Adriene K. Hobdy
Financial Consultant and Coach
www.thefinanciallysavvysista.blogspot.com
Adriene K. Hobdy currently serves as the Director of Accelerated Undergraduate Business Programs with Rosemont College in Pennsylvania. She is also serves as the Senior Financial Coach and Consultant for Hobdy Financial . Adriene assists families, corporations and non-profits in developing sensible financial management techniques, budgeting, forecasting and strategic analysis.
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE
Prior to joining Rosemont, Adriene was the Deputy Finance Officer for Public Safety Services, a consulting firm that serves state-level government and small business’ throughout Pennsylvania and Delaware. Certified by EMILY’s List as a Campaign Consultant, Adriene worked as the Assistant Field Director for the Lois Murphy for Congress Campaign (PA-6th Congressional District). For the Murphy campaign, Adriene developed a recruitment plan for 365,204 voters that included intense fundraising and mobilization goals. Adriene previously functioned as the community liaison for Youth on the Move in New Orleans.
As an on-air personality with ThinkBIG Radio, Adriene interviews some of today’s most astute business leaders. She has been the guest on several radio shows, with the most recent being the UPDATE Show on WLKF 1430 AM (www.wlkf.com ).
Adriene is committed to service and is actively involved in her community by serving on the board of directors for the Mt. Airy Learning Tree (Philadelphia, PA) and the Alice Paul Institute (Mt. Laurel, NJ). Adriene previously served as the Executive Board Treasurer for the Philadelphia Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated (SGRho) and is now a Chartering Member and Financial Secretary for the Kappa Chi Sigma Chapter of SGRho. She is also the President of the Beta Omicron Chapter of Iota Phi Lambda Sorority.
EDUCATION
Adriene holds a master of science in budget and finance from Lincoln University, where she studied fiscal controls with an emphasis in administration. While at Lincoln, Adriene conducted her thesis research on the economic effects of unionization within the Pennsylvania nursing home system. She earned her bachelors degree from Xavier University.
October 07 2009 | Cover Story Interviews and Power Boost: October 2009 | No Comments »
By Rev. Diannia Baty
We all have core beliefs and one of mine is I do not believe in fate. I do not think anything is written in stone as far as our lives go. The main reason I think this is because we have free-will. The gift of free-will gives us the opportunity to change and create anything. If my life had been pre-ordained in keeping with my earlier life time line, I would be a grandmother, a widow with no prospects of a wonderful life. I am sure by now I would be taking a lot of medication and be unhappy and taken the path that my mother did.
I made choices to do something different with my life. We come into this life a blank slate full of possibilities. Every choice we make leads to a different path. Every move, every trip, and every one we meet turns a corner and a different expression of our life experience unfolds. We are not pawns on the chessboard of life. We are the ones making the moves. It is our life experience and we are the ones calling out, “check mate.”
All of our life experiences have a hidden blessing for us. Sometimes we see it right away and sometimes it unfolds the blessing slowly over time. Make no mistake it is always there.
I look back at what has happened in my life and all that I perceived as horrible and painful and I am now able to clearly see the blessings and the changes that came about because of what I lived through. When I was deeply entrenched in a victim mentality, all I could see is the pain and the suffering. All I could see is what was done to me or said to me or taken from me.
Everything in our lives happens for us and not to us.
If you can view your life in this way it will change everything .
When I first started down my spiritual path, this was one of the first things I learned and it was a perspective I had never considered. I can now clearly see the application of that in my life and in someone else’s life as well.
Example after example is there for me to clearly see something I did not see before. Years ago I worked for a man that was reputed to be into some shady dealings and I started to feel uncomfortable. There was a lot of rumor going around. I was making some real good money but I finally quit. I saw this as life pushing me around once again. I get a good job and the boss is a bad dude so I have to quit. Oh, what life had done to me once again? I was thinking like a victim. The truth is I didn’t have to quit, I chose to.
Two weeks after I quit he was murdered. Someone came into the office and shot him along with two employees. That would have been one of the days I was scheduled to work. I might have been one of the employees that was shot and killed. That was a clear picture for me to see the blessing that had occurred because of my choice to quit. Another blessing that happened is that I started to trust my intuition that I had questioned before. Trusting my inner voice has served me well ever since as long as I am listening.
Because of this experience I became very hyper-alert to details and facial expressions. I started studying people and my surroundings. This led me to apply for a job as an operative for a detective agency at a friend’s urging. This type of position requires that you pay attention to detail. I got the job and did a lot of surveillance work. Nothing escaped my keen eyes and ears. I also trusted my intuition in this job and it served me well.
Every single choice has led me to where I am and who I am now in this moment!
One choice always leads to a multitude of other choices. Using my free-will, I went forward with a different choice and another door of experience was opened up. But in every case it was my choices and my decisions that opened the doors.
Now, when I go through a tough time in any way I am looking for the blessing. I know that sooner or later it will be revealed to me. Instead of seeing myself with a broken heart or broken trust I am now calling it broken open to love and trust because of my experience I have seen both the dark and the light of any given situation. Now I can make different choice through that experience.
It is my choice to leave or not to leave, to move or not to move, to buy or sell something, to be angry or peaceful, to love or hate, to forgive or not. The list would be endless. I think you get the point.
Every moment of my life and yours is filled with blessings even if we are not aware of it at the time. My cousin, who died of breast cancer over a year ago, blessed the world and women who were suffering like her whenever I share her story of refusing treatment out of fear and her subsequent death. I know sharing that story saved a life somewhere. The ripple effect of that cannot be measured.
God gave me free will to live my life. Free means free. There are no conditions attached to this gift. Taking responsibility for my life and the choices thereof has been very liberating for me. I don’t play the blame game any longer. There is simply no point to it. Thinking like a victim only holds you back and prevents you from spreading your beautiful wings. This is just something to think about.
Visit Diannia site at www.myspiritletters.com
October 07 2009 | Power Boost: October 2009 and Your Spiritual Self | No Comments »
By Ronald C. Manalastas
From the time I came of age, I have learned to see and enjoy the world as a bounty, a place purposely designed by the Almighty Creator for humanity to cherish, work for, and be excited about.
I would think that it is this same powerful positive feeling about the world’s divine design that has given most people the intent and the drive to maximize the world’s endowments. We have considered the world as a providential gift befitting continued transformation so that we can live our life to the fullest. In essence, we are in a changing world where we have so much to value despite its man-made imperfections.
What then are in this world that we can greatly appreciate and love as human beings?
The following are the ten things that I love about the world we live in:
1. Faith in God and sense of righteousness
No less than 90% of the world’s population believes in God, or in the existence of a supreme being, a divine someone who has orchestrated the earth’s creation and how it should be nurtured and managed. This overwhelming recognition of God has given humanity a deep sense of righteousness.
The people’s abiding belief in the Ten Commandments has been the cornerstone of most laws and statutes that seek to install order, rights, equality, freedom, liberty, and industry among people of divergent races. Religion has flourished amidst unprecedented gains in science and technology, uniquely strengthening the moral fiber of the global society.
Without faith in God and the sense of righteousness it evokes among people, chaos and anarchy could have prevented the evolution of our world, which is a product of man’s faith, character, discipline, and ingenuity. Man’s relationship with God takes the form of a powerful binding contract for man to do good things.
2. Human capacity: To think, act, relate, and learn
As humans, we are four-dimensional. We were given the body through which we can live, the mind through which we can learn, the heart through which we can love, and the spirit through which we can leave a legacy. In such human configuration, we have the capacity to think, act, relate, and learn. Our creation was a well-thought plan, for us to enjoy and share everything that this world can offer.
I also delight my being able to see, smell, touch, hear, and taste. They are marvelous endowments. I could not imagine how I could be in a position to write and communicate for the greater good without my gift of human capacity.
3. Inherent freedom to choose
When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, we had been given the complete freedom to chart our own destiny through the voluntary exercise of our human capacity. We had been granted the unlimited freedom to work for our living, to reproduce and fill the earth with humans, and to live in a manner we deem best. That freedom stays up to now. We are at liberty to choose our vocation or profession in life, find our place of abode, seek the friends we like, build the family we dream about, and think of our strategies in life.
Even if we are bound to follow the rules of society, we still have the freedom to ignore them subject to our being accountable for the adverse results of our act.
4. Abundance of new knowledge and learning
Our continuing quest for new knowledge has kept on producing new technologies and meaningful information that help us acquire new competencies as we try to improve our quality of life.
Right after my retirement 10 years ago, after having been operationally focused on telecommunication management for about 20 years, I felt some sort of a dearth of knowledge about other industries that would be the ambit of my new discipline as I go into business consulting. Despite having done purposeful reading of books, journals and periodicals, I had found the Internet to be the greatest repository of new knowledge that I had always needed. Had it not been for the immense power of the Internet to provide abundant fingertip-level new information, I could not have acquired competent knowledge about other industries in a short span of time.
The preponderance of databases, websites, blogs, and other online tools, including "how to" tutorial articles, all rich in knowledge-building content, has accelerated the pace of new learning on earth. This development will continue over an infinite duration, and surfing the Net will be much more informative, exciting, and contributive to society.
5. Unlimited opportunities in life
Regardless of our position in life, the world seems not to run out of opportunities that can help us address our needs and satisfy our wants in life. Even in the face of failure, there are always opportunities that pop up and bring good fortune.
When for some uncontrollable reasons I failed in two successive start-up businesses, a partner of mine in the failed ventures invited me to join him in two major business research projects, which we were able to impressively complete. These consulting engagements led to the setting up my own business consulting firm that up to now continues to operate and give me refreshing intellectual renewal. In this turnaround, the more I learned to love the thought that our world always lets failure to be the start of success.
6. The goodness of people and community
If life is predicated on collaboration, sharing, and coaching to help others succeed, the essence of being in community with people becomes an inspiring preoccupation that brings intense personal fulfillment.
When I started doing pro-bono business consulting work for some underprivileged new entrants in small business, I was amazed and exalted with the new circle of clients, people, and friends that I had built for myself. When my wife and I decided to join a Christian community, we were moved by the intensity of a concerted mindset to do good things for the greater good. My interconnection with people has reinforced my endearment to people, as well as my appreciation for their transformational value to society.
7. The value of the family
The family is one of the reasons why we work hard and persevere in life. We want to give our loved ones the security, comfort, stability, status, and recognition they rightfully deserve. Our family is a source of energy and inspiration in whatever we think and do. And societies flourish because of the dominant value of the family as a basic social unit, and its proven trans-generational impact.
I enjoy being in an active "extended family" loop where the exercise of love, mutual care, understanding, solidarity, sharing, kindness, and warmth transcends my own family, reaching and encircling grandparents, godparents, uncles, aunties, cousins, nephews, and nieces. It is a wonderful world of a family, always vibrant, hopeful, and ecstatic about each member. I love seeing my children being a part of this awesome family union.
8. Work as a fact of life
I love the fundamental idea behind our creation, with work being inherently attached to our life. It stimulates my senses in recognizing the fact that for us to achieve our lofty ideals, we have to work for them. Work and achieving its purpose gives me a strong feeling of self-respect, for having done something positive by utilizing my own human faculties for the welfare of my individuality, my family, and the community that I serve. Work refreshes me as it sharpens my competencies in facing life’s opportunities and challenges.
9. Arts as a balancing medium
As we commonly say: "work with no play makes a man dull and gray." I uphold the value of this seemingly overused, yet very valuable, immortal quip. "Arts" is a "play medium" that enables us to achieve some work-life balance. Music, painting, sculpture, antique collection, hiking, mountain climbing, travels, vintage car restoration, and even sports are common emotional outlets that relieve us of the stress and pressure of regular work, or of leading a regimented life.
I love writing as an art. Writing leads me to a creative thinking mode and gives me the freedom to ventilate my thoughts regardless of the point of view that I stand for. I enjoy music too. Its lyrics and melody give me the positive mood and the joy of understanding humanity in a more pleasant way.
10. Presence of life-giving remedies
Health is important to our full enjoyment of the world’s bounty. Without it, we would miss a lot of what the world offers and has to offer. I delight man’s capacity and inventiveness to produce countless life-giving remedies for health maintenance and improvement, disease prevention, and illness cure. Had it not been for the breakthroughs in medical science, life could have been too short, depriving us of the boon and beauty of the contemporary world.
October 07 2009 | Inspiring Stories / Poetry and Other Useful Articles and Power Boost: October 2009 | No Comments »
By Pamela S Thibodeaux
As far back as Genesis and Exodus, music has been an integral part of mankind’s culture. The Israelites went into battle behind the musicians. Natives from every continent and every race celebrate success and mourn defeat with music. Studies show that music can be a mood enhancer whether for good or bad. Don’t believe this?
Tune your radio or satellite TV channel to any music station and pay attention to your emotions. Do they soar or plummet? Are your feet tapping, is your heart light and happy or do you feel a bout of the blues coming on?
If you find yourself happy and upbeat, that’s great! Your heart rate increases, your brain produces chemicals and hormones which make you feel good and improve your overall mood and physical health.
On the other hand, if you find a bout of the blues coming on, just the opposite is occurring. Your heart rate slows and the hormones and chemicals your brain is producing are toxic to your health so change that station!
Once you prove that music can affect your emotional state, understand it also effects your physical health because disease cannot live in a body that is free from stress and psychological disorders.
Below are some ways we can incorporate music into our daily lives to promote better health.
Exercise to music : This increases your heart rate, elevates your mood and improves upon the physical benefits of exercise. People often walk, run or cycle to the beat of their favorite tunes. These are often upbeat, fast-paced songs that get the feet and hands to moving regardless of where you might be.
Relaxation : Similar to meditation, soft music (instrumentals, sounds of nature) can aid in relaxing the physical body by soothing the mind and emotions. This encourages deep breathing which improves overall health by increasing the blood oxygen levels and secretion of hormones and chemicals in the brain. Relaxation techniques are usually incorporated in short spans of time (five or ten minutes) but have extraordinary effects on overall health.
Meditation : Soft, soothing music aids in relaxation and improves breathing which increases blood oxygen and flow to the brain and other organs, maximizing efficiency. Meditation is usually a longer version of relaxation.
Improved Sleep: When combined with relaxation techniques, music can induce deeper sleep which has far-reaching benefits for both mental and physical health.
Music has proved to calm the most agitated person, turn an angry situation into a less volatile one, and lift the veil of depression from any heart. Try it next time you’re feeling out-of-sorts and see how music can help you live a tranquil life.
Award-winning author, Pamela S. Thibodeaux is the Co-Founder of Bayou Writers Group. Multi-published in romantic fiction as well as creative non-fiction, her writing has been tagged as, "Inspirational with an Edge!"
October 07 2009 | Other Useful Articles and Power Boost: October 2009 | No Comments »
