Thanksgiving Marks the Beginning of a New Chapter

After running 13.1 miles. I did it!

My gratitude list for Thanksgiving is long this year! All the hard work, determination and persistence has paid off:

I ran the Women´s Half Marathon in St. Pete, FL. on Sunday November 20, and finished in 2.5 hours despite running it with an injury. It was one of the most emotional, satisfying and validating experiences in my life, and I’ve had a few …

I sold my book Diario del éxito (Success Diaries), based on my blog. It will be released in Spanish in 2012.

I became the Guide (writer and editor) of Consejos de mamá on About.com, of the NY Times. The site is doing really well and I will continue to run it. 

I was contributing writer for Mamiverse, the online hub for Latina moms and their daughters and was able to write and publish in English articles that were heartfelt and reached and helped a lot of readers. I thank my editor Sylvia Martinez for being so easy to work with and so much fun to talk to. I will continue to support her and Rene Alegría, founder of Mamiverse. 

With Emilio Sánchez, at VOXXI

And, most recently (yesterday) I accepted the position as managing editor of the Women’s Lifestyle section on VOXXI, the Hispanic Voice of the 21^st Century, leadered by Emilio Sánchez, former Bureau Chief of the news agency EFE in Miami. It is an exciting project in which I will design, create and manage the content for Latina women in English. I will also do my own writing. I could never give that up! I will give VOXXI my all, as I do with every challenge I take on, and I hope you will follow me there, as well as the writers and bloggers I will manage on that site.

I am very thankful to all of you who have followed this blog since the very beginning. It is time for me to close this (blogging) chapter of my life and career and invite you to join me on the next one at VOXXI. I will not have the time or energy to devote to writing on multiple sites, but my content on VOXXI will continue to be heartfelt and real. 

I am grateful, and I continue to write a gratitude list daily and suggest you do too. It’s been a trip -a difficult but rewarding one- and I know its not over. Not till the day I die.

Happy Thanksgiving!

If you enjoy this blog, follow me on Facebook or Twitter. Lorraine C. Ladish is the author of 16 books and an expert Latina mom, now also the managing editor of the Women´s Lifestyle section at VOXXI.

6 Principles for Success

Lorraine C. Ladish (left) with Mercedes Soler at CNN

Thanks to those of you who sent me tweets and messages during and after my apperance on CNN en español. On December 22 I will be back on the set to discuss more Latina mom issues.

In Spanglishbeauty I’ve listed the beauty products I used that day, and I’m grateful to all the brands that sent me their best treatments and makeup to help me look and feel radiant.

Following previous posts in which I state that perseverance breeds success as you understand it, I want to share a few tips that help me stay on track.    

• Even when you don’t see results, keep on taking steps towards your goal.
• If you think: “but nothing is happening”, relax! You don’t know what’s going on. You may have sent out a résumé months ago and they may be considering it today.
• Everything worthwhile takes time. Even pregnancy is 9 months long. If it´s shorter, that´s not a good thing.
• The more difficult life’s challenges, the better. If you overcome them, you will be much stronger than if it had all come easy.
• When you reach your goals, don’t forget those who helped you along the way.  
• Be grateful daily for every little good thing in your life, no matter how small.

If you enjoy this blog, follow me on Facebook or Twitter. Lorraine C. Ladish is the author of 16 books and an expert Latina mom. 

Lorraine C. Ladish on CNN en Español

On Monday November 14, I will be, for the second time, on CNN en español – Notimujer, interviewed by Emmy-award winning journalist Mercedes Soler. The program is aired live, from 12 midday to 1 pm, Miami time.

The subject of the interview will be my book Volver a empezar (Starting Over) and finding love again when you are a divorced or separated mom.

Of course it is wonderful to be able to reach out to my readers through a TV network, especially because I know you follow me from different countries. Many of my readers are in Spain, Mexico and the U.S, but I also have readers in Argentina, Peru, Chile, Ecuador and Greece, and other places I´ve never been to.

The magic of the Internet is that through Consejos de mamá, Mamiverse, Diario del Éxito, Success Diaries and, more recently, SpanglishBeauty, I am able to reach readers from all over the world.

I am very grateful to every single one of you who write to me and for all of my followers on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks to you all I live my dream every day, which is to make a living of connecting with others through my writing. 

Lorraine C. Ladish is the bilingual published author of 16 books and the blogs Success Diaries and Diario del Éxito. She is also an expert Latina Mom.

Writing a Blog to Change Your Life

With my little one

Entering the tunnel

I launched Succes Diaries in order to keep myself going during tough times that included a recession, unemployment, divorce and eventually, bankruptcy. If my entries helped others who may be facing similar issues, so much the better.

I started blogging a few times a week, while I strived to find writing gigs and resolved financial and personal challenges. I started this blog in English and then decided to write it in Spanish too, as Diario del Éxito, which is now also at Diario del Éxito at Hola.com, which has helped me reach more readers.

Always looking forward

An Internet entrepreneur noticed what I was doing and hired me to write paid blog posts, and that’s how I started to learn SEO (search engine optimization). Shortly after, another company hired me to write SEO content for websites, which taught  me even more about writing for the Internet. I had to reduce my Success Diaries postings to two a week, as I again got more paid work.

When I applied to be a writer and editor for Consejos de mamá (Mom Recommends) at About.com of the NY Times Co, I was already fluent in SEO and writing for the web, but the application process taught me even more. When I was chosen to manage that website, I understood it was a wonderful chance to keep on learning on the job - HTML, SEO, key words, linking and social media presence - while writing about something I’m passionate about: motherhood.

A recent girls-only vacation

In the meantime, I wrote a book based on this blog, which will be released in February of 2012, by ediciones Obelisco. I am also a weekly contributor for Mamiverse, the online hub for Latina moms, in English, and will soon be up and running as a collaborator for a new platform for Latinos: VOXXI. Another project will soon be launched with two other wonderful writers I’ve met on the way to follow my dreams, and there are more in the works.

The light at the end of the tunnel
In short, something I started just to keep my spirits up – this blog – helped me create a platform on the Internet and a following that has resulted in my professional reinvention and success. I was able to adapt to the Internet in order to, once again, make a living doing what I love: writing.

The global crisis is still there. Many are still unemployed and confused, as I was. I look back and I recall how difficult it is to get out of bed in the morning when you´ve lost it all.

If that is you now, don´t despair. Focus daily on something that lifts your spirits and do it consistently, while you look for a way to overcome your struggles. Life goes on whether you fight for your dreams or not, and I hope that one day you will look back as I do now and think: “I don´t know how I did it, but it was well worth the fight.”

Now I only write weekly entries in Success Diaries, because I am so busy with my work, but I won´t stop posting, because I know from my stats that there are people who still find inspiration here, even if only to take one more step towards their goals.

The engine of my life

Thank you for following me on this crazy rollercoaster called life!

Some of my articles on Mamiverse.com that may inspire

From Middle Class to Foodstamps: A Latina Mom´s Tale. Please read and share. There may be other women out there who don´t look like they need the help. But, you´d be surprised at how many are still struggling.

A Latina´s Journey to Bulimia and Back. This was the subject of my first book, published in 1993 and still in print. I hope it helps other sufferers and their families.

After a Lifetime of Searching, I Found My Tribe. On growing up bicultural and bilingual. I am proud of my mixed roots and strive to instill this pride in my kids.

A Child´s Mantra. The lessons I learn from my kids.

If you enjoy this blog follow me on Facebook or Twitter. Read my articles on Mamiverse.

Diario del Éxito (Success Diaries) will be published in book form in February 2012 by ediciones Obelisco.To read about my books: www.lorrainecladish.com