17: Steph's Diary: Motivation will Follow Commitment

I believe in the importance of commitment in achieving our goals, so when I saw this quote "Motivation will follow commitment," it resonated with me, particularly as I continue on this journey of building Pamoja. This episode is a reflection and celebration of the commitments we make for ourselves. The sky is the limit and anything is possible!

Topics Covered:

• Reflection of our biggest accomplishment
• Little by little, a little becomes a lot
• Drawing inspiration from Beyonce Knowles Carter
• Preparing for Pamoja's first collection launch

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Episode Transcript

Stephanie (00:01):
I am Stephanie Evans and this is Diaries of a Modern
Trailblazer.
Take note of the journey and beinspired to forge your own
amazing path.
Let's take a moment together,right now, to delve into the

(00:23):
depths of our own experiences.
I want you to pause and reflecton one of the most challenging
accomplishments you've everachieved in your life.
It might have been a personalgoal, a professional milestone,

(00:47):
or a significant life event,Whatever it was, remember it
didn't happen overnight.
It wasn't handed to you on asilver platter.
No, it required something muchmore profound.

(01:09):
It required dedication andcommitment.
Think about the countless hoursyou poured into that endeavor,
the sacrifices you made, and theobstacles you overcame.

(01:31):
It wasn't easy, was it?
But through sheer determinationand persistence, you made it
happen.
You showed up for yourself, dayafter day, even when the journey
seemed unrealistic.

(01:56):
There's this beautiful Africanproverb, my favorite, it's A
Tanzanian proverb that says,Little by little, a little
becomes a lot, and it resonateswith me so deeply.

(02:18):
Those words are essentially theessence of commitment.
The idea that consistent effort,no matter how small, eventually
yields to substantial results.

(02:38):
So, I read a quote that stated,motivation will follow
commitment.
Think about that for a moment.
Motivation is not theprerequisite for action.

(02:59):
It's the reward for commitment.
And for me, this has beeninstrumental in building Pamoja.
What started off as a thoughtthat became a sketch that led to
an exploration of how do I bringthis bag to life?

(03:22):
How do I create somethingdifferent in this highly
established market of leathergoods?
To move forward with this, ittook a lot of courage and has
certainly taken a lot ofpatience, with one of the bags
that I'll be launching in Augustbeing something I've been
working on since 2016! Despitethe setbacks and delays, I

(03:50):
remain committed to bringingthis vision to life.
As I sit here recording thisepisode at my home, I'm
surrounded by my prototypes, mysamples.
I'm looking at four of themright now and it's Inspiring.

(04:12):
I'm reminded of what's possible.
I've faced challenges, I'vefaced setbacks, and I certainly
have moments of doubt.
But my commitment is there, andit's what keeps me going.
Even when that road ahead seemsdaunting, let's be real, it's

(04:36):
not easy.
It's a lot easier said thandone.
Showing up day in and day outrequires that grit.
and resilience.
And it's hard.

(04:56):
Even recording this podcast,pouring my heart out to you,
it's a challenge.
And I know I've said thatbefore, but I refuse to give up.
I refuse to let fear or doubtdictate my actions, because I

(05:18):
know anything is possible whenwe commit ourselves
wholeheartedly.
As long as you continue to showup, God will make the provision
for the vision.
Now, let's draw inspiration fromsomeone who embodies the spirit

(05:40):
of commitment.
I want to talk about BeyonceKnowles Carter.
She is a powerhouse of talentand determination, continuously
pushing the boundaries of hercraft.
In a recent post, she sharedinsights into her creative

(06:03):
process before rolling out herlatest album, Cowboy Carter Part
2, which you should definitelytune in to, it was released
today as I'm recording on theFriday, March 29th, and

(06:23):
definitely, definitely a goodone.
She reminds us of the importanceof staying true to ourselves and
our vision.
And I'm going to read someexcerpts from that post.
"Thank you from the bottom of myheart to all the supporters of

(06:46):
Texas Hold'em and 16 Carriages.
I feel honored to be the firstBlack woman with the number one
single on the Hot Country Songschart.
That would not have happenedwithout the outpouring of
support from each and every oneof you.

(07:08):
My hope is that years from now,the mention of an artist's race
as it relates to releasinggenres of music will be
irrelevant.
This album has been over fiveyears in the making.
It was born out of an experiencethat I had years ago where I did

(07:33):
not feel welcomed, and it wasvery clear that I wasn't.
But because of that experience,I did a deeper dive into the
history of country music andstudied our rich musical
archive.
It feels so good to see howmusic can unite so many people

(07:56):
around the world while alsoamplifying the voices of some of
the people who have dedicated somuch of their lives educating on
our musical history.
The criticisms I faced when Ifirst entered this genre, forced
me to propel past thelimitations that were put on me.

(08:20):
Act 2 is a result of challengingmyself and taking my time to
bend and blend genres togetherto create this body of work." As
someone from Texas who's grownup watching Destiny's Child at

(08:44):
the rodeo, seeing Beyonce, bloominto this amazing artist.
It is so inspiring to watch herto continue to reach new heights
and continue to challenge thestatus quo in an entire music
industry.

(09:06):
And I look at her and I'm like,why can't I do something like
that?
You know?
I don't know about you, but I'mall about channeling Beyoncé
energy.
Period.
Shifting gears, as I prepare tolaunch Pamoja's first
collection, which I am so, so,so, so excited about, in August,

(09:31):
I'm taking a moment to pause andregroup, wrapping up this first
season of the Diaries of aModern Trailblazer podcast.
But, don't worry, I'll be backin July.
There's a lot of key milestonesto support the successful launch

(09:53):
of Pamoja's first collectionthat again, will be launching in
August, from building out theonline experience, to accepting
pre orders, to fine tuning thecustomer experience.
Getting all my specs togetherfor the bags, the packaging, the

(10:15):
list goes on and on, and I couldtalk about that for a long time,
but I don't want to bore you.
Um, anyway, there's a lot to do.
So, I'm gonna shift focus there,uh, just being realistic with my

(10:35):
time and capacity and yeah,there's a lot to do.
But I'm excited.
I'm really, really excited forit.
I'm energized.
And most importantly, I'mcommitted.
So, let's embrace the journeyahead with open hearts and

(11:01):
unwavering commitment.
Remember, Motivation will followcommitment.
So let's take that first stepand be open to the endless
possibilities.
Thank you for joining me on thisjourney, and I cannot wait to

(11:26):
see where it takes us.
And that's a wrap.
So own it and make moves.
One day, I want to share yourjourney on this podcast.