Category: Blog

Find your next step!  In a world of “right now” we are constantly trying to make things happen in a hurry.  We want to know what’s around the corner before we get in the car to take the ride.  Our curiosity keeps us from taking risks or living life to the fullest because we want guaranteed results.  There are no guarantees in life.  We will always have moments, days, or even months where it seems like the world has landed on your head and you don’t know what to do.  All you need to know is your next!  Ask yourself what is my next step, and take it! And then repeat the question until you make your way to where you want to be.  Will there be some missteps along the way?  Of course there will be.  But use those opportunities to fine tune your approach and get back into the game.  Everyone who made it to the top did not start at the top.  There was a lot of climbing to be done along the way.

I remember wishing that I had different parents, different siblings, and different neighbors.  As I look back over my life I realize that I bring a unique perspective to the world and the people I meet because of my upbringing.  My moments of loud laughter and sense of humor is genuine because it comes from a place that others have not visited.  Growing up in my household we all were loud.  It was not something that was seen as weird or out of place during our conversations.  Maybe we talked loud because it was so many of us and we wanted to be heard.  Now I find myself in circles where I feel the need to tone it down so others will feel comfortable.  Although there have been times when I’m told that my presence is a great reprieve from being around so many “fake” people.  “It’s a nice welcome,” they say.  In this world you cannot say and do whatever you want to.  But being “fake” is not the same as tempering your words to match your perspective audience.  The “Geri” that shows up at my brother’s house is not the same “Geri” that shows up at work.  That’s not to say that I’m putting on some type of front, but the “Geri” that my family knows allows  me to let my hair down.  Unfortunately, there are times when family make it difficult for your authentic self to show up as well.  It all depends on the makeup of the family unit and if you have grown together or grown apart in certain ways.  As you live your life keep in mind that the way will not always be clear, but all you need to do is find your next step and take it!

We all remember the days when the “Layaway Plan” was the way to go.  If you could not afford an item today you simply made a down payment and the store would hold the item for a period of time with regular payments; usually every two weeks.  Once the bill was paid in full, then you could take the item with you.  If for some reason you failed to keep your end of the deal, then eventually the store would return the item to stock.  What a wonderful way to get the things we needed without having to fill our a credit application or pay finance charges.  Of course there was a small layaway fee because the store had to get something out of the deal.

How many of us today deal with life’s challenges through the “Layaway Plan?”  We keep pushing them aside rather than tackling them at the onset.  Instead we put the worry off and promise to come back and pick it up later.  No doubt we would love to have the problem solved right now, but we don’t have the time or the money to deal with it.  So we worry a little bit now and a little bit later.  We put it off as long as we can until the problem gets bigger or becomes harder to handle.  We tell God, “I definitely want this item Lord. (I want to keep this problem in my life.) I can’t afford it right now so just hold it for me.  Put it on the 90-day same as cash plan.  I’ll keep paying on it and come back to get it later.”  And God does just like the cashier; He takes the down payment, puts your name on the book and waits for your return visits.  With God, however, the scenario plays out a little differently.  Every time you go back, he reminds you that the item has already been paid for. (Challenge already taken care of) He doesn’t force you to make larger payments nor does He make the payment for you.  If you choose to keep coming back, then he allows you to do that.  He would love to see you take the item home and off His “to-do” list.  And just like the Layaway Plan, if your payments are not made on time, God will put the item back in stock.  The sad part is you will see that item every time you walk into that store.  The day you decide to discipline yourself and approach life on a pay-as-you-go basis, (trust God) you will be able to have what He promised you without a down payment.

Although I wake up every day knowing how blessed I am to still be alive, the month of October is always different because it is Breast Cancer Awareness month and the month that I was diagnosed with breast cancer.  To be given such devastating news at age thirty with no history of cancer in your family background, your only thought is, “I am going to die!”  For the first five years after the diagnosis that’s how I lived my life, as though I was dying. Today I live life to the fullest with anticipation for tomorrow and many years to come.  There are times when I hear about someone I know who has lost the battle, and of course I ask God why am I still here.  I read about the husband, the young children, and wonderful friends they left behind and I’m reminded that I’ve lived a full life with all those things yet I’m still thriving.  Why?  What do I have to offer that I haven’t already given to this world?  There is never an answer so I continue to do what I have done since the day I was diagnosed and that is tell my story.

As I look around and see people going through such traumatic experiences with this dreaded disease I realize how blessed I am to not have had any of the problems that others are going through.  Nobody looks forward to the chemo or radiation that is recommended to fight off the cancer cells, but I had no problems with both during my treatment.  Some people have to be on various forms of chemo for years.  I only did six months and never got sick.  Matter of fact, I worked every day and left early for my treatments so that I could go to the comfort of my home.  Another interesting factor is I never lost my hair, instead it grew and became more beautiful.  Praise God the cancer has never returned in any form anywhere in my body for all these years.  So this month, I ask myself and the world, “Is my testimony less powerful?”  No it is not!  Thirty-four years breast cancer free.  That’s powerful!

 

 

I wake up every day fighting to see my dream come true.  There may be times that I take detours because the bills still have to be paid, but trust and believe that no matter where I am “Geri Speak” is still in the house.  Yes!  I never leave home without a business card, a postcard, or some type of promotional material for what I am working towards.  You are your brand.  My mom used to say, “Where there is a will, there is a way.”  I know that to be true.  There is always a way to share what you are passionate about in every conversation that you have, unless you are NOT passionate about it.  To be honest, if you are operating in your purpose then there is no way to separate you from your passion.  Anyone who knows me, know that you will never get Geri Mason without also getting “Geri Speak.”  We are one in the same.  We are not separate entities.  Whenever I open my mouth I’m always speaking.  Actually I should be charging my friends for the free advice they get.  Although I am a writer at heart, my passion is speaking, and that came out of my writing.  I’m that person who dares to do the unattainable.  When I see others doing things, like appearing on the cover of a magazine, my first thought is, “Why not me?”  And that’s exactly what got me started in my writing career.  In 1985, I was bold enough to enter a cover contest for a small magazine in my home town of Virginia.  I won that contest and like they say, “The rest is history.”  The moment they started clicking that camera and I saw myself on the cover, and my letter that I wrote them on the inside of the magazine, I became unstoppable.  When the first call came as a result of that magazine, asking me to share my story, it was on.  I immediately birth “Geri Speak” into existence.  You can do the same for your life.  It all depends on how bad you want it.  How determined are you to see yourself succeed?  What are you willing to do? Where are you willing to travel?  All of these questions require an answer when it comes to paying the price for your dreams.  Of course, we need help from others. But we need to make sure that we are not copycats and we are not using people in the process.  There is a price to be paid for your dream!

 

Don’t ask me no more questions! Don’t give me no more assignments! Don’t even look my way!  This is how I have been feeling lately.  It’s like I woke up one day and realized that I’m so tired of putting my life on hold, because of what I feel or think someone else may feel or think about me. When God saved me from breast cancer thirty-four years ago, He did not do that so that I would operate from a place of fear. Every day that He wakes me up is another opportunity to get it right and be a blessing to people who cross my pathway.  When I operate in fear the world does not get my best gift.  If I allow what others feel or think to dictate my moves, then I have given them control of my destiny.  The same thing is true for you and your dreams.

There are people waiting for you to show up and bring what God has placed inside you to help them reach their fullest potential in life.  But you can’t do that if your device (mind, body, spirit) is cluttered with unnecessary documents (other people’s problems, pain, dysfunctions).  Don’t allow anyone to stifle your flame or water down the little spark that continues to pop up.  You know the moment that you start to slack off.  There is something deep down in your spirit that doesn’t feel right. That’s your internal warning signal!  Suddenly you catch yourself and get back in gear just as the adrenaline takes over and you feel your momentum kick in.  It feels good now that unnecessary stuff has been removed from your device.  You have found your safe place and is now flowing in God’s goodness as though you are watching your life on a movie screen. Slowly you feel the Lord’s breath take over and His guidance becomes ever so clear as you surrender to His voice.  This familiar space feels good and life is back to some form of normalcy.  Your storage device has been cleared!  Go be great and create the life that God has ordained for you!

I don’t know if it’s age or attitude, but I have noticed that I no longer rush to get anywhere these days.  Most of the time when I am driving I know that the people behind me wonder if I am taking a Sunday stroll on a Monday.  Thank God that I am fortunate enough to work part-time and really don’t have to be there early.  When I do have to go places early in the morning, I find myself in a world that is very unfamiliar to me.  People try to run me over even in the right lane, when they can very well go around me.  It makes me wonder if everybody left home late for their appointments.  I always allow extra time for wherever I’m scheduled to be; at least 15 minutes.  I think it’s unfair to get on the highway at the last minute and jeopardize everyone else’s life for your failure to leave home on time.  Maybe it’s just me or maybe it’s old age.  I used to be in a hurry, but even then I still gave myself extra time in case of emergency.  Most times I’d end up arriving early instead.  We spend so much time trying to find the easy way out and the quickest route.  Have you ever intentionally taken the long way home just because the view was better or different?  Why not visit the shopping center on the other side of town rather than the one three blocks away?  You may be surprised at the different items at the same price.  Not to mention Dollar Tree; that’s my favorite store.  No matter what city I find myself I always find a Dollar Tree.  There are so many items that are unique to each state.

Do you have your future all mapped out as well?  Did you allow any room for sightseeing?  Are you willing to take the road less traveled and see where it takes you?  They say the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.  Somebody needs to tell my GPS system that.  I looked up an address yesterday on Google, Waze, and Mapquest and got three different routes.  I will end up using Mapquest because it was the most familiar with the least stops along the way.  So go ahead and take the long way home today.  Stay in the right lane and let the fast drivers go by while you enjoy the beauty of God’s creation.  I know I will, because there are no shortcuts to any place worth going.

 

Make Your Day User-Friendly!  There may be times when you go to a website or you use a certain type of computer software, and you find it very hard to navigate in order to get to where you want to go.  After a few clicks with no real accomplishment you end up leaving the site and searching somewhere else.  Don’t be like that website!  Let’s not make it hard for people by being unapproachable and difficult to get along with.  Stop asking folks to jump through hoops just to show up in your world.  Why not be the place where everyone feels comfortable coming to you because they know they will leave your presence with a smile and a extra pep in their step.  It doesn’t take a lot to genuinely care about another.  We need to learn how to accept each other’s differences rather than judge and compare.  Everyone is a combination of where they came from, what they were taught, and most of all what they ultimately believe to be true for themselves.  Even with all that said, at any moment either one of us could wind up on “skid row.”  There but for the grace of God go I!  We tend to think that people with more money have less problems, but not so much.  How many times have you heard about someone who had money but was so depressed that they took their own lives?  No one fully understands how the brain works and what could cause such a drastic change in perspective.

I am the type of person who truly lives beneath my means.  I find joy in the simplest things and it doesn’t take much to make me happy.  Whether I have a dime or a dollar I am the same person.  I try to make other people’s day better even if I’m not having a good day.  In doing that, the universe returns my smile and I continue to give it away again.  Life is full of so many great moments to love and laugh.  So go ahead and make your day user-friendly!

 

Hopes, not hurts should shape your future.  We all can find some area in our lives where we wish we had done things differently.  What if?  What if I had stayed in that relationship”  What if I had taken my usual route to work rather than go the scenic route?  Maybe I would have avoided the accident.  What if I had finished college rather than getting married?  WHAT IF?  Let’s not play this game of what if!  Every choice you made, every person that you met, and every challenge that you lived through has made you the person that you are today.  I like who I am!  I love my beautiful daughters; one conceived at age seventeen and another at age thirty-two.  Do I wish I was still married to the husband I had at age seventeen?  No I do not, but she would not be here if I had not met and married her father.

Some of us spend so much time looking back we cannot get a glimpse of our future.  It’s okay to hope for something better in life, but do we have to hold onto our hurt in order to have hope?  The future is full of whatever we choose to bring into our lives.  What you focus on tends to appear in your life.  We see what we seek.  A lot of times our indecisiveness creates the very situation that we are trying to avoid.  To make no decision is a decision in and of itself.  We think just because we ignore something it will go away.  No matter how much you hate the fact that you cannot make ends meet, hating it will not change it.  Your energy should be focused on what you can realistically do at this moment to decrease the negative impact that your lack of income will have on your life.  Even though life throws you a foul ball, that does not give you the right to step out of the game, especially if others are depending on you.  We all would like to have a “Bail Out.”  You need to be your own “Bail Out!”

 

When I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1985, I promised God that I would share my story for as long as He allowed me to live.  I saw myself living pass the five year mark that the doctors said would remove my concerns about dying.  Now I truly wake up every day doing what I love, writing, traveling, and speaking in a way that encourages others to live beyond their wildest expectations. You will have it when you see yourself with it!

Your life should be a series of pivotal moments that remind you of your strength and endurance. In times of quiet and reflection  little things will pop up and put a smile on your face.  It can happen when you least expect it but also when you need it the most.  I left my comfortable life style in Richmond, Virginia and moved to Charlotte, North Carolina in 2009 with a brand new car that I had not made the first payment on, and a job offer, which ended two weeks later when I got sick. In spite of that, and becoming homeless two months afterwards, I still saw myself with a brighter future.  Although I didn’t have all the details I knew it was time to change my mind set in order to change my circumstances.   Fast forward to ten years later where I am currently living in Charleston, SC, retired, debt-free, working part-time at Chic-Fil-A as a hostess, along with my continued passion of writing, traveling and speaking.  As a hostess at Chic-Fil-A, I am given the wonderful opportunity to share my beautiful smile and my joy for serving others.  As an author and motivational speaker I am constantly writing, speaking, networking, blogging, creating content for my on-line business and organizing events and opportunities for others to share their passion.  You will have it when you see yourself with it!

 

He who hesitates is probably right!  We have so many thoughts during the day and most of them are fleeting.  Have you ever had the same thought over and over again but for some reason you couldn’t seem to act on it no matter how many times it showed up in your mind?  What is it that makes us hesitate?  Is it intuition or the spirit?  Do we somehow feel that a thought is not worthwhile unless it continues to circle around our brain?  Hesitation can be good at times, however some things require that right now moment.  For me I’m more comfortable acting on my thoughts when they simply won’t leave me alone.  It’s usually when I can’t get something out of my head that I tend to act.  However, there are some thoughts that I write down the minute I think them just in case I need to go back at a later date when I’m better prepared to tackle it.  And of course, some thoughts get thrown out completely even if they’re wrtten down.   I think writers always have pen and paper handy because they never know when the greatest thought may materialize that will make a miraculous difference in their world or someone else’s.