McCormick Foundation 5

I have decided to apply for the McCormick Foundation New Media Women Entrepreneurs Grant for Entrepreneurs. The Application is AWESOME because it encourages you to focus and have clarity in your life about what it is that you want to accomplish and how you are going to move your business forward. For me, the questions are spot on and the character limits, mean I have to think very carefully about what I want to write and be succinct. If you are looking for funds for a particular project, even if you do not think you are a good match for Fredrickson Grant, then fill out the application fields. This will help you gain clarity about what you want to accomplish, how you want to accomplish it, and why you are the best person for the job. The application is due on January 27, 2011. I am planning on posting my responses to the 10 questions, one a day for the next ten days. I will welcome any feedback or ideas you’d like to offer. If you want to join me on this journey, please feel share your journey. I am very excited about this. Soon, I will be looking for Latina artists, graphic designers, web-developers, and ebook developers to help me get LAUNCHED...may the journey begin.

Con un pan y cafecito, seguimos adelante,
Zulmara

5) Here is my budget for the $12,000 in funding (Be specific): (2500 characters)

The $12,000 will allow me to grow my business and get it launched. There are a few things I need to do to get the next level and I have reached the end of my own ability to do it on my own and am now ready to ask for help. I need to hire some people to help me with the technology parts that are beyond the time and skills that I currently have. I have the know how and energy to create the content, give the classes, and monitor the online environment, but I need help with creating it. Specifically, I need the following:

·         $5,000 for a graphic artist and web designer—I am planning on using MGS Designz. She is a Latina entrepreneur, co-author in Chicken Soup for the Latino Soul, and is doing very well. As part of my business, I want to make sure I am helping my fellow Latinas.

·         $2,000 for ebook development of my 6 Guided Journals. I plan on using Create Space for this service. The books are ready to be uploaded into the ebook environment so others can download as a PDF.

·         $4000 for a webcourse developer-I am still looking for a webcourse developer—I am hoping to find a Latina with the skills to put courses online. I have begun sending out inquiries and getting quotes from various individuals. The price for one course will be close to $4000, so this money will allow for one course to be developed. I have content and curriculum developed for 3 webcourses. From the funds I generate from that one course, I will then have the other 2 courses developed.

·         $4000 for travel to conferences, workshops, seminars, and presentations. Although, I will operate in a electronic environment, I have found that face-to-face connections are crucial to both personal and professional success.

McCormick Foundation 4

I have decided to apply for the McCormick Foundation New Media Women Entrepreneurs Grant for Entrepreneurs. The Application is AWESOME because it encourages you to focus and have clarity in your life about what it is that you want to accomplish and how you are going to move your business forward. For me, the questions are spot on and the character limits, mean I have to think very carefully about what I want to write and be succinct. If you are looking for funds for a particular project, even if you do not think you are a good match for Fredrickson Grant, then fill out the application fields. This will help you gain clarity about what you want to accomplish, how you want to accomplish it, and why you are the best person for the job. The application is due on January 27, 2011. I am planning on posting my responses to the 10 questions, one a day for the next ten days. I will welcome any feedback or ideas you’d like to offer. If you want to join me on this journey, please feel share your journey. I am very excited about this. Soon, I will be looking for Latina artists, graphic designers, web-developers, and ebook developers to help me get LAUNCHED...may the journey begin.

Con un pan y cafecito, seguimos adelante,
Zulmara

4) Detail how you will generate content. How frequently will you update? (2000 characters)

I have a threefold process that I am following to generate content. First I will generate original content by interviewing and surveying the women that I meet in the workshops and seminars I will be conducting and in my online groups. I have authored numerous articles and I plan on continuing to write articles of interest to Latinas, especially in the area of bilingual education, activism, immigration, college access, preschool, and professional growth.  I generate content by using the articles that I have read or written, books and articles I review, and encounters that I have around certain topics. At times, the articles I develop come from surveys and interviews around a particular topic. An important part of my program for Latina success is that they are well versed in the news and issues of the day.

Second is to generate content from articles and news that is already out there and bring it to a Latina audience in a timely, interactive way. I plan on posting articles about immigration, women’s issues, politics, life style, personal and professional growth and engage my readers in discussions about these very pertinent issues. I firmly believe that part of our success, as Latina, is to be socially responsible and I want to encourage activism among Latinas, especially activism that resonates with them.

Third, I plan on publishing my curriculum for self-help, personal and professional growth. I will hire a graphic artist, web designer, and ebook developer to help me to put the content from my workshops and presentations on the web in a more usable fashion. Currently I have 10 workshops and 6 ebooks that are ready to go, I just need the funding to get them web ready.

I plan on updating daily, and I will post on Facebook, Linked In, Twitter, and Google Circles daily using Haute Suite. I plan on posting original articles at least once a week and connecting to ezines to give my work a wider audience. I will also be putting out an enewsletter with links to my blogs and posts to ensure a wide audience for my work. I have just started a blog on Latina authors that I will expand to Latino authors within the next year, to make yet another connection.

A review of my Facebook Fanpage will show that I am connecting well to the online Latina community in a variety of ways. I will reach those who are not online in various ways, including conferences, workshops, and presentations.

McCormick Foundation-3

I have decided to apply for the McCormick Foundation New Media Women Entrepreneurs Grant for Entrepreneurs. The Application is AWESOME because it encourages you to focus and have clarity in your life about what it is that you want to accomplish and how you are going to move your business forward. For me, the questions are spot on and the character limits, mean I have to think very carefully about what I want to write and be succinct. If you are looking for funds for a particular project, even if you do not think you are a good match for Fredrickson Grant, then fill out the application fields. This will help you gain clarity about what you want to accomplish, how you want to accomplish it, and why you are the best person for the job. The application is due on January 27, 2011. I am planning on posting my responses to the 10 questions, one a day for the next ten days. I will welcome any feedback or ideas you’d like to offer. If you want to join me on this journey, please feel share your journey. I am very excited about this. Soon, I will be looking for Latina artists, graphic designers, web-developers, and ebook developers to help me get LAUNCHED...may the journey begin.

Con un pan y cafecito, seguimos adelante,
Zulmara

3) This is what I've been doing with my life and my proudest accomplishment to date: (3000 characters)

My proudest moment to date has to be when I walked across the stage at my doctorate graduation from the University of California in Santa Barbara in 1994. I earned my doctorate, in Education, Policy, Organizations, and Leadership, as a Latina working full time as a kindergarten teacher, supporting my family and raising 3 children, ages 1, 3 and 6 at the time I entered the program. My kids were 5, 8, and 11 when I finished. It was a proud moment not only for me and my nuclear family, but for my extended family as well. Having come from Brazil with nothing when I was 2 years old, it was a great accomplishment and I am still the only one in my family to graduate with a Doctoral degree.

My second proudest moment was when I purchased my first house, for my mom. My mom had sacrificed so much for her children to have a better life. She came to this country with nothing but the clothes on her back and she managed to instill in all of us a sense of pride, ownership, and duality in both our heritage and adopted cultures. She was an amazing woman who held her family together from sheer will. My third proudest moment was having our story published in Chicken Soup for the Latino Soul. It is my heartfelt story that inspires me to this day, knowing that she gave me roots to stay grounded and wings to soar.

Other proud moments include my first professional publication, my first job as an administrator, my first job as a professor, and my first job as an administrator within the University System. I have accomplished a lot with my life and I am now ready to pay it forward.

I have been an educator all of my life. I started off as a Kindergarten Teacher in a multi-lingual class and working with Latinos has been my passion all my life. Next, I moved into a leadership position and became Director of the Migrant Program at the School District where I worked. Later, I wrote and was awarded an Even Start Grant and I became the Director of a Family Literacy program. When I finished my doctorate, I began working at a University as a professor and now I work in higher education administration.

Throughout my career, my avocation has been my vocation. I love what I do and I do what I love. And in the process, I have developed many tools to help others succeed. I have been an inspirational speaker to many Latino groups, I have written numerous articles about Latinos in education, and conducted more workshops, presentations, and seminars than I can count on motivating Latinos to go to school, get an education, start a business, give back to their families and give forward to their communities.

I have started my own consulting company, Roots and Wings. Roots and Wings will allow me to focus my work for a uniquely Latina market. I have been working on blogging on a regular basis and building an infrastructure for taking my ideas to the next level. My blog is just now getting started, but I am planning on reaching a wide audience within the next year. On my blog, I have personal and professional growth ideas for individuals that will help them with what they want to accomplish. This is where all that I have learned in the past 20 years comes to fruition. I have developed curriculum and written manuals on personal and professional development. I am now ready to soar to the next level by developing ebooks and ecourses with a focus on Latina success.

I have achieved most of the goals I have set for myself. Currently, as I enter into the next phase of my journey, my goal is to build a million dollar business to help Latinas to experience the euphoria and jubilation that I feel everyday as I pursue my dreams and make my passion my reality.

McCormick Foundation-2

I have decided to apply for the McCormick Foundation New Media Women Entrepreneurs Grant for Entrepreneurs. The Application is AWESOME because it encourages you to focus and have clarity in your life about what it is that you want to accomplish and how you are going to move your business forward. For me, the questions are spot on and the character limits, mean I have to think very carefully about what I want to write and be succinct. If you are looking for funds for a particular project, even if you do not think you are a good match for Fredrickson Grant, then fill out the application fields. This will help you gain clarity about what you want to accomplish, how you want to accomplish it, and why you are the best person for the job. The application is due on January 27, 2011. I am planning on posting my responses to the 10 questions, one a day for the next ten days. I will welcome any feedback or ideas you’d like to offer. If you want to join me on this journey, please feel share your journey. I am very excited about this. Soon, I will be looking for Latina artists, graphic designers, web-developers, and ebook developers to help me get LAUNCHED...may the journey begin.

Con un pan y cafecito, seguimos adelante,
Zulmara

2) Here's why I think my project is needed: (1000 characters)

As a Latina Educator who has worked with many Latinas in education, I feel there is a need for personal and professional coaching and mentoring that resonates specifically with Latinas. Latinas come to the university in high numbers, but then many get discouraged and do not graduate. As a Latina Ph.D., I want to be more than a speck in the universe...I want to be one among many and I want to help pave the way for Latinas to achieve their dreams, provide for their communities, and pay it forward so we all benefit.

This project is unique because Latinas need personal and professional growth materials that are tailored specifically for them in a unique way what that resonates with who they are culturally and ethnically. It is not a question of either/or, but how do you embrace your Latinidad and still succeed as a student, career woman, entrepreneur, or business owner. Latinas are a growing force, we own many small businesses and we are an economic force to be reckoned with. We have to find a way to harness our energies and get what we need from the system. We are motivated by family, community, a sense of belonging, camaraderie, and collaboration. We are shaping a new system. We have arrived.

Whimsical New Year’s Resolutions

Whimsical New Year's Resolutions

New Year’s Resolutions that are fun, unusual, and atypical, maybe even a bit bizarre, are a fun way to start off the New Year and treat yourself for doing things that you love to do or are easy enough to do that you know you will succeed. When I make a whimsical resolution, I start off my New Year’s calendar with a bag of stickers and each time I do one of my New Year’s resolutions, I give myself a sticker. One year was to go to Disneyland more this year than the last year (and I did it). The next year was to prepare for a weeklong bike ride. I did not make my weeklong bike ride, but I did do 2 century rides and I clocked in many hours and miles on my bike. Life is fun.

You see, success begets success, so if you set up a resolution you cannot fail at, then you know you will be succeeding and that feeling of success will start to permeate the rest of your life, your attitude, your perspective, your disposition, and your thoughts. Once you get the positivity going, it cannot be stopped.

This year I have two whimsical resolutions. One is to do at least one Lucky Penny Walk a week and the other is to eat chocolate at least once a week. Now these are not the typical resolutions, but I do feel that they will help me stay focused on the positive and knowing what is important to me. I find that I love chocolate and nothing helps my diet more than to schedule in some chocolate time....uuummm. And a Lucky Penny Walk, well, that is explained in another post. But I figure if I do one Lucky Penny walk a week, then 520 people will have a lucky day on me...and that makes me feel good. Who knows, maybe some weeks I will do more than one lucky penny walk.

What Whimsical Resolution can you make to ensure that your New Year starts off great and you are reinforcing the positives in your life?

Con un pan y cafecito,

Seguimos Adelante,

Zulmara

McCormick Foundation Grant-1

Grant Application

I have decided to apply for the McCormick Foundation New Media Women Entrepreneurs Grant for Entrepreneurs. The Application is AWESOME because it encourages you to focus and have clarity in your life about what it is that you want to accomplish and how you are going to move your business forward. For me, the questions are spot on and the character limits, mean I have to think very carefully about what I want to write and be succinct. If you are looking for funds for a particular project, even if you do not think you are a good match for Fredrickson Grant, then fill out the application fields. This will help you gain clarity about what you want to accomplish, how you want to accomplish it, and why you are the best person for the job. The application is due on January 27, 2011. I am planning on posting my responses to the 10 questions, one a day for the next ten days. I will welcome any feedback or ideas you’d like to offer. If you want to join me on this journey, please feel share your journey. I am very excited about this. Soon, I will be looking for Latina artists, graphic designers, web-developers, and ebook developers to help me get LAUNCHED...may the journey begin.

Con un pan y cafecito, seguimos adelante,

Zulmara

1) This is my 30-second pitch for my idea (200 characters)

I am launching my business, Roots and Wings—a personal and professional growth program for Latinas to find their voice, their strength, their identity, and their purpose in life as they pursue their dreams and celebrate Latinidad.

Ho'oponopono

Ho'oponopono

In the new year, I wish for all of you love, forgiveness, gratitude.

A ho'oponopono cleansing in the new year.

Ho'oponopono

I love you

Please forgive me

I’m sorry

Thank You

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ff8DkTo9TtQ&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LA22dKDQXvQ&feature=related

Hermosa traducción al español de la canción ho'oponopono por Eduardo Hernández

Lo siento

Perdóname

Gracias

Te amo

http://www.vivicervera.com