The Power of Positive Influence with Laneice McGee

Have you ever wondered what it takes to inspire young minds and influence the world positively? Come join us, as we unpack a powerful conversation with Laneice McGee, a stalwart in the workforce development arena and co-founder of Big, Beautiful, and Bless organization. Her journey from zero to a hundred podcast episodes and her dedication towards motivating young minds through her youth group, FEMA Future Entrepreneurs Moving Ahead, will leave you both inspired and empowered.

Finding motivation can be tricky, but not for Laneice. With her unique methods of staying motivated, like watching inspirational videos or drawing strength from biblical scriptures, she's a beacon of positivity. Listen in as she shares the inception and growth of her networking group, a dynamic community that congregates every month to spread hope and encouragement. She also highlights the significance of acknowledging small victories and how these baby steps can lead to achieving bigger goals.

By the end of our invigorating conversation, you'll learn to guard your mind from negative influences and embrace the power of positivity. Laneice McGee generously offers a glimpse into her seven-week journey of discovering one's purpose and a free copy of her book. Her teachings aren't limited to a certain age bracket; they are timeless and applicable to all. Remember, as you strive to be the best version of yourselves, do not forget to love yourselves too. Listen, learn, and let's grow together.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

So hello and welcome back to the overcome yourself podcast. As you know, my name is Nicole and I'm here today with Leneese. And Leneese, I'm so excited to have you here today. Go ahead, take, take the wheel, introduce yourself, tell us about what you do.

Speaker 2: 0:19

Hi Nicole. Thank you so much for having me on your platform.

Speaker 2: 0:24

I'm grateful, I'm grateful. So just a little bit about me. I am a woman who was raised in low income family, who had to overcome a lot of things. Most importantly, though, as I grew older I learned the most important thing I had to overcome was my own mindset, my own beliefs and my own thoughts, but you know so that that's something I think that we all can relate to, no matter, maybe, where we came from, what our background is, but my name is Leneese McGee. I go by Leneese leads, and the reason why is because I leave different projects that I'm very passionate about.

Speaker 2: 1:05

I have a professional job in the workforce development field, which I have been doing for over 17 years, where we connect people to their purpose through employment, so I definitely love doing that. Again, I've been doing it for a while, but, on a personal note, I also am a speaker where I focus on how do we hone in on loving ourselves and live in our best life and speaking our truth. I have an organization called big, beautiful and bless, where I'm the co founder, where we promote plus size beauties of faith, where they are loving the skin that they are in right, loving where they're at while they're working on where they're yet to become, and I also have a youth group called FEMA future entrepreneurs moving ahead where we inspire young people to think big and live bigger, and so they start to develop different projects and just take those risks on what do I want to do, what can I do, and just learning those entrepreneurship skills that can take them far in life.

Speaker 1: 2:09

Yeah, it's such an appropriate name. You are an amazing leader. It sounds like I'm so excited. These, all these projects are just absolutely amazing. Tell me a little bit more. Tell me a little bit more about what you're doing. What, what advice? What is like the, the advice that you seem to give to like the most kids right because, like we know, it all comes down to, usually there's like a theme right, there's usually themes. So what is that advice that you give to everyone? It seems?

Speaker 2: 2:38

It comes to me and all the things that I do. Everything is interconnected to purpose. So everything that I do has to connect to how am I connecting to someone with their purpose, or someone discovering what their purpose might be? And so here I'm doing that in my, my field that I, where I get pay most right. So people come into a job center and they may be at their lowest point because they lost their job or whatever the situation may be. My team, we connect them to employment, we connect them to training so we help them rediscover that they are bigger than their job title. Right, you are not your job title. So what is your purpose beyond that? Right? So no matter who you are attached to, they get you. So that is the beauty and the gift of that.

Speaker 2: 3:30

When I am working with the women, it's like, okay, what is your purpose? You are not just a mother, you are not just a plus size woman. Who are you? What is your purpose? And so much we tie them together. I'm a plus size woman, and so then they're suffering maybe with low self esteem and things like that. But who are you? What is your purpose? And loving that woman, right.

Speaker 2: 3:52

And so when it comes to the youth right, really just opening your stuff up to the young people and being willing to try new things as you are, discovering who you are, and I think really that discovery kind of keeps going and keeps going and as we get older we kind of learn a little bit.

Speaker 2: 4:09

Like this is what I really like to do, and I might show up in different ways of doing those skillset, but as you're, we're young, I really really encourage those things of trying new things, not being afraid of that, understanding to cheer, cheer yourself on, cheer your, your colleagues, your, your fellow students on, and things of that nature really just speaking life into them and encouraging them to speak life into themselves. Because, as you may know, you may wake up and no one may tell you you're great, no one may say speak positive words into yourself, but are you being loyal to yourself? Are you speaking those words to yourself? What are you doing to encourage and push yourself? And I feel like everything that I am attached to that's what I want to make my impact in doing.

Speaker 1: 5:00

I love that. It brought up something you said. I remember a time in my life, something that I said it was a joke to somebody, but I was like I remember a time in my life when the only person that said they were proud of me was Drake. He has that song I'm so proud of you, and I would listen to that song and I'd be like you know what, I am proud of you because you've done this and you've done that, and so that is a big deal having someone to say I'm proud of you because we don't give ourselves credit for a lot of the things we do.

Speaker 1: 5:27

Like we're out there, we survive, you know, we make meals happen even though, like there's no food in the house. Like we make impossible things happen, and then we're hard on ourselves. We don't give ourselves credit for, you know, for the, even when it's the little things, and having those moments of resistance, like you realize, that's what makes you resourceful, right, and so we can look at it one of two ways be like, oh, I don't have anything. Or be like, oh, my God, I'm so grateful that I'm so resourceful, that God gave me this resourcefulness, that I think it was like this can of tuna and this, something else, and I can make something and my family's fed and you know it might not be, you know, a lobster meal, but like they're fed and they're good and they're you know they can go to school and they've got the nutrients they need. So that is just absolutely amazing. I love you're so inspiring. I love it. You are too.

Speaker 2: 6:17

Your energy. I love your energy.

Speaker 1: 6:19

Oh, thank you. Thank you so much. So this podcast Overcome Yourself is named after my book. My book is going to be coming out soon Overcome.

Speaker 2: 6:27

Yourself, congratulations.

Speaker 1: 6:29

Thank you. Thank you, I'm working with my editor. I'll be submitting my blurb and my cover this week and then we're going to make our papers, yay, so, so that's the. That's the theme of the book, right? So it's learning to practice gratitude. Like you said, it's all about mindset. I had to learn how to implement success habits, my success habits, so things that might not necessarily make me money, but they make me money, you know, like drinking water, exercising things like that, because it helps your brain so you can make more money. And then discovering the weak, what I thought was my weakness, how it's actually my superpower and I just got to lean into it. So those are like the big themes, and you kind of alluded to overcoming your own mindset, so can you talk to me a little bit about that? Do you find that gratitude had a part in you learning to overcome your mindset?

Speaker 2: 7:21

And what did that look like?

Speaker 1: 7:22

for you.

Speaker 2: 7:23

Yeah, I think, just really honing in on what I'm grateful for, I think it's very easy for to look at, like, what's wrong, what, what I lack, what I don't have. And especially you can get into this lane of comparison, right, you can even be feeling good, be feeling great, and then you, you get on social media and then you remember like, oh, I don't have this, I don't have that, and then all of a sudden you don't feel great anymore, right? Because you now comparing to like, oh, I thought I was great, but now I don't have this, or I don't have that, or I'm not here yet, or I'm not there yet, and so then, all of a sudden, now you're not feeling as great. But it's very important that our mindset and that our self-talk is consistent, right, because Again, life happens, and so, as life happens, we have to continually combat those things with reminding ourselves of the things that we have accomplished, reminding ourselves that we can get up again, because things will happen that will be discouraging, things will happen that are heartbreaking, right, you may lose a loved one, you may lose a job Like I don't want to discount things that really can't throw you off, like that is a reality, right, and so those things can set you back, but we don't want them to set you down.

Speaker 2: 8:51

All right, so you can be set back, but don't get set down. And how we don't get set down is by our self-talking, our mindset, telling ourselves that we can get up again, that we can move forward, that you know what. It's okay to take a break, to take a breather, to take this in, to be mindful of my emotions and how I feel and being okay with that, but to know that I have to get up again, that I have to move forward, that you know this, too, shall pass, and I think that's important, like what you're doing now, to having people share their story. You sharing your story, you sharing your gratitude, how you overcome things. That helps other people, because we never know what stage they are in life. You know, and just hearing other people's stories, like you said, even hearing that song, I'm proud of you, I'm proud of you like that helps someone you know, and so thank you for doing that. Thank you for writing your book and there's so many different platforms and that's why I encourage people don't worry about how many people got a podcast, how many people have a book, how many people wrote a song.

Speaker 2: 9:54

Yours is still not out there and your voice someone needs to hear. And some people love reading books, some people love hearing podcasts. Some people a song will resonate with them. You don't know what your words, how that will resonate and literally shift someone's life in a moment that they need the most. That's why it's so important for us not to keep what has happened and what has helped us to ourselves. So I would just say it's important to keep reminding ourselves. Even if you have to write a journal, write it down like I'm worthy, this is what happened, this is how I got through, or whatever, so that when you are in your moments where you feel low and you feel down, you can encourage yourself or again turn on a podcast, like when I'm feeling really down. Sometimes I will force myself to watch motivational videos. I will force myself to read the Bible. I will force myself to put myself in a situation where I won't stay down.

Speaker 1: 10:50

Yes, yeah, and I love how it's little things. It doesn't have to be a huge thing. You sit down and you read a Bible verse and you contemplate it. That kind of gets you to slows you down. You want to watch a motivational video? You don't have to sit down and watch a two-hour movie. You can watch a five-minute clip and then you can just think about it. You know like it's the moment. Yes, yes, I love that. Oh, my god, you've said so many great things. The habits oh my god, like I have so many thoughts spinning around in my head because of all the amazing things that you've said. I don't even know which one to start with. So, all right, let's talk about you. Then talk to me about how we can stay in touch with you.

Speaker 2: 11:36

Yeah, so it's really easy. You can find me on all social media platforms, lenece Leeds. I tried to make it easy. So, whether you are a Facebook type of person or LinkedIn or whatever, if you put Lenece Leeds, you'll be able to locate me and connect to me that way and find out the different things that I am connected to. My website is Lenece Leeds as well, and then you can find out the different platforms that I am leading or a part of. I also do a networking group once a month where we come together and I have different people come and speak and just share an inspirational word.

Speaker 2: 12:21

Again, I really believe in the importance of positioning, and so it's important that we position ourselves around other people, because it was times that I've been at my lowest moment, that I forced myself to position myself around other people, where it a click, and sometimes I think I've been through domestic violence and all that kind of situations as well, and sometimes, if you know somebody that's been through a domestic violence situation, you can get tired, like well, I guess I just don't say any situation forever or whatever, but just be mindful of love, keep being positive, because you don't know what that moment is, where it's just going to click for them and they're going to make it up in their mind that they desire different. They deserve different, and so that's why it's important for people such as you, nicole, and other people I'm sure that you've had on your platform, just to keep doing the work, because it's those moments that really can change somebody, the narrative of somebody's life.

Speaker 1: 13:27

And you as well. Thank you for what you're doing. You're changing and impacting lives as well, so that's amazing. All right, so a few things that you mentioned before the negativity one of the things that that it made me think of was my pastor mentioned.

Speaker 1: 13:46

If You're hearing these voices about, oh, You're never gonna be wealthy, oh, you're never gonna be this, you're never gonna be fit right. If the enemy is a liar and those, that's the things that they're saying to you, then that's where you're like oh, you're trying to prevent me from being wealthy, which means that's where I'm supposed to be going. So, instead of focusing on that, you glorify God and you say thank you for my abundance, because he's trying to get me away from this. So I know that that's where you have planned for me, and since he's all he does is lie, he's telling me I'm not gonna be abundant, then that must be that that's the plan that you have for me, and so that was a way that really helped me to kind of reframe a lot, and so whenever I started getting nervous, I'd be like you know what? This is a lie, and so I'm so grateful for the plan that I know is ahead of me, because when we take imperfect action, oh, the other thing that I want to say is baby steps.

Speaker 1: 14:42

You were mentioning how, like it's. Just you know you don't compare yourself to anyone else. It's taking those baby steps every day. So, watching that quick motivational video, reading that quick Bible verse, those are baby steps that we take every single day. That that add up like, even if you're taking baby steps, you're gonna get somewhere right. So, little by little, you're gonna get somewhere. Mm-hmm. Oh my god, the big things that, that that came to me while you were speaking.

Speaker 2: 15:11

Because, you'd think about it, um, anyone who ran, like the Olympics or whatever. How did they win? One step at a time, right?

Speaker 2: 15:19

They had to start somewhere. So that's that's all of our journeys, and I love what you said about what your pastor said, because Anywhere where I really believe that, wherever your biggest attack is, is where your biggest reward is going to be, and so, wherever the enemy he comes to, still kill and destroy. And so, if he can destroy, the most thing that he wants to destroy is your mind, because if he can't physically kill you, if he can mentally kill you, then he can stop you from living out the plans that he, that God, has for you. And so that's why the battlefield of the mind is real, and we have to combat every lie with the truth. And so if he says that I lack, that's when I have to repeat no, god says that I have abundance. So every lie, we have to keep reminding ourselves of the truth. So that is that is so true and that that that's the word. Right there I'm telling you.

Speaker 1: 16:11

That's very encouraging. Yes, thank you. Yes, I, you know I paraphrase that into such a good job as he did, but I'm glad that you got the message. Yeah, yeah um.

Speaker 1: 16:21

The other thing is you mentioned, you know, like, oh, because you don't have a podcast. You know I didn't have a podcast before I started this one, and then you know I'd be in. I could be intimidated and be like, oh but so and so has 500 episodes, right, but so and so has been doing this for 10 years. And so I started recording my episodes, one by one. At first I started by myself and then I started interviewing people and you know I I've got to check how many I have, but we're going to get close to the hundred mark pretty soon. And so about the numbers, I probably wouldn't have gotten here, but it was just no, I'm just going to record my episodes on Tuesdays, schedule it out, let people know, hey, you can sign up to be on my podcast. And you know, before I knew it, now we have a podcast, now you and I are talking like we didn't know each other before this podcast recording.

Speaker 1: 17:15

This is how we get to know each other. And so you can look at me and be like, wow, she has so many episodes already. But like I started with zero, like by myself, and when I started I sucked because I had no idea what I was doing. But that's how you find your voice is, taking those baby steps, taking that imperfect action.

Speaker 2: 17:36

So I love it.

Speaker 1: 17:37

I love it. I'm sure that that's what you know, that's what you teach. I love that you teach. You mentioned, like younger kids, right, like teenagers and stuff, and the things that we teach kids like those are the same things that I'm teaching adults like it's just, they're just learning it later and they're paying more money for it.

Speaker 2: 17:55

So I love that you are.

Speaker 1: 17:57

You're teaching like the younger generation. You know you can do this like our mindset is so powerful and the impact that we can have is so powerful. So thank you. Now, how can we work with you, like we told us, how we can stay in touch with you, but do you have any like freebies or any paid offers that you'd like to share with us?

Speaker 2: 18:16

So yes, I have a book that if anyone is interested in discovering their purpose again, I'm all I am the Purpose Queen. So I have the seven-day journey to discovering your purpose. You definitely can go on leneesleedscom and order your copy and to someone listening today, the first person to email me, you can get my email right there. I will send a free copy to your first guest that emails me that listens to this. But I also can do focus groups. So if a, a women's club or a club or a ministry or something, wants to do something for their, their group, we can do it in seven days, or I like to do it in seven weeks. That's better. We do a chapter each week. That would be a pay service where I would come in and do the seven-day journey with with the group. So that's something that I can offer as well. Love it? Yeah, you can find all the information through my website and connect with me there.

Speaker 1: 19:24

Awesome and then all of those links are going to be down in the show notes so you can get in touch with lenees. That is amazing. I love the idea of doing like that group, like those small groups. So that's where community happens, that's where that's where church happens. Right, it's in those small groups. So I love that you've taken that and and you just that you're helping women. I love everything that you're doing. I love it, I love it. So, um, all right, before we sign off, do you have any final tips that you want to share with us?

Speaker 2: 19:52

Yeah, the final thing I always say is um, love yourself, love the woman you are while you're working on the woman you get to become. That is just the tip that I try to live by, because some days I'm like whoo, I wake up, I don't like the way I look, I wake up, I don't rule, and then I have to remind myself love yourself right now, while I'm working on the woman I'm yet to become. And so that's what I would encourage everyone listening to this if, if you ever have struggled with with self-love, low self-esteem, or you just have in a moment, love yourself where you're at, because, guess what? Tomorrow is coming.

Speaker 1: 20:30

Yes, and you know what. What you are thinking about is what you're attracting, and so, when you are feeling grateful for your body, when you're feeling grateful for health, when you're feeling grateful for these things, you're going to get more of that and if you're hating on yourself and you're focusing on oh my god, look at the cellulite. Guess what's going to come out more cellulite, because it's what you're thinking of, you know like that's a generic example.

Speaker 1: 20:56

But we, what we focus on is what we attract to ourselves, um, and so I think that's such a big deal, like I want to mention this with like body positivity, positivity. So like I went and got this bathing suit like I'm in Miami, so we wear, you know, a lot of bathing suits and stuff and I had like the lower one, where my belly was out, and I was like I don't know if I like my belly being out, and then I got, and then I got a bathing suit that came up here and I was like you know what, I missed my belly being out. And so I realized that now I love my belly, even though it's like bigger than I wanted to be.

Speaker 1: 21:24

But I love it and you know, I'm working, I'm getting stronger and I'm not focused on oh my god, you look so fat. It's like no, but this body, um, is like. I took me mountain biking, like I've taught, I've learned, like paddle boarding, I've taught myself to do so many things, and so the focus shifts, and so I was like you know what? I kind of missed my belly and my pictures, and so I'm not going to wear this bathing suit anymore like this, you know.

Speaker 2: 21:49

And so you start falling in love with yourself when you're you have to love your body, like Love your body enough to take care of it. Love your body where it's at right now. Right, I have to love it. And then anything that needs to work, that needs working on it, let me love it enough to do that. Why? Because this is the body that's gonna carry me out. So I need my body here so that I can do the work that I wanted to do, and so I need to love on my body. So I need to love my body right now.

Speaker 2: 22:19

I can't, you know, if somebody else has a problem with it. That's their concern, not mine. My only concern is to make sure that I'm doing what I need to do, to make sure that my body can take care of me so that I can do the things that I know that I'm purpose to do. And so it's really again. That's the mind shift thing. Like let me change how I think about my mind, Let me not hate on my body, Let me. Loving my body means loving everything about it and also making sure that I'm taking care of it so that it can take care of me.

Speaker 1: 22:48

Yeah, and then you know what Life gets fun, because when you're not focused on you all the time, you actually focus on what's going on around you and your family and your activities. And like taking breaks and doing things like that.

Speaker 1: 23:00

Like I taught you know, teaching myself how to paddleboard, that translates into confidence in my business, like learning to do those setting the habit of drinking water and then like not drinking soda, and then like not feeling, like, oh my God, like it's not a battle, it's just like, no, I want to drink water. And then those habits translate again back into your business. So there's so much in everything that we do, like you said, everything's connected and, oh my God, I love it. Okay, all right, so I've kept you for a while. We've had such a great conversation. I absolutely love this. We will definitely see each other on the internet. I'll be grabbing all your stuff that I can, and so any final words, and then we sign off.

Speaker 2: 23:43

No, just thank you so much. I appreciate what you're doing and congratulations on your book. I know that it will do well and I know that it will have a huge impact, because if it's anything like the energy that you're given now, I know that it's going to change lives.

Speaker 1: 23:59

Thank you, Thank you. Thank you so much. I really appreciate that. I hope it does change lives, Like that's why I wrote it and I've spent. I wrote it in a few weeks and I spent like two years editing, so this stuff is going to be good. So I really appreciate it and thank you for everything that you do. You are absolutely incredible. I love your energy as well and I just I know we're going to do big things together, Like both of us are going to do big things and we can do big things together. So thank you everyone for listening. This has been wonderful. Make sure you check out Lenees's all of her stuff. Like I said, all of those notes are going to be in the excuse me, all of the links are going to be in the, in the show notes and the comments, wherever it is that you're listening to this or watching this and follow her on social. So we will see you next time. Thanks so much. Bye.