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My Weekend with Lisa Price

Time Alone with Me…. 

by Valerie C. Moore

Let me start by introducing Lisa Price, in my own words, to those of you who are not familiar with her story. Lisa Price is president and founder of Carol’s Daughter Inc. and author of the book, Success Never Smelled So Sweet (How I Followed My Nose and Found My Passion). I purchased her book at Barnes & Noble on a Sunday afternoon, (226 total pages) and read it over the Labor Day holiday, finishing it on Tuesday. I could not put the book down. Lisa starts the book by chronicling her life story from a young child, to an insecure adolescent, to motherhood and ultimately successful entrepreneurship. At different instances while reading the book, I could see striking resemblances to myself and it helped me identify areas of my own life that I still need to work on. Lisa is a strong sister who has overcome many types of adversities along her ongoing pilgrimage to finding perfection in her and with her business. Lisa Price was determined to discover herself and become comfortable and confident with whom God created her to be.

Lisa Price’s company, Carol’s Daughter Inc., (affectionately named after her mother) was launched in 1993 and is based in Brooklyn, New York. The company provides a wide assortment of nature-inspired beauty products. Their gross sales hit just over $2 million in 2001 and then $2.25 in 2002. Now that’s very impressive for a "black girl" from Brooklyn, who struggled with low self-esteem, who was in debt up to the "ying-yang", and did not possess a college degree. However, what Lisa Price did have was "passion". She was passionate about the scents that seemed to surround and encapsulate her with their aroma therapeutic and healing properties. Her love of scents began in her grandma’s kitchen, blossoming to perfumes, flowers and scented oils. Growing up as a young girl, Lisa struggled with low self-esteem, never convinced that she was good enough. She made bad decisions. She had issues with her weight. Using credit cards to shop and soothe the emptiness she felt inside, she found herself overwhelmed in debt, ultimately filing bankruptcy. She also had her share of failed relationships and unfulfilling employment opportunities. She changed her name several times, still seeking her true identity. A pivotal time in her life was in 1992, when she landed her "dream job", working on the production staff of The Cosby Show. While working there, Lisa would experiment, in her spare time, with making her own fragrances and perfume sprays as a hobby. Did you hear me? Her multimillion-dollar enterprise today began as a hobby!

After receiving many compliments about scents that she created and wore (that’s what I call low budget advertising), Lisa began selling her homemade products at flea markets and to friends and co-workers. Once the demand grew and she established steady clientele, the business expanded to mail order and the creation of her website (http://www.carolsdaughter.com/). As time progressed, her home became the primary distribution center where the product was made in the kitchen and packaged in the basement for shipping. Initially, she couldn’t afford to hire staff; therefore, many of her family members volunteered their time. Success does require you to sacrifice some things. I would say that she made many sacrifices and adjustments to her and her families’ lifestyles. As she persevered, the events that needed to happen to get her to where she is today began to fall into place automatically. Lisa networked, she talked to people, and she seized many valuable moments that came her way. To me, she determined within herself that failure was not an option! Lisa began to believe in herself and listen intently to the voice within. And by the way, Lisa appeared on Oprah in June 2002.

This story inspired me in many ways. Too numerous to jot down on paper. Owning a business is hard work; however, it is well worth the rewards. Sometimes there are long hours, sleepless nights, difficult clients, and many hats to be worn, but when you are doing what you are passionate about, it takes the stress out of it all. Each one of us has something that we are passionate about, and I believe that it is directly related to our gifts and talents that were encoded into the very fabric of our human nature. What are you passionate about? What comes very naturally to you, almost without effort? Stop for a moment, and give this some thought. Hint: It’s probably related to something you love doing and although it may seem like work to others, to you it’s pleasurable and fulfilling. At a young age, being the baby of the family, I was left home with my parents, but without a playmate many times. But then, my imagination kicked in. Imagination is an awesome thing. It allows you the freedom to create, to be anyone you want to be, and do anything you can dream of doing. I ran a store out of my brothers’ bedroom. I was always the customer and the cashier, of course. I made my own money (it was white instead of green), gathered all of the products in the house that had price tags on it and stocked my store. My mom would be searching for her personal items and/or cleaning supplies. When she couldn’t find something, she knew that the store was open. The top drawer of his dresser and a calculator was my cash register. I would bag the items after I (the customer J) would purchase them. It was intense and very detailed, and I played for hours (I had to put all that stuff back where it belonged to). Seems insane, huh! My parents and siblings thought I was becoming a little eccentric. Little did I know then that I was actually exploring a part of me that would in later years develop into becoming an entrepreneur. They were little seeds being planted.

Becoming a successful businesswoman is an ongoing cycle of transformation. After each small success, you gain confidence, which helps to get you over the next thing. Coming from a background that did not teach or encourage entrepreneurship, it’s been like feeling your way in a dark room. Learning by trial and error. Although some of the lessons learned have been hard and costly, nonetheless, they have been very valuable. In fact, formal business training would not have prepared me for some of the lessons I’ve learned. For those of you who are parents, watch your children, learn what comes naturally to them and begin to develop ways to help them cultivate it. Current and future entrepreneurs will sustain our economy. There are so many people who, after having a wonderful weekend, dread Monday morning because they have to report to a job that they literally hate. That’s misery. I’ve always said this, and I firmly believe that God intended for us to earn a living based on us utilizing the gifts and talents that we were given. I have been very fortunate to earn a living doing what I love to do. You can too! In the words of Bishop Eddie L. Long, we are now living in the "Age of Possibilities". If you can conceive it, it can be done. Your only limitation is "your own mind". You can create the life you want to live and live it! Inventory yourself, acknowledging your strengths and weaknesses. Pursue your dreams NOW while the grace to do so abounds.

In closing, let me leave you with these words from a birthday card that my sister gave me. I have it taped to my computer screen at home so that I will see it, and read it often as a reminder. It reminds me of that old cliché that says, "Do not put off for tomorrow what you can do today." In my own words, today is all you have. Stop saying, "tomorrow I will do this or that", or "after I straighten out my credit, I will do this or that". Don’t you realize by now, that the perfect scenario for fulfilling your dreams may never happen? You don’t have to wait, work through the challenges and obstacles. If you can’t go straight through the door, then find a window. Dig a tunnel if you have to. But just don’t wait for tomorrow when today is at hand. Tomorrow is not promised to you. Prepare for tomorrow, but live for today… NOW!

NOW is the time

NOW is what life is all about

NOW is the place of magic

NOW is in your hands

NOW is the starting point

NOW is at your service

Today is NOW!

How often do you get time alone with yourself? No spouse, no kids, no co-workers, no friends, no family, just you. I am practicing creating this quiet space of aloneness more often. I am consciously, purposely and deliberately making time for me to be alone with me. Most people resist this time because it forces you to deal with you. It forces you to reflect on your past, your present, and your future. This can be joyous and painful all at the same time.

 
Time alone forces you to address hard issues and things that you’ve spent so much time and energy avoiding. I have found it to be very liberating to be able to face those situations that I’d rather forget, deal with it and then somehow become strengthened to be able to move on from that place to the next. Why are you afraid to spend time with you? Is it because you’ve spent so much time pleasing and accommodating other people that you don’t even begin to know how to converse with yourself? Do you even really know “who you are”? No, I don’t mean you that are a wife/husband, father/mother, sister/daughter, brother/son, CEO, manager, evangelist, singer, etc. I’m talking about who you are when no one else is around. When you don’t have your cheering squad and the audience has gone home, because the performance is now over. Who are you then?  

Time alone with you is also the time for your spirit to seek guidance, direction and instruction from the Spirit of God. It’s a time to be refueled for the journey that lies ahead. As we grow in life and we pour into people constantly, there comes a time when we become empty and need recharging. Until I received true revelation about spending time alone with me, I used to think of it as an act of selfishness. It’s not selfishness it is necessity. I have resolved within myself and accepted that it’s okay to block time out on my schedule, just for me, regardless of what’s going on around me. I’m okay with me. I have accepted me, with all my failures and successes. We as human beings are constantly changing, ever evolving. That’s what makes us so fascinating. We are fearfully and wonderfully made. We are unique. I can’t be like you; I have to be me. Some of us have experienced tremendous pain, trying to be something or someone that we’re not.

 Spend time with you. Learn who you are, and then celebrate being “you”. You have so many unexplored gifts, talents, and dreams but unless you “stop”, spend time alone and explore yourself, you’ll never uncover them. Don’t you want to know you? Don’t you want to “be all that you can be”, for God and others. Have you ever heard that “charity (love) begins at home”? We can’t even love people until we love God first, then ourselves; we can’t befriend someone, until we can befriend ourselves; we can’t please people, until we have truly discovered what pleases us; we look to people for happiness when true happiness radiates from within. Let’s start celebrating ourselves today! Let’s start by setting aside 10 minutes a day for the next seven days. After that, use your own discretion, increasing the time gradually.

 Turn off the laptop. Put the cell phone on silent. Turn off the television and radio. Shut down the computer. Turn off the ringer on the house phone. Put in a video to keep the children occupied (not just any video, one that you’ve approved as entertainment for your child). Ask you wife, husband or significant other to allow you this time alone. Tell your lunch partner that you won’t be dining with them today. Tell Momma, you have to call her back. Go to the bathroom.  Now that you’ve quieted all of the distractions, find yourself a comfortable place. Take several deep breaths. Breathe deeply and release. Relax your shoulders. Close your eyes. If you like scented candles, light you favorite, and let its fragrance fill your nostrils. As you block everything out of your mind, ask yourself, what is it that we need to talk about today? After that, just listen. Listen to yourself. Listen to the inner voice, the Spirit of God. May the truth be revealed followed by peace. As I depart, let me leave you with this: 

Remember what your elders used to say, "birds of a feather flock together." If you're an eagle, don't hang around chickens... chickens can't fly! 
 
Peace & Blessings

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