Chris West Jr. owns GetAutomodeals.com, a concierge car-buying experience in Houston, Texas. He talks about how he found his love for cars, and later how he's making money off of that same love. In this episode are also a few nuggets about choosing your circle of support, traveling abroad, and saving money.

Chris is a very driven, disciplined individual whose growing business will surely have him on the map soon. What's your dream career?

How many times have you said "Yes" and regretted it later? Saying "No," can be a POWERFUL thing if you do it right, and it can have a positive impact on your goals. In this podcast, I talk about my new challenge to streamline my efforts by saying "No" to the things that cloud up my world and keep me from my goals.

Don't forget to subscribe via iTunes, Google Play or Stitcher. Oh, and shoot me an email with your thoughts: [email protected]

Terrance Thomas is a writer whose been published on Huffington Post, Afro Punk and Medium. We talk about how he ended up on these huge platforms, and how he's taking his writing to the next level with terrancewrites.com, his own writing portfolio. I met Terrance at one of the Houston Justice Coalition meetings, and followed his musings on Facebook and Twitter ever since then. Here's a brief synopsis of the hour-long conversation that's TOTALLY worth the listen:

-The aftermath of the Trump Election

-How his writing subjects come about

-The Baby Boomer/Millennial Divide

-WAPS (Weak Ass Progressives)

-Blackness

Is it time for you to quit your damn job? Are you not respected/appreciated? Are you not growing anymore? Have you been PLANNING to start your business for years, only to keep it on the back burner? If you answered "Yes" to any of the questions above, THIS is a podcast you need to listen to!

I start off talking about how I made the big JUMP, a quick activity to take inventory of YOUR situation and planning your escape. I highly recommend doing a vision board and hanging it somewhere you'll see it often, so that your thoughts and actions will be guided by your far-reaching goals.

Then I bring in part of a conversation I had with personal trainer and entrepreneur Chris Green, owner of FitFactory Houston. Below is a link to connect with Chris via Facbook. I'll throw up my entire conversation with Chris later this week.

Don't forget to subscribe via iTunes and Google Play!

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/durrel-k.-douglas/id1191878874

https://play.google.com/music/podcasts/portal/u/0#p:id=playpodcast/series&a=101317918

Akua Fayette is an author, artist, activist and entrepreneur full of good advice. In this unedited episode, we talk about her decision to work for herself, the power of words and the importance of finding your passion.

Under the leadership of Nathan Haymer, the Southern University's "Human Jukebox" continues the legacy of those coming before him. Still in his 30's, Haymer who was once a member of the band himself, never imagined coming back and taking the reigns of the institution that inspired his music career in the first place. While he could've boasted about attending the Grammy's, performing for the fight of the century at the request of Floyd Mayweather, or a myriad of other subjects, Mr. Haymer talked about his early years as a band director, gave advice to upcoming music educators and talked about which instruments are in high demand at his band.

In addition to what the public sees when the band performs, as Director of Bands, much of his work is behind-the-scenes administrative stuff like managing his staff and keeping a tight eye on the budget.

A very motivating conversation from a very driven man.

Did you know you could choose your circle of friends? In this episode I talk to one of my friends, TJ Edmond, the 25 year-old owner of Lanespur Staffing Agency about work/life balance, self care and being intentional about choosing who you allow to influence your thoughts and actions. This is part one of a three part conversation with TJ going over a list of topics.

Here's a quick list to think through when doing inventory of your friends list:

1.) What are your goals/resolutions for this year? The next 5 years? The next 10 years?

Here's a blog about creating a vision board if you hadn't thought that far.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-rider/the-scientific-reason-why_b_6392274.html

2.) Over the past couple of weeks, who have you talked to the most over the phone? In person? Make a list and use it for the next items in the list.

3.) Who on your list have you talked about your goals/resolutions?

4.) Who on your list seemed interested during the conversation?

5.) Who on the list discouraged you from your goals or didn't seem to take them seriously?

In the first episode of Waiting to Excel w/Durrel K. Douglas, I show you how to start your own podcast, too! I believe we make our communities stronger by sharing tips and encouraging each other!

I walk through these steps:

1.) Coming up with a concept

2.) Software (audacity.sourceforge.net/download/)

3.) Equipment (My mic https://goo.gl/iahMAH)

4.) Free graphics creation (canva.com)

5.) Make your own website (www.squarespace.com)

I'd love to hear your thoughts by commenting here, or shooting me an email at [email protected]!