Our country is in a period of unrest. There are protests, riots, looting and debates regarding the systemic racism that has unfairly effected African Americans for hundreds of years.

Despite being a minority who studied American History and the forecast of a potential race war (as a result of systemic racism) – I have also underwent public scrutiny. Either I am too quiet, too loud, too opinionated, too complicit, too positive, too involved, or too uninvolved.

I’ve been told from both ends what I should do with my friends, my business, my time, my nonprofit, my social media pages, my weekends, my marriage, my kids, my money, my goals, my vote –

To those who feel attacked by an anxious energy of anger, hate, fear and judgment, this is my advice to you:

Know who you are. Know where your intention lies. It is ok to pivot your opinion as needed, learn as needed, apologize as needed, act as needed and stop as needed.

You don’t need anyone’s permission for being imperfectly you. You don’t need anyone’s stamp of approval on your life, your actions or your thoughts.

If you Commit to your growth, you WILL find the light and you will discover truths.

I’ve watched our current events tear and destroy through families, old friendships, businesses, communities, companies and people’s mental and physical health.

If you are challenged today:

Talk to someone. Call your friends. Tell people you need support, a vent session or even a prayer.

Step into nature and go walking. Whether with a friend/spouse or your dog. Walk it out.

Pray and meditate. Intentionally try to clear your mind, even for a few mins. It’s incredible when your mind isn’t racing a thousands miles a second.

Exercise and get lost in a physical activity that releases stress and promotes happy endorphins.

Step away from your phone. If you find yourself distracted for hours, not paying attention to your family or feeling anger – remove that energy from your life.

Refocus on your goals and set into action new ones, whether it’s cleaning the house, building your business or creating a game plan on how you will move forward to ease anxiety and personally contribute to the betterment of society.

Above all, be prayerful. Don’t resist the fact that there IS a problem and as a nation we must play our role (in whatever form that takes) in fixing it.

#blacklivesmatter