Spirit Check

On Saturday, April 7, I had the wonderful opportunity to share an inspiration-packed day of talks, discussions, and heart-to-hearts with 50 trailblazing women of Los Angeles held at 631 Wilshire Blvd, a stylish art deco loft space in the heart of downtown Santa Monica.

Hosted by Haneef R. Jordan, entrepreneur, mom, wife, and visionary, Spirit Check was created to do just that. Haneef sites the event as dedication to her late brother. “Spirit Check gave me something to pour into after his passing.” The event looked at the many facets of a woman-- from faith and spirituality to nutrition to relationships.

Attendees enjoyed fellowship and delicious dining catered by Pop My Button Off Catering.

Haneef candidly shared elements of her own overcoming, touching on topics like abuse and self-esteem. All the speakers were able to connect on a personal level, making impactful impressions and, indeed, a true Spirit Check.

Of course, I had my own takeaways as well (you know me), but this week’s takeaways are inspired by the words of Haneef R. Jordan herself:

Obedience is better than sacrifice. This is a signature sample from spiritual text that my mother very often cites as well. To me, this premise simply means before tasks, processes, or deeds, listen—and more so, listening from within. Steading yourself enough to get the direction and assurance you need for next steps. So often, we get caught up in “doing” that we get nothing done.
The intentionality of timing. I read years ago “coincidence is God’s way of staying anonymous,” and I’m a big believer of that. A missed elevator can get you on the next one with your future business partner. A turn down the wrong hallway can allow you to cross paths with your future mate. A mindful hello to a stranger could activate a life-changing conversation. Be open to what timing and so-called missed opportunities look like.
Be okay in your season of “sit down.” This phrase resonated strongly with me. Again, understand that timing is everything. Sometimes things don’t look, move, or happen the way you think they should. At the same time, you might see things moving in other people’s lives and that only magnifies the non-movement in your own. At these times, I would encourage you to step back and take a look at what is happening, what you’d like to see next, and what are the takeaways that you might still need to get before the next chapter.
Love at people’s level of understanding. Understand that people are operating from their own experiences as well, which oftentimes mean places of trauma, anxiety, and heartache. Because of these, love can show itself differently. And you may have to show yours differently. Taking nothing away from the virtue, it’s still worth remembering, when it comes from matters of the heart, more often than not, you have to meet people where they are.
“If you know who you are, you can change your story.” This too resounded within me. So often the journey to self-discovery doesn’t include transparent reflection. It can be easy to cover those hurting places, to hide from those unhappy places, or to ignore those irritating things. Not until we can look directly at these things can we really begin to rewrite our narrative. It can take a while and might sting sometimes but doing the work to find who you are is worth it.