As we celebrate another trip around the sun, Dr. Anissa Short joins me in a conversation that is both a balm for the soul and a catalyst for empowerment. This isn't just any dialogue—it's a shared spiritual journey where we intertwine hymns and wisdom, and where faith becomes the beacon for entrepreneurial women. Dr. Short, a beacon of motivation herself, offers her invaluable insights as we honor my birthday, exploring the significance of faith, family, and finances, and the transformative power of authenticity across all roles in life.
Every woman's pathway to confidence is as unique as her fingerprint, and Dr. Short eloquently unpeels the layers of building such confidence through a steadfast foundation in faith. We navigate the intricate dance of parenting with grace, and the remarkable impact of mentorship and relationships on personal and professional evolution. It's a testament to the strength found in vulnerability and the importance of recognizing our worth as described in the scriptures—more precious than rubies.
Wrap your heart around the compelling world of fiction as we discuss "The Gift of Freedom," a story that mirrors the liberating journey of love and forgiveness. Anastasia's tale is a vivid illustration of the universal struggle to find healing and the profound freedom in letting go. Our episode concludes with a prayer of gratitude for this podcast platform and the vibrant community we've cultivated. Join us as we seek to ignite the embers of inspiration in your own life—may this episode be a gift that keeps on giving, long after the candles on my birthday cake have been blown out.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
You called me out upon the waters, the great
unknown, where feet may fail.
And there I find you, in themystery, in oceans deep.
(00:29):
My faith will stand and I willcall upon your name and keep my
eyes above the waves.
When oceans rise, my soul willrest in your embrace.
(00:53):
I am yours and you are mine.
(01:14):
Your grace abounds beneath thiswaters.
Your sovereign hand will be myguide when feet may fail and
fear surrounds me.
You've never failed and youwon't start now.
(01:37):
So I will call upon your nameand keep my eyes above the waves
.
When oceans rise, my soul willrest in your embrace, for I am
(02:00):
yours and you are mine and youare mine.
(02:33):
Spirit lead me where my trust iswithout borders.
Let me walk upon the watersWherever you would call me.
Take me deeper than my feetcould ever wander, and my faith
will be made stronger in thepresence of my Savior.
(02:59):
Spirit lead me where my trustis without fault.
Let me walk upon the waterWherever you would go, wherever
you would call.
Take me deep.
Take me deeper than my feetcould ever wander, and my faith
(03:20):
will be strong.
Spirit lead me where my trustis without fault.
Spirit lead me will be madestrong, jesus of my Savior
Spirit.
Lead me where my trust is withno one.
Let me walk upon the crosswherever you lead me.
Take me deeper than my feetcould ever walk.
(03:45):
My faith will be made strongerin the presence of my Savior
Spirit.
Lead me where my trust is, withno borders.
Let me walk upon the waterswherever you call me.
(04:07):
Take me deep within my feet andI will walk upon the waters
wherever you call me, and I willwalk upon your name.
Wake up my little child and keepmy eyes above the waves.
(04:32):
Wake up, my little child.
I will rest in your embrace.
I am yours and you are mine.
I am yours, you are mine, I amyours, you are mine, you're mine
(05:05):
.
Yeah, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh,oh, oh, oh, oh.
(05:49):
So, oh, the love of God.
All the saints and angels, theybow before your throne.
(06:16):
All the elders cast theircrowns before the Lamb.
Abide and see.
You're worthy of it all.
You're worthy of it all, forfrom you are all things and to
(06:54):
you are all things.
(07:17):
You deserve the glory.
All the saints and angels Bowbefore your throne.
All the elders passed theircrowns before the.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
Lamb of God and say You're worthy of it all, you're
worthy of it all, you're worthyof it all, You're worthy of it
(07:58):
all.
Yes, that was Worthy of it.
Oh, with Cece Winans and I havesuch a special guest for you
guys today.
Welcome to the Listen LindaShow I have today, dr Anissa
Short.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
How are you today, hi , ms Cox, I am fantastic.
How are you?
Speaker 2 (08:21):
I am blessed and highly favored.
I am so, so glad that you havedecided to join us in the
waiting room.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
Thank you for the invitation.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
I appreciate the opportunity oh no, no problem
for you guys who don't know, drAnissa Short also invited me
next month, on my birthday, todo a podcast interview with her
as well, so we're going to speakmore about that later on in the
(08:50):
week.
Before we get started, I alwaysstart either with a hymn or a
prayer.
Today I did both.
I did Oceans by Brie Babineauand I also did CeCe Winans.
Worthy of it All.
I'm going to start with prayerand then we're going to jump
right into the questions.
Sounds good, dear HeavenlyFather, we come before you today
(09:13):
with grateful hearts as weprepare to interview the
incredible Dr Anissa Short on mypodcast.
Listen, linda, the Waiting Room.
My podcast Listen, linda, theWaving Room.
I ask for your guidance andwisdom, lord God, as we dive
into her journey as amotivational speaker, author and
entrepreneur.
(09:33):
May this conversation be asource of inspiration and
empowerment for all who listen.
In your name, we pray Amen.
So now let's get right into thequestions.
To anybody who know me no, Igot questions.
I got questions, honey.
Yes, and I never ask my guests.
Oh, tell the audience who youare, or you know where you come
(09:57):
from.
No, no, no, not me.
I do my research and I quilt myquestions based on what I find.
So for the first question, yourbio mentions that you have
transformed your decades ofentrepreneurial experience into
engaging events that educate,empower and encourage women,
(10:21):
especially female entrepreneurs.
Could you share some keyprinciples or strategies that
you emphasize during your eventsto help women thrive in their
entrepreneurial journey?
That's an excellent question.
Speaker 3 (10:34):
I so appreciate you doing your research.
So, first and foremost, most ofwhat I do on a platform, or
most of what I host or engage in, serve women.
Whether they be femaleentrepreneurs, domestic
engineers, corporate attorneys,it doesn't really matter,
because I believe that ourcommunity of women do a great
(10:56):
job representing in themarketplace in their various
capacities, but we need acommunity of women also to be
cheerleaders, to be supporters,to be guiding lights and things
of that nature.
So all of my events are gearedin that vein or in that fashion.
I started my firstentrepreneurial consistent, I
(11:19):
should say entrepreneurialjourney in 1999, working within
a direct sales industry, mainlywith an industry that 98% were
women.
One of the things that I trulybelieve is that we should
operate our businesses and liveour lives from a principle space
(11:40):
, and so my faith is a veryvital part of what I share.
My educational platform usesbiblical principles.
The way I encourage, just froma place of who we are,
educational standpoint, from anentrepreneurial standpoint, from
(12:05):
a career standpoint, shouldalways be centered around
keeping the priorities of faith,family and finances in perfect
harmony not necessarily equal toeach, but making sure that
those areas are first andforemost in our lives.
So all of our decisions arefiltered through that principle,
or through that principle orthrough that foundation of
(12:27):
making sure that the decisionsyou make concerning your
education, your career, yourbusiness practices, et cetera,
serve to benefit your faith,your family and your finances.
And if it doesn't do that, itjust doesn't make sense that it
(12:49):
just doesn't make sense.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Amen, look, you caught me with the last key at
the end.
If it does not fit your faith,your finances or your family,
then it is not for you and keepit moving.
I appreciate that Now, as abestselling author and
conference speaker, you've hadthe opportunity to share your
message with a wide range ofaudiences, right?
So how do you tailor yourmessage to resonate with
(13:12):
different groups and what impactdo you hope to make through
your work?
Speaker 3 (13:17):
As of today.
So far, the majority of thepeople that I've had privilege
of speaking to or speaking forhave been the audience that I've
served, which is women.
So the networking events thatI've gone to, or I may have
served as a workshop presenteror speaker, the attendees were
mostly women.
The larger stages for whichI've been able to represent on,
(13:42):
which is the Forbes BusinessCouncil and the TEDx stages, I
either had a message that wasgeared towards entrepreneurship
and I represented from thatspace, or either I served as an
emcee, and so I was able to notonly speak from a place of
representing as an entrepreneur,but also as an author and et
cetera representing as anentrepreneur, but also as an
(14:05):
author and et cetera.
So one of the things I know withcertainty, ms Cox, is this is
that when you operate from aprincipled place, it doesn't
really matter your audience,because when it comes to
principles, they're universal.
You know, for example, the lawof gravity is a universal law, a
universal principle.
If it's a man, woman, boy, girlthat jumps off the roof,
they're going to all get thesame result they're going to
(14:26):
fall to the ground expeditiously.
So when I speak to my audiencesbecause everything that I
choose to share stems from aprincipled place.
It really doesn't matter theaudience, it really doesn't, but
I am always wanting to leave anugget of inspiration or a seed,
(14:46):
or plant a seed ofencouragement or hope, and so
that's something we all coulduse.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
I can agree to that and I can respect that as well.
Your favorite quote by MarianneWilliamson speaks to the power
of letting our own light shineand inspiring others to do the
same.
How has this quote influencedyour approach to motivating and
empowering women?
Speaker 3 (15:13):
You know.
I'm so glad you asked thatquestion because the first time
I heard that quote by MarianneRobinson of course it's much
more to the quote than that butthat particular segment of it
spoke to me because if we wereto look at, look into the, the
night sky, you're going to seeof course it's a clear night,
that is, you're going to see themoon shining brightly, but
you're also going to see stars,and some of the stars the
(15:36):
brilliance of the movie a lot, alot more visible than others
there.
Some are going to radiate more,some are going to seem like
they're more, they're closer toyou, are going to seem like
they're closer to you, some aregoing to seem like they're
further away.
But when you look in the skyyou can't really differentiate
one from the other.
But you do know one thingthey're all shining bright and I
believe we as humans have alight within us that can shine
(15:58):
bright as well.
And if we would, rather thanfocus on why someone's light
might be brighter than yours ordimmer than yours, why don't we
just focus on doing our best toshine bright?
And when we do, we all bringtogether, and when we all come
together, when each of us focusfrom that perspective and we all
come together, we create thebeautiful skylight.
We can create somethingbeautiful just like the skylight
(16:19):
the skyline would be on anyclear night.
What does that tell me that Ineed to do as an individual?
I just need to focus on myshine.
I need to do what's necessaryso that I not only shine, but I
shine brightly.
And we do that by way ofbecoming better versions of
ourselves, on doing what'snecessary to increase our skill
(16:42):
set, to overcome fear, to makesure that we become more
polished versions of ourselves,and we can do that by way of our
faith.
And we also can do that by wayof the people that we choose to
connect with, because whenpeople come together and you're
around the right circle, theyhelp to bring out in you.
Sometimes we don't even see inourselves.
(17:03):
So that segment spoke to me andit says basically that
everybody is a light.
Everybody has the opportunityto shine and everybody should
maximize the opportunity toshine in whatever way.
That means Some lights won't beas bright as others, but it
doesn't matter.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
You're still a light, so shine matter, you're still a
light, so shine.
I love that so much.
And that reminds me of so manythings, especially this one
interview that I saw with KellyRowland.
She was on um uh, I think hisname is Ibram or Ibro Show, and
(17:44):
he was saying oh, you knowBeyonce this and Beyonce that.
And she was like well, I'm alight too, you know, like I got
my own light.
I'm not focusing on anybodyelse, I'm focusing on my own
light.
We are all lights and like that, I truly believe that light.
It definitely diminishesdarkness.
(18:06):
And like you could be so focused, like my grandma used to always
say, just like a classroom,like don't look on somebody else
but focus on your own paper soyou can pass Exactly, you know,
and your testimony.
So we so busy focusing oneverybody else and what
everybody else got going on.
And I've learned that justrecently, within the past few
(18:30):
years, that if I stopped lookingat what everybody else is doing
and and why ain't nobodylooking at me?
Well, take that same energy,put it inside of yourself and
watch.
Like just this past six months,I've exploded in my career,
I've exploded in my faith, I'veexploded in just everything,
(18:52):
because God has catapulted mylife, because I put my focus on
the word.
I put my focus on him and mytrust and my faith in him and I
you know faith without works isdead right.
So I put all my energy intoeverything that he's told me to
(19:12):
do and it has worked and he hasblessed it beyond measure.
And it's all because I focus,like you said, on the light, the
light which is him, which is inus.
So I can appreciate I got onceI saw the quote, um, I was like
wow, like that's deep, so Idefinitely had to ask you give
yourself permission.
Speaker 3 (19:32):
When you look at that quote, it says we all have been
given a light and we all havepermission to shine.
So if we truly focus on beingthe best light that we can be,
the best version of a light thatwe can be, we wouldn't have
time to be even comparingourselves to other people
because we're so busy.
We're so busy taking care, wedon't have time to.
(19:52):
But the thing is is that?
Here's the thing.
A lot of people don't considerthemselves as light, and that's
the unfortunate part.
So my platform is to ignite thefire, or to help people to see
that you do have value, you dobring something to the table.
Just be the best version ofwhat you can be and that's good
enough.
Just always focus on improvingyourself and being the better
(20:16):
version of who you are.
Hone in those skills and giftsand talents that God gave you
before you were even formed.
Much of what we have to offeris not anything that we had to
be taught.
It was something that was givento us innately by the creator,
and so if we focused on justthat alone and become a better
version, a more improved versionof that, then we would be busy,
(20:37):
promise you.
We wouldn't have time foranything else.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
Oh man, I haven't been able to look to breathe,
blah, blah, focused on what Godwant me to do next.
You know, of course, you usethe sermon and everything that
you do right, and you fast andyou pray on it, but you still
have to work towards everythingintentionally yes, intentionally
(21:01):
putting in the work to become abetter version of you.
He will bless it, oh mygoodness, he will bless it, and
I'm just so, so, very gratefulfor him, for you, for all my
guests who, you know, trust meto help bring awareness to their
books, businesses or platformsor whatever it may be, and
(21:22):
that's why I do my best to tryto help people the best way that
I can.
And you know, I was thatstudent that always had good
grades, but it was always in thecomments.
I'm very talkative.
So I was like, hmm, I mean,what can I do with that?
I create a podcast because Ilove to talk Perfect, and I ask
(21:44):
a lot of questions and I alwayshave some good ones.
So we're gonna move along tothe next one.
Now this is a good one too.
So the title of one of yourbooks ask for me in my house
suggest the focus on theimportance of faith and family,
just like you mentioned earlier,faith, family, finances, um.
How has your belief in god andyour spirituality played a role
(22:06):
in your personal andprofessional life?
Speaker 3 (22:08):
Well, I don't differentiate one from the other
.
This is my life period.
My life includes my being awife.
My life includes my being adaughter, a sister, you know, an
auntie.
My life includes my being anentrepreneur.
My life includes my being anauthor.
So I don't segment who I ambased on a title.
(22:28):
This is Anissa, and I feel likeI'm using my gifts to the best
of my ability to represent who Irepresent.
So, when I look at it from thatperspective, everything that I
know and believe and trust in,which comes from the word of God
, I can apply to every aspect orevery hat that I wear.
So my prayer is Lord, help meto be the best version and to do
(22:48):
a great job.
With all the many hats that Iwear, I'm still Anissa at the
end of the day.
I am Anissa Short.
I am Anissa Short, wife.
I'm Anissa Short, auntie.
I'm Anissa Short, daughter.
I'm Anissa Short.
Author, entrepreneur.
So I don't differentiate.
I get what you're saying.
I just wanted to emphasize thatbecause sometimes people have
segmented themselves and becauseof that, you see them in one
(23:10):
way in a career, professionalstandpoint, and then you see
them another way when they'reout with their family at the
grocery store.
I'm the same person, no matterwhere you find me.
I exude the same light.
I exude the same personality.
But everything that I choose tobe, in every decision I choose
to make, no matter what role inwhich I'm serving, I'm choosing
(23:32):
to do so in a way that'sconsistent with my faith.
So when it says we should loveothers and treat others the way
we want to be treated, I'm goingto treat my husband the way I
want to be treated.
I'm going to treat my nephewsthe way I want to be treated.
You follow what I'm saying.
I'm going to treat my clientsand my colleagues the way I want
(23:52):
to be treated.
That same principle flowsthrough every aspect of who I am
and the hats that I wear.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
I hope that answers your question.
Oh, it definitely did.
I love that and you know what?
I've never looked at it thatway and I think it's because by
me, you know, trying todifferentiate.
You know the way that I treatadults, opposed to the way that
(24:17):
I treat my children, have tocome at it from kind of like a
different standpoint because Idon't want my kids to get a
misrepresentation that it's okaythat they have that same type
of way where they can speak tome in a certain way that I would
(24:38):
speak to them.
So maybe that's the differencein that, you know, I have two
younger kids in the house, youknow, and I guess, because I
come at it from that standpoint,but I agree with everything
that you're saying as far aslike having that same
personality.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
Hello.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
Hello, are you there?
I am, I'm, I am here.
I couldn't hear you for aminute, though, oh yeah, um, I
was basically saying, like, whenmy kids are around, I try, try
to kind of go from whatever itis that the adults watch to
PG-13 or PG.
Oh yes.
Speaker 3 (25:55):
You know what I'm saying.
You know what.
Speaker 2 (25:57):
Because I'm a firecracker.
Speaker 3 (26:01):
No, no, that's a part of it, but you know what.
But here's the thing, though,that's a part of your mother's
parental know what.
But here's the thing, thoughthat's a part of your mother
parental responsibility.
You follow what I'm saying.
So.
So you know, in in theworkplace, when I was working a
traditional job, you know I hadto be assertive, I had to be
authoritative because of theroles in which I serve, I had to
be take charge and that role inwhich I serve.
(26:23):
But even in serving in thatrole, I still wanted to treat
people the way I wanted to betreated, even my into my
assertiveness.
Then my roles changed when Icame home.
I don't have to take charge andbe the head because I'm.
I mean, I don't have to beassertive.
I can be, but I don't have tobecause my husband takes it.
So now my role, how I function,may change, but at the same
time I'm wanting to still treathim the way I want to be treated
(26:44):
.
You follow what I'm saying, soI get what you're saying.
You're not going to treat yourchildren the identical way in
which you would treat an adult,but at the same time, you're
going to let the biblicalprinciples be your guide on even
how you operate, you know, so Iget that.
Speaker 2 (26:59):
Oh, absolutely.
So.
That's why I said I can 100%agree with what you're saying
and why the way that you, youknow, your spirituality plays a
role in your professional andpersonal life is one and the
same.
So I can agree with that and Ican respect that.
So, so, very much.
And, yeah, that's definitely agem I'm definitely going to put
(27:19):
in my bag.
So, look, I can learn.
There's no shame in my game.
34 years old, I'm stilllearning, so I can definitely,
definitely attest to that.
That's a great gem for me tostick right on in my back pocket
.
You have spoken on variousstages as you stayed before,
(27:40):
like the Forest Business Councilstage and the University of
South Africa test stage.
Can you share an impactfulmoment or experience from one of
those speaking engagements thatleft the last impression on you
and your audience?
Speaker 3 (27:55):
The biggest.
The very first opportunity Ihad to go to South Africa was to
support my mentor, as a resultof her being a part of a TEDx
experience hosted by theUniversity of South Africa in
Johannesburg.
That opportunity came out ofthe blue, but I believe it was
divinely orchestrated.
(28:15):
Because of my relationship withher, she became my publishing
mentor several years prior.
Never in a million years wouldI have imagined that being
connected to her would haveresulted in my opportunity to go
to South Africa.
And also little did I know that, although I went there in
September of 2022 with her, thatI would be going back in March
(28:36):
of 2023 and I, too, would be onthe stage with the University of
South Africa.
Just that alone spoke volumesto me.
One it spoke to the importanceof South Africa.
Just that alone speaks spokevolumes to me.
One is spoke to the importanceof mentorship.
It spoke to the importance ofmentorship in that, when you are
pursuing whatever it is thatyou are choosing to pursue, it
(28:57):
is so important that you notonly have a mentor, but the
right mentor, because thatmentor will not only guide you
in the proper way in which tooperate or the proper way in
which to function or how to honein on the skills necessary to
soar and excel in your chosenprofession or chosen project,
but it will also lead to doorsbeing open, and that door for me
opened up an opportunity to goto the continent of Africa, you
(29:21):
know which is something thatI've always said I wanted to do
but did not know when it wouldhappen of Africa, which is
something that I've always saidI wanted to do but did not know
when it would happen, and thatopened up not only the
opportunity to be on that stage,but to be in the motherland.
I cannot adequately convey whatthat was like.
I still say surreal is the bestway for me to describe it.
To be in Africa, to be amongstthe people of Africa, to be in
(29:44):
the culture.
Be in Africa, to be amongst thepeople of Africa, to be in the
culture, to be a part of theculture, to experience the
culture, to be able to buildrelationships with people who I
now converse with via socialmedia, you know pretty regularly
, or still communicate with withregards to future projects that
I did not know five years ago,had no clue.
I would know who they are, andso that has been a joy.
(30:05):
It has added color to my life.
I live a colorful life anyway.
Let's be clear.
I was not just black and whiteand gray, but that has added
another aspect of my life to mylife and another sense of
vibrancy that I did not know,never imagined happening.
I mean, it's been a great ride.
(30:25):
So, yes, being able to serve onthe stage in South Africa and
then that led to me actuallyemceeing a TEDx experience here
in the United States.
So you know, I will say it wasmore to it than just the stage.
It wasn't really about me beingvisible on the stage as much as
(30:46):
it was about me being able toglean from the experience and
the environment of thoseopportunities.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
Yes, oh man, I could just imagine, like you say, it's
not so much about the stage orthe presence of being on the
stage and being, you know, infront of those people, but it's
more so about you spreading thatmessage and getting that word
out and it touching lives andtouching people in such a way
that they can like, like, justlike today, you gave me a word
(31:21):
and I was like, oh, that's myback pocket, and now just
imagine what I'm going to takewith that and do with that, you
know, and that might worksomething so great.
And then you'll go back and andor somebody will say, well,
jackie, where did you get that?
Oh, you know what?
I had Dr Nissa Short, and shejust taught me that, she gave me
that gem.
And it's like you take that andyou're like, wow, like she took
(31:44):
just that little piece of whatI said and she created something
so great out of it.
And just to know that youtouched just one life with that,
that, and so imagine thousandsof millions like that's, that's
amazing.
And then to be able to Africa,that's something that me and my
husband and my kids, you know,always say that we're gonna do
(32:05):
so.
Kudos for that Like and to beable to go back again, like that
is amazing.
I'm just in awe of all of thatand I'm just, I'm so happy.
You look, my heart is likepounding, like I love that, like
that is I know you did.
Every time I see Africa on TVor I see anything dealing with
(32:25):
Africa and just how beautiful itis, it warms my spirit where
you just know, wow, that's home,that's amazing.
So so very grateful that youeven you know a lot of people
don't want to or are intimidatedby that.
So just because you took thatopportunity and you went for
(32:47):
unapologetically, I love that somuch for you.
You have a keynote, a ConfidentWoman, and in that keynote you
discuss identifying and buildingconfidence in oneself and
others.
How do you believe spiritualityand a connection with God
contributes to buildingconfidence, particularly for
(33:10):
women?
Speaker 3 (33:12):
I absolutely love that question.
Here's what I truly believe isthat a woman or a man can truly
be confident in and ofthemselves.
They really have to know whothey are, and the who of what we
are can only be found in thecreator.
Think about it, you know, ifyou have a I mean in a practical
(33:36):
, everyday sense if you have aWhirlpool refrigerator and then
something is not functioningproperly with that Whirlpool
refrigerator, you don't use aSamsung model or operations
guide to try to figure out whyyour Whirlpool is not operating
properly, right?
So if we're not confident inwho we are or in the makeup of
(34:04):
who we are, or for whateverreason, we really need to
consult the creator.
It just makes sense To me.
It's kind of like we're notoperating fully at the capacity
we believe we should and forthat reason we don't feel like
the best version of ourselves.
We need to go back to whocreated us and choose to believe
(34:26):
what they say about us and notwhat we may be saying about
ourselves or what someone elsemay have told us.
So when I talk about being aconfident woman, I use a story
in the word of God to convey themessage, and being a confident
woman has absolutely nothing todo with the fact that she wears
(34:47):
Prada or carries a Chanel orsprays on some Dolce Gabbana.
That has nothing to do withwhat clothes she wears.
Those are just external factors, you know.
But a lot of people can dressup really well, but internally
they don't have any confidencein themselves and so they choose
to grasp, hold to those name,brand things, trinkets and
(35:07):
external representations toconvey something that truly does
not exist.
When a woman is truly confidentin who she is and how she
represents, it's because shetruly understands who she is.
So some of the nuggets I shareis that the word of God tells us
as women especially those of uswho are wise, that we're more
(35:28):
valuable than rubies.
Diamonds come every day.
Everybody can get a diamond,but a ruby is very rare.
In my life as a wife should benot the status quo, but I should
stand above or stand out fromthe crowd, not because I'm
(35:49):
better than anyone else, becauseI'm not, but because I
understand who I am.
Because of what he has said inhis word.
I use stories to convey inthose scriptures, to truly
provide the definition I talkabout what a woman, a confident
woman, how we respond to crisis,and I use an example in the
word of God that tells us that,not because any one person some
(36:10):
of us can be stronger thanothers, because we've lived
through more in certain areas,but we all have areas where we
fall short.
So where do you feel insecure,where do you feel like you're
less than?
And go to the word of God andwork on that area until you feel
better about yourself, notbecause you are better than
anyone else, but because he'sgiven you the blueprint by which
(36:30):
to operate by and the blueprintby which to believe, and it
simply is that you shift yourthinking, in your paradigm, you
shift your perspective and youchoose to accept what your
creator, what your father, saysabout you as truth and you
operate from that place.
That's what being a confidentwoman is to me, and becoming a
confident woman, and it's not anovernight process.
(36:51):
So give yourself permission totake some time, but don't allow
extraneous variables and peoplewho didn't build it.
If you didn't build an earth, Iheard one pastor say until you
build you a solar system andbuild you an earth and build you
an ecosystem, until you createheavens and earth, then I'm just
(37:11):
going to choose to believe whatthe word of God says I'm not
going to choose, I'm not goingto place value on what man says
over what my creator says.
Being a confident woman, I'mjust reminding women of who God
said we are and challenging themto accept that and move from
that vantage point to make abetter impression in the earth
(37:32):
or to represent from a betterplace.
Speaker 2 (37:39):
I love that.
I definitely got to sit in onone of your conferences.
I just I am over here liketaking it all and I truly, truly
love that because I'm a firmbeliever of that as well.
Like, you change your mind, youchange your life.
You change your mindset, youchange your life.
A lot of my peers that are intheir early 30s, or people I
(38:01):
graduated high school with orwith college with, they're all
still partying, getting drunk,having fun, doing this, doing
that, having their own type offun, but they don't see life the
way I see it.
And a lot of times I wastalking to another person I had
on yesterday, robin Ayers, andwe were speaking about it and it
(38:24):
was the same for me.
When you are operating on adifferent level, spiritually,
you'll see things a lotdifferent than the way the world
sees it.
And I don't think that I seethings the way the world sees it
because I'm so honed in on justthe word and the book, the real
(38:44):
Facebook, the book that youshould have your face in, which
is the word of God, which is,you know, the Bible, and you
know, when you are operating onthat level of the 4D level and
you are seeing things from adifferent perspective.
Yeah, me and you.
We might be looking, you know,north, right, but you're grass
(39:05):
and I'm a tree.
You know, you're a puppy, I'm agiraffe.
So if we're looking north andsomeone says, hey, so what do
you guys see?
And you know, the puppy says Isee a taxi coming.
And the giraffe may say, hey, Isee birds flying this way.
Now, are either of them wrong?
No, but they're seeing it froma different perspective.
(39:28):
You can see it from a worldlyperspective, but I see it from a
higher realm because I'moperating on a different realm,
spiritually, and when you'reoperating, it's like an
out-of-body experience that Ihave.
It's like an out-of-bodyexperience that I have and it's
no matter how much I try toexplain it to people my age,
(39:51):
it's like they will never get ituntil they sit down and really
read the word and then takethose classes, the same classes
I took, and just really hone inon it and get that level of
perspective that I got from it.
But they still might not see.
(40:15):
Like, you may read the word, Imay read the word, you may have
your interpretation of it, I mayhave mine.
Does that mean that either ofus are wrong.
No, we just two different humanbeings seeing it from two
different ways.
I see the word read.
You see the word read.
You're seeing it from a present, I'm seeing it from a past.
Tense Doesn't mean we're wrong,it just means what way are you?
(40:35):
You know from what perspectiveare you reading it from?
You know, are you reading itthe way that it's supposed to be
read, or are you reading itfrom a different way?
Speaker 3 (40:50):
And and there's nothing wrong with that, but
it's something wrong with that?
No, it does, because it haseverything to do with the lens
from which you're filtering.
So, if you so, you know, like Iremember years ago, um, when
the cosby show was out.
Now everybody know they can saywhat they want to about bill
cosby and I'm not gonna get intoall of that, but I love the
Cosby show was my listen, theCosby show was the show.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
I don't care what anybody says, it was, but now
let me tell you something.
Speaker 3 (41:13):
But let me tell you this it wasn't until years later
I'm in college, or maybe out ofcollege, I can't remember and I
remember being in a groupconversation with people, um,
that were that it looked, youknow, different.
We're on the same age bracket.
I can't remember now where Iwas I think it may have been on
the job and a young lady thatwas in that group said to, said
to us, and that she didn't likethe show at all.
And I said well, why?
(41:34):
Because I couldn't imagine whyanybody would not like the cosby
show.
And she said because it's fake.
Well, first of all, sis this tv, can we just, can we just all
agree it's TV.
So she says it was fake and Isaid well, what do you mean by
fake?
And she says people don't livethat way, black people don't
live that way.
Now, this was anAfrican-American woman, and then
(41:56):
I said you don't think blackpeople live that way?
And she says no, I don da da.
And she just went in.
Well, basically, what itamounted to was that in the
community from which she wasreared, in the environment in
which she grew up, in the familylife structure that she had,
she never saw that.
She never saw that in herfamily, people getting along
(42:16):
that way, having a doctor as oneparent and an attorney as
another parent, and they gettingalong.
She was just very honest.
Well, I told her.
I said well, I hate that foryou, because I did see that
growing up I didn't have anuncle, or my mom wasn't a doctor
and my dad it was, you know, anattorney, but I do have family
(42:38):
members that we get together.
You know what I'm saying.
We, we get along, we're going,they're encouraging us to go to
college.
So I can relate to some thingsin the Cosby show because, while
it may not have been theperfect, it may not have been
truly identical to where I wasraised.
There was so much I couldrelate to.
At the same time, she'swatching the same show and she's
saying this is so fake, it'snot real.
(42:58):
Because we're looking at itthrough different lenses and
that's why I believe we can allread the same thing and we
interpret it totally different,because we're reading from
different lenses and the onlycommon denominator is going to
be that the word of God doesn'tchange and over time, for those
whose hearts are truly wantingto have better, eventually it
(43:22):
will transform to.
I think that's what the Biblemeans by the veil that's been
lifted.
That's the lens, the cloudinessin our sight and our
understanding.
But if we stick to it and don'tgive up, we all eventually
start seeing things the same way.
Speaker 2 (43:37):
That's where clarity will come in.
That's such a greatinterpretation of it.
And you know what, Looking atthe Cosby show, just a home back
in, it's so crazy because shedidn't grow up in that
environment just the same way Idid.
Right, my family didn't getalong.
I didn't come from a two-parenthousehold.
(43:58):
I didn't grow up that way.
But at the same time, when Iwatched the Cosby show, it gave
me hope.
So I saw it as wow, look atthem.
I didn't look at it as if itwas fake.
I knew that I had never seen itcoming from, you know, a block
radius where we didn't, wedidn't, we didn't step outside
(44:19):
of our environment.
But I've always said, if they'regoing to do it too, then that's
what exactly.
That's what I'm going to havefor my kids, and I'm going to
make that my reality.
And look at them, they'resomething great.
So I'm going to be somethinggreat, exactly.
And so I never had a negativethought in my mind when I
(44:41):
watched the Cosby show differentstrokes.
And so they'll go to college and, you know, go to Hillman and
and just and just be great.
I always said that's going tobe me, you know that be me.
And and until it became myreality, did it take a long time
to get here?
Absolutely, uh, it did, but itdidn't, you know, because it's a
(45:03):
lot of women that are my agenow that't accomplished what I
have, but have been throughthose same things and just
didn't have that courage or thatfaith in God to really get out
of it yet.
And I think that's why God isusing me now as a vessel to say
hey, look over here.
(45:23):
I've been through that.
I went through homelessness, Iwent through domestic violence,
I went through drug-inducedparents.
I've been through all of that.
And guess what?
I went through rape, I wentthrough incest.
I went through all of that andguess what?
I'm right here, still young,still vibrant, still 34 years
old, but still was able to getout, and I so love the Lord so
(45:48):
much.
You know that nothing, nobody,can tell me or do to me that can
take that away from me, right,right, you know.
So I can appreciate that.
Now.
I don't mean to cut everybodyoff, but I want to speak now for
the last few minutes about thenew book that you have coming
(46:08):
out, you and a few ladies.
The book is called the Gift ofFreedom Stories of Love and the
Beauty of Forgiveness.
Now you have a chapter in herecalled Remember Jamaica.
Okay, ok, then this chapter.
(46:34):
You have a character, anastasia, and she goes through like a
transformative journey ofletting go of toxic
relationships and peace yes,right, and finding her peace.
Could you share more about theinspiration behind that story
and what motivated you toexplore the themes of love,
forgiveness and personal growthin this particular set?
Speaker 3 (46:47):
This book is actually the byproduct of a writer's
retreat that I attended twoyears ago in Jamaica actually in
Jamaica and we had a fantasticinstructor.
This is my first attempt towriting nonfiction, because most
of what I've written before hasbeen mostly inspirational and
educational, so to say.
(47:08):
But this is a novel and thisbook was a challenge.
It was the very first, as Isaid before, of a novel that
I've written in collaborationwith three other women.
So the book itself is aboutcharacters who would go to
Jamaica to attend a forgivenessretreat characters who would go
(47:33):
to Jamaica to attend aforgiveness retreat.
All four stories focus on acharacter and all four stories
are different.
My story is about a young ladynamed Anastasia who was invited
to be a part of the retreat.
As the event planner, she'sassisting the host of the
retreat and prior to beingextended the invitation, some
(47:55):
years prior, a year or so priorshe ended a very toxic
relationship.
The relationship was one with ayoung man who she thought she'd
married, but he was very toxic,very abusive mentally,
psychologically and theneventually physically.
So at the time in which theinvitation is extended to her to
(48:15):
be a part of this retreat, sheonly accepts it because it's in
Jamaica.
Let's be clear we don't want togo, we don't accept every
assignment, but who would say noto Jamaica?
And while there, she's able tosee that there are some things
that she had been holding on to,although she felt like she was
in a good place that she neededto let go of.
She needed to forgive somepeople, including herself.
(48:37):
And in the process of beingthere and realizing these things
, she does have another opendoor to a happily ever after.
She does have another open doorto a happily ever after.
And so my story, honestly, isone that was cultivated as a
result of being a part of theretreat, because we were all
(48:59):
given points and snippets andnuggets to include in our
storylines.
So I did incorporate that, butI also incorporated a little bit
of my own life lines.
So I did incorporate that, butI also incorporated a little bit
of my own life.
So it's fiction, but some ofwhat is shared are snippets or
glimpses into some things Iexperienced personally as well.
So it does have everything todo with forgiveness, but it also
(49:21):
has everything to do with theimportance of love, which are
two very vital principles.
Love and forgiveness areprinciples that we should adopt
as a part of our life regardless.
Speaker 2 (49:34):
You know what?
I kind of figured that wasgoing to be my next question,
but you answered it already.
You said it was a part of yourreal life.
So that was going to be my nextquestion, but I'm going to move
to the next one after that.
Now you said that, uh, well, asas I was, you know, reading
just like this and trying tocome up with, uh, you know some
(49:56):
some quick questions for you,because I definitely want people
to go out and get this book.
Uh, anastasia's role as anadministrative assistant for her
boss's annual forgivenessretreat in Jamaica seemed to be
a pivotal moment for her.
How does the journey to Jamaicaand her involvement in the
(50:17):
retreat impact Anastasia's ownjourney of self-discovery and
healing?
Speaker 3 (50:29):
and healing.
Well, in the course ofeverybody attending.
When you get the book, thereare two of the co-authors in
this book actually hostforgiveness retreats, so we were
(50:51):
able to incorporate some of theexercises not fully, but
provide glimpses of some of theexercises that they actually
participate in during theseforgiveness retreats that they
host in real life.
Okay, so with Anastasia, eventhough she's there as a
facilitator, she's the assistantto the host.
She actually sits in on some ofthe segments because, you know,
as the person is here there toassist logistically, you are a
part of the event as well.
(51:11):
And it's during her sitting inon some of the segments that she
, her eyes began to open tothings within herself that she
needs to deal with.
And so she begins to althoughnot an attendee of the retreat,
begins to participate in theactivities in her own way to get
past some things that she hascome to understand that could
(51:34):
very well be hindrances or areasof her life that she has not
truly forgiven, and so that'srevealed in the storyline, but
it's very detailed as to whatexercise helped her to see
herself and what she did toovercome and to become stronger.
(51:56):
And, truth be told, thefacilitator of the retreat says
to her in the storyline there'sa weight that you need to get
rid of, and I'm not sure what itis, but I hope you find peace.
She's alluding to the fact thatshe believes Anastasia has had
some unforgiveness, but shedoesn't say it outright.
And then it does become.
(52:16):
You know, it's revealed toherself.
It is revealed.
Anastasia understands that thatis what it is.
Without her mentor saying it.
She realizes that there aresome areas that she needs to
forgive is without her mentorsaying it.
She realizes that there aresome areas that she needs to
forgive, and once she accepts it, it's like a weight is lifted,
and that stems from the name ofthe book too the Gift of Freedom
(52:37):
when you truly choose toforgive you give yourself the
gift of freedom With freedom.
Speaker 2 (52:43):
forgiveness precipitates freedom.
You truly aren't free until youtruly know how to forgive.
Yes, that was definitely.
I'm so glad you said that,because that leads right into my
next question, Becauseforgiveness is a central theme
in your chapter, in all thechapters in the book.
So how did you approachportraying the process of
(53:08):
forgiveness in Anastasia's story, and what message do you hope
readers will take away just fromher experience alone?
Well, you know the story ofAnastasia is one of four stories
.
Speaker 3 (53:23):
I've already re-emphasized that, and one of
the beautiful things about thisbook is that everybody's story
comes from a real life place.
Everybody's dealing with theneed to forgive, but their life
scenarios are different.
You follow me.
So we did that intention whereactually it happened.
None of us knew what the otherperson was writing, let's be
(53:45):
clear.
But we bring about a variety.
So in Anastasia's situation,anastasia ends a relationship.
At the beginning of the storyyou get a glimpse into her
previous relationship.
You get a glimpse into the factthat she's living her life like
as a golden, as a single woman,totally content.
But at the same time she stillhas some residue of some things
(54:07):
that she didn't realize from theprevious relationship and it
was blocking her from being ableto go to the next level.
So that's revealed in thestoryline.
That's revealed in thestoryline so much so, like some
of the others, there's anotherstory where the woman has hurt
from a father and she's tryingto get married and go on with
her life, but she still hasdaddy issues.
(54:29):
So that's another segment, andthe beautiful thing about this
book is that I believe everybodywill be able to relate to the
stories because they're not justa sermon on forgiveness, like
you might hear on Sunday.
They're taking practical,everyday situations that many of
us face or know someone that isfacing, and showing how
forgiveness is a very importantfactor of overcoming those,
(54:52):
those evils or that, or gettingrid of that residue so that you
can move on with your next phaseof life can you tell everybody
where they can get this book,because I'm already ready to go
ahead and so we don't listen.
Speaker 2 (55:07):
We have gotten so much positive feedback.
Yes, they can go to amazon andfind the book.
Speaker 3 (55:13):
The gift of freedom.
Um, and so it.
So it's available now.
It's available now, yeah, atthe time in which the book has
been available for a minute.
Now it's only $14.99, and theycan order it on Amazon or, if
(55:37):
they want to contact me directly, they can do that as well, but
it would just be easier to go toAmazon and secure it, Because
when they purchase it, I wouldreally love for them to offer
some feedback.
We have gotten nothing butgreat feedback.
We've got a lot of people whothey've not posted the
information, but you knowthey've not posted their review,
(55:58):
but they have.
You know, one of my yes, onelady that I know got the book
just before Thanksgiving and shetold me, Anissa, I read that
book.
She says I found myself talkingto the characters going oh my
God, no, you didn't.
I said when you start talkingto people that are not really
there, that means that book isreally good.
You really, that means youreally got into the storyline.
Speaker 2 (56:19):
Yeah, my husband.
He can't stand taking me to themovie.
He said ever since we were kidsand I would take you to the
movie.
He said you, just you, the onethat screams at the screen, we
in the house I'm screaming atthe screen when Usher was
performing on my pants like aUsher, so reading the books, I'd
(56:39):
be like, oh no, you didn't.
And if you don't believe me,ask Dr Bill, I'm still talking
about the analog child.
I cannot get it.
Yeah, I was like, oh, she didthis.
So I definitely, definitely,definitely get it.
Speaker 3 (56:55):
We've got five reviews that have been five
reviews that have been posted toAmazon so far, and all five of
them gave us five stars oh yes,I'm definitely gonna get this
book and leave my review and, Ihope, all my listeners um, on
all platforms.
Speaker 2 (57:12):
Um, if you're listening to it now, you're
listening to this later on thereplay.
If you're listening on anyplatform, um, in any country,
get this book.
Can you once again tell themthe name of the book?
Uh, go to amazon, grab the book, read the book, leave a review,
um, and how they can.
Speaker 3 (57:30):
Yes, the book is called.
The name of the book is thegift of freedom stories of love
and the beauty of forgiveness.
If they were to type in thegift of freedom along with my
name, anissa short, which isa-n-i-s-s-a-s-h-o-r It'll come
up.
It's a woman on the front.
Looks like she's dancing acrossthe beach, so you'll know.
(57:51):
Um, the book is available onAmazon now, so they can secure
it there, and if they want toreach out to me, they can find
me.
My website is anissa shortcom,and this is short again.
It's a N I S S a S H O R T.
And they can find me onFacebook as well, and I'm on
(58:11):
Facebook.
They can send me a friendrequest and on Facebook I am Dr
Anissa Short.
Speaker 2 (58:20):
And we have one person that that wants to come
in and ask a question, and I seewe have Dr Velma.
Thank you so much, dr Velma,for tuning in.
Teresa Dorsey, with ReeseWrites Books, is here.
Gentry Journey is in, so thankyou guys, so much for tuning in.
Who else do we have here?
We have.
(58:41):
I just want to make sure Oliviais here.
Hi, olivia.
Hi Hip Hop City.
Hi, robin Ayers is here.
Thank you so much, everybody,for tuning in.
I appreciate all the peoplethat I see here that don't have
a name, that are listening ontheir computers.
Thank you guys so much.
I'm going to invite CarolynColeman up.
(59:04):
She has a question for you, soI want to make sure that we get
her on.
Okay, thank you.
Speaker 4 (59:17):
Hello everyone, how are you?
Speaker 3 (59:19):
Doing well.
Speaker 4 (59:22):
Really, my question and or comment goes back to the
various lenses, and that equalsdifferent perspectives, exactly
what you see, and the Cosby showwas a great example.
But you know you can be talkingto someone and they walk away
(59:45):
with a total different opinionthan what you say.
Totally Exactly.
And so you know, we have to beclear, or as clear as we can be,
because some peopleintentionally do not or will not
receive what is being said.
But I did love that analogy.
Different lenses, thank you,and that's very, very true.
And the faith, family andfinances if it's not aligned
(01:00:07):
with that, then maybe that'sjust very, very true.
And the faith, family andfinances if it's not aligned
with that, then maybe that's notwhat you need to be doing.
So, thank you so much.
Um, you're very welcome.
I really enjoyed the interview.
Uh, you all have a great dayyou do the same.
Speaker 3 (01:00:20):
Thank you for your input thank you, my sister.
Speaker 2 (01:00:24):
you know I love you, honey.
Thank you so much.
Okay, so before we get readyand close, do you mind leading
us out with prayer, dr Anessa?
Speaker 3 (01:00:43):
No, I don't mind.
I don't mind.
Thank you for asking.
Father God, we thank you onceagain for another day of grace
and mercy, for your divine favor.
We thank you for being anexcellent source.
You are our provider, you areour protector, and for that we
say thank you.
Thank you for this platform.
Thank you for Miss Linda Listen, listen, listen, Linda podcast.
Thank you for Jacqueline Coxand all that she brings to the
(01:01:03):
table and providing her platformas a way to make a difference
in the lives of others.
Lord God, for every person whohas listened, who will listen,
may their lives be greaterbecause of the content that
we've provided on today.
We're thankful, lord God, foropening doors that no man can
shut.
We thank you for your promiseto bless the work of our hands.
We thank you, lord God, forbeing with us, for standing by
(01:01:26):
us and giving us the wisdom,clarity and the direction we
need to continue to serve othersand to serve you.
Speaker 2 (01:01:35):
It's in your son's Christ Jesus name I pray today.
Amen, amen.
And that concludes this episodeof Listen, linda.
It should be posted today onall platforms by 7 o'clock pm,
central Standard Time.
Again, I want to thank you somuch, dr Anissa Shore, for just
bringing us your presence.
I truly appreciate you.
I know you got a burn.
Speaker 3 (01:01:57):
Yes, ma'am, sunday is my official national holiday,
mm-hmm.
Speaker 2 (01:02:03):
Yeah, that's so everyday of the month.
Yes, I've been celebrating allmonth I am yes, happy early
birthday.
You beautiful where is, and welove appreciate you, you can.
You are welcome back hereanytime and I'm gonna leave you
guys with um mary j bligereflections.
You called me out upon the waters, the great
unknown, where feet may fail.
And there I find you, in themystery, in oceans deep.
(00:29):
My faith will stand and I willcall upon your name and keep my
eyes above the waves.
When oceans rise, my soul willrest in your embrace.
(00:53):
I am yours and you are mine.
(01:14):
Your grace abounds beneath thiswaters.
Your sovereign hand will be myguide when feet may fail and
fear surrounds me.
You've never failed and youwon't start now.
(01:37):
So I will call upon your nameand keep my eyes above the waves
.
When oceans rise, my soul willrest in your embrace, for I am
(02:00):
yours and you are mine and youare mine.
(02:33):
Spirit lead me where my trust iswithout borders.
Let me walk upon the watersWherever you would call me.
Take me deeper than my feetcould ever wander, and my faith
will be made stronger in thepresence of my Savior.
(02:59):
Spirit lead me where my trustis without fault.
Let me walk upon the waterWherever you would go, wherever
you would call.
Take me deep.
Take me deeper than my feetcould ever wander, and my faith
(03:20):
will be strong.
Spirit lead me where my trustis without fault.
Spirit lead me will be madestrong, jesus of my Savior
Spirit.
Lead me where my trust is withno one.
Let me walk upon the crosswherever you lead me.
Take me deeper than my feetcould ever walk.
(03:45):
My faith will be made strongerin the presence of my Savior
Spirit.
Lead me where my trust is, withno borders.
Let me walk upon the waterswherever you call me.
(04:07):
Take me deep within my feet andI will walk upon the waters
wherever you call me, and I willwalk upon your name.
Wake up my little child and keepmy eyes above the waves.
(04:32):
Wake up, my little child.
I will rest in your embrace.
I am yours and you are mine.
I am yours, you are mine, I amyours, you are mine, you're mine
(05:05):
.
Yeah, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh,oh, oh, oh, oh.
(05:49):
So, oh, the love of God.
All the saints and angels, theybow before your throne.
(06:16):
All the elders cast theircrowns before the Lamb.
Abide and see.
You're worthy of it all.
You're worthy of it all, forfrom you are all things and to
(06:54):
you are all things.
(07:17):
You deserve the glory.
All the saints and angels Bowbefore your throne.
All the elders passed theircrowns before the.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
Lamb of God and say You're worthy of it all, you're
worthy of it all, you're worthyof it all, You're worthy of it
(07:58):
all.
Yes, that was Worthy of it.
Oh, with Cece Winans and I havesuch a special guest for you
guys today.
Welcome to the Listen LindaShow I have today, dr Anissa
Short.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
How are you today, hi , ms Cox, I am fantastic.
How are you?
Speaker 2 (08:21):
I am blessed and highly favored.
I am so, so glad that you havedecided to join us in the
waiting room.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
Thank you for the invitation.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
I appreciate the opportunity oh no, no problem
for you guys who don't know, drAnissa Short also invited me
next month, on my birthday, todo a podcast interview with her
as well, so we're going to speakmore about that later on in the
(08:50):
week.
Before we get started, I alwaysstart either with a hymn or a
prayer.
Today I did both.
I did Oceans by Brie Babineauand I also did CeCe Winans.
Worthy of it All.
I'm going to start with prayerand then we're going to jump
right into the questions.
Sounds good, dear HeavenlyFather, we come before you today
(09:13):
with grateful hearts as weprepare to interview the
incredible Dr Anissa Short on mypodcast.
Listen, linda, the Waiting Room.
My podcast Listen, linda, theWaving Room.
I ask for your guidance andwisdom, lord God, as we dive
into her journey as amotivational speaker, author and
entrepreneur.
(09:33):
May this conversation be asource of inspiration and
empowerment for all who listen.
In your name, we pray Amen.
So now let's get right into thequestions.
To anybody who know me no, Igot questions.
I got questions, honey.
Yes, and I never ask my guests.
Oh, tell the audience who youare, or you know where you come
(09:57):
from.
No, no, no, not me.
I do my research and I quilt myquestions based on what I find.
So for the first question, yourbio mentions that you have
transformed your decades ofentrepreneurial experience into
engaging events that educate,empower and encourage women,
(10:21):
especially female entrepreneurs.
Could you share some keyprinciples or strategies that
you emphasize during your eventsto help women thrive in their
entrepreneurial journey?
That's an excellent question.
Speaker 3 (10:34):
I so appreciate you doing your research.
So, first and foremost, most ofwhat I do on a platform, or
most of what I host or engage in, serve women.
Whether they be femaleentrepreneurs, domestic
engineers, corporate attorneys,it doesn't really matter,
because I believe that ourcommunity of women do a great
(10:56):
job representing in themarketplace in their various
capacities, but we need acommunity of women also to be
cheerleaders, to be supporters,to be guiding lights and things
of that nature.
So all of my events are gearedin that vein or in that fashion.
I started my firstentrepreneurial consistent, I
(11:19):
should say entrepreneurialjourney in 1999, working within
a direct sales industry, mainlywith an industry that 98% were
women.
One of the things that I trulybelieve is that we should
operate our businesses and liveour lives from a principle space
(11:40):
, and so my faith is a veryvital part of what I share.
My educational platform usesbiblical principles.
The way I encourage, just froma place of who we are,
educational standpoint, from anentrepreneurial standpoint, from
(12:05):
a career standpoint, shouldalways be centered around
keeping the priorities of faith,family and finances in perfect
harmony not necessarily equal toeach, but making sure that
those areas are first andforemost in our lives.
So all of our decisions arefiltered through that principle,
or through that principle orthrough that foundation of
(12:27):
making sure that the decisionsyou make concerning your
education, your career, yourbusiness practices, et cetera,
serve to benefit your faith,your family and your finances.
And if it doesn't do that, itjust doesn't make sense that it
(12:49):
just doesn't make sense.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Amen, look, you caught me with the last key at
the end.
If it does not fit your faith,your finances or your family,
then it is not for you and keepit moving.
I appreciate that Now, as abestselling author and
conference speaker, you've hadthe opportunity to share your
message with a wide range ofaudiences, right?
So how do you tailor yourmessage to resonate with
(13:12):
different groups and what impactdo you hope to make through
your work?
Speaker 3 (13:17):
As of today.
So far, the majority of thepeople that I've had privilege
of speaking to or speaking forhave been the audience that I've
served, which is women.
So the networking events thatI've gone to, or I may have
served as a workshop presenteror speaker, the attendees were
mostly women.
The larger stages for whichI've been able to represent on,
(13:42):
which is the Forbes BusinessCouncil and the TEDx stages, I
either had a message that wasgeared towards entrepreneurship
and I represented from thatspace, or either I served as an
emcee, and so I was able to notonly speak from a place of
representing as an entrepreneur,but also as an author and et
cetera representing as anentrepreneur, but also as an
(14:05):
author and et cetera.
So one of the things I know withcertainty, ms Cox, is this is
that when you operate from aprincipled place, it doesn't
really matter your audience,because when it comes to
principles, they're universal.
You know, for example, the lawof gravity is a universal law, a
universal principle.
If it's a man, woman, boy, girlthat jumps off the roof,
they're going to all get thesame result they're going to
(14:26):
fall to the ground expeditiously.
So when I speak to my audiencesbecause everything that I
choose to share stems from aprincipled place.
It really doesn't matter theaudience, it really doesn't, but
I am always wanting to leave anugget of inspiration or a seed,
(14:46):
or plant a seed ofencouragement or hope, and so
that's something we all coulduse.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
I can agree to that and I can respect that as well.
Your favorite quote by MarianneWilliamson speaks to the power
of letting our own light shineand inspiring others to do the
same.
How has this quote influencedyour approach to motivating and
empowering women?
Speaker 3 (15:13):
You know.
I'm so glad you asked thatquestion because the first time
I heard that quote by MarianneRobinson of course it's much
more to the quote than that butthat particular segment of it
spoke to me because if we wereto look at, look into the, the
night sky, you're going to seeof course it's a clear night,
that is, you're going to see themoon shining brightly, but
you're also going to see stars,and some of the stars the
(15:36):
brilliance of the movie a lot, alot more visible than others
there.
Some are going to radiate more,some are going to seem like
they're more, they're closer toyou, are going to seem like
they're closer to you, some aregoing to seem like they're
further away.
But when you look in the skyyou can't really differentiate
one from the other.
But you do know one thingthey're all shining bright and I
believe we as humans have alight within us that can shine
(15:58):
bright as well.
And if we would, rather thanfocus on why someone's light
might be brighter than yours ordimmer than yours, why don't we
just focus on doing our best toshine bright?
And when we do, we all bringtogether, and when we all come
together, when each of us focusfrom that perspective and we all
come together, we create thebeautiful skylight.
We can create somethingbeautiful just like the skylight
(16:19):
the skyline would be on anyclear night.
What does that tell me that Ineed to do as an individual?
I just need to focus on myshine.
I need to do what's necessaryso that I not only shine, but I
shine brightly.
And we do that by way ofbecoming better versions of
ourselves, on doing what'snecessary to increase our skill
(16:42):
set, to overcome fear, to makesure that we become more
polished versions of ourselves,and we can do that by way of our
faith.
And we also can do that by wayof the people that we choose to
connect with, because whenpeople come together and you're
around the right circle, theyhelp to bring out in you.
Sometimes we don't even see inourselves.
(17:03):
So that segment spoke to me andit says basically that
everybody is a light.
Everybody has the opportunityto shine and everybody should
maximize the opportunity toshine in whatever way.
That means Some lights won't beas bright as others, but it
doesn't matter.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
You're still a light, so shine matter, you're still a
light, so shine.
I love that so much.
And that reminds me of so manythings, especially this one
interview that I saw with KellyRowland.
She was on um uh, I think hisname is Ibram or Ibro Show, and
(17:44):
he was saying oh, you knowBeyonce this and Beyonce that.
And she was like well, I'm alight too, you know, like I got
my own light.
I'm not focusing on anybodyelse, I'm focusing on my own
light.
We are all lights and like that, I truly believe that light.
It definitely diminishesdarkness.
(18:06):
And like you could be so focused, like my grandma used to always
say, just like a classroom,like don't look on somebody else
but focus on your own paper soyou can pass Exactly, you know,
and your testimony.
So we so busy focusing oneverybody else and what
everybody else got going on.
And I've learned that justrecently, within the past few
(18:30):
years, that if I stopped lookingat what everybody else is doing
and and why ain't nobodylooking at me?
Well, take that same energy,put it inside of yourself and
watch.
Like just this past six months,I've exploded in my career,
I've exploded in my faith, I'veexploded in just everything,
(18:52):
because God has catapulted mylife, because I put my focus on
the word.
I put my focus on him and mytrust and my faith in him and I
you know faith without works isdead right.
So I put all my energy intoeverything that he's told me to
(19:12):
do and it has worked and he hasblessed it beyond measure.
And it's all because I focus,like you said, on the light, the
light which is him, which is inus.
So I can appreciate I got onceI saw the quote, um, I was like
wow, like that's deep, so Idefinitely had to ask you give
yourself permission.
Speaker 3 (19:32):
When you look at that quote, it says we all have been
given a light and we all havepermission to shine.
So if we truly focus on beingthe best light that we can be,
the best version of a light thatwe can be, we wouldn't have
time to be even comparingourselves to other people
because we're so busy.
We're so busy taking care, wedon't have time to.
(19:52):
But the thing is is that?
Here's the thing.
A lot of people don't considerthemselves as light, and that's
the unfortunate part.
So my platform is to ignite thefire, or to help people to see
that you do have value, you dobring something to the table.
Just be the best version ofwhat you can be and that's good
enough.
Just always focus on improvingyourself and being the better
(20:16):
version of who you are.
Hone in those skills and giftsand talents that God gave you
before you were even formed.
Much of what we have to offeris not anything that we had to
be taught.
It was something that was givento us innately by the creator,
and so if we focused on justthat alone and become a better
version, a more improved versionof that, then we would be busy,
(20:37):
promise you.
We wouldn't have time foranything else.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
Oh man, I haven't been able to look to breathe,
blah, blah, focused on what Godwant me to do next.
You know, of course, you usethe sermon and everything that
you do right, and you fast andyou pray on it, but you still
have to work towards everythingintentionally yes, intentionally
(21:01):
putting in the work to become abetter version of you.
He will bless it, oh mygoodness, he will bless it, and
I'm just so, so, very gratefulfor him, for you, for all my
guests who, you know, trust meto help bring awareness to their
books, businesses or platformsor whatever it may be, and
(21:22):
that's why I do my best to tryto help people the best way that
I can.
And you know, I was thatstudent that always had good
grades, but it was always in thecomments.
I'm very talkative.
So I was like, hmm, I mean,what can I do with that?
I create a podcast because Ilove to talk Perfect, and I ask
(21:44):
a lot of questions and I alwayshave some good ones.
So we're gonna move along tothe next one.
Now this is a good one too.
So the title of one of yourbooks ask for me in my house
suggest the focus on theimportance of faith and family,
just like you mentioned earlier,faith, family, finances, um.
How has your belief in god andyour spirituality played a role
(22:06):
in your personal andprofessional life?
Speaker 3 (22:08):
Well, I don't differentiate one from the other
.
This is my life period.
My life includes my being awife.
My life includes my being adaughter, a sister, you know, an
auntie.
My life includes my being anentrepreneur.
My life includes my being anauthor.
So I don't segment who I ambased on a title.
(22:28):
This is Anissa, and I feel likeI'm using my gifts to the best
of my ability to represent who Irepresent.
So, when I look at it from thatperspective, everything that I
know and believe and trust in,which comes from the word of God
, I can apply to every aspect orevery hat that I wear.
So my prayer is Lord, help meto be the best version and to do
(22:48):
a great job.
With all the many hats that Iwear, I'm still Anissa at the
end of the day.
I am Anissa Short.
I am Anissa Short, wife.
I'm Anissa Short, auntie.
I'm Anissa Short, daughter.
I'm Anissa Short.
Author, entrepreneur.
So I don't differentiate.
I get what you're saying.
I just wanted to emphasize thatbecause sometimes people have
segmented themselves and becauseof that, you see them in one
(23:10):
way in a career, professionalstandpoint, and then you see
them another way when they'reout with their family at the
grocery store.
I'm the same person, no matterwhere you find me.
I exude the same light.
I exude the same personality.
But everything that I choose tobe, in every decision I choose
to make, no matter what role inwhich I'm serving, I'm choosing
(23:32):
to do so in a way that'sconsistent with my faith.
So when it says we should loveothers and treat others the way
we want to be treated, I'm goingto treat my husband the way I
want to be treated.
I'm going to treat my nephewsthe way I want to be treated.
You follow what I'm saying.
I'm going to treat my clientsand my colleagues the way I want
(23:52):
to be treated.
That same principle flowsthrough every aspect of who I am
and the hats that I wear.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
I hope that answers your question.
Oh, it definitely did.
I love that and you know what?
I've never looked at it thatway and I think it's because by
me, you know, trying todifferentiate.
You know the way that I treatadults, opposed to the way that
(24:17):
I treat my children, have tocome at it from kind of like a
different standpoint because Idon't want my kids to get a
misrepresentation that it's okaythat they have that same type
of way where they can speak tome in a certain way that I would
(24:38):
speak to them.
So maybe that's the differencein that, you know, I have two
younger kids in the house, youknow, and I guess, because I
come at it from that standpoint,but I agree with everything
that you're saying as far aslike having that same
personality.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
Hello.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
Hello, are you there?
I am, I'm, I am here.
I couldn't hear you for aminute, though, oh yeah, um, I
was basically saying, like, whenmy kids are around, I try, try
to kind of go from whatever itis that the adults watch to
PG-13 or PG.
Oh yes.
Speaker 3 (25:55):
You know what I'm saying.
You know what.
Speaker 2 (25:57):
Because I'm a firecracker.
Speaker 3 (26:01):
No, no, that's a part of it, but you know what.
But here's the thing, though,that's a part of your mother's
parental know what.
But here's the thing, thoughthat's a part of your mother
parental responsibility.
You follow what I'm saying.
So.
So you know, in in theworkplace, when I was working a
traditional job, you know I hadto be assertive, I had to be
authoritative because of theroles in which I serve, I had to
be take charge and that role inwhich I serve.
(26:23):
But even in serving in thatrole, I still wanted to treat
people the way I wanted to betreated, even my into my
assertiveness.
Then my roles changed when Icame home.
I don't have to take charge andbe the head because I'm.
I mean, I don't have to beassertive.
I can be, but I don't have tobecause my husband takes it.
So now my role, how I function,may change, but at the same
time I'm wanting to still treathim the way I want to be treated
(26:44):
.
You follow what I'm saying, soI get what you're saying.
You're not going to treat yourchildren the identical way in
which you would treat an adult,but at the same time, you're
going to let the biblicalprinciples be your guide on even
how you operate, you know, so Iget that.
Speaker 2 (26:59):
Oh, absolutely.
So.
That's why I said I can 100%agree with what you're saying
and why the way that you, youknow, your spirituality plays a
role in your professional andpersonal life is one and the
same.
So I can agree with that and Ican respect that.
So, so, very much.
And, yeah, that's definitely agem I'm definitely going to put
(27:19):
in my bag.
So, look, I can learn.
There's no shame in my game.
34 years old, I'm stilllearning, so I can definitely,
definitely attest to that.
That's a great gem for me tostick right on in my back pocket
.
You have spoken on variousstages as you stayed before,
(27:40):
like the Forest Business Councilstage and the University of
South Africa test stage.
Can you share an impactfulmoment or experience from one of
those speaking engagements thatleft the last impression on you
and your audience?
Speaker 3 (27:55):
The biggest.
The very first opportunity Ihad to go to South Africa was to
support my mentor, as a resultof her being a part of a TEDx
experience hosted by theUniversity of South Africa in
Johannesburg.
That opportunity came out ofthe blue, but I believe it was
divinely orchestrated.
(28:15):
Because of my relationship withher, she became my publishing
mentor several years prior.
Never in a million years wouldI have imagined that being
connected to her would haveresulted in my opportunity to go
to South Africa.
And also little did I know that, although I went there in
September of 2022 with her, thatI would be going back in March
(28:36):
of 2023 and I, too, would be onthe stage with the University of
South Africa.
Just that alone spoke volumesto me.
One it spoke to the importanceof South Africa.
Just that alone speaks spokevolumes to me.
One is spoke to the importanceof mentorship.
It spoke to the importance ofmentorship in that, when you are
pursuing whatever it is thatyou are choosing to pursue, it
(28:57):
is so important that you notonly have a mentor, but the
right mentor, because thatmentor will not only guide you
in the proper way in which tooperate or the proper way in
which to function or how to honein on the skills necessary to
soar and excel in your chosenprofession or chosen project,
but it will also lead to doorsbeing open, and that door for me
opened up an opportunity to goto the continent of Africa, you
(29:21):
know which is something thatI've always said I wanted to do
but did not know when it wouldhappen of Africa, which is
something that I've always saidI wanted to do but did not know
when it would happen, and thatopened up not only the
opportunity to be on that stage,but to be in the motherland.
I cannot adequately convey whatthat was like.
I still say surreal is the bestway for me to describe it.
To be in Africa, to be amongstthe people of Africa, to be in
(29:44):
the culture.
Be in Africa, to be amongst thepeople of Africa, to be in the
culture, to be a part of theculture, to experience the
culture, to be able to buildrelationships with people who I
now converse with via socialmedia, you know pretty regularly
, or still communicate with withregards to future projects that
I did not know five years ago,had no clue.
I would know who they are, andso that has been a joy.
(30:05):
It has added color to my life.
I live a colorful life anyway.
Let's be clear.
I was not just black and whiteand gray, but that has added
another aspect of my life to mylife and another sense of
vibrancy that I did not know,never imagined happening.
I mean, it's been a great ride.
(30:25):
So, yes, being able to serve onthe stage in South Africa and
then that led to me actuallyemceeing a TEDx experience here
in the United States.
So you know, I will say it wasmore to it than just the stage.
It wasn't really about me beingvisible on the stage as much as
(30:46):
it was about me being able toglean from the experience and
the environment of thoseopportunities.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
Yes, oh man, I could just imagine, like you say, it's
not so much about the stage orthe presence of being on the
stage and being, you know, infront of those people, but it's
more so about you spreading thatmessage and getting that word
out and it touching lives andtouching people in such a way
that they can like, like, justlike today, you gave me a word
(31:21):
and I was like, oh, that's myback pocket, and now just
imagine what I'm going to takewith that and do with that, you
know, and that might worksomething so great.
And then you'll go back and andor somebody will say, well,
jackie, where did you get that?
Oh, you know what?
I had Dr Nissa Short, and shejust taught me that, she gave me
that gem.
And it's like you take that andyou're like, wow, like she took
(31:44):
just that little piece of whatI said and she created something
so great out of it.
And just to know that youtouched just one life with that,
that, and so imagine thousandsof millions like that's, that's
amazing.
And then to be able to Africa,that's something that me and my
husband and my kids, you know,always say that we're gonna do
(32:05):
so.
Kudos for that Like and to beable to go back again, like that
is amazing.
I'm just in awe of all of thatand I'm just, I'm so happy.
You look, my heart is likepounding, like I love that, like
that is I know you did.
Every time I see Africa on TVor I see anything dealing with
(32:25):
Africa and just how beautiful itis, it warms my spirit where
you just know, wow, that's home,that's amazing.
So so very grateful that youeven you know a lot of people
don't want to or are intimidatedby that.
So just because you took thatopportunity and you went for
(32:47):
unapologetically, I love that somuch for you.
You have a keynote, a ConfidentWoman, and in that keynote you
discuss identifying and buildingconfidence in oneself and
others.
How do you believe spiritualityand a connection with God
contributes to buildingconfidence, particularly for
(33:10):
women?
Speaker 3 (33:12):
I absolutely love that question.
Here's what I truly believe isthat a woman or a man can truly
be confident in and ofthemselves.
They really have to know whothey are, and the who of what we
are can only be found in thecreator.
Think about it, you know, ifyou have a I mean in a practical
(33:36):
, everyday sense if you have aWhirlpool refrigerator and then
something is not functioningproperly with that Whirlpool
refrigerator, you don't use aSamsung model or operations
guide to try to figure out whyyour Whirlpool is not operating
properly, right?
So if we're not confident inwho we are or in the makeup of
(34:04):
who we are, or for whateverreason, we really need to
consult the creator.
It just makes sense To me.
It's kind of like we're notoperating fully at the capacity
we believe we should and forthat reason we don't feel like
the best version of ourselves.
We need to go back to whocreated us and choose to believe
(34:26):
what they say about us and notwhat we may be saying about
ourselves or what someone elsemay have told us.
So when I talk about being aconfident woman, I use a story
in the word of God to convey themessage, and being a confident
woman has absolutely nothing todo with the fact that she wears
(34:47):
Prada or carries a Chanel orsprays on some Dolce Gabbana.
That has nothing to do withwhat clothes she wears.
Those are just external factors, you know.
But a lot of people can dressup really well, but internally
they don't have any confidencein themselves and so they choose
to grasp, hold to those name,brand things, trinkets and
(35:07):
external representations toconvey something that truly does
not exist.
When a woman is truly confidentin who she is and how she
represents, it's because shetruly understands who she is.
So some of the nuggets I shareis that the word of God tells us
as women especially those of uswho are wise, that we're more
(35:28):
valuable than rubies.
Diamonds come every day.
Everybody can get a diamond,but a ruby is very rare.
In my life as a wife should benot the status quo, but I should
stand above or stand out fromthe crowd, not because I'm
(35:49):
better than anyone else, becauseI'm not, but because I
understand who I am.
Because of what he has said inhis word.
I use stories to convey inthose scriptures, to truly
provide the definition I talkabout what a woman, a confident
woman, how we respond to crisis,and I use an example in the
word of God that tells us that,not because any one person some
(36:10):
of us can be stronger thanothers, because we've lived
through more in certain areas,but we all have areas where we
fall short.
So where do you feel insecure,where do you feel like you're
less than?
And go to the word of God andwork on that area until you feel
better about yourself, notbecause you are better than
anyone else, but because he'sgiven you the blueprint by which
(36:30):
to operate by and the blueprintby which to believe, and it
simply is that you shift yourthinking, in your paradigm, you
shift your perspective and youchoose to accept what your
creator, what your father, saysabout you as truth and you
operate from that place.
That's what being a confidentwoman is to me, and becoming a
confident woman, and it's not anovernight process.
(36:51):
So give yourself permission totake some time, but don't allow
extraneous variables and peoplewho didn't build it.
If you didn't build an earth, Iheard one pastor say until you
build you a solar system andbuild you an earth and build you
an ecosystem, until you createheavens and earth, then I'm just
(37:11):
going to choose to believe whatthe word of God says I'm not
going to choose, I'm not goingto place value on what man says
over what my creator says.
Being a confident woman, I'mjust reminding women of who God
said we are and challenging themto accept that and move from
that vantage point to make abetter impression in the earth
(37:32):
or to represent from a betterplace.
Speaker 2 (37:39):
I love that.
I definitely got to sit in onone of your conferences.
I just I am over here liketaking it all and I truly, truly
love that because I'm a firmbeliever of that as well.
Like, you change your mind, youchange your life.
You change your mindset, youchange your life.
A lot of my peers that are intheir early 30s, or people I
(38:01):
graduated high school with orwith college with, they're all
still partying, getting drunk,having fun, doing this, doing
that, having their own type offun, but they don't see life the
way I see it.
And a lot of times I wastalking to another person I had
on yesterday, robin Ayers, andwe were speaking about it and it
(38:24):
was the same for me.
When you are operating on adifferent level, spiritually,
you'll see things a lotdifferent than the way the world
sees it.
And I don't think that I seethings the way the world sees it
because I'm so honed in on justthe word and the book, the real
(38:44):
Facebook, the book that youshould have your face in, which
is the word of God, which is,you know, the Bible, and you
know, when you are operating onthat level of the 4D level and
you are seeing things from adifferent perspective.
Yeah, me and you.
We might be looking, you know,north, right, but you're grass
(39:05):
and I'm a tree.
You know, you're a puppy, I'm agiraffe.
So if we're looking north andsomeone says, hey, so what do
you guys see?
And you know, the puppy says Isee a taxi coming.
And the giraffe may say, hey, Isee birds flying this way.
Now, are either of them wrong?
No, but they're seeing it froma different perspective.
(39:28):
You can see it from a worldlyperspective, but I see it from a
higher realm because I'moperating on a different realm,
spiritually, and when you'reoperating, it's like an
out-of-body experience that Ihave.
It's like an out-of-bodyexperience that I have and it's
no matter how much I try toexplain it to people my age,
(39:51):
it's like they will never get ituntil they sit down and really
read the word and then takethose classes, the same classes
I took, and just really hone inon it and get that level of
perspective that I got from it.
But they still might not see.
(40:15):
Like, you may read the word, Imay read the word, you may have
your interpretation of it, I mayhave mine.
Does that mean that either ofus are wrong.
No, we just two different humanbeings seeing it from two
different ways.
I see the word read.
You see the word read.
You're seeing it from a present, I'm seeing it from a past.
Tense Doesn't mean we're wrong,it just means what way are you?
(40:35):
You know from what perspectiveare you reading it from?
You know, are you reading itthe way that it's supposed to be
read, or are you reading itfrom a different way?
Speaker 3 (40:50):
And and there's nothing wrong with that, but
it's something wrong with that?
No, it does, because it haseverything to do with the lens
from which you're filtering.
So, if you so, you know, like Iremember years ago, um, when
the cosby show was out.
Now everybody know they can saywhat they want to about bill
cosby and I'm not gonna get intoall of that, but I love the
Cosby show was my listen, theCosby show was the show.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
I don't care what anybody says, it was, but now
let me tell you something.
Speaker 3 (41:13):
But let me tell you this it wasn't until years later
I'm in college, or maybe out ofcollege, I can't remember and I
remember being in a groupconversation with people, um,
that were that it looked, youknow, different.
We're on the same age bracket.
I can't remember now where Iwas I think it may have been on
the job and a young lady thatwas in that group said to, said
to us, and that she didn't likethe show at all.
And I said well, why?
(41:34):
Because I couldn't imagine whyanybody would not like the cosby
show.
And she said because it's fake.
Well, first of all, sis this tv, can we just, can we just all
agree it's TV.
So she says it was fake and Isaid well, what do you mean by
fake?
And she says people don't livethat way, black people don't
live that way.
Now, this was anAfrican-American woman, and then
(41:56):
I said you don't think blackpeople live that way?
And she says no, I don da da.
And she just went in.
Well, basically, what itamounted to was that in the
community from which she wasreared, in the environment in
which she grew up, in the familylife structure that she had,
she never saw that.
She never saw that in herfamily, people getting along
(42:16):
that way, having a doctor as oneparent and an attorney as
another parent, and they gettingalong.
She was just very honest.
Well, I told her.
I said well, I hate that foryou, because I did see that
growing up I didn't have anuncle, or my mom wasn't a doctor
and my dad it was, you know, anattorney, but I do have family
(42:38):
members that we get together.
You know what I'm saying.
We, we get along, we're going,they're encouraging us to go to
college.
So I can relate to some thingsin the Cosby show because, while
it may not have been theperfect, it may not have been
truly identical to where I wasraised.
There was so much I couldrelate to.
At the same time, she'swatching the same show and she's
saying this is so fake, it'snot real.
(42:58):
Because we're looking at itthrough different lenses and
that's why I believe we can allread the same thing and we
interpret it totally different,because we're reading from
different lenses and the onlycommon denominator is going to
be that the word of God doesn'tchange and over time, for those
whose hearts are truly wantingto have better, eventually it
(43:22):
will transform to.
I think that's what the Biblemeans by the veil that's been
lifted.
That's the lens, the cloudinessin our sight and our
understanding.
But if we stick to it and don'tgive up, we all eventually
start seeing things the same way.
Speaker 2 (43:37):
That's where clarity will come in.
That's such a greatinterpretation of it.
And you know what, Looking atthe Cosby show, just a home back
in, it's so crazy because shedidn't grow up in that
environment just the same way Idid.
Right, my family didn't getalong.
I didn't come from a two-parenthousehold.
(43:58):
I didn't grow up that way.
But at the same time, when Iwatched the Cosby show, it gave
me hope.
So I saw it as wow, look atthem.
I didn't look at it as if itwas fake.
I knew that I had never seen itcoming from, you know, a block
radius where we didn't, wedidn't, we didn't step outside
(44:19):
of our environment.
But I've always said, if they'regoing to do it too, then that's
what exactly.
That's what I'm going to havefor my kids, and I'm going to
make that my reality.
And look at them, they'resomething great.
So I'm going to be somethinggreat, exactly.
And so I never had a negativethought in my mind when I
(44:41):
watched the Cosby show differentstrokes.
And so they'll go to college and, you know, go to Hillman and
and just and just be great.
I always said that's going tobe me, you know that be me.
And and until it became myreality, did it take a long time
to get here?
Absolutely, uh, it did, but itdidn't, you know, because it's a
(45:03):
lot of women that are my agenow that't accomplished what I
have, but have been throughthose same things and just
didn't have that courage or thatfaith in God to really get out
of it yet.
And I think that's why God isusing me now as a vessel to say
hey, look over here.
(45:23):
I've been through that.
I went through homelessness, Iwent through domestic violence,
I went through drug-inducedparents.
I've been through all of that.
And guess what?
I went through rape, I wentthrough incest.
I went through all of that andguess what?
I'm right here, still young,still vibrant, still 34 years
old, but still was able to getout, and I so love the Lord so
(45:48):
much.
You know that nothing, nobody,can tell me or do to me that can
take that away from me, right,right, you know.
So I can appreciate that.
Now.
I don't mean to cut everybodyoff, but I want to speak now for
the last few minutes about thenew book that you have coming
(46:08):
out, you and a few ladies.
The book is called the Gift ofFreedom Stories of Love and the
Beauty of Forgiveness.
Now you have a chapter in herecalled Remember Jamaica.
Okay, ok, then this chapter.
(46:34):
You have a character, anastasia, and she goes through like a
transformative journey ofletting go of toxic
relationships and peace yes,right, and finding her peace.
Could you share more about theinspiration behind that story
and what motivated you toexplore the themes of love,
forgiveness and personal growthin this particular set?
Speaker 3 (46:47):
This book is actually the byproduct of a writer's
retreat that I attended twoyears ago in Jamaica actually in
Jamaica and we had a fantasticinstructor.
This is my first attempt towriting nonfiction, because most
of what I've written before hasbeen mostly inspirational and
educational, so to say.
(47:08):
But this is a novel and thisbook was a challenge.
It was the very first, as Isaid before, of a novel that
I've written in collaborationwith three other women.
So the book itself is aboutcharacters who would go to
Jamaica to attend a forgivenessretreat characters who would go
(47:33):
to Jamaica to attend aforgiveness retreat.
All four stories focus on acharacter and all four stories
are different.
My story is about a young ladynamed Anastasia who was invited
to be a part of the retreat.
As the event planner, she'sassisting the host of the
retreat and prior to beingextended the invitation, some
(47:55):
years prior, a year or so priorshe ended a very toxic
relationship.
The relationship was one with ayoung man who she thought she'd
married, but he was very toxic,very abusive mentally,
psychologically and theneventually physically.
So at the time in which theinvitation is extended to her to
(48:15):
be a part of this retreat, sheonly accepts it because it's in
Jamaica.
Let's be clear we don't want togo, we don't accept every
assignment, but who would say noto Jamaica?
And while there, she's able tosee that there are some things
that she had been holding on to,although she felt like she was
in a good place that she neededto let go of.
She needed to forgive somepeople, including herself.
(48:37):
And in the process of beingthere and realizing these things
, she does have another opendoor to a happily ever after.
She does have another open doorto a happily ever after.
And so my story, honestly, isone that was cultivated as a
result of being a part of theretreat, because we were all
(48:59):
given points and snippets andnuggets to include in our
storylines.
So I did incorporate that, butI also incorporated a little bit
of my own life lines.
So I did incorporate that, butI also incorporated a little bit
of my own life.
So it's fiction, but some ofwhat is shared are snippets or
glimpses into some things Iexperienced personally as well.
So it does have everything todo with forgiveness, but it also
(49:21):
has everything to do with theimportance of love, which are
two very vital principles.
Love and forgiveness areprinciples that we should adopt
as a part of our life regardless.
Speaker 2 (49:34):
You know what?
I kind of figured that wasgoing to be my next question,
but you answered it already.
You said it was a part of yourreal life.
So that was going to be my nextquestion, but I'm going to move
to the next one after that.
Now you said that, uh, well, asas I was, you know, reading
just like this and trying tocome up with, uh, you know some
(49:56):
some quick questions for you,because I definitely want people
to go out and get this book.
Uh, anastasia's role as anadministrative assistant for her
boss's annual forgivenessretreat in Jamaica seemed to be
a pivotal moment for her.
How does the journey to Jamaicaand her involvement in the
(50:17):
retreat impact Anastasia's ownjourney of self-discovery and
healing?
Speaker 3 (50:29):
and healing.
Well, in the course ofeverybody attending.
When you get the book, thereare two of the co-authors in
this book actually hostforgiveness retreats, so we were
(50:51):
able to incorporate some of theexercises not fully, but
provide glimpses of some of theexercises that they actually
participate in during theseforgiveness retreats that they
host in real life.
Okay, so with Anastasia, eventhough she's there as a
facilitator, she's the assistantto the host.
She actually sits in on some ofthe segments because, you know,
as the person is here there toassist logistically, you are a
part of the event as well.
(51:11):
And it's during her sitting inon some of the segments that she
, her eyes began to open tothings within herself that she
needs to deal with.
And so she begins to althoughnot an attendee of the retreat,
begins to participate in theactivities in her own way to get
past some things that she hascome to understand that could
(51:34):
very well be hindrances or areasof her life that she has not
truly forgiven, and so that'srevealed in the storyline, but
it's very detailed as to whatexercise helped her to see
herself and what she did toovercome and to become stronger.
(51:56):
And, truth be told, thefacilitator of the retreat says
to her in the storyline there'sa weight that you need to get
rid of, and I'm not sure what itis, but I hope you find peace.
She's alluding to the fact thatshe believes Anastasia has had
some unforgiveness, but shedoesn't say it outright.
And then it does become.
(52:16):
You know, it's revealed toherself.
It is revealed.
Anastasia understands that thatis what it is.
Without her mentor saying it.
She realizes that there aresome areas that she needs to
forgive is without her mentorsaying it.
She realizes that there aresome areas that she needs to
forgive, and once she accepts it, it's like a weight is lifted,
and that stems from the name ofthe book too the Gift of Freedom
(52:37):
when you truly choose toforgive you give yourself the
gift of freedom With freedom.
Speaker 2 (52:43):
forgiveness precipitates freedom.
You truly aren't free until youtruly know how to forgive.
Yes, that was definitely.
I'm so glad you said that,because that leads right into my
next question, Becauseforgiveness is a central theme
in your chapter, in all thechapters in the book.
So how did you approachportraying the process of
(53:08):
forgiveness in Anastasia's story, and what message do you hope
readers will take away just fromher experience alone?
Well, you know the story ofAnastasia is one of four stories
.
Speaker 3 (53:23):
I've already re-emphasized that, and one of
the beautiful things about thisbook is that everybody's story
comes from a real life place.
Everybody's dealing with theneed to forgive, but their life
scenarios are different.
You follow me.
So we did that intention whereactually it happened.
None of us knew what the otherperson was writing, let's be
(53:45):
clear.
But we bring about a variety.
So in Anastasia's situation,anastasia ends a relationship.
At the beginning of the storyyou get a glimpse into her
previous relationship.
You get a glimpse into the factthat she's living her life like
as a golden, as a single woman,totally content.
But at the same time she stillhas some residue of some things
(54:07):
that she didn't realize from theprevious relationship and it
was blocking her from being ableto go to the next level.
So that's revealed in thestoryline.
That's revealed in thestoryline so much so, like some
of the others, there's anotherstory where the woman has hurt
from a father and she's tryingto get married and go on with
her life, but she still hasdaddy issues.
(54:29):
So that's another segment, andthe beautiful thing about this
book is that I believe everybodywill be able to relate to the
stories because they're not justa sermon on forgiveness, like
you might hear on Sunday.
They're taking practical,everyday situations that many of
us face or know someone that isfacing, and showing how
forgiveness is a very importantfactor of overcoming those,
(54:52):
those evils or that, or gettingrid of that residue so that you
can move on with your next phaseof life can you tell everybody
where they can get this book,because I'm already ready to go
ahead and so we don't listen.
Speaker 2 (55:07):
We have gotten so much positive feedback.
Yes, they can go to amazon andfind the book.
Speaker 3 (55:13):
The gift of freedom.
Um, and so it.
So it's available now.
It's available now, yeah, atthe time in which the book has
been available for a minute.
Now it's only $14.99, and theycan order it on Amazon or, if
(55:37):
they want to contact me directly, they can do that as well, but
it would just be easier to go toAmazon and secure it, Because
when they purchase it, I wouldreally love for them to offer
some feedback.
We have gotten nothing butgreat feedback.
We've got a lot of people whothey've not posted the
information, but you knowthey've not posted their review,
(55:58):
but they have.
You know, one of my yes, onelady that I know got the book
just before Thanksgiving and shetold me, Anissa, I read that
book.
She says I found myself talkingto the characters going oh my
God, no, you didn't.
I said when you start talkingto people that are not really
there, that means that book isreally good.
You really, that means youreally got into the storyline.
Speaker 2 (56:19):
Yeah, my husband.
He can't stand taking me to themovie.
He said ever since we were kidsand I would take you to the
movie.
He said you, just you, the onethat screams at the screen, we
in the house I'm screaming atthe screen when Usher was
performing on my pants like aUsher, so reading the books, I'd
(56:39):
be like, oh no, you didn't.
And if you don't believe me,ask Dr Bill, I'm still talking
about the analog child.
I cannot get it.
Yeah, I was like, oh, she didthis.
So I definitely, definitely,definitely get it.
Speaker 3 (56:55):
We've got five reviews that have been five
reviews that have been posted toAmazon so far, and all five of
them gave us five stars oh yes,I'm definitely gonna get this
book and leave my review and, Ihope, all my listeners um, on
all platforms.
Speaker 2 (57:12):
Um, if you're listening to it now, you're
listening to this later on thereplay.
If you're listening on anyplatform, um, in any country,
get this book.
Can you once again tell themthe name of the book?
Uh, go to amazon, grab the book, read the book, leave a review,
um, and how they can.
Speaker 3 (57:30):
Yes, the book is called.
The name of the book is thegift of freedom stories of love
and the beauty of forgiveness.
If they were to type in thegift of freedom along with my
name, anissa short, which isa-n-i-s-s-a-s-h-o-r It'll come
up.
It's a woman on the front.
Looks like she's dancing acrossthe beach, so you'll know.
(57:51):
Um, the book is available onAmazon now, so they can secure
it there, and if they want toreach out to me, they can find
me.
My website is anissa shortcom,and this is short again.
It's a N I S S a S H O R T.
And they can find me onFacebook as well, and I'm on
(58:11):
Facebook.
They can send me a friendrequest and on Facebook I am Dr
Anissa Short.
Speaker 2 (58:20):
And we have one person that that wants to come
in and ask a question, and I seewe have Dr Velma.
Thank you so much, dr Velma,for tuning in.
Teresa Dorsey, with ReeseWrites Books, is here.
Gentry Journey is in, so thankyou guys, so much for tuning in.
Who else do we have here?
We have.
(58:41):
I just want to make sure Oliviais here.
Hi, olivia.
Hi Hip Hop City.
Hi, robin Ayers is here.
Thank you so much, everybody,for tuning in.
I appreciate all the peoplethat I see here that don't have
a name, that are listening ontheir computers.
Thank you guys so much.
I'm going to invite CarolynColeman up.
(59:04):
She has a question for you, soI want to make sure that we get
her on.
Okay, thank you.
Speaker 4 (59:17):
Hello everyone, how are you?
Speaker 3 (59:19):
Doing well.
Speaker 4 (59:22):
Really, my question and or comment goes back to the
various lenses, and that equalsdifferent perspectives, exactly
what you see, and the Cosby showwas a great example.
But you know you can be talkingto someone and they walk away
(59:45):
with a total different opinionthan what you say.
Totally Exactly.
And so you know, we have to beclear, or as clear as we can be,
because some peopleintentionally do not or will not
receive what is being said.
But I did love that analogy.
Different lenses, thank you,and that's very, very true.
And the faith, family andfinances if it's not aligned
(01:00:07):
with that, then maybe that'sjust very, very true.
And the faith, family andfinances if it's not aligned
with that, then maybe that's notwhat you need to be doing.
So, thank you so much.
Um, you're very welcome.
I really enjoyed the interview.
Uh, you all have a great dayyou do the same.
Speaker 3 (01:00:20):
Thank you for your input thank you, my sister.
Speaker 2 (01:00:24):
you know I love you, honey.
Thank you so much.
Okay, so before we get readyand close, do you mind leading
us out with prayer, dr Anessa?
Speaker 3 (01:00:43):
No, I don't mind.
I don't mind.
Thank you for asking.
Father God, we thank you onceagain for another day of grace
and mercy, for your divine favor.
We thank you for being anexcellent source.
You are our provider, you areour protector, and for that we
say thank you.
Thank you for this platform.
Thank you for Miss Linda Listen, listen, listen, Linda podcast.
Thank you for Jacqueline Coxand all that she brings to the
(01:01:03):
table and providing her platformas a way to make a difference
in the lives of others.
Lord God, for every person whohas listened, who will listen,
may their lives be greaterbecause of the content that
we've provided on today.
We're thankful, lord God, foropening doors that no man can
shut.
We thank you for your promiseto bless the work of our hands.
We thank you, lord God, forbeing with us, for standing by
(01:01:26):
us and giving us the wisdom,clarity and the direction we
need to continue to serve othersand to serve you.
Speaker 2 (01:01:35):
It's in your son's Christ Jesus name I pray today.
Amen, amen.
And that concludes this episodeof Listen, linda.
It should be posted today onall platforms by 7 o'clock pm,
central Standard Time.
Again, I want to thank you somuch, dr Anissa Shore, for just
bringing us your presence.
I truly appreciate you.
I know you got a burn.
Speaker 3 (01:01:57):
Yes, ma'am, sunday is my official national holiday,
mm-hmm.
Speaker 2 (01:02:03):
Yeah, that's so everyday of the month.
Yes, I've been celebrating allmonth I am yes, happy early
birthday.
You beautiful where is, and welove appreciate you, you can.
You are welcome back hereanytime and I'm gonna leave you
guys with um mary j bligereflections.
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