LIFE
PAGE 28
Toronto Caribbean News | www.TorontoCaribbean.com | Wednesday, March 26, 2025
Seven things you must start doing to live a life of impact and relevance playing your: strength, skills, and potential.
DANIEL COLE
daniel@carib101.com
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
Our life doesn’t improve by default; it gets better by design. To live a life of impact and relevance, you have to be intentional. Below are seven principles that will set your life on the right path for: impact, relevance, and meaning. Start embracing your worth and values Stop underestimating yourself; you’ve earned your stripes, wear them with confidence and pride. Embrace what makes you unique instead of trying to fit in with the crowd. Embrace the path you’ve chosen even if the journey seems lonely. Take responsibility and ownership for the life you choose to lead. Stand tall, stop down-
Learn to say no You can’t be everything to everyone. If you’re not in a position to help someone, don’t force it. Committing to things you don’t want to do just to please other people is toxic. Stop. This is something most people learn too late in life. It’s unhealthy and wrong to compromise what truly matters to you to make others happy. Say no to opportunities and commitments that compromise your values and integrity. Say no to treating yourselves as a second fiddle. Stay focused and be consistent Consistency is the building block for trust; people trust what is consistent. In business, trust is a social capital, and it is earned through consistency. Consistency is the key to great: success, achievement, respect, and happiness. The current outcomes of your life have much to do with what you’ve been focusing on. Focus on things that matter and stay consistent.
Build a strong, resourceful, and profitable relationship We don’t always rise to the level of our skills and intelligence; we rise to the level of our network and relationships. You’ve probably heard the saying, “If you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together.” Sometimes, the only thing wrong with your dream is you are trying to do it alone. If the going gets tough, seek collaboration, or partnership. In the words of Alexander Graham Bell, “Great discoveries and improvements invariably involve the cooperation of many minds.” Wrong association is more powerful than a strong will. Your life is largely shaped by the relationships you keep. You need relationships that align with your purpose, values, and goals. Always seek to add value Life is not always about your: needs, goals and dreams. Be a contributor to something that moves society and humanity forward. Give more than you take. Your greatest dreams are often achieved in your service to other people. Albert Einstein has rightly said, “Try not to become a
person of success; try to become a person of value.” Adding value is all about solving problems. Life’s greatest rewards are bound to solving problems and helping others. Teach what you’ve learned through life Volunteer to mentor and coach those coming after you. Teach the lessons you’ve learnt through life; start a podcast, write a blog. Don’t waste your pain and the lessons that come with it; teach the lessons and share the journey. One of the easiest ways of living a legacy is to write a book; even when you are long gone, the world will still read about you. Don’t let someone else repeat your mistakes and struggles; write about them. Take inventory of life every ninety days Don’t go through life on autopilot; take time out every three months for a selfinventory or audit. What is working and what is not working? Where do you need to adjust, and what do you need to stop or start doing differently? An unexamined life is not worth living. Live thoughtfully and live intentionally.
Eighteen-year-old stylist charged with assault; What we can learn from the situation SYDNEE WALCOTT sydnee@carib101.com
VARIETY CORNER
The news of a hairstylist attacking a client has garnered mixed reactions, and there are two valuable lessons people can learn from the situation. Jayla Cunningham, an 18-yearold stylist based in Maryland, posted a now-viral video of herself dragging a 15-year-old, whose identity remains concealed, across the floor of her salon for allegedly attempting to avoid paying for a $150 service - which included a half uphalf down hair installation. In the footage obtained by Fox 5 DC, Cunningham can be seen dragging the client by her hood, tossing her to the ground and cutting the style out of
her hair while screaming: “I’m not f**king playing. You just tried to f**king run. You lucky I ain’t beat the s**t out you.” The 15-year-old’s mother, who said the stylist’s behaviour was absurd, explained that the brother of the teen accidentally sent the payment to the wrong CashApp account instead of the stylists. Cunningham told Fox 5 DC she wouldn’t have received the payment if it wasn’t for her forceful actions. “She ran without paying me. I dragged her by her hood into the salon until I could get paid or until the police came, or until she let me take out the service,” said Cunningham. It was later on revealed the teenager did attempt to pay the stylist through other methods before making her way to the door. The incident occurred on March 2nd, 2025, and it was announced Cunningham is being charged with seconddegree assault six days after the altercation. It’s not clear if Cunningham has legal representation, but she said she has a witness who will back up her claims. The family of the 15-year-old
hired a Jackson and Associates attorney to represent the teenager. Attorney D’Aja Thompson said the altercation was “horrendous” and told PEOPLE in a statement her client is suffering from physical and psychological injuries over a mistake. The situation caused a divide on the internet with some siding with the teen and others siding with Cunningham. In my opinion, both were wrong. Service theft is wrong, and Cunningham had the right to be upset, but how she chose to handle the situation was wrong. Resorting to physical violence is never the answer unless it’s self-defense, and in this case, what Cunningham did is not an act of self-defense. There were better ways in how Cunningham could have handled the situation. Getting physical with someone is often not worth it, because now, Cunningham is facing an assault charge. The 15-year-old girl was also wrong in the situation. Accidents happen, but it’s not the stylist’s fault the money was sent to the wrong account, and when she attempted to leave without the ser-
vice being paid for, it left the stylist under the impression that the teenager was attempting to commit an act of service theft. With service theft being on the rise lately, it’s no wonder why some hair stylists and nail technicians require a deposit fee. While some have mixed feelings about deposit fees and about service providers asking for clients to pay the entire price upfront, service theft just reminds us why these paying systems are in effect. Services take time, and we need to respect a service provider’s time instead of making them think: “I could’ve provided service to someone who understands how valuable someone’s time is.” As mentioned earlier, lessons can be learned from both sides of the situation. The first lesson should be for people to keep their hands to themselves, unless it’s self-defense, because in the end, it’s not worth facing legal consequences and garnering a bad reputation. The second lesson is to respect service providers, their time and understand stealing is wrong.
Keep your eye on the prize and build your own damn economy! BY GRANT BROWNING DRIVEN TO SUCCEED Let’s cut the crap: this world isn’t set up to save you. The rules are constantly changing, systems are crumbling, and a lot of folks are waiting for someone else to hand them their next move. But here’s the truth — if you’re serious about making something real, something lasting, then you’ve got to build your own damn economy. Not just your business. Not just your hustle. Your economy — the life system you rely on. Your mindset. Your habits. Your relationships. Your goals. Your energy. It all counts. It all adds up. And to do that? You’ve gotta stay focused. Now more than ever, distractions are
everywhere. It’s easy to get caught up watching what everyone else is doing — scrolling through success stories while sitting on your own untapped potential. But the prize isn’t out there in someone else’s lane. It’s in yours. If you want to build something that actually stands — a business, a legacy, a sense of purpose — you’ve got to lock in and own your lane. Let other people call this mess “the new normal.” I don’t buy that. It’s the temporary chaos, not the final chapter. Real leaders, real creators, don’t base their future on what’s trending. They use the storm to sharpen their skills, build stronger foundations, and get better at navigating whatever comes next. Some days you’ll crush it. Other days it’ll feel like the wheels are falling off. That’s part of it. But either way, you show
up. You push forward. And when things don’t go your way, don’t spend time making excuses. Learn, adjust, and move. The most successful people I know aren’t the most talented — they’re the most willing. Willing to be uncomfortable. Willing to keep going. Willing to outlast the noise. If you’ve gotta take a job to float your dreams right now, do it with intention. Work for the skillset. Work for the discipline. Work for the mentorship. There’s no shame in surviving strategically. Just don’t lose sight of the bigger picture. And tell your story while you’re at it. People don’t connect with perfect. They connect with real. Your late nights, your wrong turns, your early wins — that’s what makes you relatable. People buy from people, and the more real you are, the stronger your foundation becomes.
Most important—avoid excusitis: • Be driven. Be focused. Make no excuses. • Go to work to prosper, not just to pass time. • Read. Learn. Grow. • Be hungry — even if you’re already full. • And above all, stay locked in. Because the world will always try to pull you in a thousand directions. But if you keep your eye on the prize, put in the work no one else wants to do, and commit to building your own economy brick by brick — nothing can stop you.