Study Time: Five Scriptures to Encourage the Young Professional

The past week has definitely been a lot quieter, but it was all crowned at the weekend with the christening of a beloved friend's baby! Three of my friends decided to pop baby boys within weeks of each other so I am living in a babytastic world right now!

You might have noticed that at SoulJourner's Story we changed our tagline to reflect the fact that our material is to educate and uplift the young professional, which has been good for us because zoning in on a target audience has given us more focus. Whether you are in higher education, between jobs, a business person or in full or part time employment, you fall into the 'young professional' demographic so far as you still see yourself as a young'un. 

Life for the young professional is so exciting! Yet it can be quite tumultuous as we spend the majority of our waking hours with people we have little in common with, and for the most part being employed by the same company is the sole tie binding us with them. If you add to the mix the fact that many of us are also dealing with millions of other issues outside of work, you can see how it all can become a little overwhelming!

I have thus put together five Bible scriptures to encourage the young professional. Although this is Study Time, my usual disclaimers do not apply because whether you consider yourself a christian, any other believer in God, or a non believer for that matter, I feel we can all do with a little lifting up from time to time. 

So please stay with me...

At the train station. En route to the christening

1. When you hate your job
So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. (Ecclesiastes 3:22a, NIV)
Frankly life is a gift and you ought to enjoy it. This includes your day job. Firstly because it's your way of providing a service to your community and to society as a whole. Secondly because you will spend a large chunk of your life doing it! Therefore although gratitude is key to fruitful living, it's OK to want better, and it's definitely OK to strive for better!

Freezing at the train station!

2. When you are feeling overwhelmed by your workload

Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7, NIV)

Inasmuch as I believe in hard work, there are times when it all becomes too much. Have you realised that talking to a friend about your problems often helps to relieve the pressure we are under? Why not talk to God about it, when you feel snowed under? He (or she) is always available to listen, and is on standby to help when you call. If "talking" seems a bit strange to you, you can even write your thoughts down in a letter, and address it to God.

3.Nervous about an interview or a business meeting?

So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you (Deuteronomy 31:6, NIV )

Leading from my last point, when you cast your anxiety to God, He will go ahead of you, and do whatever He needs to do to ensure you get what belongs to you, if it belongs to you.  He has no choice! This knowledge alone should empower you to face any interviewer, manager, board member or exam!

4. When your hard work is being overlooked

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.(Galatians 6:9 ESV)
All I can say is "chin up". It's difficult when you are always the first to arrive, the last to leave, and the one always putting yourself forward for the big projects,and yet no one seems to care! Trust me when I say that even if you are not praised by your colleagues or boss, seasons will eventually turn to favour you. It's the law of the universe and it's the law of God. Besides you will refine skills that will open up opportunities for you elsewhere.

The tracks at London Bridge

5.Handling workplace discrimination

Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. (1 Timothy 4:12, NLT)

I love this one. Depending on what you do your industry might be a bit of an 'old boys club', or you might be in the minority in other ways. I remember my uncle once telling me "Maddie, in life you will find yourself in situations where you will be at a disadvantage for the following reasons: your gender,your size and your ethnicity'. Well whether true or not, I have always made it a point to speak well, to dress well, to always be polite, to always be confident, to continue to educate myself, and to continue smile! 

I hope you have enjoyed today's post. 

What are some of the ways you encourage yourself when the chips are down?

Organising Your Team Christmas Dinner?

The past week has been somewhat super-busy! There has been a little bit of stress trying to get boxes of branded goodies shipped to Asia in time for a trade fair. I have been lugging heavy boxes around and staying late to greet clients. Not only that, I have been charged with organising our team Christmas lunch. And it is such a big team too! No wonder my body finally folded on me over the weekend and I am now suffering from a nasty cold.

A winter warmer to chase the sniffles away

At church, I am also organising a team dinner for myself and my Sunday School colleagues. Surprisingly, this is probably the more difficult one to set up. I won't go into the reasons why, just in case any of them are reading this!

I would like to share with you what I have learnt through the organisation process of Christmas dinner. These tips can be applied to your work lunch (or dinner), your church dinner, or simply a nice meal for your group of friends.

1. Always find out from your boss or finance team how much budget you have at your disposal. This is always important as it helps to narrow down your options. Also you don't want to find the perfect restaurant or catering company, only for it to be turned down by your boss. If organising this for your group of friends, how much is everybody willing to put in?

2. For most work teams, the date will have been already written into the annual calendar. But if this is a team lunch for friends, you will need to find the date that best suits the majority of your group. You won't please everybody but you might want to think of the people who bring life and energy to your gatherings , or the person who best gels the team together. Will your date suit that person? It's probably a ruthless way to look at things, but you do want to enjoy a pleasant and fun gathering, so looking at who will be able to make it is equally as important.

A thank you gift from my manager, for all the hard work

3. Research your options. For me this was the difficult part as you need to find options that will cater to everybody's needs. A good way to do things is to pick three of your favorite restaurants and present them to your boss, or to your team and get them to cast their votes. The factors to consider when researching your options are, does it meet your team's budget? For those in your team with special dietary requirements, do their menu include vegetarian and pescatarian options? What other dietary options do you need to consider? Are your options in locations that everybody can get to? If not, you may want to think of organising overnight stays. If you are stuck on where to look try googling "open table".

4. Before you commit to any one restaurant or caterer, make sure you clear with them how they would like to be paid. Is it by purchase order? Or by credit card? Do they require a deposit? Make sure you find out all of these and also ensure that the preferred method of payment is OK for your finance department. This part is VERY important.

5. And there you go. Make your booking! Inform your team of all the details. Make sure they know the closest train/tube stations to the location, and other public transport that serves the area. You might even want to agree on a meeting point first before making you way over to the restaurant together. If you are dealing with a group where lateness is rife, you may want to be a little dishonest with your meeting time. (ssshhh!)

Stems cut, nicely arranged in a vase

6. Enjoy your lunch or dinner! As an afterthought what entertainment other than the food have you organised for your team? You may want to do a secret santa. Or book an evening of karaoke or a round of drinks for after dinner. Take a look at points 3 to 5 again to help you through the process.

Wherever you decide to eat, remember that organisation and communication with your team is the key. Have a wonderful Christmas dinner, you and your team!

http://fmlight.com/

Pray for the World

Last Friday's attacks on Paris were no doubt an event that sent shock waves around the world. Like me you were probably up all night until the early hours of Saturday morning following the events as they were being reported on the news. Like you I was saddened, shocked and confused to see humanity fall to a new low. 

courtesy of www.asww.org.uk

However, I was also encouraged to see the show of solidarity, firstly amongst the parisians themselves, with the twitter hashtag #porteouverte being tweeted and retweeted to enable those stranded in the city to find a place of refuge at the hands of those willing to open their homes to them, and secondly by mourners and sympathisers of social media. It was also a massive relief to see friends in Paris being marked as 'safe' on Facebook, and the different profile pictures being overlaid with the French flag.

I didn't change my profile pic.

It is very unlike SoulJourner's Story to wade into the political debate on anything unless it is encouraging or edifying, but I do think as a responsible blog, we should use our voice for the common good. 

On the same day, Japan suffered a small earthquake; just a day before, the city of Beirut was victim to suicide bombers;  Northern Nigeria has been subject to terrorism for years, and earlier this year 147 students were struck down in Garissa,  Kenya. 

Let's pray for the whole world - Paris and elsewhere.

Please there is no condemnation for those who want to #prayforparis, because I believe they mean well. I will be praying for Paris as the city holds a lot of memories for me; it represents a significant part of my life as a student  (I studied it France),  and I still have many friends there, not to mention that I am in and out of Paris a lot for work! But I just could not allow myself to be led to change my profile pic to the colours of the Tricolore when in fact people have been dying at the hands of terrorists for years and will continue to do so for years to come. 

Let's not forget the many atrocities being committed around the world, by The West, in the Middle East, in Africa, in Ukraine, and everywhere else.

Will you join me to #prayfortheworld?

Money Talk: SoulJourner's Moneyfesto©

My expenditure will be kept on track
No more money doing disappearing acts
Carelessness I leave in the past
Crazy habits I'll no longer mask

Every penny will be accounted for

Bank statements will be checked much more

Remembering creditors can be so cold

Giving, then taking back a thirty fold

If I want it that bad, I'll be saving 

Putting aside monthly,weekly or even daily

And that's aside from my emergency funds

For when the proverbial stuff hits the fan

And all debts will be aggressively paid

And after that the foundations will be laid

For debt free and enjoyable living

And without totally giving up on giving 

I will not cast my pearls before swine

These good habits will be developed in time

Lessons learnt from mistakes of the past 

New lifestyle habits that are here to last

Keeping spending on the right track

No more money doing disappearing acts

Madeline Asala

                                          

                                                                           

Print this out, stick it on your fridge, your wall or your mirror (or anywhere else you wish!) Read it out aloud as many times a day as you wish, until your actions start following suit. Share with others, but please just make sure I am credited, and please do not pass it off as your own as this piece of poetry has been copyrighted.

To read more Money Talk, please click here or here. 

Money Talk: Lessons Learnt (Part 2)

Bienvenue à Paris!

This weekend was another working weekend spent taking yet more clients to some of the top hotels in Paris. As the host to 30 clients I must say it was somewhat knackering, but hey, no complaints from me. Firstly, I get to see some fantastic places, and secondly I believe this job is a blessing from God so only gratitude here.

Speaking of work, as young professionals we are often thought of as having plenty of disposable income by virtue of our fancy job titles. After all we work don't we? Many of us have no kids and therefore no responsibility, so what could we possibly be doing with all our money? At SoulJouner's Story we understand that being a young professional does not necessarily mean loads of money in the bank. For starters, a lot of us are still paying off our student loans, and let's not even start with the season train ticket! BUT this blog is the positivity zone, and we like to offer solutions that will enrich your life. 

La folie à l'hotel 

These tips are not the usual, 'don't spend more than you earn' lark, but is advice that is specific to my experiences.

So here is part two of Money Talks: Lessons Learnt.

1. ALWAYS read the small print. I can't stress this enough. Signing on the dotted line before establishing the facts can be very expensive. In 2011, I made a provisional booking for coach hire for a trip I was organising for my youth group. This meant that they had my card details but had not charged me anything yet. The trip got cancelled for reasons I couldn't control. Simple, right? Except, when I tried to cancel my provisional booking with coach company, I was told it was too late to cancel, and that the company was going ahead with the £400 charge to my card. What a massive blow.

Un petit morceau a manger

2. Whether by diary, post-it notes or reminders on your phone, ALWAYS make a note of due dates for bill payments and subscription 'cancel-by' dates. My last point is a case in point example.

3. Do not lend money you couldn’t afford to live without if it were not to be paid back on time, or at all. (On the flip side, do not borrow money you know you will not be able to pay back). This was a lesson I learnt thanks to an ex boyfriend of mine. A few years ago, when I was a little less wiser than I am now, I lent a man I was in a relationship with a sum of money. (No need to disclose the amount) I struggled to figure out how I'd make ends meet that month, besides it was quite a sum! But, he asked nicely and promised that payback would be prompt and without protest, and so I obliged. You see where I'm going with this...

Le pain quotidien

4. Do not bury your head in the sand! I have no specific example to tie to this point. However, I can say that there are times when I have been too busy to open the envelope from my bank, or even too scared to after after too much spending. This never helps, as you deny yourself control over your finances.Worst still, you may withdraw more than you have in your account or exceed your overdraft limit, which will only result in more charges! Keep track of your finances. There are some banking apps that can even alert you if you are approaching your limit. Find out!

As I said these are all my own from my personal experiences and I am not a qualified financial advisor. If you are in serious financial trouble or would just fancy some advice from a professional, you should consult the likes of Money Saving Expert or The Money Advice Service. If you'd like to read part one of Money Talk, please click here. I will conclude this series with SoulJourner's Story's Moneyfesto©, so keep your eyes peeled!

On a last note, what do you all think about the government offering universities the opportunity to raise their tuition fees above the £9000 a year they are currently charging?

Merci beaucoup!

Money Talk: Lessons Learnt

Last weekend was quite a frustrating one for me. On Friday I was en route to a young professionals networking event when one of the most horrific occurrences that could ever happen to any modern day human being befell me. My phone dropped on the cold hard concrete floor of Kings Cross St. Pancras Station! I immediately did an about turn and headed straight back home. I was so upset. I was even more upset when I learnt that I would have to fork out £130 to fix the blacked out LED screen. 

I also almost didn't  go to a wedding I was invited to on Saturday, but I decided better at the last minute.  I did make up for my miserable weekend by accepting an invitation to the World Travel Market - the go to event for anyone and everyone in the travel and tourism industry. In hindsight, my actions went against everything I shout about being on top of  your emotions. However the impromptu knock to my finances has inspired me to use this week's installment to speak about finances.

I have made many mistakes in my twenties, however I have also learnt a lot, and I would love to share.  This is the first time I am sharing info about myself I can actually say I am still a little embarrassed about, but I am hoping I can save someone the pain and hassle of what I have been through. In my early twenties, it wasn't that bad. I wasn't exactly living large and loud, but I was often very careless, and this was with little consequence as I was still living with my parents. But at aged 26 when I moved into my own flat I was very quickly made to face up to my financial escapades.

Here goes: 4 lessons learnt.

1. There is a concept in the business world referred to as due diligence which describes the process of verifying a person or a business before signing a contract. Personal example. At age 24 I bought my first car, a silver Fiat Punto. When I say buy, I actually meant I handed someone £2,500 and asked him to bring me back a car. I wasn't present when money and keys exchanged hands, and was thus unable to check out the buyer myself and ask all the questions I needed.  This resulted in thousands of pounds in repairs and hours spent on the curb waiting for roadside recovery. Before I continue, I must stress that it was not the fault of the gentleman I gave the money to, as I believe he made the purchase with the best intentions. I would also still insist upon taking someone with a bit of knowledge with you when purchasing something like a car.

Wedding time! One criticism is that I never post photos of myself here. So here goes! 

2. Quit whilst you are ahead. Referring back to my crackajack car, I should have cut my losses and ridded myself of it once it started to persistently break down. But as if pouring money into a bucket with a large gaping hole, I continued to spend hundreds on the vehicle almost every month. Once I had finally had enough, I decided to sell it to We Buy Any Car. Guess What? I discovered I had been driving a write off! 

3. I  can totally understand the skepticism that ensues when a company tries to get you to buy insurance for every small purchase. And I do think you should weigh whether it's really worth taking out £20 insurance on a £20 iron for example. BUT I would always advise you take out insurance on high risk items and services, ie. purchases that would cost you a fortune if something goes wrong. Example. Last summer I decided to hire a car (yes, it always involves a car!) for roughly £200 and decided to pass on the £60 insurance as "I am a careful driver". £60 soon turned to £1000 after accidentally reversing into a wall! Lesson learnt. 

Africa time! At the World Travel Market

4. It is good practice to have an emergency fund. So although you may have a pot for your future car or house or anything else you are saving for, you also have another for when the unexpected happens. My broken phone is a case in point example. Having said this I totally understand the struggle, so if this can't be done monthly, you could put money aside for emergencies every other month, or take out a portion from your regular savings.

I hope these tips help you. They are all my own from my personal experiences and I am not a qualified financial advisor. If you are in serious financial trouble or would just fancy some advice from a professional, you should consult the likes of Money Saving Expert or The Money Advice Service. 

What are some of your tips? Share below.