Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

Foodie Friday: Stay Nourished, Hustlers!

Hello Hustlin’ Fam!!! I’m back. It’s Friday,but what does that mean to a hustler? Nothing at all. The grind never stops after the 9-5. We still have a side hustle or side business that you I want to encourage you ladies to keep pushing and know that with hard work and consistency, you’ll get results. Use this mindset for your business and your health. So be consistent eating nutritious foods for you body just as you will do for your business.

This weekend, I challenge you to drink more water, have some fruit with your morning coffee, and some extra green veggies with lunch or dinner. Give your body the nourishment it needs because those vitamins and nutrients help you be more productive.
Some fruits and veggies to eat this weekend:
  • Blueberries
  • Blackberries
  • Raspberries
  • Bananas (nature’s energy bar$
  • Kale
  • Zucchini and squash
  • Spinach
  • Arugula
Have a great week
Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

WHEN – You Feel All Over The Place

It’s week four since I started a new job with new responsibilities. It’s a position I feel committed to not just because I’m the new kid on the block and I need to prove myself, but also because I actually believe in the mission of the organization. I hold it close to my heart. And with such a close connection to work, other aspects in my life have been feeling rocky.

My circle of friends has always been small but it feels smaller now that I care about doing a good job at my job. Ironic, right? So I’ve unintentionally bailed out on plans I made to hang out. I haven’t reached out to connect, reconnect or meetup. Sadly, other people have had to make the gesture first, but I should be making those connections too. In maintaining healthy relationships, whatever they may be, all parties should be invested… equally.

My side hustles. I still have a few regulars, one new project, but I’m already behind. It sucks. Because it is my side hustling I feel will propel me to my career aspirations. And I’m behind on that? Not good.

So, now I’m working on a plan to get some order back into my life. This new job was suppose to be a financial boost to a short paycheck problem I’ve been experiencing over the past few years. It’s not the be all to end all. But it’s not a position I despise either. I feel this role can be extremely rewarding. Just not all consuming as it feels right now. I really feel all over the place with work, side hustling and my notary business.

Oh, my notary business? I’ve had two clients this month but I haven’t been marketing as strongly as I have been in recent months or should be. Another byproduct of feeling out of sorts

Can anyone relate?

Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

Get Motivated: One Action

One action. It takes just one positive action in what you’re doing to create a ripple effect that affects other areas of life.

My new job. I know I said I was going to stay quiet about it, but I’m still not even a month into it so it should be fair game still. But since I’ve started my new job, other areas of my life have seen positive changes as well. Areas of my life I didn’t think were directly connected to having a new job. Such as…? My social life for starters. I haven’t had one full weekend day in which I’ve stayed at home all day. Dining out with friends, dining with friends, workshops this, meetups here – it just feels like I’m connecting and reconnecting with people out of the blue.

And I’m enjoying it.

What else I’ve experienced that seems to be a positive ripple effect from my new job? My hustles have increased. Last week, I just met with a custom cabinet builder who was referred to me by a friend of mine. The cabinet builder wants me to design a simple website for. I said sure. My fee for my service: $275. I have a repeat client working some details out for a campaign she wanted to work on later this month. I’ve had two notary clients a week apart from one another. Another waiting in the wings.

If I knew that changing jobs — changing to a better job — would have this kind of positive impact on my life and not just my bank account, I would’ve hustled harder to switch companies and jobs.

But live and learn they say.

But more importantly, I wanted to show that taking one action — one positive action — can lead to positive results. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’ve always heard that saying but I rarely experienced it. And now that I’ve have and can recall it, I feel like a woman on a mission. Gonna tell it on the mountain, yes I am.

So, my challenge to you is to find one action to take that will have a positive ripple effect in the rest of your life. I don’t know what that would for you but find it. Define it. Write it down. One thing. One thing that if could change today, would just raise your spirits and subsequently elevate everything else in your life.

My challenge was a new job. I needed a new and better paying job to better finance my dreams and goals. What’s yours?

Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

Money Matters: More Money Should Mean More Problems

Earning more money (get it, girl) shouldn’t mean more problems. Yet, as our income grows, so does our expenses, which is weird as hell. I mean, think about it. When were making $35,000/year we’re buying a whole lot less stuff than when we’re making $50K or $60k a year. Shopping at dollar stores and discount box retailers. We were going to thrift shops and we’re catching matinees instead of going to opening night shows.

In other words, we were budgeting.

Yet, when we start making more money, we budget less believing we can now “afford” it. 🤔 Yeah, about that because I know firsthand how good it feels to having extra dough lining my pockets and not getting anymore below balance alerts from my bank. I get it, girl, I get it.

But before you starting adding items to your Amazon shopping cart, plan for your future first. Call me “mama bear” if you want, but I’m serious. Take some of that extra monies and double your savings. Create a travel fund. Pay down your student loan debt. Increase or start your emergency fund. Then when you’ve successfully established these funds and savings account, goEA get that spring dress that caught your eye in your inbox. Order those shoes that’s been on your wishlist since August. Just make sure to take care the you-now and the you-later as not to have any unnecessary money problems that can catch you by surprise.

Unless they’re rich people’s problems, in which case…

Posted on by junkfoodbyelle

Foodie Friday: Tips to Keeping Healthy While Hustlin’

Hey ladies, Elle here! I’m back for #foodiefriday, and I want to share a few tips on how we as female hustlers can keep it healthy. Too often we are on the grind so much that we disregard the harm we may be doing to our bodies. I have been guilty of this more times than once, but I quickly took notice and began making changes.

Hey ladies, Elle here! I’m back today for #foodiefriday, and I want to share a few tips on how we as female hustlers can keep it healthy. Too often we are on the grind so much that we disregard the harm we may be doing to our bodies. I have been guilty of this more times than once, but I quickly took notice and began making changes.

So here are some tips to keep it healthy while hustlin’

Get Sleep and Rest

Throw the “team no sleep” mentality out the window because if you don’t sleep how can you be at your best to conquer your days. We work our 9-5 then work on our own business, so sleep and rest is extremely important. Think about the time you are missing when you have to catch up on sleep.

Find Balance

You have to find balance between your personal life, work life, and entrepreneur life. It’s hard as hell, but without balance you will go crazy. I am currently in a situation where I am trying to find my balance and get back to my normal routine. I am currently up at 3am writing this post because the week has been a trying week and I have been off balance.

Meditate

Keeping your mental healthy is crucial. Find ways to keep mental clarity so you can make sound decisions. I like to meditate upon waking up to get my day started. If there is potential bull shit during the day, a quick 5-minute meditation may help you be less frustrated.

Swap Your Coffee

Swapping your coffee for other healthy alternatives is good to do once in a while. I love coffee, the taste, the smell, but too much coffee isn’t that great for me. So at times I like to swap it with matcha green tea. Matcha is packed with nutrients that help boost immunity and it aids in detoxifying the body from harsh chemicals. It also known to improve mood and increase focus, reduce stress, and relax the mind. Lastly, matcha gives you natural energy without the jitters.

Each Your Fruit and Veggies

Keeping proper nutrients in your body is the most crucial in hustlin’. Eating more fresh fruits and veggies give you energy, boost your immune system, and gives your the nutrients your body needs to function daily.

Quick FSH Bowl Recipe

Cook quinoa according to package

Sauté zucchini, kale, and onions

Season to taste

It’s as quick and simple as that. In order to continue hustlin’ daily you have to take care of yourself. Try some of these tips and let me know how they are working for you.

Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

Happy Friday: Getting Up From Being Down

Good Morning, good morning, good morning.

I don’t know about you, but March has been kicking my a**! Oh, my goodness. It seems like right when I plan to get everything back on track, here comes something to run over me and knock me down again.

Most recently…a damn cold. Like I really had time for this. I had plans. I had a new client to meet, I had people in my network to meet up with… hell, I had Female, Single + Hustlin’ to keep up with and struggled to do so. I don’t have time for a cold and to be bedridden.

My February was rockin’. I accepted a new job at another company, put my one week notice in, took my birthday off to play in Palm Springs, started said new job, they flew me to New York to meet the headquarter team. Got to catch up with family while I was there. All in all, February was astounding. But, March… March is tearin’ up my behind. With no relief in sight.

Like with every other challenge I’ve had to face, I just got get back on the horse and giddy up to the pace I was riding at. Or maybe my cold is my body’s way of telling me I need to take better care of myself while I work and hustle so I have fewer of these moments.

My girl, Elle, would know…

Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

Remember to Shine

It is so easy to get bogged down with the crap life shoots at us — work, friends (if they’re still talking to us), family, the side hustle, our health, our home, errands and chores, unexpected expenses — that we forget to shine. And what I mean by forgetting to “shine” is we forget to put our best face forward. No, I don’t mean our phoniest face. I’ve worked in customer service for a few years, so I got a phony face and a phony voice, so I know the difference. I mean your best face. The face you have when everything is going right. When the clients have paid their invoices on time, when no one was late to the meeting, when the wi-fi was working smoothly, when that project turns into a repeat client. That face. That’s the best face we can have because it exudes confidence. It exudes control. It exudes peace and sanity. And it feels good. It feels like we got this and we know exactly what we’re doing. It feels like we’re the expert and everyone is seeking us out (and paying us for our knowledge, obviously) for our expertise.

Put that face on. Put that face on even when you don’t have any clients. When you have to hound clients to pay their outstanding invoices or negotiate payment plans. When you’ve been waiting over 30 minutes for a client who said they were 5 minutes away 10 minutes ago. When you have to transfer $40 from your savings account to your checking account to make sure your automatic bills get paid.

Shine.

Shine when things are wonderful and when your back is against the wall. Shine. Because no matter the problem or the person, you’re bigger than them.

Posted on by junkfoodbyelle

Meet Elle — Eat J.U.N.K. Food

Hey guys, Elle here! I am so excited to meet you all and tell you a little about myself and my company J.U.N.K. Just Utilizing Nature’s Krops LLC. The mission of J.U.N.K. is to promote wellness through plant-based eating, exercise, and self-care. J.U.N.K. was through my wellness journey. In 2017 and into 2018 I was going through a really rough time. I was in a depressive state of mind, I gained weight, my relationship was suffering, and I was forced to close my business. I knew I need a change because I stopped giving care to myself and I lost my HAPPY. One morning, I woke up and said “FUCK THIS… GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER!!!” (excuse my language, but that is tough love to myself). That day, I went cold turkey plant-based. through eating I began gaining the strength I needed to get out of my phase of depression. After my first month of eating plant-based, I began incorporating exercise, and my own daily self-care routines. In no time, I not only lost over 30 pounds, but I was happier than I had ever been, and I gained the mental clarity I needed to continue on my wellness journey which ultimately led me to creating J.U.N.K. By creating J.U.N.K. I was able to share my journey with a wide range of people outside of the ones that saw my transformation in real-time.

In August of 2018, I published J.U.N.K. Food 101: Beginner’s Guide to Plant-Based Eating, a guide for novices and those exploring the plant-based lifestyle. The book made Amazon’s New Release List, a huge accomplishment for me and unexpected. The greatest feeling is when your story can reach others and change lives. Today, I am preparing to release the follow up cookbook, Ea
t J.U.N.K. filled with easy-to-make delicious plant-based meals, exercise and self-care tips. All the things that have helped me and continue to help me on my wellness journey.

I am beyond excited to share my journey with the Female, Single, and Hustlin’ family. If you want to keep up with me, or all things J.U.N.K., follow me on Instagram @mylifebeingelle and visit www.eatjunkfood.co to keep up with my book release and upcoming events.

If you are interested in learning more about plant-based eating check out J.U.N.K. Food 101.

Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

Happy Friday: Feelin’ Good

Happy, happy Friday.

And happy Women’s month and International Women’s Day. I wanted to give a little nod to the women who have come before us, the women who are crushing it now and the women and will be breaking all kinds of barriers in the future.

I don’t know about you, but I am feeling good! Yes, ma’am, I am! And not because of the weekend because I’ll be working Saturday. Just because. I’m in a really good place right now I want keep up this feeling and I want it to grow. Most importantly, I want to harness it to the best of my ability without being consumed by obligations and to-do lists. But regardless of all that, I feel good, I feel real good.

And… I’m happy to announce a new contributing writer to the Female, Single and Hustlin’ family. She’s my dearest and bestest friend. I’ve known her since high school. We’ve reconnected after college and been on this entrepreneurial spirit journey for ages, it seems. Her name is Elle. She’s going to be sharing a little bit about her latest business venture that deals with wellness. And hopefully help us hustlers find a better way to take care of ourselves while we’re on the grind.

You’ll be hearing from her every Friday. Please show her some love, as we should support every hustler and aspiring entrepreneur here!

Posted on by Female, Single & Hustlin'

Get Motivated: Overwhelmed

For the longest time, I used to live at the corner of Overwhelmed and Frustrated. My residency there was years. And no matter how badly I wanted to move, it felt near impossible because my current situation felt out of my control. I hated that. I hated wanting more for myself and not being able to do anything about it.

Or so I thought.

I may not have always had the means to change what I didn’t like when I wanted to, but I could at least change my attitude. Cliché, I know, but accurate. You can’t do sh*t with a bad attitude and that’s the gospel truth. I don’t care how badly you want something or want something to change for you, if you’re walking around with a chip on your shoulder or a woe-is-me kind of bag, forget it, honey. You’re canceling out any progress you might be making.

Overwhelmed? I feel ya because I’ve been there. And the best advice I could offer you is two-fold. Find someone to talk with about what’s overwhelming you and why. And count your blessings. Seriously. If you in a position to feel overwhelmed, you’re in a position to feel empowered.

You woke up this morning, right?

You ate something, right?

You have somewhere to lay your head tonight?

You got internet?

I just listed four of your blessings. Give me 6 more.