Gary Vee: Experience Matters!

Posted on January 23, 2017 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

Photo via “The By-Product of Doing | DailyVee 071”

Earlier this morning, I was listening to Gary Vaynerchuk‘s “DailyVee” episode 071 while ironing my clothes and preparing for the day. 8 minutes and 45 seconds into the episode, Gary mentioned something that really caught my attention. It goes as follows, “I thought I was unstoppable and great 10 years ago. I’m just better now. Experience matters. It’s just part of the equation. When we’re 24 and we have skills, we don’t want to think so. It’s like a baseball pitcher. We throw harder when we’re young but we’re a better pitcher when we’re older.” – Gary Vaynerchuk of VaynerMedia (The By-Product of Doing | DailyVee 071; 8:45).

There are so many lessons we can learn from observing and applying how Gary Vee moves through life as well as what he has to say throughout his daily experiences. As he very frequently mentions, it’s all about the marathon. Experience matters. Emotional intelligence matters. Legacy matters. Long-term value matters. Patience matters. Self-awareness matters. Sometimes we must make time to ask ourselves, “What game are we playing?”

Photo via “The By-Product of Doing | DailyVee 071”

Why does experience matter? Experience is seasoned. Experience is crafty. Experience knows how to feel the room out. Experience knows the importance of certainty and uncertainty, discernment and discretion, nuance and subtlety. Experience knows how to rest and when to rest. Experience is the vantage point which can often fuel our competitive advantage. As long as we continue to execute, hustle, and stay hungry – EXPERIENCE ALWAYS MATTERS!!!

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(Uh • Kway • Us) Aquaus Kelley is a forward-thinking Brand Strategist, Cultural Curator, and Educator. As the Founder of A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group, he specializes in identifying talent and creating opportunities for brand development, exposure, and growth. Aquaus has worked with companies and organizations such as Cornerstone Agency, City Year Miami, Universal Music Group, and W Hotels. He is extremely passionate about helping companies adapt to culture and building value between brands and their consumers centered around love. His ultimate mission is to use his influence to project positivity across the globe and invest in the collective future of society through the arts, education, entertainment, and leadership.

The Power of Curated Content (C-Study)

Posted on July 19, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

Photo Courtesy of Daniel Dorsa.

Earlier yesterday morning, while I was waiting at the L.A. Fitness in South Plainfield, NJ, I decided to optimize my time and catch up on the July/August issue of Fast Company magazine. As I was perusing through the pages, I came across an article on page 16 entitled, “Selling Change.” This article was written by Nikita Richardson and features the CEO of DDB Worldwide North America, Wendy Clark.

For those of you who may not be familiar, Clark happens to be named one of Fast Company’s “Most Creative People.” When asked the question, “Who would be on her list of most creative people?” she replied, “Students. When you spend time with them, you’re blown away by their creativity. They have such great ideas.” said Clark.

Photo Courtesy of Adweek.

After reading this article, I was immediately intrigued by Clarks statement regarding the creativity of students. Being that I have worked with students in schools in both Miami, FL and New Brunswick, NJ for 5 years now, I know exactly what she means. We can learn so much from observing and engaging with our students in our school systems throughout the country and globally. As I’m in the process of building my tribe and establishing “A Lovers Ambition” as a movement, my background in education plays an instrumental role in regards to everything that I do day in and day out.

Whenever I identify with a piece of content that speaks to me (article, video, podcast, etc), I immediately think of the best way to share it with my audience. Recently, a strategy which I find to be quite valuable happens to be that of curation.

W h y C u r a t i o n ?

Back in May of 2016, we ran an experimental campaign for a few content pieces we curated pertaining to Blavity’s #EmpowerHER 2016 conference in NYC. Our top tweet for the month of May just happened to be the tweet shown below.

Why was this our top tweet? We crafted this particular tweet based on an article that we read on blavity.com. This article featured Feminista Jones, one of the speakers at the conference. After a good read and some quick research, we were able to create and develop a nice piece of copy (“aka” a tweet) which incorporated the following key elements:

An intriguing “lead” question.
The name of the source in which the article originated from: @Blavity.
The name of the interviewee who was featured: @FeministaJones.
The hashtag which was relevant to their upcoming event: #EmpowerHer.
The bit.ly link to their article.

The combination of all of these elements is what led us to receive 9 profile clicks, 10 retweets, 18 likes, and 128 link clicks. In regards to our results, we would say that we were pretty successful. Although our numbers are fairly small, our experiment did allow us to build some brand awareness for A Lovers Ambition. In fact, we did fairly well considering that we had a lot less than 100 followers at the time.

When we are able to effectively curate content that we both identify and resonate with, we are able to gain ground in multiple ways. In our opinion, one of the best ways to curate content is to curate content that is shareable. What we mean by this is to include everyone who is involved in the original creation of the piece of content which is being curated (original source, interviewee, writer, photographer, etc).

Here is an example of how we utilized twitter as a social media platform to create a social storyline for Wendy Clark’s article in Fast Company magazine:

Each person involved in the original piece of content serves as a touch point for potential engagement and interaction (likes, replies, retweets, shares, etc). When we are able to engage and interact with others via common interests, we are then able to build relationships, create opportunities, and exchange value. Essentially, it’s a win win for everyone involved. We believe this to be the essence of effectively utilizing social media in an effort to engage and interact with others. This ladies and gentlemen, is what we LOVE the most about being social!

If you’re interested in hearing more, here’s a recorded audio version of “The Power of Curated Content.”

– Enjoy!

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(Uh • Kway • Us) Aquaus Kelley is a forward-thinking Brand Strategist, Cultural Curator, and Social Storyteller. As the Founder of A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group, he specializes in identifying talent and creating opportunities for brand development, exposure, and growth. Aquaus has worked with companies and organizations such as Cornerstone Agency, City Year Miami, Universal Music Group, and W Hotels. He is extremely passionate about helping companies adapt to culture and building value between brands and their consumers centered around love. His ultimate mission is to use his influence to project positivity across the globe and invest in the collective future of society through the arts, education, entertainment, and leadership.

The Story Behind: #WeLOVEHubCity!

Posted on May 30, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

Preface!

On July 19, 2015, I asked myself the following question, “Where can we create a global community for those who express an interest in changing the world?” As big and futuristic of an idea as this may sound, please allow me to express how we can begin to manifest our ideal thoughts into ideal actions. Here are the two magic words, “START LOCAL.”

On Saturday May 28, 2016 at 4:18 am, I recorded a voice memo detailing my ideas and thoughts on the impact and importance of starting local. This came after sending an email over to Anand Patel. Anand happens to be the co-owner of Hidden Grounds Coffee, a local business here in New Brunswick, NJ.

In October of 2013, I interviewed Anand for behindthehustle.com. We sat down to discuss both the hardships and successes that come with opening up a new business. Since then, I have made an effort to stay informed of what’s going on at Hidden Grounds.

The email that I sent to Anand was in reference to 365 by Whole Foods, “Friends of 365” program. This is an entrepreneurial move aimed to incorporate a sense of localized, independent, and creative entrepreneurial spirit by installing third-party vendors inside of its 365 by Whole Foods stores. A few minutes after I sent this email, I had an instant epiphany…”START LOCAL.”

Why Start Local? Proximity Matters!

On January 2, 2016, I posted a video of Bryan Stevenson’s 2015 Zeitgeist Minds talk. Here he discussed the importance of being proximate to the problems in our world. “Proximity teaches us things that we cannot learn from a distance” Stevenson says. “When we get proximate to problems, we see things and hear nuances and details that we cannot see from a distance. In order to solve problems and create breakthroughs, we must get very close and inside of the problems that we intend to solve.” Starting local enables us to foster closer and more intimate relationships in the communities which we serve.

I Thought To Myself!

“With so many local businesses, companies, organizations, and schools here in the City of New Brunswick, how can I leverage my talents in an effort to add value to my local community at large?”

Naturally, my first instinct was to go to social media. I went straight to Twitter and Instagram to search for local businesses, companies, and organizations in the New Brunswick area. For some reason, I decided to check out New Brunswick’s Hyatt Hotel on Twitter.

@HyattNewBruns (517 Followers)

After viewing their profile, I immediately thought to myself, “Why does the Hyatt only have 517 followers?” I was then curious to see how much of a brand presence our city government and school district had on their social media profiles as well.

@CityofNewBruns (4,311 Followers)

@nbpschools (268 followers)

Seeing these numbers were highly intriguing! Not only did I begin to see a trend, more importantly, I began to see an opportunity. According to U.S. Census data, the City of New Brunswick’s population is roughly around 57,000 residents. If this is the case, I asked myself the following question: “How might our local businesses, government agencies, and schools do a better job in regards to engaging with our community?”

Living In The City!

As a graduate of Rutgers University, a resident in the City of New Brunswick, and a substitute teacher throughout New Brunswick Public Schools, I feel as though I am extremely proximate to the diverse culture and lifestyle New Brunswick has to offer. However, along with the great potential of our city will come challenges. One immediate challenge that I have observed over the years, is a lack of awareness when it comes to business, community, education, and government initiatives. In a city with roughly around 57,000 residents, how might we do a better job in regards to reaching and engaging with our community?

The Power of Social Media!

In an age where both digital and social media presence move the world, I believe that our online platforms are the single most important places for businesses, communities, schools, and government agencies to connect and meet at scale. This leads me to my BIG ESSENTIAL question:

How might we leverage digital and social media platforms to bridge the gap between business, community culture, education, and government?

Introducing: The #WeLOVEHubCity Initiative!

The #WeLOVEHubCity initiative is a solution to our problem. This initiative is essentially the culmination of the last 5 years of my life. Since graduating from Rutgers University in May of 2011, I have worked on numerous community service initiatives as a City Year Corps member while living in Miami, FL. While in Miami, I also spent my “free” time working as a field marketing rep for Cornerstone Agency. I owe it to Cornerstone for introducing me to the world of branding, entertainment marketing, and promotion. When I returned back to New Jersey in late 2012, I began to work for New Brunswick Public Schools as a Substitute Teacher.

The combination of all of these unique experiences is ultimately what I feel enabled me to develop the #WeLOVEHubCity initiative. My love for culture, community, education, entertainment, and leadership are just a few things that I feel fuel me with the passion to pursue an initiative of this capacity. Through digital and social media curation, our mission is to bridge the gap between business, community culture, education, and government in the City of New Brunswick, NJ.

Where Might We Begin?

Through promoting the usage of the #WeLOVEHubCity hashtag to our businesses, community organizations, government agencies, and schools throughout the city, we are proactively encouraging digital conversation and dialogue on all social media platforms. In turn, this will help to endorse healthy engagement, the exchange of ideas, and the increase in brand awareness for the entire City of New Brunswick. When we curate content generated through the usage of the #WeLOVEHubCity hashtag, we will then share it across all of our @WeLOVEHubCity social media accounts.

Where Might This Lead Us?

Our @WeLOVEHubCity social media accounts will serve as “digital hubs” for the intersection between business, community culture, education, and government initiatives throughout the City of New Brunswick. Imagine a digital community center that serves as the hub of Hub City. Imagine a place where we are proud to share the accomplishments, best practices, and talents in business, community culture, education, and government. It’s a huge win for everyone involved. When we are able to pull together as a collective for the City of New Brunswick, we will also begin to economically thrive across all sectors. This will serve as an inspiration for other cities throughout the State of New Jersey and across the nation!

Collaboration + Partnership!

If you love what you hear, we would love for you to hop on board in some capacity. We understand that collaboration and partnership is essential to the healthy development and execution of ideas. We also know that we have a long way to go and thus will need the full support of the New Brunswick community at large. We would love to begin talks to discuss partnering with the following community leaders:

New Brunswick Public Schools
The City of New Brunswick
Rutgers University
Community organizations
Local businesses

Interested in saying hello? Shoot us a note at hi@welovehubcity.com. We are looking forward to hearing from you.

Oh…we almost forgot. Please, spread the word and follow us on social:

Website: welovehubcity.com
Facebook: @welovehubcity
Instagram: @welovehubcity
Twitter: @welovehubcity

Cheers!

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3 Ways We Can Be Just Like Gary Vee!

Posted on May 1, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

In February of 2016, LinkedIn hosted it’s local edition of the LinkedIn Speaker Series in NYC. The purpose of LinkedIn’s local edition is to extend it’s global speaker series program through highlighting local rockstars who inspire and inform people to spark conversations and start connections. These conversations are often the result of many of the amazing ideas that are new, next, and noteworthy across various industries and fields.

In this edition of LinkedIn’s Local Speaker Series, one of our favorite guys and LinkedIn influencer, Gary Vaynerchuk chats with LinkedIn’s Senior News Editor, Chip Cutter. Throughout this discussion, Gary offers his advice, insight, and input as unapologetically as always about everything and to everyone within his reach. This even includes telling LinkedIn how their business can be better if their Snapchat account had it’s own version of “The Office” as an effort to make their brand feel more human. “I have very good intuition on what everybody is going to do a lot of times before they even realize they are going to do it” says Gary.

With so much more to offer, please read along for the “3 Ways We Can Be Just Like Gary Vee!”

1. Pay Attention:

One of the reasons why Gary has a very good intuition on what everyone is going to do a lot of times before they even realize they are going to do it is because he pays very close attention to his environment. “Everyone can do what I do.” says Gary. “I wake-up in the morning, grab my phone, look at the App Store’s “100 Top Free Apps”, and look at the charts. That’s real data. I’m not predicting the success of certain companies. This to me is very basic. Don’t be a headline reader. Really read and listen.“

2. Train Towards Opportunity:

“I look at history to repeat itself quite a bit” says Gary, “I think pattern recognition is extremely important in what we are living through now because the internet itself is really changing the game and we’re still only 20 years into it.” We have to condition ourselves and train for our future. It’s as if we’re preparing for a marathon. Our life’s destiny is always on the line. We must develop the cadence and context to prepare ourselves for openings and opportunities when they present themselves. “When we know what we want for our lives and we make that shift at all costs, we win” says Gary, “Playing a game that doesn’t map what we actually want it to be is a really big mistake.”

3. Reverse Engineer Everything:

“I sell a ton of stuff by following the people who I want to sell to on social networks, figuring out what they like in the world, and using that information as a way to sell them” says Gary. It’s all about learning from your lead and selling what they need. Gary also mentions that we must eliminate romance. “It’s important to understand what they care about more than what you care about” says Gary, “Build a business that allows you to scale your capabilities and passions. Be a practitioner and engage yourself in what you do. Recognize Patterns. There will be a lot of money to be made if we can buy the companies that we know the big companies in the world are going to have to buy to be successful” says Gary.

151204-DailyVee_Episode_001_02_1920x1080

Photo courtesy of garyvaynerchuk.com

Quotes We Love

“Each social platform has it’s own context for storytelling.” – Gary Vaynerchuk

“There’s money to be made if you can buy the small companies that the big companies need to be successful.” – Gary Vaynerchuk

Follow your lead. Learn from your lead. Sell what they need!

“Eliminate romance. Learn what they care about more than what you care about.” – Gary Vaynerchuk

“I respect the game of business more than I care about my own KPI’s.” – Gary Vaynerchuk

“When we know what we want, and we make that shift at all costs, we win!” – Gary Vaynerchuk

“Playing a game that doesn’t map what we want it to be, is a really big mistake!” – Gary Vaynerchuk

_________________________

(Uh • Kway • Us) Aquaus Kelley is a forward-thinking Brand Strategist, Educator, and Music Publisher. As the Founder of A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group, he specializes in identifying talent and creating opportunities for brand development, exposure, and growth. Aquaus has worked with companies and organizations such as Cornerstone Agency, City Year Miami, Universal Music Group, and W Hotels. He is extremely passionate about helping companies adapt to culture and building value between brands and their consumers centered around love. His ultimate mission is to use his influence to project positivity across the globe and invest in the collective future of society through the arts, education, entertainment, and leadership.

Run Your Life As a Marathon: Gary Vee

Posted on April 29, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

I tell people this all of the time, “I view life as a marathon, not a sprint.” In fact, I’ve shared this analogy in multiple conversations I’ve had this week alone. It is no coincidence that Gary Vaynerchuk preaches the same philosophy.

Life is too long to sprint through. When we are able to acquire patience, which I believe entails both confidence and competence, we are then able to build towards the long-term results we are looking to achieve.

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G-SHOCK x Greats Giveaway!

Posted on April 26, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

Ryan Babenzien of Greats recently teamed up with G-SHOCK for “The Whiteout Collection” which is a partnership between G-SHOCK x GREATS. In a recent interview, Ryan tells Complex, “This collaboration has been a long time in the making. I’ve had G-SHOCK’s in my life since I was a kid.”

The result of this partnership is a custom designed pair of Greats’ PRONTO kicks along with G-SHOCK’s new trio of Whiteout timepieces. Here’s what’s even sweeter about this collaboration: For a limited time, G-SHOCK x Greats will be giving fans a chance to win a prize package featuring the complete White Out set of G-SHOCK x Greats brand collaborative sneakers and G-SHOCK watch.

Please be sure to enter here for your chance to win, the last day to participate is Saturday 4/30/16!

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Embracing Our Strengths: Marie Forleo

Posted on April 22, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

On Tuesday, April 12, 2016 we checked out Marie Forleo’s “Q&A Tuesday” on her Marie TV YouTube channel. She addressed the following question from one of the viewers of her show:

“What suggestions do you have for someone who is a kind and positive person yet does not want to be viewed as a liability who is weak and naive?”

Marie’s reply went as follows: “Positivity is a powerful strength. Suppressing who we are is not an option. The future of business is about being more connected to our humanity, not less. This includes our positivity, kindness, enthusiasm, vulnerability, and most importantly our heart.”

Marie goes on to mention, “As human-beings, we need the right conditions to survive and thrive. We are only as good as the people we surround ourselves with. It’s vital that we put ourselves in the right eco-system, one that gives us the chance to flex our strengths. When we put ourselves in the right conditions, we blossom. When we put ourselves in the wrong conditions, we wither and die.”

Lastly, “When we know what makes us strong, it’s important that we don’t settle for less. There is no prize for suffering. We must embrace our strength of positivity and be it daily. Our enthusiasm for life is contagious. It also gives other people permission to be kind, positive, enthusiastic leaders too” says Marie.

What we love the most about Marie’s message is that it covers many critical points when it comes to realizing our greatest potential. Embracing our strengths, regardless of how other people may view them is always vital. Not only is embracing our strengths vital to our success, it is also vital to our overall well-being!

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Music x Movement: Maluca Mala

Posted on April 1, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

As I was checking out Maluca’s music video for her latest release, “Mala,” a thought came across my mind that this particular track may be a good song for a Zumba class. Granted, I’ve never personally taken a Zumba class. However, I would definitely be curious to see what dance routines can be created to this one.

According to an article I read about a month ago in the Wall Street Journal, Zumba classes attract 15 million people each week. Talk about a huge reach! In addition, music promotion is one of the methods used to draw people to Zumba. Hence, this is certainly an audience of devoted members who are exposed to new music on a weekly basis.

Now imagine this, when Zumba members actually really enjoy the music they hear, what will most likely happen next? Yes, correct…more listens, more streams, more downloads, and maybe even more tickets being sold at Maluca’s next show. Ahhh…such a beautiful relationship!

So, will we be hearing the sounds of Maluca playing in Zumba classes anytime soon? We’ll have to get in touch with Zumba’s music director, Sergio Minski. Until then, we’ll have to wait and see! #MusicxMovement

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Overcoming Obstacles: Tim Storey

Posted on March 22, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

This morning I checked out Lewis Howes’ most recent interview on his “School of Greatness” podcast with Tim Storey. Tim had a lot of insight to share on the following topics in regards to how we can both face and overcome our most difficult obstacles in life.

1. Victimization:

Tim mentions, “We have become a nation of victims. We have learned these “victim” stories that have worked for us. It’s so easier to fix the blame than to fix the problem. Our life will be a lot better when we take responsibility for our actions, even if it’s super painful.”

2. Stoping, Looking, Listening:

It’s important that we prepare ourselves to absorb life at it’s fullest. This requires us to be in the moment. We need to stop what we are doing, look at where we are, and listen to our surroundings. We must be fully present, fully living, and fully alive.

3. Valuing Our Dreams:

“Without a dream, we are not living” says Tim. “Dreams are in us, they are in our DNA. When we dial into the real us, we are all dreamers.” Dreaming allows us to raise our ceiling in regards to reaching our highest potential.

#QuotesWeLove:

“When we feed our faith, we starve our doubt.” – Tim Storey

“There is a difference between a good idea and a God idea.” – Tim Storey

“Divorce is divided force.” – Tim Storey

“We may not be what we want to be but thank God we are not what we use to be.” – Tim Storey

“Greatness is to manifest an utmost life.” – Tim Storey

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What Can We Learn From Envy?

Posted on March 21, 2016 by A Lovers Ambition Lifestyle Group

This past Friday I checked out Lewis Howes’, “5 Minute Friday” with guest, Glennon Doyle Melton. She shared some sensational insight on how envy can serve as our professor towards finding our purpose. We should be asking ourselves, “What makes us uncomfortable? All of our emotions are instructive. Especially the uncomfortable ones. Instead of rejecting envy, we should learn from it” says Glennon.

As Tai Lopez mentioned in a recent post of ours, “Envy is the flashlight that illuminates our inner being.” This requires us to be brutally honest with ourselves. The sooner we can come to this awareness, the better off we will be.

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