Why the silence?

At times, listening to the news or reading some of the hundreds of news releases in my inbox brings out the best in me; other times it makes me laugh at the reality of life and current affairs.

Seldom do I devote my time to the pundits, critics and anchors of today’s media world. Today was different. Today, it inspired “activist mode” in the fire of my belly. The fire inside that I choose to bury most of the time.

I’ve had my fill of all the “go-to” sources: CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, FoxNews, MSNBC and Sky News. As I observed the dialogue and communication that kept spreading around me, I wondered about the genuine intention of the speakers and their state of mind about their perception of their listeners. Do they really think people are that stupid?

When speaking of democracy, my appreciation for opinionated people grows every day. But, there’s a difference now. They are twisting the meaning of democracy. I find it disturbing to hear some of these political commentaries injecting poison in our daily life and burden my ear with talk of death, destruction, encouraging words of government overthrows and anarchy. I know I can switch the channel and chose my own desired entertainment to enjoy, but today I cannot keep the silence.

As a matter of fact, I refuse to keep silent.

Politics and religion, these are two of the world’s most intriguing, sophisticated and complicated disciplines that have ever existed. They are at once an effective climate and the fasted way to cause trouble between people and countries. They have never mixed properly and now our leaders – pushed by the world’s media – have taken us to the point of no return.

Looking from my own microscope, I find it amusing that we to chose to rally around democracy and our allies to empower our own interests and profit. We are extremely selective about when it is appropriate to bring morality and ethics into play. It seems that we are very ethical to step in when there is an oil well around the corner or a strategic country near a prime landing area for planes and weapons. When it is not in such a lucky area or the bullied doesn’t meet our exact way of thinking, we throw human rights down the drain.

Pealing back the top few layers of the onion, I wonder, for example…

…Why we view Saudi Arabia differently than Iran?

…Why we treat Israel different than Palestine?

…Why we take sides against one party of the Lebanese government knowing that this stance will keep the country in disability mode?

...Why we view Britain – a country known for millenniums as one of the most oppressive, corrupted and destructive empires in the world – as a cultured and civilized nation?

…Why history is forgotten when it is convenient and profitable.

We take a pride in our religious freedom. We each celebrate a private relationship with God. Yet we go to war to impose our religious will on other countries. We feel that we need balance all over the world instead of choosing our allies to suit right and wrong, ethics and morality. We seem to be in a mission to convert thy neighbor. We’ve become missionary activists to show others the path for what to believe in and how to believe. Witnessing religion as a subject of segregation and hatred is a shameful act.

We have challenged our creator since the beginning and instead of learning from our past mistakes we remain unappreciative of the Earth that we are responsible for its caretaking. War and the greed of men are leading us to the crisis of mankind. We must take a very close look at democracy, its leaders, our politicians and religious figures. We have a voice, so instead of being sheep shepherded blindly behind them, we need to play a major role to bring back responsibilities. We should hire only those that will be disciplined to our Mother Earth and to the morality of living a pure life.

My solution is simple:

-Demand respect and transparency from your leaders;

-Question the authority if it is not placed for the best interest of all;

-Ask for change in the economic and political environment;

-Speak up and don’t be silent. Never jeopardize your principles for profit;

-Stop segregating in groups and become a world citizen;

-Do not judge others with guilt by association;

Do it for the sake of humanity. The ancient game of thrones shall never find its way back to our 21st century and if so, we are doomed to infinity.

Humanity has no nationality. I pledge my support to this motto of being. Do you pledge yours?

An open letter to women-owned businesses in California:

On June 27th, I had the honor to co-host and organize –- in seven short days no less -- the “Women Partnering for Economic Growth in Afghanistan conference in Sen. Curren Price’s office at the California Science Center in Los Angeles.

We assembled a coalition of business leaders to hear the Hon. Muhammad Younus Naw Andaish, the Mayor of Kabul, Afghanistan discuss how he is looking forward to work with United States businesses on a multi-billion dollar infrastructure procurement projects.

The Mayor of Kabul shared valuable insight and vision he has for his country and in particular advancing women’s position and her role in society and the importance of partnering with women-owned businesses in California.

I was impressed to learn of his amazing accomplishments for the short period since he has been appointed mayor by President Karkai. Only a true leader would be able to embark such change and make an impact for his city and community.

As Afghanistan rebuilds their country, Mayor Naw Andish feels contracting in Afghanistan has emerged as a force multiplier, front and center in achieving strategic economic development.

To many this is a great business opportunity and while this is true, I believe we need to unite in solidarity for other reasons. We have sisters around the world who need champions. Women champions who are willing to understand their culture and guide their entrepreneurial spirit while maintaining their cultural values.

I speak from experience as a young woman that endured a war in her country. I lived in a war zone from age eight to 23, cheating death by running from shelter to shelter avoiding the showers of bombs. As a child I played with bullets much like children play with marbles here. My interests were great but the culture was suppressed by the law of men. At 16, I insisted to continue my education despite the social pressure for marriage. As a grownup I lost my business during the civil war. As an activist for democracy and peace I was abducted by warlords. I was saved not by the bell, but by the strength of my own will.

Many Afghan women share the same story. They are deprived from the many essentials of life. Water, electricity, income, health, stability, peace, home ... but most importantly they are unsure if there is a hopeful tomorrow.

Although I spoke no English, I was fortunate to immigrate to the United States and live the American dream. That dream has not been available to the women of Afghanistan. Women play a major role for improving the quality of life in our society and we can instill the entrepreneurial spirit in Afghan women while maintaining her cultural values.

For this purpose, I pledge my support to the WAVE Partnership Initiative,

Women
Achieving
Value
and
Empowerment for economic growth in Afghanistan.

Join me as we form the advisory council. This advisory council will set the stage to develop the future of empowered Afghan women.

Through WAVE we can help Afghan women rebuild their lives and provide a window of opportunity for women-owned businesses in California.

Contact me at 818-727-7785 or wafa@uniqueimageinc.com as I invite you to ride the WAVE. This is the importance of today. We can make a difference. Women partnering for economic growth in Afghanistan can craft new stories, her success stories; our success stories.

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See the event advisory I posted on 6/23/11: click here
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Special Thank You's: click here
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Click on the form to join the WAVE Partnership Initiative Advisory Council and upcoming Trade Delegations/Cultural Explorations to Kabul.



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Pictured above with Hon. Muhammad Younus Naw Andaish, the Mayor of Kabul, Afghanistan

Afghanistan Conference: Special Thank You's

The "Women Partnering for Economic Growth in Afghanistan" would not have been possible without Karen Blackwell of Nestle and Asad Zafari of Afghan Business Council.

How important it is to recognize and celebrate our female heroes...or she-roes...a word coined by our great author Maya Angelou.

Karen and Asad you are true believers in “she-roes”.

The "Women Partnering for Economic Growth in Afghanistan" would not have been possible without Karen Blackwell of Nestle and Asad Zafari of Afghan Business Council.

How important it is to recognize and celebrate our female heroes...or she-roes...a word coined by our great author Maya Angelou.

Karen and Asad you are true believers in “she-roes”.

Thank you to The Valley Economic Alliance, Valley International Trade Association, Kenn Phillips, Darcy Winters and Angela Watson for their hard work leading up to the event in such a short time.

I want to thank Senator Current Price of California's 26th district, for hosting this remarkable event and for your unwavering leadership to our golden state.

I also want to thank Mayor Naw Andaish, for sharing your valuable insight and vision you have for your country.

Women Partnering for Economic Growth in Afghanistan

***ADVISORY***

Women Partnering for Economic Growth in Afghanistan

Hon. Muhammad Younus Naw Andaish, Mayor of Kabul joins with California business and community leaders to underscore the importance of women’s growth in the international marketplace

Who:
Hon. Muhammad Younus Naw Andaish, Mayor of Kabul, Afghanistan
Hon. Curren Price, California State Senate, 26th District

What:
A Woman Achieving Value and Empowerment ‘WAVE’ Partnership. This unique partnership brings together professional women who believe in helping Afghanistan redevelop their infrastructure, growing their economy and helping with women social reform.

When:
Monday, June 27, 2012
1:00 P.M.–3:00 P.M.

Where:
California Science Center
700 Exposition Park Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90037
323/724-3623

Why:
California State Senator Curren Price hosts an intimate gathering of women business leaders uniting them with the Mayor of Kabul, Afghanistan, his Hon. Muhammad Younus Naw Adaish. In this meeting, Sen. Price plans to encourage the local women’s business community to grow in the international marketplace by forming collaborative partnerships with the Afghani government. As Afghanistan rebuilds their country the Mayor of the largest city in Afghanistan with nearly 4-million people, feels it is vital to improve their economy by helping their internal community of women business owners.

How:
90 minute overview program to present opportunities and barriers to economic growth, the role of women in the emerging Afghani economy, the Programs/Incentives for women to do business in Afghanistan, and the opportunities for Women and other Small Business owners to partner with Afghani to successfully compete for business in the redevelopment of the nation.

Don’t be a Guest on Earth

How do we leave a lasting impression and become a model of influence? What role can we play? There’s so much communication out there. All of the opinions and conversations floating around can be confusing and controversial at times. The more we listen, the more our heads spin.

But what really gets me —- what I am really annoyed with —- are all the freeloaders out there. So, I just had to say ENOUGH and write something about it. I can sort all the slackers that I’ve met into a few select categories. However for sakes of focus, I will dive into only the most critical.

The most offensive slackers are those individuals that are not motivated to do anything for change. They refuse to take action to correct the damage we inflict on our community and environment. They are typically ladder climbers who empower their egos and status. They have the financial strength that enable them to keep their bank accounts and they pass through life without doing anything significant with it or improve the lives of so many around them that are in need.

Whatever type of person you are, I strongly believe that everyone (and I do mean everyone) should be a productive member of society by always giving back to the world instead of just taking. Whether it is a grandparent who looks after their grandchildren after school or a wealthy investor giving opportunities to those less fortunate and small qualified business, it is a matter of principle and morality to be a productive member of society.

Don’t be idle! By all means enjoy yourself, but be useful. The generosity and kindness of helping society will be well worth it for generations to come. Don’t be a Charles Barkley and be a role model. I urge you to act for the common good. Empower causes and encourage those who are not just a guest on this earth. Voice your opinion and make an impact within your own means for social change and get involved to eliminate hunger, homelessness, illiteracy, poverty and abuse with all its faces.

Developing Effective Corporate and Non-profit Partnerships

Those who commit their lives to humanitarian causes are indeed deserving of such a title. They shine like stars in people’s darkest moments, providing hope, smiles, future and life.

I am excited to share with you the heart and soul of what Unique Image represents. A journey of determination, perseverance and making a difference in everything we touch.

Being rebellious myself and an advocate for human rights and social change, I can tell you first hand that my number one rule in life is that: never take anything for granted and never give up, no matter how difficult the road or path for success is or how high the mountain might seem to be. A philosophy I live by and instill in my professional environment and a characteristic I demand of my team to embrace this simple mantra: Will do, Can do and Want to attitude. Of course they should love me first, but that’s beside the point.

This is how we approach projects, seek partnerships, and develop collaboration. We simply do not take “No” or good enough as an answer but rather focus on core values for establishing successful results for our clients, relationships and the community.

To give you some background: Back in 1999, Unique Image initiated its corporate giving U&I Vision Program and devoted some of its gross profits to help non-profit organizations. We established effective corporate and non-profit partnerships that allowed us to focus on strategic partnerships and set the expectations with our potential partners. These are key elements for a successful working relationship.

For us to ensure the success of the program, we partnered with non-profit organizations so we can provide them with the value and end results of our services. Unique Image provided turnkey solutions to a roster of 100 non-profits who benefited from our diverse services. We were able to use our resources to deliver some of the most successful campaigns from those who partnered with us. A testimonial for the importance of the value and resource development that we bring that can sustain you overtime.

How did we do it?

We use our expertise and knowledge and craft innovative campaigns for our selective clients. We ask questions, we set goals and expectations, and we draft a road map and strategy for sponsorship partnerships and the size of our immediate benefits and values. The results are to develop a strong brand that carries our clients throughout their entire journey.

When we partner with non-profit organizations to develop their humanitarian campaigns, we look into their challenges and previous successes; their outreach programs and their strategic goals. Most of the time, these non profits have not devoted energy, money or resources to build their brand in the community or spread awareness of their mission throughout their geographic and demographic target audience.

Our work to assess, evaluate and draft a cohesive focused strategy will then begin and not only have we helped our clients with fund raising and awareness but:

* we raised their brand
* standards
* image
* their name
* their reach
* and most importantly, we bring the whole community together to help them reach their goals.

Effective collaboration and communications begin with social responsibilities, identifying problems and having open and honest discussions about them. Agree on shared goals. When business needs intersect with a non-profit’s mission, cross sector collaboration can be a powerful tool for change. We use our creative with our approach and cause-related marketing and joint programs.

And sometimes with our client permission, we take a leadership role to deliver successful results.

Of course, when you carry persistence, position the foundation with a strong brand, it pays off.

That isn’t enough, we go beyond.

Taking on challenging tasks are our best quality and most rewarding journeys we take pride in.

As a valued partner, what can we do to help you build a strong brand?

1- Differentiate yourself from the rest.

2- Develop a clear brand and message

3- Create collaborations that help you gain resources and visibility

4- Focus on strategic partnerships that share common values or interests

5- Research, assess, and evaluate who you are, what you stand for, what you want and how you wish to achieve your goals.

6- Keep you with recent trends and updates that are pertinent to your mission.

7- Tell your story. Once you’ve identified your targets, will stay in front of them.

8- The benefit of having an expert to help you through the process.

It doesn’t matter how small or large your organization is right now. The largest olive trees were once little seeds. Be the seed that can grow with the energy of people that care.

Partners must help you water your seed and maintain it, so you can harvest the fruits of your labor. Like a breath of air, we consider ourselves the change that can breathe new energies into your environment and make you powerful to stand against the winds.

Are you the next corporation with commitment to implement a strong and powerful citizenship program? Are you the next non-profit ready to climb the brand latter? If so we look forward to our business partnership!

Do Women Always = Sex?

Despite my admiration of the production value and writing of characters in Entourage I’ve never “got” what the big deal with it all is. I mean it’s a show, it’s there, the actors are quietly good looking and well spoken, even the mousy women are gorgeous and the locales are the hottest spot in my own backyard. It’s on regular television these days as I work through my mountain of emails at midnight. I try to get through shows but I wind up screaming at the flat screen because the male characters are just so wholly unlikeable. The way they treat women within the show is very degrading and it only reconfirms the way women are being treated as such in real life.

So it begs the question, why would Hollywood ultimately always use women as sex subjects in a man's entertainment world? Why? Because this is how men treat women. It didn’t come as much of a revelation to me, but apparently the actors on the show are dogs too. Former Playboy Playmate Irina Voronina was dismissed recently–-she says for refusing the actors’ advances. She confirms they were constantly hitting on her and completely incapable of doing anything else. They objectified her and were boorish at very, very best. She bruised their fragile egos and got booted from the show.

Such is life.

Now, I get this: Women have their issues too. Some are in it for the money grab. Women might search for deep pockets and an easy way to succeed in a very competitive world (as they say). But men at their core have now been taught to seek sex as a property of their own. Then they feel they can sell it or release it anytime the sex appeal disappears. They intend to treat themselves (and certain parts of the woman's body) as a final goal. I know the famous words "sex sells" but why the need to do it in such degrading manner? Why do women put up with that? And why aren't there initiatives to change this perspective in the entertainment world? I do not want to deprive men from their activities behind their private walls with a real partner; however, to see this hunting attitude on Entourage (as if they live in a zoo) makes me sick to my stomach and the whispered disrespectful comments that men make amongst themselves is despicable!

I did a quick Perspective Check and here’s the flash result:

Women:
"Entourage is a p-i-g show for men who are stuck in the house. Sad thing is, that when you have power we throw ourselves at men. I heard a friend say every woman has a price. How sad really."

Men:
What about how men are portrayed in shows like Sex and the City? Beefcake, dense, and useless. How fair is that?"

So what happened to equality? It appears to me that men and women these days speak of it as a play of deception. Who's in control? Who wins? Who is more powerful? Do we all live in this typical world of gender politics in an increasingly inhumane society.

HBO’s marketing posters (above) and online banners are slugged with this tagline: “A lifestyle is a terrible thing to waste.” For me equality is the lifestyle. It means respect for you and to others. You earn your place based on qualification, synergy and credentials. Personal growth is based on performance and not how big your boobs are or how thick a woman’s skin needs to be. Nor is it how deep a man's pockets are or how sexy his body looks and feels. If this is a world that Entourage and Sex and the City reflects on today's society then today I should announce the birth of the new constitution and awakening: "Respect for Sex or No More Sex for you!" We can call it the 28th Amendment.

Sadly, for most of us, stereotypical “Hollywood” male experience isn’t confined to the television or movie set. We get it everyday in business. Everything from being called “honey” or “sweetheart” in the office to offers of clandestine “massages” to seal business deals. These aren’t the worst sexual harassments in the world, but why do they even have to enter the equation to begin with?

The more I think about it, the more I like the Wafa 28th Amendment.