Tamara Thompson: Founder of Serious Take Productions
By Cheval John
Downtown Houston, Courtesy of Vallano Media, LLC
Tamara Thompson is the founder of Serious Take Productions, a company that helps entrepreneurs how to share about their business through storytelling.
Normally when a person wants to be an entrepreneur, most family members and close friends will talk them out of it.
They would tell the person, “be realistic, find a 9-5 work that will give you a stable pay check.
Tamara’s family told her the opposite and let her know that she could make a career as a film maker.
Tamara thought that she could not make a career in film making and went into the traditional working world.
However, she understood that she could make a living as a filmmaker and her company is now making 6-figure income.
In this episode, you will hear:
What led Tamara to focus on her true calling as a film maker
The lesson she learned after her major client went in a different direction that caused Tamara to lose a major source of income in the early stages of her company
How she did not allow obstacles stop her from completing her first major documentary that led to the growth of her business
Website:www.serioustakeproductions.com
Facebook:www.facebook.com/serioustakeproductions
Who would you like to be a guest on What’s The Word?
You can leave your comment below
Danielle Watson: Host of “The Danielle Daily”
By Cheval John
The first time I interviewed Danielle Watson on What’s The Word?, she had created a business called “The Purse Process” which launched her into “fame” and gave her the opportunity to become a TEDx Speaker
She had made appearances on podcasts like Entrepreneur On Fire.
Since then, she reinvented herself as the host of “The Danielle Daily” and became a new author.
She returned to chat about her new book, “Dear Self, I Love You! Keep Going!: 365 Inspiring Notes from My Bittersweet Year of Heartbreak and Healing.”
In this episode, you will hear:
How Danielle came up with the idea for the book
How Facebook Live led her to start “The Danielle Daily” show
How businesses can use livestreaming to build a loyal customer base
Her answer to the question, “If she had an opportunity to spend one day with someone she admires past or present”
Links:
Website: www.danielle-watson.com
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/thedanielledaily
Who would you like to be a guest on What’s The Word?
You can leave your comment below
Upcoming Livestreaming Recording That Will Be Simulcast on Facebook Live:
January 17th: Annett Bone 3 p.m. central time
Using Values As A Standard For Business
By Cheval John
I am trying something new in 2017 for Vallano Media, LLC.
Every Saturdays, I will be putting together a recap of What’s The Word? where you will see the show notes from each episode.
Today’s recap is the episode with the guest of honor, Dr. Betty Uribe.
Dr. Uribe shared about her upcoming book, Values: The Secret To Success In Business and Life.
The show was recorded first on the company’s facebook live page via the huzza.io live video platform before converting into an audio format to air on blogtalkradio.
You will hear about how she had to make a difficult decision to move to the United States with her mother and siblings
You will also hear about how people close to Dr. Uribe envisioned her dining with the most powerful people on the face of the earth.
And why she believes that having true values will allow anyone to be successful in their businesses and lives.
Video snippet of the interview with Dr. Betty Uribe:
Full podcast episode of the interview with Dr. Betty Uribe:
Links to Dr. Betty Uribe’s website and social media pages:
Website: http://drbettyuribe.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DrBettyUribeValues
Instagram: drbettyuribe
Twitter: @DrBettyUribe
Upcoming live shows on BlogTalkRadio for this week:
January 12th at 2 p.m. eastern, 1 p.m. central: Tamara Thompson
January 13th at 1 p.m. eastern, noon central Ai Zhang
Who would you like to be featured on What’s The Word?
You can leave your comment below.
New Year’s Goals for 2017
By Cheval John
As we are into the new year, I want to reflect a bit on 2016.
2016 was regarded to some as one of the worst years ever.
They were a lot of tragedies that occurred that everyone of us wished did not happened.
Others will tell you that 2016 was a time of growth in their personal and business lives.
I am in the second boat because I have grown a lot in my business career and discovered some history here in Houston.
And the possibilities of live streaming has allowed me to record my show, What’s The Word? in front of a live audience via my Facebook page.
Of course, I had to deal with the challenges of working at a coffee shop while growing my business.
But those challenges did not stop me from producing content that solved the problems of my audience.
I will let you know that I don’t believe in New Year’s Resolutions because people will break those resolutions in less than 3 weeks.
However, I will tell you my New Year’s goals:
1. To contiue to provide value to my audience on a daily basis here and on my social media channels.
2. To finally have an office (co-working space) where I can fully operate my company.
3. To continue to surround myself with people who will uplift me to be my best self and also give me constructive criticism.
4. To continue to stay away from toxic people who will try and bring me down.
5. To attend as many conferences as possible like Content Marketing World, Podcast Movement and Summit Live UK
6. To speak my mind more due to the bulls*** I see
7. To achieve my financial goals for my company
8. To interview Thalia, Richard Branson Ciamhie McCrory and Cathy Hackl on my show
I truly believe that many of you will have an awesome 2017 because you have put in the hard work and dedication into your business and careers.
So let’s make 2017 the best year ever.
Side Note: I will be blogging everyday for the next two weeks about the top 10 restaurants and coffee shops in Houston in anticipation of Super Bowl 51
Three Restaurants To Visit During Super Bowl 51
By Cheval John
In the Houston area, they are thousands of restaurants and coffee shops that serve the residents that call this city home.
The interesting thing is it will take a lifetime to visit all of the restaurants in the fourth largest city in the United States of America.
The reason is that most coffee shops and restaurants don’t last for more than five years.
Every year there is a new restaurant opening within the Houston area.
And with the Super Bowl set to take place in less than a week, the city of Houston are prepared to showcase what they have to offer.
According to Visit Houston.com, an estimated two million people will descend here for the biggest event of the year.
The city has changed dramatically since hosting the Super Bowl in 2004 with the expansion of the train system and the addition of discovery green park.
Plus, the convention district has renovated in the last couple of years with the addition of new restaurants, the new marriot marquis houston hotel and the partnership tower.
With that being said, people will want to know where are the best places to eat during the super bowl festivities.
Here are some of the best restaurants and coffee shops that you will enjoy while you are here during the Super Bowl.
These restaurants and coffee shops make this list because they are houston based and some have a strong social media presence.
ToutSuite
ToutSuite opened in 2011 with the intention of changing the east side of downtown houston.
They are located at 2001 Commerce St. near Minute Maid Park.
The company was founded by Sandy Tran and Thuy-My Luong.
ToutSuite has one of the best selections for coffee and food items.
What is truly cool about them is that they are consistently busy because most of their customers are college students who are doing their homework or studying.
Another aspect that makes them very unique is the way how they engage their audience on social media.
Their social media team consist of Roshan Bhatt, marketing coordinator and the company’s co-owner.
When I tell you that their social media is excellent, I mean it.
Each of their content on Instagram averages 400 likes and people always leave a comment.
The key driver as to why they are always getting engagement from their fans is because they consistently posts their content everyday.
Take a look at this post:
And this post here:
Though the co-owners had no intention of expanding their business, they opened a second location at 303 Memorial City because of a need to bring a coffee shop there.
And they are planning to add a co-working space to their company because they see a need for small business owners to collaborate on work related projects.
If you have the opportunity, you should visit ToutSuite.
806 Main Kitchen
This restaurant is located inside the J.W. Marriot Downtown, which opened in 2014.
The hotel occupies the historic “Carter Building,” Houston’s first skyscraper which was built in 1910.
806 Main Kitchen has a variety of food items that represents the city of Houston.
The interesting thing is that most of their customers are business professionals who work in downtown houston.
The chefs get the orders finished in a timely manner that makes it easy for the workers to enjoy their lunch hour and recharge before they go back to work.
So when you walk inside during the busy lunch hour, you will see a lot of business professionals enjoying their break time from the daily stress of working for oil and gas companies.
The only thing I would advise is to find out from the staff if the Main Kitchen will be open to anyone due to the Super Bowl festivities.
Zabak’s Mediterranean Cafe
Zabak’s Cafe has been in business since 2006.
They are located at 5901 Westheimer Road near the Galleria Mall.
The company has one of the best mediterranean foods in Houston.
What I love about this restaurant is that the ownership take care of their employees and they treasure their customers.
And their story is unique as well.
The owner’s parents immigrated to the Houston area from the Middle East and opened a restaurant that catered to other immigrants.
They have been featured in the Houston Chronicle and made Travel and Leisure’s Best Sandwiches List.
When you walk inside Zabak’s restaurant, you will sense a welcoming atmosphere that will make you feel more relaxed.
And they have no intention of expanding because they believe that they are in the right location to be extremely successful with their business.
It takes about an hour to get to their location via the Houston Metropolitan Bus 82 Route.
However, the travel will be worth it because you will enjoy their mediterranean food.
If you are staying in the Galleria area, you should stop by Zabak’s Mediterranean Cafe.
And if you need to know where else to go around downtown during the Super Bowl, you should check out,
downtownhoustonlive.com, a video guide created by Annette McBride and Laura Lea Waldusky to give visitors a video tour of what to do while they are here for the super bowl.
Did I miss any restaurants and coffee shops in this article?
What are your favorite places to eat and drink while you are in Houston?
You can leave your comment below
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