Showing posts with label Hip hop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hip hop. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Stick to the plans












Inspiration To Stick To Your Plans
Take a look at the intense routine ‘Mike Tyson’ used to follow everyday which made him become the Boxing ‘Heavy Weight Champion Of The World’.
5am: Wake up and go for a 3 mile jog
6am: Back home for a shower and then back to bed
10am: Wake up and eat oatmeal 

12pm: Do ring work (10 rounds of sparring) 

2pm: Eat another meal (steak and pasta with fruit juice drink) 

4pm: More ring work and 60 mins on the exercise bike
5pm: Floor exercises: 2000 sit ups; 500-800 'dips'; 500 press ups and 500 shrugs with a 30kg barbell
and 10 mins of neck exercises (working the biceps, triceps, chest, abs and shoulders) 

7pm: Eat steak and pasta meal again with fruit juice (probably orange juice)
8pm: Another 30 minutes on the exercise bike 
o 9:30 Watch TV and then go to bed

Friday, September 24, 2010

Hip Hop Mogul, Russell Simmons reflecting on his early downfall









 Starting to promote was great for my spirit, though it had a terrible, ultimately fatal effect on my schoolwork. I actually did more schoolwork while selling drugs. Maybe i started f**king up in school because i felt I'd already found my life's work. What was the point of chemistry when i knew my job was to sell tickets?

Eventually i left City College in my senior year, just four or five credits short of sociology degree. This really upset my father, who thought i was a fool. Over and over he lectured me that the only way for a black man to make it was to get a degree and a job. For a while there i felt like i was a failure in my father's eyes, which hurt a lot, but promoting felt right in my gut. I knew that to be a man i had to follow my heart. My mother was always more open to Danny, Joey and me pursuing more nontraditional, entrepreneurial way.

Early in promoting career i lost all the money I'd saved putting on a show in Harlem no one cam out to. I came out to Hollis and no one would help me. My father just wanted me to go back to school and told me so. What could i say? I had no money. Then my mother went back in the house and came out with $2,000 in crisp $100 bills from her personal savings. It was that money that kept me afloat until Kurtis Blow broke and i entered the record business. That act of love and faith, which is what kept me in business at a key time, is my favorite memory of her.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Sicker Than Your Average v.1

Download the latest Wrecknation Ent project here:



Lyfe Jennings sentanced to 3 and a half!!!




*c/o HipHop News 24/7*
Futuristic Blogger - Cobb County got another one!!! Lyfe Jennings got 3 1/2 years in prison today for a high speed car chase. Officers, originally responding to reports of gunshots in the area, observed Jennings’ red 2005 Chevy Corvette jetting the scene and gave chase, which led to him crashing the vehicle.

At the conclusion of their investigation officers, arrested and charged Mr. Jennings with Criminal Trespass, Discharging a Firearm Near a Public Highway, DUI-Refusal, all misdemeanors. Mr. Jennings was also charged with Attempting to Elude and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, both felonies.

Mr. Jennings was lodged at the Smyrna City Jail where he was later transferred to the Cobb County Detention Facility. suspect vehicle leaving the area. The vehicle was a red 2005 Chevrolet corvette, later determined to be registered to Chester J. Jennings, of Marietta, GA.
I’m not clear on whether the crash or the officers caused the scars on Lyfe’s face, but since Jennings is a convicted felon he may NEVER get out of that mutha! I keep telling y’all transplants not to f*ck around in CC…but you won’t listen

The Art Of Persuasion

The art of persuasion represents the history of shrewd but diplomatic manipulation -- getting people over the fence and onto your side without the use of force. Its ultimate goal is basic, but difficult: To convince your audience to internalize your argument, then embrace it as a part of their core belief system.

In his book, Influence: the Psychology of Persuasion, author Robert Cialdini defines six weapons of influence: reciprocation, commitment/consistency, authority, social validation, scarcity, and liking/friendship. Below, we’ll look at a number of persuasive techniques and how some of Cialdini’s "weapons" can be applied, along with some hints from Aristotle and one rather innovative technique offered up by two guys with distinctly Hollywood backgrounds.

Manufacture a need

Attempting to persuade others to believe you when you lack an identifiable urgency is pointless. If the thing you want -- support, money, approval -- isn’t obvious, you’ll need to make it obvious by manufacturing a profound need and lacing it with urgency. Cialdini’s weapon of scarcity comes into play. He writes, “People find objects and opportunities more attractive to the degree that they are scarce, rare or dwindling in availability.”

Advertisers rely on first creating a need for you (Nothing else can dehydrate your food like a Ronco Food Dehydrator), then on creating the notion of scarcity (and you have five minutes to buy one at this amazing price). In the professional world, you have two such agents on your persuasive side: time, and the indeterminate actions of your competitor. In order to get your audience on your side, you have to convince them of a need they may not be aware they had. For example, you need to get a program off the ground immediately because now is the only time it can be implemented with the best possible results.

Use loaded words

Politicians and advertisers use loaded words every day. Consider the commonly used phrases "war on terror," "defending democracy" or "all natural." What precisely do they mean? Not even an effectively drawn-out response could deliver the connection and the true meaning of these terms. In the desire to persuade, meaning itself is often secondary when loaded words are used.

For example, Warren Buffet rarely fails to refer to his investors as “partners,” though they do not meet this definition. He knows, however, that doing so instills a sense of equality and fraternity in them without his having to give up a single thing. Cialdini’s ideas of both reciprocation (“People are more willing to comply with requests from those who have provided such things first”) and liking/friendship (“People prefer to say yes to those they know and like”) can be seen in Buffett’s simple, but loaded, choice of words.

Speak their language

Again, “People prefer to say yes to those they know and like.” To that end, a basic means of persuasion involves not only using jargon they understand and recognize, but simply using the name(s) of your audience. It’s as fundamental as meeting someone for the first time; if later on you’re able to remember their name, you’re bound to make a far better impression. It massages the ego and convinces the listener both that somebody has remembered their name, and that they proved worthy of having their name remembered.

The next three techniques -- ethos, pathos and logos -- appear as modes of persuasion in Aristotle’s On Rhetoric. Combining all three modes properly has the potential to craft an extremely persuasive argument.

Appeal to authority (ethos)

Of authority, Cialdini writes, “People are more willing to follow the directions or recommendations of a communicator to whom they attribute relevant authority or expertise.”

An appeal to authority is meant to satisfy your audience that you come from a position of power, whether you are demonstrating your own in-depth knowledge on the topic; your own qualifications; a display of your own interest of commitment in the matter; or you're introducing the words or work of an individual who is an established authority in order to align their views with your own.

Appeal to emotion (pathos)

Too often, people incorrectly assume that the business world is only concerned with facts. While numbers have their place and should never be ignored entirely, an appeal to emotions can prove especially effective in a business setting.

The key is to evoke an emotional response by using metaphors or appealing to a sense of risk and adventure -- without overdoing it.

Appeal to reason (logos)

Appealing to reason is the application of unimpeachable facts and figures to influence your audience. For many in the professional world, there may be no better form of persuasion. In conjunction with ethos, using reason and logic will help to convey the impression of authority, in part because you appear supremely prepared.

Tell a story

Finally, former Hollywood consultants Robert Dickman and Richard Maxwell, the authors of The Elements of Persuasion, warn not to overlook the persuasive power of storytelling. They believe that we organize our thought processes according to stories and argue that “every great leader is a storyteller.” To them, a story is “a fact wrapped in an emotion that compels an action, which transforms our world,” and as such, can be utilized as a technique in persuasion.

They outline the five elements of a successful story: The story is told with passion, through the eyes of a hero, one who first encounters an antagonist, then experiences an awareness, and this awareness leads to the ultimate transformation.

The point, then, is to dress your presentation to persuade in the skin of a story. Position what you’re chiefly trying to persuade (a financial opportunity) as the hero; known obstacles as the antagonist (risk of financial loss); insert your primary argument as the awareness (reasons risk is reduced); and the ultimate transformation as your perceived outcome (financial reward). And, of course, tell it with passion.

Friday, November 27, 2009

The Art of Self Discipline


Self-discipline is an important skill for any fledgling businessman, and indeed for everyone. The ability to follow through on conscious decisions, no matter what you feel emotionally, lets you keep your business on track and make those important choices in even the hardest and most testing times. Self-discipline can help you avoid procrastination and time wasting, and help you take control of every area of your life. So how do you accomplish real self-discipline? Learning self-discipline is like leaning any kind of new skill. It will take time and involves practice, gradually increasing the difficulty of the task. The more you train, and the further you push yourself, the better self-discipline you’ll have There are various stages in learning self-discipline. The first step you need to take is to work out what your level of self-discipline currently is. This allows you to then know how far to push yourself and work out what you’re current limits are. Of course, these limits will change as you become stronger through your training. In order to establish your current level, think about your life and habits. Ask yourself questions such as how strict you are with regards to your health, weight, appearance, tidiness etc. These things can show you how much self-discipline you already have. For example, if you resist the temptation to eat something unhealthy when you know you shouldn’t, despite a craving for it, then it’s likely you already have good self-discipline, though this doesn’t mean you can’t still improve. There are different areas of self discipline-be it work, diet, exercise or social. Each of these areas needs to be trained separately, though having an overall strong self-discipline will obviously help.Start with an achievable limit Now you need to find things to train yourself with-tasks that you challenge yourself to do. It’s good to start off with something achievable but that will push you. This will vary from person to person, but maybe for you it’s not eating fast food for a week, or not logging on to Facebook while you’re at work for a day. Choose a goal that will test you but is attainable; something too easy won’t help you improve, and something too difficult will make you lose motivation. Once you’ve achieved this goal, try extending it- a week, rather than a day, say. It’s important not to compare your goals and level of self-discipline with others. This won’t help you, and might end up making you feel worse.Take small steps You can try to achieve your final goal through taking smaller steps. For example, perhaps you want to be able to get out of bed earlier in the morning. Instead of setting your alarm 3 hours earlier, and expecting to jump out of bed at that time, try gradually getting up earlier and earlier each day, maybe in 15 minute or half hour increments. Eventually you will get to your final goal. Also, changing your environment may help you find it easier to reach your final goal. For example, making sure you have healthy food, and not junk, in the fridge will make it easier for you to follow a diet, or putting a child block on your computer to make it more difficult to access Facebook will help you avoid wasting time on it.Manage your time better It will help greatly if you learn not to avoid things because they are difficult or boring. Part of self-discipline is doing things that need to be done even if you don’t really want to. By avoiding procrastination and getting on with important jobs, you will manage your time much better and therefore have a more productive day. For example, sorting out and tidying your office may not seem that important, and seem like a boring, tedious task. But it is something that needs to be done, and being motivated to just do it, and not put it off, will mean it’s done much quicker and will no longer be on a long ‘to do’ list. Using your time well to do these jobs will give you more time to focus your energy and concentration on those really important tasks.Be persistentIt is important to be persistent with your goals. This means that, even when you feel like quitting, you can carry on with a task. Your motivation will doubtless have its ups and downs. When you’ve had a tiring day and it’s raining outside, you’ll feel much less motivated to do that extra piece of work or resist that extra biscuit. But it’s important to stop and remind yourself that this is just a temporary feeling, and that quitting now will be a waste of your efforts so far. Everyone has weak moments, so don’t be too hard on yourself, but make sure you keep up your goals. Persistence is what keeps you working even when you least feel like it. Eventually results will make you feel even more motivated, and this in turn will give you more persistence.Lastly, it’s important to reassess your goals from time to time to make sure they’re still valid. You may find that as your self-discipline increases, your goals might change. There is nothing wrong with changing your goals and sometimes this might mean abandoning old goals. But make sure you are not abandoning them just because you can’t be bothered or no longer feel motivated, but are now pursuing a more important goal.
Article By: Jasmine Jaume