time, having both our bills written out on an excel spreadsheet was different. I honestly cannot believe we have been winging it all these years. Guys, if you have been doing this, that’s great, but if you have not, please pull that old computer or tablet out and begin tracking your spending. 

I believe this year is going to be hard for many of us, so it is very important to begin trimming away those extras. 

Another important thing this year has been investments. I am not a financial guru, but I think there are many opportunities for people to build wealth, even despite the current state of the economy. Another important fact is multiple streams of income. After all (in true Jamaican accent) one an caant clap.

Make 2023 the year of your dreams. 

 

One Love

 

Danni

 

A REALTOR A MOM A DAUGHTER OF THE NORTHSHORE