I am GREATFUL for all of you

Thanksgiving week is a time to give thanks for our loved ones, our health and our lives. I am grateful for all of you and the work we are all doing to grow and create better futures for ourselves and our families. Adelante!! I am so happy that the future of Latinas and our families is leading the conversation in America today. There is nothing more important during these holidays than being together and appreciating our country and each other every day. Ladies, during this Holiday season, it is a good time to contemplate what you want to accomplish in 2015. Many of you have voiced your desire to start a business. Our videocast of "The 10 Question to Consider Before Starting Your Own Business" has been a smash. Thank you all for all the great feedback about how it has inspired you. If you haven't watched yet, it's on our website: theadelantemovement.com

Ten Things To Consider

The ten questions you must ask yourself before starting a business are very important for all of us and they were the topic of our live webinar last week. For those of you who could not attend - no worries! We videotaped the webinar just for you, and you can watch from the leisure of your home when your want for the next month. The videocast of our webinar “Ten Questions To Consider Before Starting Your Own Business” is now available on our website at: www.theadelantemovement.com After you watch the webinar, click and sign in below the video window to receive the PowerPoint presentation as well as the resource solutions page for many of your questions.

Please don't forget to vote!

Power is taken, not given. Take your power as a citizen of the United States - and please go vote! It is our moment!

Last week I saw my mom and I told her it was very important to vote in midterm elections. She said, "Para que - esa gente son todos corruptos?" "What for - all politicians are corrupt!"

How many of us were brought up that way, and deep down inside believe our parents are right? After all, we come from countries where so much was taken from us, and where so many of our people disappeared when they spoke against our governments. Our families forget that we came here for a different life. One in which we have the ability to speak freely, and to be able to have our voices heard. Is it perfect? Nothing is - but it is better than anywhere else in the world, and I know that we all need to participate, speak up, and vote!

I remember the first time I voted, excited to exercise the biggest privilege in the world. I felt then, and still feel today, that one person's vote makes a difference. 

Please don't forget Tuesday!! Take a step tomorrow and go out and vote. 
Please look at the names of the candidates clearly. Look at the referendums clearly.
Make sure you see the Latinos and the women who are running for office. I think you should always vote for the BEST candidate (whoever they are) but sometimes we are the last ones to vote for our own - think about that when making your decision.

Remembering Oscar de la Renta

Last week, Oscar De la Renta passed away. I think it’s important that we honor and remember the Latino Legends that come before us. I had a personal relationship with Oscar De La Renta. When I was 17 years old, I interviewed him as a teen reporter for the PBS series Checking It Out, produced by a Latina TV Pioneer Aida Barrera (another incredible Latina we will be featuring in depth soon). When I met Mr. De La Renta, he exemplified everything I wanted to model myself after. He was fully Latino. He loved his Dominican roots, spoke Spanish with delight, and hired mostly Latinos. He was also fully American, dressing celebrities, appearing in Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar regularly, and had a career that he loved and that he made a lot of money in. All this, allowed him to give back generously to his community, funding an orphanage in the Dominican Republic , among many other charities. He was also into real estate. He developed Casa De Campo, a resort community in Santo Domingo, where he hired thousands of Latinos, and which made the Dominican Republic a major tourist destination. I don’t know anyone who better exemplifies Mission and Money.

Don't buy shoes, buy buildings

I just spent the day Monday with the women of NAHREP, the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals. Since I spoke at their conference last year, many of the ladies from NAHREP had obtained their broker's licenses, some bought houses, and others started their own businesses. Women such as Angie Henry, Tina Marie Estrada, and Angie McDonald shared with me how they changed their lives after hearing my speech last year - They went home, took action and now they are on the road to success! I wanted to remind us all that we can all change our lives in one year. I have done it many, many times. All it takes is one step that leads to ANOTHER step every single day.

To be chosen, you have to first choose yourself

I think, "to be chosen, you have to choose yourself first". I am in NY where last night, I got together with Ramona Velazquez. She wrote me a letter after seeing me on "The Swan" and later on "Celebrity Apprentice". She wanted help figuring out how she could think like an entrepreneur while keeping the security of her job. She has written me consistently for years always advocating on behalf of herself and her fellow Latinas at Social Security where she has worked for the past 32 years. I responded and we have become friends. I also wrote a letter as a teenager to Steven Jobs, who responded, and who after a series of back and forth notes invited me to meet him in Palo Alto at his then company, Next. I will always regret that I did not go. 

If you do nothing, I guarantee you, nothing will happen. If you take an action, even the smallest action, something may happen, not always, but sometimes. When you choose yourself, by taking an action, it allows others to choose you too. I am happy Ramona took the action to write me a letter.

Not to be missed ! Webinar for aspiring entrepreneurs

You know I always say “Ladies , GO GET YOUR OWN CHIPS!!" I want you all to begin the entrepreneurial journey one way or another. I know that fear and the fear of failure shows up and it paralyzes us, but today, The Adelante Movement offers you a gift to help you overcome those fears. I am so excited by what I am about to share with you! You asked for it, and we responded. It is our gift to you!!! So many of you have voiced your fears about starting a business, and have asked us for guidance on how to get started. Well, we are answering all of your questions in a very special Adelante/ Walden University webinar, created just for you with all our love. I know how challenging it is to start your own business. With my first business, I didn’t make any money for four years. I want to make sure you have the knowledge, support, and resources available to make your business dreams a reality! Don’t miss our fun webinar—I will be on it live answering your questions! You will leave knowing what to do with your life and your business. I have the honor of presenting the webinar with Dr. Yvonne Doll, a core faculty member in Walden’s Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.) program and a former Army military police officer. We will share our inspirational stories and provide tips and best practices for starting a business in today’s marketplace. If you have ever thought about starting a business in any way, or you have a business, you are selling a product or a service, this is the event for you.