sassysage's Blog

So right now I’m in the process of reading Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. It’s very good and I would have been finished by now if I weren’t struck by a nasty summer cold. I‘ve heard his other books were really easy to read and thoughtful. He uses a lot of psychological studies to make points, so of course I wanted to see what the buzz was all about.

In Outliers he’s trying to show how the most talented, famous, rich, and/or impressive people have gotten to be where they are. His main point is that the old pull yourself up by your bootstrap story is a myth. People do not make it to the top by themselves. It’s a set up that involves talent of course but also where and when you are born. You can’t become king of computers like Bill Gates if you were born in 1850 (too early) or 2005 (too late)! He illustrated really clearly how Mr. Gates was born at the most perfect time to give him an edge in starting a new industrial revolution. It made me wonder, what trends was my birth era good for??

What I found even more interesting was this concept of 10,000 hours. Apparently experts agree that this is the ‘magic’ number that one needs to go from amateur to good to GREAT! 10,000 hours of practice distinguishes you as the best. That’s approximately 10 years of constant work. The Bill Gates example showed that because Mr. Gates became obsessed with computers in the 9th grade (he was fortunate enough to go to one of the only high schools in the county that had a computer) he got his 10,000 hours in by his early 20’s when he dropped out of Harvard (the part of the story that is often most told). When one hears the rags to riches story we miss the 10 years of sweat, toll and bleeding needed to make it. Not 10 years of thinking about it, 10 years of faking it, 10 years of half way getting the job done. 10 years of focus, determination and drive.

One thing I feel has been lost in our Society is the hard work ethic. I watch a lot of reality shows because they are entertaining. But I know it can make it seem like many of the ‘cast’ just got lucky. Most of them have not. What you don’t see are the hours they have put in to get to where they are, the many times they tried and didn’t get picked. The early rises to keep their businesses going. So ladies, the next time you want to give up on your goals or wonder why you haven’t made it to the level you want to be in your life. Add up those hours, where are you in the count? What are you doing with your 10,000 hours?

so i’m faking it a little with this month’s feature since i don’t know her personally. but i just had to because i’m so proud & in awe of her work. korto momolu is a sistah who’s making waves in the fashion world. 

korto was born and lived in monrovia, liberia before immigrating with her family to canada due to civil war in 1990.   she studied fashion design at the l’academies des couturiers design institute in ottawa, ontario.  after working as an independent fashion designer for 15 years, korto entered as a contestant on the 5th season of project runway and came in 2^nd place.  

last week the show had a special all star challenge & she reminded me just how awestruck i was last year watching her create on the show. she had to compete with the best of the best from previous seasons.  one challenge & four looks each exquisitely tailored won her 2nd place.  

korto designs are full of texture & color with simple classy lines. she has signature accessories which are made by hand.  those bags r to die 4.  u can feel her african heritage through her creations which are far from a costumy kente/mud cloth look. west africans, especially liberians, are very good craftsman.   tailoring is our thing & korto’s got ‘it’.  she may not have won the tv competition but i predict many big wins in her fashion future.  click here to check out her designs:  Korto Designs

enough about TV.  nxt week i’ll give u the scoop on the book i decided to get at the library. its my treat to myself this weekend…

My DVR is on the frizt again!  I have the kind that you get with your cable plan and for some reason every few months it stops working.  I think it’s a conspiracy because it always seems to mess up when there’s something really good I wanna watch.

What’s worse is when they fix it; all the stuff I’ve recorded is erased.   Last time I missed the BET awards but I guess it wasn’t that big a deal because they show it over and over until you’ve had enough of weezy, geezy and all those wanna be thugs who call themselves rappers.

I don’t believe one should fill up all their time with TV but a girl’s gotta have her guilty pleasures.  DVR is great because I can do what I need to do and then in little splurts watch the shows I like when I want and fast forward through the commercials. If there’s a hottie on the screen, I’ll even rewind to catch one more glimpse (umm).

I’m really excited about Run’s House new season and Project Runway which has found its way to another network.   I’ve been getting all the dish and dirt from my girl Wendy on her talk show.  I did not miss a day during her pilot season and not loving the fact that my DVR skipped three episodes this week;0  I just love singing the theme song, jumping up and down while ‘how u doin’ rolls off my tongue so naturally.   She is too much (in a good way).

In all the madness of my TV drama I decided to give up, go to the library and grab a book…

Reading is Fundamental

Any suggestions?

There are so many amazing women and girls who are doing great things. So each month, I’m giving props to ladies who are making it happen. This month our queen is Annabel Gillard, a corporate professional who loves to spend her free time globe-trotting.   Read about her travels and the benefits of experiencing different cultures…  

“I decided to travel a few years ago when I thought I might lose my job due to cost cutting. I’d always wanted to see more of the world, experience how other people lived their lives and have some adventures. I fell in love with the idea so much that even when I didn’t lose my job I decided to resign and go anyway. I traveled throughout Central and South America, extensively through Africa and took shorter trips to Asia. People always ask for my favorite trip but it’s so hard to compare a national park in Colombia with the seductive city of Buenos Aires, the desert in Chile, the icebergs in Patagonia or the craziness of Rio. And that’s just South America!!”

“I love to travel because you meet the most amazing and interesting people, you see stunning scenery, beautiful beaches, unusual animals and hear the most extraordinary stories. The other thing I love about travel is the sense of absolute freedom that it gives you – free from other people’s perceptions of you, free from the rat race, free from all the stuff that usually weighs you down & free to do whatever you want every day when you wake up. Travel feels like life in its most concentrated form – more happens to you in a day than happens in a week back at home. It is that most liberated feeling of freedom which keeps me coming back for more…”

Annabel & I met when we were 5 while I was going to school in London.  We stayed in touch as pen pals (the internet was not invented yet!).  She keeps me in check when I’m working too hard and not taking enough time to vacation and relax.  Annabel’s next trip is to Madagascar (a large island off the East Coast of Southern Africa- think the animated movie:)