You are focused. Clear about who your are, what defines you, and where you are going. Your vision board is complete, now it’s time to be proactive. Your dream is within your reach; you are not a victim of your circumstances - act NOW. In order to reinvent yourself, you have to change something - your beliefs, behavior, focus or actions. Change on that level usually brings about some level of discomfort. Just remember that on the other side of the discomfort, lies the priceless acquisition of passion, joy, excitement and growth.

SEEK IT - It’s time to ignite “dream momentum”! Seek ways to stretch yourself in order to achieve your goal.

What things do you need to do differently to achieve your goal?

What people, places, or things need to be eliminated?

What tools or skills do I need to acquire?

WORK IT - Create a road map to success, something written in ink that you can refer back to in case you lose your way. List everything that you need to do daily and a schedule for when you’ll do it.

Study?

Look for employment?

Start networking for connections?

Look for an apartment or home in a new city?

Get organized?

Handle finances?

REPEAT IT - If you find yourself lost, go back and start from the beginning. If 5 years pass and it’s time to reinvet yourself again, go back and start from the beginning.

Let this be the road map into your future. The questions in each step always
remain the same, your answers will change based on your goal…the dream.

Hype Hair, the biggest hair magazine for women of color, is celebrating it’s 19th anniversary in the April/May 2011 issue currently on newstands!

There’s something for everyone in this issue: Short Chic, Weave Maintenance Tips, Totally Textured, Lovely Lacefront, and Braids & Beauty. Style tips to duplicate celebrity styles from Beyonce to Nici Minaj along with a Rihanna interview discussing the power of beauty. It’s an awesome issue.

The bonus is the column written by me, The Journey Back to Natural Hair. Pick up your issue TODAY!

All of us Moms and Dads have had the experience of staring at our child in the morning thinking ‘what do I do with this kid’s hair’? We have the solution for you! This will make your mornings easier, your dreaded “hair washing Sunday evening” easier and help your little one to take charge and go to work on their own hair.

Our regimen begins with Hydrating Invigorating Shampoo SLS-Free, its gentle cleansing makes detangling much easier and ends with our rich Nutrient Replenishing Conditioner.

Tip #1: When applying conditioner to your child’s hair be sure work it through and I always recommend detangling hair with a paddle brush while the conditioner is still in the hair. This makes for fewer tears, shrieking, and bathroom brawling (brawl, bawl & crawl)… I’m sure you know what I mean.

Always detangle from ends to roots not the opposite. Most hair damage comes during the detangling stage because hair is so elastic when wet and prone to stretching.

Tip #2: Rinse out the conditioner, then reapply a quarter-sized dollop of conditioner and follow up with Revitalizing Leave-In Conditioner. This will make the detangling job even easier (and maybe even enjoyable).

Now that your child is detangled, happy, and singing in the bathroom, you can follow up with one of three additional Jane Carter Solution products.

Tip #3: If your child has curly hair that is controllable, you can apply Condition and Sculpt. This will dry with a little bit of a crunchy hold but will definitely tame those curls.

Tip #4: If your child has a big mane of curly hair and wants to wear it out and big and fabulous, after spraying the Revitalizing Leave-In Conditioner apply a liberal amount of Curl Defining Cream. This product will feel heavy, but dries clean and soft. If you need a lot of control, work this product through section by section from roots to ends, smoothing each section of hair so it dries with a curl pattern and reduces frizz.

Tip #5: If you are going to blow dry your daughter’s hair, after spraying Revitalizing Leave-In Conditioner, apply Hair Nourishing Cream and brush out her hair with the Hair Nourishing Cream and put her hair in four soft braids. You can either let her hair air dry or dry her under a hood dryer. Once her hair is dry, you can blow dry her hair straight with a blow dryer and paddle brush or a blow dryer with a pick attachment and either flat iron or put her hair in pony tails.

REMEMBER: If you decide to use the flat iron make sure that you mist each section of your daughter’s hair as you flat iron and do not, I repeat, do not turn that flat iron above 375°, 325° is preferable. A super hot flat iron will permanently straighten the hair and she will not be able to wear her natural texture in the future.

I hope this was helpful. Our goal at Jane Carter Solution is to encourage our daughters to love the hair they wear and grow up with a positive self-image.

Happy Styling!

,

-Maya Angelou

Change means reinvention. A valuable skill that I’ve learned over the years is the ability to reinvent myself. There is a need within us all to find newness in our lives at various stages. Without taking control of who we will become then we risk never reaching our full potential.

1. THINK IT Think about the future you are creating, where would you like to be headed in your life right now. Imagine the feeling, group of people, or situation that you are headed towards.

What are you doing?

Where do you live?

Who are the people in your life?

1. SEE IT See it, see it every day! Vision boards are simple yet powerful, it’s the law of attraction. Use pictures, drawings, words, and/or personal writing pertaining to who you want to become and what you want in your life. Include anything that is congruent with your goal, such as any changes in life that might result from obtaining your goal.

Who would you be?

What kind of work would you do?

Would you work?

Who would you help?

Where would you live?

What things would you own?

These are two of the five stages of change. Please check back next Monday, May 16, for Reinvent Yourself - Part Two.

Enjoy the Journey,

Have you visited your local Earth Fare lately for the freshest organic and local produce around?
The food sold at Earth Fare is "as close to the ground ad it gets", banning ingredients that are not healthy for the body. We love and live this same philosophy, understanding that healthy eating is key to healthy hair.

For the entire month of May, Earth Fare is offering 20% OFF any Jane Carter Solution purchase!

Hair Nourishing Cream is the perfect light hair moisturizer for all hair types! Non-heavy and non-oily, this nourishing cream makes everything it comes in contact with feel like silk.
This product can be used pre-blowout for sleek strands, used as a daily hair moisturizer on adults and children, even as a skin moisturizer.

Experience Hair Nourishing Cream now and enjoy 15% OFF! Use code 15HNC, valid until May 31, 2011.