Akeem Haynes

We are always in the process of something- whether we’re trying to build and grow in a specific area or trying to let go and unlearn certain habits and mentalities that aren’t serving us anymore- there’s always a process to it.

And the reality is there’s no timeline on when we will come out on the other side with the finished product. But every step of the way, each moment of the process, we get to choose what we are going to focus on.

I’m a firm believer that you can’t rush everything. Despite what anyone might say, despite what society may say, anything that comes too quickly has a good chance of you not being able to keep it as long as you’d like. Shortcuts will get you to the destination quicker, but your character might not be at a level where you can maintain that position.

With every decision you make, always do your best to think long-term. Never compromise who you are because of the frustration of where you are.

We all go through a process, and sometimes your process takes a little bit longer. But don’t let the wait stop you from seeing the potential of what can be if you stay encouraged and keep going.

Keep the faith. Keep the strength. Stay encouraged.

✏️

Courage doesn’t always have to be exhibited through the extreme. Sometimes it’s in every mundane choice we make inside of our head and then following through with our actions.

Life isn’t about pretending we are strong to impress others. It takes courage to be authentic with our feelings and acknowledge that real strength comes from recognizing our moments of weakness along the journey.

There have been times in my life when the idea of what could go wrong made me question all the time I spent preparing and working on something. But what has always helped me press forward is choosing one thought over another. While something could go wrong, what about all the other things that could go right? What could come from it if I chose to follow through?

We have to remember to not allow fear and negative whispers to hold us back from the possibilities of what could be. Thoughts of failure will always be there, but we can choose to move in courage and in faith.

You already have inside of you what you need to prevail. You only need to believe that.

Stay encouraged.

2 things to remember today about waiting:

1). There are always things we're going to be waiting for. There are occasions when things might line up a little quicker than other times, but generally there's a waiting season until you reach the desired goal. And it can be frustrating. What I've learned is that the moment you let go of a specific timeline, you allow God to work in that space. The waiting season is just as important and needed as any other season. Have you ever tried to eat a mango when it's not ready? Or a banana? Trying to eat a premature fruit tastes bitter and terrible. But when it's the right time, it's sweet, delicious and memorable. Consider the reason why things aren't clicking just yet has nothing to do with your work ethic or focus but more about how you're handling the day-to-day when it feels like speed isn't on your side. Just because that breakthrough hasn't come yet doesn't mean it won't come at the appointed time.

2). I read this book years ago by Leo Tolstoy entitled War and Peace, and in the book he wrote something that I refer back to from time to time:

"Everything comes in time to one who knows how to wait. There is nothing stronger than these two: patience and time, they will do it all."

Waiting and hoping is a hard thing to do when you've already been feeling like you've been waiting and hoping for a long time. But it's where we put our focus during that time that can help us either overcome it or be discouraged by it. I've always found encouragement in knowing that the seasons won't last forever and that they will change at some point.

So keep working, keep taking it one day at a time, keep your head up, and keep believing in yourself.

🔑

Three things to remember today:

1. Progress isn’t always a big jump: It’s easy to look around and judge our lives based on what everybody else is doing. It’s easy to downplay our progress because it might not be as big as we want it to be. The reality is any step forward, no matter how big or small, is still progress. And, I’ve learned that sometimes you have to take a few steps backwards to see why you wanted to move forward in the first place. The tortoise didn’t beat the hare because he was faster. He beat the hare because he didn’t care how far behind he was. He knew he’d get there when he got there as long as he put one foot in front of the other. Always forward.

2. Intentionality matters: Always be intentional about what and who you let into your head. We all value things a little differently. Everyone isn’t after what your after, and that’s okay. The problem is when we try and force our vision and perspective on those around us. Or when we let the negativity and doubt from others get into our heads. Whatever your working toward and praying for, understand that it’s going to require a certain level of focus to make it a reality. If you aren’t intentional about where you want to go, you’ll stay right where you are.

3. Sometimes less is more: It took me a good amount of years to understand the value of rest and being still and open to where God might be leading me. It’s VERY easy to burn yourself out getting caught up in the grind of life. But I’m a firm believer that how you get to the destination matters. I’ve heard a bunch of stories of individuals reaching their desired destination only to get there and break down because of what the uphill battle did to them. Sometimes it’s important to take a step back and regroup in the midst of the chaos . I used to wonder what the saying, “Rome wasn’t built in a day” meant. Now I’m at a point where I’ve realized I will not and cannot accomplish everything all in one day. If you don’t learn to rest and be still along the way, life has a way of forcing you to do so. And oftentimes it can take you out longer than you think.

If you’re feeling emotionally tired this season, I want to encourage you and remind you that sometimes things take longer than expected to unfold. Everyone's time of breakthrough is different.

You might feel drained because you've been delayed. You might feel like your breakthrough isn't ever going to come because you've been through setbacks more times than you can count. But I've always been a firm believer that the challenges we face in life are preparation for something greater to come.

When I was running track, I always went into training sessions expecting them to be hard, and I always told myself that complaining wouldn't make it any easier. Rather than wasting energy on complaints, I would tell myself, “After I get through this session, I’ll be better.” The challenge was remembering to repeat those words to myself when my body was exhausted and I wanted to stop. But it often worked. It got me through it.

Consider the challenges you face, big or small, as opportunities that can be beneficial for a greater purpose down the road. And when you find yourself tired and discouraged, find the strength and courage to remind yourself that the challenges we face can and will make us better for tomorrow if we can find the right perspective today.

Challenges will come. We get to choose how we go through them, what we gain from them, and not to be defeated by them.

Sometimes things don’t go according to plan.

Sometimes circumstances aren't ideal.

Sometimes your path has more detours than you anticipated.

Sometimes you have to stretch yourself further than you ever thought you could.

Sometimes you're tested mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally all at the same time.

Every hard season we go through is a reminder to be grateful during our seasons of favor. Every trial comes with lessons we can take and apply to our next trial.

Maya Angelou once said: "Without courage, it is not possible to practice any other virtue consistently."

If you’ve mustered up the courage to get back up every time you’ve fallen, then I truly believe you have enough strength to continue pressing forward.

Keep pressing forward today.

The hardest part about any setback is believing that if you keep going things will get better. The reality is we aren't sure how everything is going to play out. Every hit we experience takes a little bit more out of us each time. That’s why it's so imperative for us to have certain things in our foundation to help us push forward when we might need a little more encouragement to keep going.

If you've been set back recently, I want to share two things that helped me when I competed at a high level in sports. I share these two things when I speak to different companies and organizations:

1). Prepare for the hits. I've never been one to think adversity was never going to come. I've always had to walk a different path, and my hits in life came very early. So I realized early on that everything wasn't going to be sweet and easy; that I can't go through life thinking everything is going to work out and it's going to be a smooth path. Bracing yourself for the hits of life isn't being a pessimist. It’s understanding that at some point, something difficult is going to come your way. The hardest hits in life are the ones we don't see coming, but when you brace yourself from all angles it won't be as shocking. It won't be as devastating because you knew at some point a test would come.

2). What you do next matters most . We always have choices, and the first choice we have after a setback is what happens next. Do we stay in this painful moment and make a bed there and lay in it, or do we muster up the strength and courage to try again? Sometimes you need to make a bed in the setback for a day or two. Some hits take longer to wrap your head around. But the hardships that we face in life aren't meant to keep us down. As much as they can hurt, as tough as it can be, I just believe God has bigger plans for us than pain and sorrow.

Character isn't inherited. It’s formed by how we handle the hits of life that are out of our control. Keep fighting the good fight. There is more to your story.

The reality is that every test we face takes a little bit out of us. Every challenge requires a certain level of energy, discipline and awareness to overcome it. Every season of success requires more or less of the same.

There’s a part in the bible that I like that says, “When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more, will be required."

That passage makes me think of putting time and energy towards our goals, guarding our focus against distractions, and being self-aware enough to know when we are falling off track.

Life requires a lot, and there are going to be moments when you have to find the strength to endure your trials. There will come a time when what you've prayed for and worked for will be in your possession and that season will require more from you to keep it and thrive in it.

If you come across this today, try not to let discouragement make a home in your heart. If you continue showing up and working and learning, in due season a shift will come your way.

Oftentimes the great things that come our way in life start from small beginnings, and we must go through ups and downs and gain the experiences and knowledge to be able to keep and sustain what we’ve prayed for when it fully comes to life.

Maya Angelou once said:
"My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."

Keep going.

✏️

Sometimes our minds can play tricks on us. You can be confident and optimistic one day, and the next day doubt will creep in and try to make you believe your time won’t come.

Sometimes it’s important for us to not believe everything we think. The reality is all of our thoughts aren’t always going to be positive. Our circumstances and situations can make us think thoughts we never thought we would.

With every negative, doubtful thought that comes to mind, remind yourself of a few good ones to help find some balance. Thoughts come and go, but consistently planting positive seeds creates a mental defense to help us stay the course.

We always have the option to choose one thought over another. Do your best, even when it’s tough, to choose the positive thoughts.

Life has a way of finding its balance. We just have to find the right perspective to help us see it through.

Love ✌🏾

There are things we go through in life that don't make sense. It doesn't always feel like things are going to come together as quickly as we thought they would. And when our timeline doesn't line up with the timeline we had in our head, we can often feel like a failure, like we are constantly behind.

If we are honest, we've all been here at some point- the feeling of not knowing when our time will come and when the work we've put in will start to reap a harvest. I've learned along the way that it’s not our job to worry about when things will come together. Our job is to be a good steward of what's in front of us, using the tools in our position and connecting the dots one day at a time. Every action comes with a reaction, even if we don't see it right away. But one thing’s for sure- inaction will not bare any harvest.

So if you’re reading this today, keep focusing on what you can control. Keep working on your craft. Keep praying for direction and clarity, and pray for the strength to enjoy the season.

God doesn't make mistakes. He doesn't put us through a season for no reason. And he definitely hasn't forgotten about you.

Tag someone that might need to hear this today.

Love ✌🏾

Patience is one of the toughest virtues to truly embrace. It's probably the one virtue that challenges you more mentally than physically. You can put the work in towards your goals and dreams; you can make investments in all the right areas; but there still may be a gap between where you are and where you want to end up. And that gap doesn’t close overnight.

If you find yourself in a waiting season, remember this today:

Try to be present in the here and now. It’s the thoughts and doubts that creep in when we look too far ahead that can often change our mood and blur our perspective.

Many times we focus on getting to the peak of the mountain rather than consistently taking small steps one day at a time. Forward movement adds up whether fast or slow.

Maybe you aren't where you want to be because it's not your time just yet. Stay the course. God always puts us in the right spots at the right time. He hasn't forgotten about you.

How you wait in this season is preparing you for the reward in the next. Wait with a positive attitude, optimism and expectation.

What you've been working and praying for might be just around the corner.

There's no secret that life isn't always easygoing or smooth sailing. And there’s going to be some people reading this today who are currently in the most challenging season of their life.

It might be a new year, but sometimes you dont feel like it's a fresh start. And that can leave you discouraged because you expect more, want more, and have put in the work for a different outcome.

I want to remind you today to take a moment and repeat to yourself that it is well. I remember talking to my grandmother at a time in my life when things weren't going well. Yet, she would remind me every time before we got off the phone, "It shall be well."

I think back to those conversations, and they encourage me today because she wasn't being overzealous with her words. She was just reminding me that it may not be well now, but if you keep showing up, keep staying positive as best as you can, keep working, keep praying, keep putting good thoughts in your mind, in due time, it will be well.

The gift of life gives us the chance to rise above any situation we might find ourselves in. With a hopeful attitude, the right perspective, and a good circle of support around you, you can overcome any struggle.

So if you’re feeling low today, it might not be well right now, but in due season, it SHALL be well.

Keep going.

Achieving anything in life will require a climb. And the climb will require a whole lot of commitment, perseverance, consistency, faith and hard work.

As you're climbing to reach your goals and dreams, it’s easy to look up and see how far you have to go and talk yourself out of it.

Remember this- you don’t always see a return right away on an initial investment. Keep going! That initial investment might feel like a waste, but you have to invest for the chance to see any type of reward.

Let this be the time in your life that you commit to the investment you've made. See it all the way through.

And don’t set your goals based on what other people deem important. Set your goals by what matters to you. Doing so will help you continue the climb when all you want to do is quit.

If you don't value something, your commitment towards it will have an expiration date. Be intentional and don’t let distractions detour your climb.

Every year the goal is to become a new you. I don’t mean new like you transform into a transformer or anything like that(maybe you do!), but I mean new in how you think and how you operate. The goals we want to reach and the dreams we want to become reality require more than just physically doing the work. They require different thoughts, different perspectives, a different level of focus, and an openness to doing things differently for a better outcome.

Oftentimes it’s our focus that first starts to fade and derails us from our path. It’s our focus that either helps us move forward or slows us down. That’s why it’s imperative to focus on the right things as much as you can, finding perspective in the seasons we go through.

Wherever your focus goes, your mind will follow. That goes for the people you surround yourself with and listen to. Negative people don’t lead to positive outcomes. Be careful who and what you let into your space.

As the year comes to an end and a new one begins, reflect on where your focus was this year and dial in on the areas you need to improve.

We don’t get to choose the hardships that come our way, but we do control where we put our focus. That just might be the trick that helps you in this next season of your life.

Love ✌🏽

What do you do when you’re in a waiting season, a season when you feel like you’re doing all the right things, but you’re not seeing the results at the speed you anticipated? Waiting isn’t an easy thing to do. It’s not something we as people are naturally good at.

Especially because there are certain seasons in life when you’re wait seems much longer than those around you, and the challenge of it all is staying optimistic and encouraged in the midst of ambiguity and the unknown of what’s next.

But what does that look like practically?

It looks like focusing on your own path. It’s natural to look at other people’s lives, but we have to let others motivate us and not discourage us. We don’t know their story or what they had to endure in order to get to where they are. Your walk is different. Your walk is yours. You can’t focus on what’s in front of you if your eyes are focused on what’s beside you.

It looks like putting your faith into action. Self-talk and belief is extremely important, but that’s only half the formula. You have to put your faith in action by working towards the vision you see for you. It’s not enough to wish things were different. You have to put the work in.

It looks like leaning on those you trust to help you endure the season. Even the strongest, most motivated people in the world need a little support in certain seasons. Solitude can be a great asset for inner work, but too much isolation can mess with your head.

So, as you wait, wait with expectation, wait with grace and wait with faith as you control what you can.

Love ✌🏽

Sometimes you just dont feel like yourself, and you may not be able to pinpoint why that is. Other times you might feel off because of circumstantial reasons; we all go through things that leave us a little less joyful in the moment.

Our circumstances can often jade us from having an optimistic outlook. It’s hard to operate differently when you’ve become so used to thinking and doing things a certain way.

I remember going to speak to a company. After my presentation, I spoke with a man that seemed to be going through a tough season. I remember it vividly because he said something to me that I think we've all said before- “Akeem, I'm so tired of the fight. How do you keep going when you feel like you’re sinking?”

It’s a tough question to answer. And the answer I gave is not one that’ll make things better right away-“Well, I can only speak from my experiences. Sometimes you just have to find the strength to outlast the season you’re in. I don’t know a whole lot, but I do know that no season lasts forever. At some point the season has to change. If it rains one season, at some point the sun must come. If the sun is out in one season, at some point the clouds must come. But the only way you’ll see what happens next is if you continue to show up every day and move with the strength you have. I'd rather look up and have something to hope for than continue to look down at where I'm at."

Remember that good things happen when you keep moving forward with a positive attitude. Having a positive attitude doesn't mean negative things won't happen to you. It just means no matter what comes your way, you learn how to adopt the right outlook and perspective to help you get through it.

Love ✌🏽

Our past can play a huge role in how we think, what we believe, and what we see as possible for our future. I can't tell you how many times I've went into speak at schools and listened to the stories of the youth and how little they think they can achieve based on their resources and circumstances. And the truth is, I can't blame them.

It's often hard to see differently when you've only seen the picture from one lense. It's hard to hear differently when you've been hearing the same story from those around you.

I was fortunate in my life to have the right people at the right time tell me and show me something different, and I just so happened to put my ego aside and listen to what was being said.

I'm a firm believer in this- there's room for all of us to be great. There's room for all of us to accomplish amazing feats that can help impact the world in a positive way. But it first starts with a belief from the inside. It starts with knowing that it doesn't matter where you come from. Though you might’ve been dealt some unfortunate cards, you can still find a way to win.

Our past is a place of reflection, a place we look back to see how much we've grown over time. Who you were back then isn't who you should be today. Our past is a place we look to connect the dots, but it's not a place to dwell in.

Sometimes you have to look back to see why you wanted to go forward in the first place.

Always forward, always ahead. There's more in you.

Love ✌🏽

“Things will line up the way they’re supposed to.” That’s a tough statement to comprehend. Life is often filled with twists and turns that can leave us with questions we aren’t certain we’ll ever get the answers to.

Every plan you make will not go 100 percent how you expect it to.

With every goal you desire to accomplish, there will be a few where you come up short.

For every joyful and happy moment, there will be a hard season where you have to fight to find the strength to get through.

Remember- plans, goals, dreams and aspirations will change and evolve over time. But the lessons and experiences we gain along the way are what we can take with us every step of the way.

Yes, somethings have not have lined up the way you wanted. But what did you gain from the experience? What impact did the journey have on your character?

When shifts come your way, leave room for you mind, body and soul to shift with it. God doesn’t make mistakes. Trust and believe this is all part of his plan for your life.

Love ✌🏾