Vernetta R. Freeney is the Creator/Producer of the podcast “A Toast To Truths”. She teaches others how to mentally detox to increase productivity. She was a Top 100 Young Professional in Houston 2015 and featured on CNBC.com. She’s the Organizer of Houston African American Bloggers Association and founder of Women Are Gamechangers.
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Resources Mentioned:
- Your Big Idea: Successful Entrepreneurs have One Big Idea. Follow JLD’s FREE training & you’ll discover Your Big Idea in less than an hour!
- Audible – Get a FREE Audiobook & 30 day trial if you’re not currently a member!
- Hootsuite – Vernetta’s small business resource
- Start Something That Matters – Vernetta’s’s Top Business Book
- Connect with Vernetta on Twitter or on her website
- The Mastery Journal – Master Discipline, Focus and Productivity in 100 days!
3 Key Points:
- You cannot give energy if you don’t have it.
- Productivity is writing a list of what needs to be done today, and completing that list.
- You can accomplish more by choosing ONE thing at a time that gets all your focus.
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Time Stamped Show Notes
(click the time stamp to jump directly to that point in the episode.)
- [01:03] – Vernetta teaches ESL 40 hours per week, runs a blog association, keeps up her own blog and podcast, and does private consulting
- [01:16] – If it wasn’t for her ability to focus on a goal, Vernetta wouldn’t be able to accomplish all these things
- [01:26] – Vernetta helps people help themselves
- [01:47] – One BIG and Unique Value Bomb: Vernetta’s expertise is in helping people do a mental detox. Her value bomb: “You need to give from your saucer… you can’t give to other people when your cup is empty”
- [02:47] – What was your goal for The Freedom Journal and how did you crush it? “My number one goal was to create my own journal”
- [03:27] – When Vernetta got into The Freedom Journal group, she was able to focus
- [03:56] – The biggest struggle was that Vernetta had no idea on how to “print”
- [04:40] – Vernetta has been lead in wrong directions multiple times in trying to print her journal
- [05:41] – There is a lot of work between reaching your goals and where you are at right now
- [06:44] – How do you define Productivity? ”Getting the thing done you wanted to for that day”
- [07:06] – Vernetta writes down her goals
- [07:44] – “You don’t have to see the full staircase to take the first step”
- [08:15] – Vernetta’s struggle is knowing what needs to be done that day
- [09:08] – How do you define Discipline? “Learning to say ‘no’ to yourself”
- [10:12] – Vernetta’s huge struggle with discipline is saying “no” to her nephews
- [10:51] – How do you define FOCUS? “Focus is being able to concentrate on something without letting your mind wander to anything else”
- [11:28] – Vernetta schedules her focus time in 1 – 1.5-hour blocks
- [11:54] – She easily gets distracted with everything because she tries to find out how she can help people
- [13:06] – JLD mentions the book Deep Work
- [14:50] – The Lightning Round
- What was holding you back from becoming an entrepreneur? – “I would say fear”
- What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? – “The cup and the saucer”
- What’s a personal habit that contributes to your success? – “To be optimistic, to think positive no matter what chaos is surrounding me”
- Share an internet resource, like Evernote, with Fire Nation – Hootsuite
- If you could recommend one book to our listeners, what would it be and why? – Start Something That Matters
- Imagine you woke up tomorrow morning in a brand new world, identical to earth, but you knew no-one. You still have all the experience and knowledge you currently have, your food and shelter is taken care of, but all you have is a laptop and $500 dollars. What would you do in the next 7 days? “I would probably help my nephews fulfill their dreams of creating their own comic book”
- [17:00] – Connect with Vernetta on Twitter or on her website
- [17:16] – For all those getting The Mastery Journal, pick one subject to focus on at a time
Killer Resources!
1) The Common Path to Uncommon Success: JLD’s 1st traditionally published book! Over 3000 interviews with the world’s most successful Entrepreneurs compiled into a 17-step roadmap to financial freedom and fulfillment!
2) Free Podcast Course: Learn from JLD how to create and launch your podcast!
3) Podcasters’ Paradise: The #1 podcasting community in the world!