May 23, 2019April 5, 2021

You’ve got to put the past behind you!

Quote of the Day: “My Mama always said you’ve got to put the past behind you before you can move on.” Forrest Gump

In the movie Forrest Gump, he shared his reasons for running across the United States as his way to put the past behind him. He said, “I guess that was what my running was all about.”

So many times, we try to move on after failure, defeat, bad circumstances, and other life events, without taking time to reflect, to process and learn from and release burdens that are dragging us down. Moving from one failure to the next is not a way to live your best life now. Make your happiness a priority and make peace with your past, explore new goals, and be the best you can be.

In my book, Cross-Stepping Your Way To Success, the tools and resources are available to help you find your unique personal path for living victoriously. Topics include leaving the past behind, death & dying, depression, fitness, careers, and inspiration.

The reference to cross-stepping in this book refers to the zig-zag motions you’ll master to become successful for whom you are and were meant to become. Cross-Stepping is a way of moving forward and backward until you achieve success. This is typical knowledge for surfers of the longboard who succeed with this method to hang ten or other magnificent watersport feats.

Get ready to throw overboard anything that stands in your way of achieving your dreams of living a purposeful and successful life.

Thank you for following my newsletter. I look forward to hearing about your successes. Carolyn Bowen

Novels by Carolyn M. Bowen

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December 26, 2018April 5, 2021

Reflections From 2018

Quote of the Day: “We always see our worst selves. Our most vulnerable selves. We need someone else to get close enough to tell us we’re wrong. Someone we trust.” ― David Levithan, Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List

Between now and the New Year take a break and reflect on the sights, sounds, and aromas you experienced over the past year. What are your favorite thoughts? Catalog in your mind the sweet memories of 2018.

Most all of us have goals we wish to achieve each year. What plans can you mark as completed for this year? Celebrate the milestones with friends and family. To you and your 2018 successes – cheers!

Refections from 2018, The Writing Life, Carolyn Bowen Author — Photo Credit: Pixabay

Life has its ups and downs and sometimes we have events in our lives that knock us for a loop. There are many facets to our lives like family sickness and deaths, business losses, relationship problems, and divorces to name a few that hit us hard.

Whatever you’re going through know that it can and will get better. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and reach out to someone when you’re feeling overwhelmed by your feelings. There’s free and confidential support just a phone call away. Talk to someone until you feel at peace again. There is promise in each new day. Believe it!

In my reflecting on the past year I came across a video that best represents my feelings. The worldwide celebration of Stand By Me |Playing for Change |Song Around the World! Like the song says, no matter who you are – you’re going to need someone to stand by you. It doesn’t matter if you’re rich or poor – everyone needs someone to stand by them. Hope you enjoy this video with musicians playing and singing around the world. This video was produced by Playing for Change – connecting the world through music.

I hope you enjoy looking back at 2018. May all your dreams come true in the New Year! Carolyn Bowen

Thank you for following my blog and connecting on social media. I appreciate your support. Carolyn M. Bowen

Let’s Connect on Social Media!

These are a few of my favorite social media hangouts! Drop by and say hello!

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December 3, 2018April 5, 2021

It’s Not You – It’s Me!

Quote for Today: “Just as you don’t need to be on every single TV channel, I don’t believe a brand needs to be on every single social media one in a big way.” – Shiv Singh

The new social marketing trends for 2019 are captivating. This one caught my eye with understanding behind the motivation. Put simply, there’s a rising desire for small businesses to cut back their social media posting across multiple platforms.

The reasons are persuasive for analyzing what’s working or not. Social media is time-consuming and is linked to depression for some users. Actively participating costs time and money that may be better spent elsewhere.

The time and resources to create and develop new products and the cost of doing business through these channels is a key point. The need to evaluate the return on the investment (ROI) for the monies spent creating posts, images, videos, etc. is crucial. For example, just because an influencer says there making sales with their storytelling online doesn’t cut it anymore. The proof is in dollars and cents. It has to be experienced for one.

For example, have you encouraged folks to like your page on a social platform to find few ever saw your creative postings? That’s a dead-end to organic growth from your efforts. The caveat – is until you promoted or sponsored the post as an ad don’t expect growth. Then, the results will depend on the product, the precise targeting, and other demographic variables. And, only a small percentage will click through to become subscribers or potential consumers.

The dollars spent cultivating these type fan bases have been sucked into a dark hole never to be seen again. Take time to study and learn from others about what’s working and make changes as needed. Don’t waste your time and money doing the same old thing expecting different results.

Recently we learned Google+ was ending their social platform that according to some news reports was designed to compete against Facebook. I am sorry to see these changes but understand the reasons behind it. If something isn’t meeting the business goals – end it.

However, this is one of my favorite and largest fan bases. I welcome all my fans to follow my website blog for the latest news about my writing life. In the meantime, I’m staying to the end. The latest report is that Google+ Support will be cut off on December 11th and the app will shut down completely on March 12th, 2018.

I plan to continue evaluating where my advertising dollars are best spent across the web and what social media platform/s helps me achieve my goals. I’ll tell you more about my mistakes in marketing and one I’m correcting soon. Hint: Develop your own real estate.

You can catch me posting on my favorite social platforms daily. Why? Because of the friendships I’ve developed over time and the encouragement and mutual sharing of ideas. What are your social media marketing plans for 2019?

Shopping for a special someone in your life? Whoever it is, we’re guessing they’d love a good book, because who doesn’t? Look no further than action-packed books by Carolyn Bowen!

Social Media Hangouts!

These are a few of my favorite social media hangouts! Drop by and say hello!

Goodreads

Twitter

Love picture ideas? Me, too. Pinners Follow Here!

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October 10, 2018April 5, 2021

Stress: The Good, Bad and the Ugly!

Quote of the Day: “In times of stress, the best thing we can do for each other is to listen with our ears and our hearts and to be assured that our questions are just as important as our answers.” Fred Rogers, The World According to Mister Rogers: Important Things to Remember

World Mental Health Day

Today is World Mental Health Day and a worthy awareness cause to celebrate. However, concerns for friends and family’s mental health and our own should be something we recognize daily.

Recently I was told about a woman who was in the midst of the worst and best days of her life. The events happened in threes with some planned and others unplanned. The occurrences hiked her normal stress levels to new heights.

The first was the unexpected death of a parent, immediately followed by her daughter’s planned wedding, then a car accident where she was at fault. You’re probably thinking – how in the world was she coping? It seemed she was attempting to put one foot in front of the other and carry on until she could find a place and time to personally make peace with life events.

Stresses can build up over time if not resolved and can destroy your mental and physical health. We don’t think about it often, but good happenings like weddings, new job, partner, home, financial windfall, and others add to our stress level. Then when the boom falls caused by death, divorce, job or business loss, home disaster, and other life problems we find ourselves staring at the bottom of a dark hole.

We feel debilitating stress when the good and bad experiences make an impact acting as a vortex spinning our world out of control.

When you’re feeling you’re being swallowed up by things out of your control, seek help. Don’t wait for things to get better on their own. There is qualified help to get you back on a wellness path. For immediate free help, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

Today through the end of the year, December 31st, 2018 I’m offering new subscribers a free Kindle version of my personal transformation book, Cross-Stepping Your Way To Success! Act Now! Limited Offer – Fill in the information below for emailing your gift code to redeem your book.