My 30th Birthday Celebration!

I'm so excited to celebrate my 30th birthday! Wahoo! One of my birthday rituals is to celebrate one one thing I love about myself, for every year of my life.  Which means, this year I'm sharing 30 self-love affirmations :). 

Each of my previous birthdays reflects where I was during that point in my life.  At my 18th birthday, one group of my friends (high on coke and huffing fumes) pulled knives on another group of my friends and tried to stab them.  At my 20th birthday, I was drinking a liter of whiskey almost everyday.  Or the birthday I had to tell my dad I've been arrested and am in serious trouble. 

My intention is to give closure to my 20's and step forward boldly into my 30's by sharing this part of my story.  Recording this has been one of the most vulnerable and freeing experiences of my life.  I am honored to have you be a part of it. 

Enjoy this week's episode, as I share with you my birthday stories and celebrate 30 self-love affirmations! 

listen to this week's episode as a podcast below!

Listen to "My 30th Birthday Celebration!" on Spreaker.

or check it out on ITUNES.

Live and Online: Expression Session - April Edition (Featuring Sam(ira) Obeid)

Live and Online: Expression Session is a monthly writing workshop which culminates in a featured performance by an internationally recognized artist.  This month, we’re excited to present Sam(ira) Obeid as our feature!

Before the event, Sam joined me for an interview. We talked all about her non-profit work and political activism along with her personal journey. She gave us some dope poetry as well!

We went into depth about embracing identity and being a part of the LGBT community. Sam also spoke on her powerful work regarding gender, spoken word and activism. Tune in and get inspired!

HERE'S THE INTERVIEW:

OR LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW AS A PODCAST BELOW OR ON ITUNES.

Listen to "Expression Session Episode Featuring Sam(ira) Obeid" on Spreaker.

Big, Bold, Beyond the Stars Dreams

This year I am asking, "Where can I find balance? Where can I invite balance?"  I’m bringing balance to the time I spend in creating BIG, BOLD, BEYOND THE STARS DREAMS. 

I’ve noticed a lot of my dreams only go a little bit outside of my comfort zone. Or I dream, but I let my limiting beliefs bonsai my goals and visions.  

This year, I am ready to have rocket ship dreams!  Dreams that take me to my highest potential and more!  I’m spending quality, intentional time in creating big, bold, beyond the star dreams.

Not only are beyond the stars dreams amazing but they also impact our lives in tangible and measurable ways. For the Type A people out there, for my high achievers who want to know, "Okay, well how will this get me towards my goals?"

Here are Five Outstanding Benefits BIG Dreams Bring:

1) They Bring Clarity

2) They Make Your Dreams a Reality

3) The Clarity and Reality Generates Excitement

4) They Pave the Way for Transformation

5) They Remind Us that We Are Magic

Check out this week’s episode and Dream Big!

This week's Free Gift is: 8 Exercises for creating BIG, BOLD, BEYOND THE STARS DREAMS. Sign up below to claim your gift.

You can also listen to this week's episode as a podcast. Check it out below!

Listen to "Big, Bold, Beyond the Stars Dreams" on Spreaker.

Prefer to listen on iTunes?

T.H.E. Celebration With Special Guest Francesca Escoto

This week’s guest is a leader and coach who’s had a major impact in my life.  At the beginning of my entrepreneur career, I received an invitation to be a part of Francesca’s BETA GROUP.  This group coaching program connected me with inspiring leaders and shaped my vision.  It was truly transformative.  

I loved getting to ask Francesca how we can all create transformation in our lives.  I am excited for Francesca to share her gems of wisdom and magic with you!

Check out the video or podcast below.

This week's Free Gift is: A Free Coaching Session with Francesca!  Sign up below to claim your gift.

Or Listen to the Podcast:

Listen to "Special Guest Francesca Escoto" on Spreaker.

You can also listen on iTunes:

Saying No is Essential to Your Happiness

Have you ever said yes to too many things and started to feel like you've over committed yourself? Have you ever said yes to a meeting that you knew you weren't going to be on time for? Have you ever said yes because you didn't want to hurt somebody's feelings or you wanted to please somebody?

Learning how to say no has been one of most liberating experiences of my life.  By unpacking the baggage I had around saying, “no,” I have found endless happiness :).

This week’s T.H.E. Celebration episode continues my Year of Balances by diving it:

1. My journey of learning to say no.
2. The ways we undermine our yeses by not saying no.
3. Accessible, polite and well tested ways to say no.

- Please note: -

This episode and blog post is talking about “no” and “yes” in the context of time and life management.  I am not talking about “yes” and “no” in the context of abuse, assault, sexual violence, and consent.

In that context, it is a no unless there is ENTHUSIASTIC CONSENT.  Here are two great article/resources:

I Didn’t Say No But It Was Still Rape

5 Reasons Not Saying No During NonConsensual Sex Doesn’t Make You Weak

- End note -

Want to take a deeper dive?  Listen to this week's podcast.

Listen to "Saying No is Essential to Your Happiness" on Spreaker.

Or listen to it on iTunes.

This is My Year of Balance

This is my Year of Balance!  Listen to the podcast or watch the video to learn why :).

Your Free Gift this week is a Year of Balance Declaration.  Enter an email where you want us to send it :).

Here's the Podcast: 

Listen to "Year of Balance" on Spreaker.

Or listen to it on iTunes.

Live and Online: Expression Session - March Edition (Featuring Shelby Birch)

Live and Online: Expression Session is a monthly writing workshop which culminates in a featured performance by an internationally recognized artist.  This month, we’re excited to present Shelby Birch as our feature!

In anticipation of the event, Shelby joined me for an interview.  We talked all about her journey as a poet, her new book Lit, and of course, she spit some of her poems!

We went into depth about her ideas on love, womanhood, Blackness, awkwardness, and heartbreak. I can’t even describe how much fun this was. Tune in and get inspired!

For this week's Free Gift, Shelby is sharing a chapter from her fantastic new book Lit! To download it, click here or below.

HERE'S THE INTERVIEW:

Or LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW AS A PODCAST BELOW OR ON ITUNES.

Listen to "T.H.E. Celebration With Special Guest: Shelby Birch" on Spreaker.

Celebrating My Year of Expression

As you know, 2016 was my YEAR OF EXPRESSION! Today, I am Celebrating the amazing journey it has been :).  The Year of Expression took me to over 2 continents, 5 countries, and 12 cities.  I had many transformational moments and grew in beautiful and profound ways.

In this Celebration episode:

1. I share the story of what gave birth to my Year of Expression. 

2. I recap the journey and celebrate my proudest accomplishments. 

3. I offer my 6 Biggest Aha Moments from my Year of Expression. 

I got choked up while recording this one.  It is truly a beautiful journey.

Please join me in Celebrating My Year of Expression!

Want to take a deeper dive? Check out this week’s podcast! 

Listen to "T.H.E. Celebration Presents: Celebrating My Year of Expression" on Spreaker.

Prefer to listen on iTunes?

Expression Session: Responses and Creative Action on Islamophobia

This is a replay of the Expression Session Writing Workshop that took place on February 22, 2017. The program was sponsored by the California State University, Dominguez Hills Multicultural Affairs.

It was co-facilitated by Ramy Eletreby who is a queer Muslim Arab-American writer, performer, educator-facilitator in Los Angeles, California. Ramy’s writings have appeared on The Huffington Post, Queerty, KCET, and the award-winning blog Love Inshallah. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter at @dramarams to stay in the loop!

This writing workshop focused on creating a safe space to process and express on islam, islamophobia, community, and what we are feeling

Host: 
Tom Earl: Musician & Poet, CEO of Tom Earl Artist and Founder of T.H.E. Celebration Academy

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T.H.E. Celebration With Special Guest: Terna

This week, I had the pleasure to host a phenomenal and in depth interview with the amazing Terna, of (among many things) Coming Out Muslim. We had a deep dialogue with all about her insights and relationships with education, Islam, sexuality, health, healing, and self-care!

Terna is a Nigerian/ Liberian/American artist, facilitator and healer. She holds an MA in Counseling Psychology and Global Mental Health, and graduate degrees in International Conflict Analysis and Teaching.  She has worked as a public school teacher in New York, at the United Nations, and currently works to help survivors of homicide and victims of community violence.

Terna is also the co-writer of Coming Out Muslim: Radical Acts of Love,  which captures stories and experiences of being at the intersections of Islam and queerness and its relationship to family, lovers, one’s sense of self and relationship with our faith.

Get ready to be absolutely enthralled!

This interview is always available as a podcast!

Listen to "A Talk With Terna" on Spreaker.

Prefer to listen on iTunes?