Leadership
Rising Above: Lorna Blake’s Journey from Setbacks to Success
Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius.
Facebook – Facebook.com/Lornamblake
Linkedin – Linkedin.com/LornaMBlake
Youtube – Youtube.com/LornaBlakeEmpowers
Instagram – www.Instagram.com/LornaMBlake
Website – https://mpowerurself.com/
Lorna Blake is an International Speaker, Success Coach, Author, and Real Estate Investor. Born to a poor teenage mom in rural Jamaica, she overcame poverty, abandonment, and abuse. Today, Lorna is a world traveler with a powerful success story. She has lived in five countries, traveled to nearly 20, and inspired thousands globally. Lorna was a featured author in the No More Chains: It’s Time For Change anthology and was highlighted in the 2019 film documentary of the same name. Her first solo book, Born To Rise: A Journey From Setbacks To Comebacks & Lessons Learned, has won several awards, including the International Impact Book Award. She has shared stages with Tony Robbins’ Top Business Strategist, Anthony Demario and Oprah Winfrey’s life partner Stedman Graham. Lorna was recently honored with a Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award.
How did your journey as an international speaker and success coach inspire you to write «Born To Rise»?
More than ten years ago in Canada, I was booked as the keynote speaker on How To Bounce Back From Setbacks. Sharing my story of persistence through multiple rejections as a black, single mom seeking a teaching job in South Korea, I inspired many. Despite being told I wouldn’t be hired, I persisted, was hired, and even met my husband there. After my speech, many thanked me for motivating them to rise, including a woman who became one of my first coaching clients. This overwhelming feedback and frequent inquiries about whether I had written a book led me to write Born To Rise.
Can you share a pivotal moment in your life that significantly influenced the message of your book?
I experienced several pivotal moments that shaped me profoundly—being abandoned by my father before birth, growing up in poverty, and enduring physical and sexual abuse. These challenges forced me to rely on a power greater than myself early on, strengthening my faith and resilience. I share these experiences to show others that they too can rise from adversity.
How do you integrate lessons from your book into your speaking engagements and coaching sessions?
? I incorporate practices like mindfulness, meditation, deep breathing, mindset strategies, and prosperity principles from my book into my speaking and coaching. I tailor these strategies to fit the specific needs of my audience or clients which is an amazing way to achieve success with ease and joy.
What advice would you give to aspiring authors and speakers who want to use their personal experiences to inspire others?
If you have a message to share, educate yourself, invest in skills and knowledge, surround yourself with others who are successful at what you desire to do then take action. Start by speaking at local venues and participating in anthologies to gain confidence and exposure. Embrace technology to help, but remember, success requires you to put in the effort. Just start—your audience is waiting for you and your message. You’ve got this!

Leadership
From Book to Booked: Taurea Avant Shares How Authors Can Use AI to Land More Speaking Opportunities
For many authors, publishing a book feels like the finish line. Visibility strategist, international speaker, and bestselling author Taurea Avant sees it differently. In her view, publishing the book is often just the beginning of a much bigger opportunity.
Avant has built her work around helping authors, speakers, coaches, and experts turn their knowledge and stories into visibility, stages, media opportunities, and revenue. Through her “From Book to Booked” approach, she encourages authors to stop looking at their books only as products to sell and start viewing them as strategic business tools.
“Writing the book is not necessarily the hardest part,” Avant explains. “The bigger challenge is figuring out what to do with the book once it is finished. A lot of authors publish the book, put it on Amazon, announce it to their audience, and then they are not really sure what comes next.”
According to Avant, what comes next should be a clear strategy for expanding the message beyond the pages.
A Book Can Become a Speaking Credential
For authors who also want to speak, Avant believes the book can provide an immediate credibility boost. It gives event organizers, podcast hosts, media outlets, and potential clients something tangible that represents the author’s knowledge and expertise.
However, simply being a published author is not enough.
“The goal is not to get on stage and spend 30 or 45 minutes talking about your book,” Avant says. “The goal is to identify the transformation inside the book. What can you teach? What can the audience learn from your story? What problem can your experience help someone solve?”
That shift in thinking can completely change how an author approaches speaking opportunities.
A leadership author, for example, can develop talks around leadership development, team building, workplace culture, or personal growth. An entrepreneur who has written about business can create presentations around sales, marketing, resilience, branding, or entrepreneurship. Someone who has written a personal story can identify the lessons within that experience and turn those lessons into keynote presentations, workshops, or panel topics.
Avant encourages authors to start by looking at something they already have: their table of contents.
“Your chapters can become speaking topics,” she says. “One chapter may become a keynote. Another may become a workshop. Another may become a podcast conversation. Authors sometimes think they need to keep creating completely new content when they may already have months of speaking content sitting inside their book.”
AI Is Changing How Authors Can Position Themselves
The rise of artificial intelligence has created concerns for many writers and authors, especially around originality and the future of publishing. Avant believes authors should pay attention to those concerns, but she also sees tremendous opportunity in using AI as a business and visibility tool.
“AI should not replace your story, your experience, or your voice,” she explains. “But it can help you organize and leverage what you already know much faster.”
For an author looking to expand into speaking, that could mean using AI to brainstorm presentation topics based on a book, strengthen a speaker bio, create podcast pitch ideas, develop workshop outlines, prepare interview talking points, or identify audiences that may benefit from the author’s message.
An author could take the summary of a chapter, for example, and ask an AI tool to suggest five potential keynote topics. From there, the author can decide which ideas fit their expertise, audience, and voice.
“You still have to bring yourself to it,” Avant says. “AI may give you an idea, but your experience is what makes that idea powerful.”
AI can also help authors think more strategically about where their message belongs. Rather than randomly searching for stages, Avant recommends first identifying the audience, the problem that audience faces, and the transformation the speaker provides. AI can then be used to brainstorm types of conferences, organizations, podcasts, associations, and companies where that topic may be relevant.
Visibility Often Leads to More Visibility
One of the biggest lessons Avant teaches speakers is that getting booked can often lead to getting booked again.
Event organizers and podcast hosts regularly research potential guests before making a decision. When they search a speaker’s name, they may look for previous interviews, articles, speaking clips, media coverage, and other evidence that the person has experience delivering their message publicly.
“People are going to look you up,” Avant says. “The question is, what are they going to find?”
This is why she encourages speakers to treat every opportunity as part of a larger visibility strategy. A podcast appearance can become a video clip. A speaking engagement can become photographs, testimonials, and social media content. An article can strengthen credibility when pitching another publication or conference.
Over time, those individual opportunities create what Avant describes as a visibility trail.
“The more evidence people can find that you are already speaking, being interviewed, and sharing your expertise, the easier it becomes for them to imagine you on their stage,” she explains.
That does not mean every opportunity needs to be massive. Avant believes many speakers make the mistake of focusing only on large conferences while overlooking smaller stages that may place them directly in front of the right audience.
“Thirty of the right people can sometimes create a bigger opportunity than 3,000 people who are not your audience,” she says.
Authors Should Think Beyond Book Royalties
Avant also challenges authors to think differently about how a book can generate revenue.
Most authors naturally think first about book sales. Yet the financial opportunity connected to a book can extend much further.
A book may sell for $20, but the authority created by that book can lead to speaking engagements, coaching clients, consulting contracts, partnerships, workshops, media appearances, and other opportunities worth considerably more.
“The book can be one of the least expensive things you offer, but it can be one of the most powerful tools for introducing people to everything else you do,” Avant says.
That is the core of the “From Book to Booked” philosophy. The objective is not simply to sell more books. It is to use the book to create a larger ecosystem around the author’s expertise.
When that happens, the book becomes the introduction, the speaking opportunity expands the message, and the business gives the audience a way to continue working with the author.
The First Step Is Getting Clear
For an author who wants to begin landing more speaking opportunities, Avant recommends starting with clarity.
What do you want to be known for? Who needs your message? What transformation can you provide? What type of stage already attracts those people?
Once those answers become clear, the next step is consistent visibility and pitching.
“The biggest mistake is waiting for someone to discover you,” Avant says. “You have to start putting yourself in the rooms, conversations, interviews, and platforms where your message belongs.”
With the continued growth of podcasts, virtual platforms, live conferences, digital media, and AI tools, authors now have more ways than ever to turn one book into multiple opportunities.
The book may start the conversation, but it does not have to be where the conversation ends.
Learn How to Speak on More Stages
Avant is continuing this conversation through her How to Speak on More Stages Workshop, designed for authors, speakers, coaches, entrepreneurs, and experts who want to increase their visibility and create more speaking opportunities.
The workshop will cover how to position a message for the right stages, develop stronger speaking topics, leverage a book as a credibility tool, identify opportunities, and use AI to help make the visibility process faster and more strategic.
To learn more or register, visit www.HowtoSpeakonMoreStages.com.
Leadership
The New Leadership Skill of 2026: Knowing What to Automate—and What Must Stay Human
Artificial intelligence is no longer simply changing how companies work. It is changing what companies need from their leaders.
In 2026, the question is no longer whether businesses should use AI. The bigger question is whether leaders know how to lead in an AI-powered workplace without losing the human qualities that make organizations successful.
Recent developments across the business world make this shift clear.
Google recently reorganized leadership within its DeepMind AI division as competition among major artificial intelligence companies continues to accelerate. The changes included a new leadership structure, shifting teams and a stronger push toward commercializing its Gemini technology.
At the same time, companies around the world are searching for more workers with AI-related skills. In the United Kingdom, AI or related tools appeared in 9.4% of job postings by the end of June 2026—a record high—even as overall job postings declined.
These developments point to something bigger than a technology trend.
AI has become a leadership issue.
Leaders Can No Longer Delegate AI to the Technology Department
For years, major technology decisions could be handed to the IT department.
That approach will not work with AI.
Artificial intelligence can now influence marketing, customer service, hiring, research, operations, sales, content creation and strategic planning.
That means the CEO, founder or department leader must understand enough about AI to make decisions about how it should be used.
Leaders do not necessarily need to become programmers. They do, however, need to understand what the technology can do, what it cannot do and where using it creates the most value.
The companies that succeed may not be the companies with the most AI tools.
They may simply be the companies whose leaders know how to use those tools more intentionally.
Speed Is Becoming a Competitive Advantage
One lesson coming from today’s AI race is that large organizations can have enormous resources and still struggle when decision-making becomes too slow.
Reuters reported that structural challenges, disagreements over resources and bureaucracy were among the issues cited by sources familiar with Google’s AI efforts.
That lesson applies far beyond technology companies.
Organizations must be able to test ideas, review results and make changes faster than they have in the past.
A leader who takes six months to make a decision about something competitors are testing this week could quickly find the company behind.
This does not mean making reckless decisions.
It means creating a culture where responsible experimentation is encouraged.
The Human Side of Leadership Is Becoming More Valuable
There is an interesting paradox happening.
As machines become better at performing tasks, the skills that make us uniquely human may become even more valuable.
AI can create a report.
It cannot replace trust.
AI can analyze customer data.
It cannot build genuine relationships.
AI can recommend a strategy.
It cannot take responsibility for the consequences of that strategy.
Strong leaders will need emotional intelligence, communication skills, judgment, creativity and the ability to bring people together around a common vision.
Technology can support leadership. It cannot replace leadership.
Leaders Must Decide What Should Remain Human
One of the most important questions executives should ask is simple:
Just because we can automate something, should we?
Companies should consider the customer experience before replacing every human interaction with automation.
The same applies internally.
A difficult employee conversation probably should not become an automated email.
A major client experiencing a problem may need a person rather than a chatbot.
A team facing major organizational changes needs leadership, communication and reassurance.
The winning organizations will likely create the right combination of technological efficiency and human connection.
Training Matters More Than Buying Another Tool
Businesses are already experiencing benefits from AI, but implementation remains uneven.
A 2026 Goldman Sachs survey found that 76% of participating small businesses reported using AI. Among those using it, 93% reported a positive impact and 84% pointed to increased efficiency and productivity as the main benefit. Yet only 14% said AI was fully integrated into their core operations, while 73% said additional training and implementation resources would help.
That gap is important.
Buying technology does not automatically create transformation.
Companies must teach people how to use it.
Leaders should create clear guidelines, provide training and identify practical ways AI can improve existing workflows.
The Leaders Who Win Will Be Adaptable
Every major technology shift creates winners and losers.
The difference is often not the technology itself.
It is how quickly people adapt to it.
The leaders who thrive in this next era will not necessarily be the people who know the most about artificial intelligence.
They will be the people who remain curious enough to learn, confident enough to change and disciplined enough to know where technology belongs—and where human leadership still matters most.
Because in an increasingly automated world, leadership may become more human, not less.
Leadership
Most High Achieving Women Are Overthinking Income, Dr. Stevii Aisha Mills Is Showing Them What Actually Works
Dr. Stevii Aisha Mills is challenging the way high achieving women think about making money. While many professionals spend months planning, researching, and second guessing their next move, she is focused on one thing, execution.
As a Visibility Coach and Strategist, Dr. Stevii helps high achieving women turn their expertise into income through strategic visibility and consistent action. With more than 30 years of experience in marketing and public relations and over 16 years as an entrepreneur, she has built multiple six figure businesses by committing to what works instead of overcomplicating the process.
That perspective was shaped through experience. After facing significant financial setbacks and rebuilding from less than zero, Dr. Stevii made a defining shift. She stopped relying on complex strategies and focused on taking clear, consistent action that produces results. That decision became the foundation of her work today.
She is the creator of the Click To Cash® framework, a process designed to help entrepreneurs and professionals turn attention into income through visibility and consistency. In addition to coaching and consulting, she is a prolific author with more than 30 published books, including Cultivating Your It Factor and Click To Cash. Her work and entrepreneurial journey have been featured on major media platforms including BET, CBS, FOX, and ABC.
Her message is simple but direct. Visibility is not about popularity. It is about positioning, connection, and creating opportunities that lead to revenue.
Simplifying Success Through Immediate Action
In recent months, Dr. Stevii has intentionally moved away from traditional, slow moving business strategies and toward faster, execution driven models. Rather than encouraging professionals to spend months preparing, she helps high achieving women move from idea to execution in as little as 24 to 72 hours.
This shift has led to the expansion of her Click To Cash® framework into short term, focused experiences designed to eliminate overwhelm and create immediate momentum. These programs are built to help women quickly position themselves, communicate their expertise, and begin generating income opportunities without delay.
She also demonstrates these principles in real time. Through daily content creation and TikTok Shop affiliate marketing, Dr. Stevii shows her audience exactly how attention converts into revenue. Instead of teaching from theory, she models the process as it happens, reinforcing that consistency is what drives results in today’s digital economy.
Another area of growth has been The Permission Slip Club, a community she co hosts with Dr. Marilyn Porter. With more than 30 members and growing, the space is designed to support high achieving women in making bold decisions, increasing visibility, and creating real time income opportunities. The focus is simple, take action, stay visible, and execute consistently.
Elevating Women Leaders and Expanding Community Impact
As her platform grows, Dr. Stevii is using her visibility to highlight other women who are making meaningful contributions in their industries and communities.
Among them is Rhonda Woolard, whose work advances child welfare and sexual abuse support through innovative programs and advocacy. She is also spotlighting Keisha Boatwright, a certified 200 hour yoga instructor and creative entrepreneur who combines wellness and crafting to build community centered experiences.
Dr. Stevii is also highlighting Faye Horton, owner of F S Horton Insurance Professionals LLC, who helps sales professionals scale their authority and impact through high ticket coaching and strategic sales systems. In addition, she is featuring Shawnise White, owner of Beauty Mint Studio, a luxury beauty lounge known for delivering elevated beauty experiences centered on confidence and professionalism.
Through these collaborations, she continues to reinforce a core belief, visibility creates opportunity, not just for herself, but for the women she brings into the spotlight.
At the same time, she remains committed to growing The Permission Slip Club as a space where high achieving women can take action, increase their visibility, and create new income streams through consistent execution.
More information about The Permission Slip Club can be found at signingmyslip.com.
Dr. Stevii Aisha Mills is not just teaching visibility. She is redefining how high achieving women turn what they already know into real income.
Her message is clear. Stop overthinking. Start executing. The results will follow.
Contact Information
Email: stevii@stevii.com
Website: www.stevii.com
Facebook: Stevii Aisha Mills
Instagram: @juststevii
Sponsors:
Shawnise White
Instagram: @beautymintstudio

Keisha Boatwright
Website: www.soulistickesh.com

Rhonda Woolard
Website: www.rjwguidingservices.com

Faye Horton
Website: http://fayesaxonhorton.com

-
Featured2 years ago20 Entrepreneurs to Watch Closeout 2024
-
Real Estate2 years agoStartups Are Looking To Fractionalize Real Estate Assets, But Should They? – Forbes
-
Innovation2 years agoLeo Horacio: A Successful Entrepreneur in the Ecommerce and Online Sales Industry
-
Innovation2 years agoInnovators in Social-Emotional Learning: Dr. Myava Clark and Chris Clark Jr.
-
Music2 years agoArtist Deydee Signs $350,000 Contract with Rueda Empire LLC
-
Latest2 years agoFlorida Gov DeSantis signs 15-week abortion ban | Latest News
-
Latest2 years agoCharles zhang recognized by forbes as #1 on michigan’s 2022 best in state wealth advisor list
-
Uncategorized2 years agoTrailblazer in Business: Alicia Fitts on Building Wealth and Community Through Faith