The Resilience Roadmap: From Homeless to Hopeful

 Join Nelieta Hollis on "One Degree to Victory" as she tackles the challenging topic of being "unstably housed." Drawing from personal experience, Nelieta explores the struggles faced by mothers living in the precarious space between having a home and being on the streets. This powerful episode sheds light on the following: 

• The reality of living in motels and its impact on families
• Practical strategies for maintaining stability and hope in difficult circumstances
• The importance of focusing on "how" to move forward rather than dwelling on "why"
• Effective goal-setting techniques for overcoming adversity

Nelieta offers a beacon of hope, empowering listeners with the mindset and tools needed to rise above their circumstances. Tune in and learn how one degree of change can lead to a remarkable transformation.

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Chapters

• 0:14 Empowering Moms Through Homelessness Struggles
• 15:16 Social Media Support for Victory

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:14

We're about to talk about something that hits close to home being unstably housed. That is the space between having a place to call your own and being out on the streets. It's a struggle that too many moms are facing, and it's time we shine a light on it. According to HUD, that's the Department of Housing and Urban Development. For those of you who don't know, being unstably housed means you can't afford a home, but you can scrape together enough to stay in a motel. Now, I don't know about you, but as a mom who's been there and done that, let me tell you most families do not consider a motel room a home. I love this quote from the Center for Transforming Lives in Texas. I love this quote from the Center for Transforming Lives in Texas.

Speaker 1: 1:12

Motels are often a short term solution and add to the stress and instability during a family's journey through homelessness. That is the gospel, truth and experience when facing housing insecurity. Now, you all know that I've walked this path, and so I know the reality of the struggle. I know the struggles of trying to get your babies to school on time when you're clear across town. I know the hurt and prayers of your heart when you have to leave the little ones in a strange place while you hustle to work. That is, if you're even blessed enough to have work, and I'm all too familiar with the mental health roller coaster and the frustrations that come with it. But here's the thing, beautiful souls, this is what One Degree to Victory is all about. We're not here to dwell in the darkness. One Degree to Victory is the only podcast that empowers single women through the trauma of homelessness. Using my experiences to offer hope, practical strategies and the mindset shifts needed to rise. We're here to find the light, that one degree that's going to lead us to victory. Because that's what we do, moms we rise, we conquer and we thrive. Moms, we rise, we conquer and we thrive. So today we're going to dig into this topic and find ways to empower moms who might be going through it right now. I am your hostess with the mostest, nelita Hollis. I want to welcome you to Ways to Win Wednesday on One Degree to Victory, the podcast that supports single women through the trauma of homelessness, helping them heal and thrive for the betterment of their families.

Speaker 1: 2:51

It's time to lock in, load up and lean in. That means reduce your distractions, gather your precious energies mental and emotional and direct those energies to today's topic strategic movement. Energies to today's topic strategic movement. All right, beautiful souls. Now, before we begin the day today, let's see what's in view at One Degree to Victory.

Speaker 1: 3:14

September is coming in hot, with Better Breakfast Month and Self-Care Awareness Month, among others. These are two of my favorites. My kids are finicky about their breakfast. They do not like cereal for breakfast, and I've seen a box of cereal last a month in our household. So I'm usually on the lookout for ways to save time and money while keeping their morning meals flavorful and filling, and so that's why this September's freebie is a whole week's worth of breakfast ideas to keep your family fed and happy.

Speaker 1: 3:46

Bringing it back a little closer, fourth Sunday is Selfie Sunday. Our guest conversational episode will be dropping at noon, and now I want to extend to our constant listeners a special invitation. You all know I've been on this journey, from teaching to podcasting, all to lift up my sisters, my moms, going through the trauma of homelessness. One I've discovered on my journey is Pink Potential Toastmasters. That's a resource. Every second and fourth Friday at 6 pm is where I connect, learn and expand my horizons. Toastmasters is all about empowering you to become the best communicator and leader you can be. It's where we turn our stories into power, our voices into change and our dreams into reality. So, my beautiful, beautiful souls, constant listeners, my strong, resilient queens, I'm inviting you to come through, find your voice and I want you to rise. Learning how to speak your truth changes your circumstances. The Peak Potential Toastmaster meetings are free to attend and the registration link is in the description.

Speaker 1: 5:02

All right, beautiful souls, now that we've taken a peek at what's coming up in September and extended that special invitation to peak potential Toastmasters, I want to shift gears and dive in today's main topic. We're about to explore something that you all know is close to my heart and it's crucial for your journey of expansion and empowerment. As we transition from talking about our upcoming events and opportunities, I want you to keep your spirit of self-improvement and family stability alive, because we're going to discuss making strategic moves and understanding the power of setting the right kind of goals for your life life. I quoted this earlier. Motels are often a short-term solution and add to the stress and instability during a family's journey through homelessness. Now I want to use it as a springboard to discuss strategy and productivity in the face of adversity when you're grappling with housing insecurity. The primary focus should be on working toward a long-term solution secure, stable housing that minimizes additional stress. This principle, this setting strategic goals and movement, is applicable to anyone moving through adversity.

Speaker 1: 6:34

When you're journeying through adversity, there comes a point when you have to realize that constantly asking why doesn't serve you. It's going to come a time where you're going to have to shrug your shoulders and shift your focus. You're going to have to shift it away from the questions like why am I going through this? Why did this happen? Why are we here? Why this, why that? These questions, while natural, can and will keep you stuck.

Speaker 1: 6:57

The truth is constant listeners and beautiful souls. Knowing the why doesn't always matter in the moment. Sometimes the why won't reveal itself until much later and you have to be able to move and get to that much later. What matters right now, in the thick of your struggle, is the how. How am I going to get myself and my family out of this situation? To get myself and my family out of this situation? This is where your energy needs to be directed. Now, don't get me wrong. There are appropriate times for asking and waiting for the why.

Speaker 1: 7:38

I know, because this was hard for me to overcome, because I so desperately wanted to make sense of my losses and to understand the reason that I was in these circumstances, living in this one room, extended stay with my kids, you know, with three degrees. It was as if I thought that by understanding I could somehow go back and change the outcome of the now. But, constant listeners and beautiful souls, you can never go back. You can only stay where you are or move forward, and the purpose of this podcast is to get you to understand, to light a fire in you, to expose the light that you can move forward. I was jolted out of this mindset one night during prayer and I heard it. I heard it clear as day the why doesn't matter right now. What matters is that you're here in this moment and you have to figure out how to move forward. It was a profound realization that shifted my perspective and propelled me into action. So, constant listeners, when you find yourself caught in the cycle of why and you will remember this your energy is better spent on the how.

Speaker 1: 9:10

How can you take one step forward today? How can you leverage your strengths to overcome this obstacle? How can you turn this challenge into an opportunity for expansion when you focus on the how, you're not just surviving, you're strategizing. You're not just enduring, you're evolving. And that, my beautiful souls, is the essence of turning adversity into advantage, of transforming your struggles into stepping stones toward your victory. Now we've explored the power of focusing on the how rather than the why, and next I want to share with you goal setting strategies that can help you navigate adversity.

Speaker 1: 9:57

You're going to have to be intentional about creating stability, and two types of goal setting strategies that I found useful, that are particularly important in this endeavor, are what I call heart goals and smart goals. These two goal setting approaches work hand in hand to create a balanced and effective success strategy. Heart goals speak to strategic life progression. These are the goals that align your efforts with your deepest values and aspirations. Smart goals address productivity. They help with getting things done, giving you a clearer plan and a way to measure your progress. I think of it like this Heart goals represent your ultimate destination, right the end goal. Smart goals, on the other hand, serve as the specific directions guiding you toward that destination. We're here right now, in this moment, to understand the difference between those two types of goals and learn how to balance them.

Speaker 1: 11:04

Let's start with my favorite the heart goals. So heart stands for healthy, empowered, aligned, realistic and time bound. The healthy focuses on your overall well-being and joy factor. Is it something that you want to do? Empowered, the goal. Does the goal that you want, your destination, your ultimate dream, give you the opportunity to showcase your strength? Is it aligned? Does it match with your core values, the things that you love, the things that showcase your strength? Is it aligned? Does it match with your core values, the things that you love, the things that you hold dear? Is it realistic, within your power to achieve? Remember, the more you level up, the closer you get to your goal. And finally, is it time bound? Is there a clear frame for you to experience success? And I think, for the most part, constant listeners.

Speaker 1: 11:53

A majority of us have heard about SMART goals those specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound objectives that keep us on track. This is where the balance began. So let's. Here's a SMART goal for achieving housing stability within a year Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time bound. So a specific goal might be save $3,000 for a security deposit for the first month's rent. Is it measurable? So how am I going to do that? I'm going to set aside $250 a month for my income. Is it achievable? I can achieve this by cutting non-essential expenses right To free up $250 per month. So eating out a lot, whatever your habits are. I know I stopped getting my nails and feet done. I did, I did, I stopped that a long time ago and I miss it. Is it relevant? Does it directly contribute to obtaining your stable housing? That relevancy should tie directly to your heart goal. And is it time bound? Does complete your savings goal within 12 months, right? So it's important to understand that these goal setting skills are transferable to any challenging situation or goal that you want to receive that you want to achieve.

Speaker 1: 13:13

The beauty of heart and SMART goals is their versatility. You're not limited to just one SMART goal for each heart goal. In fact, you can and should have multiple SMART goals working together to achieve your larger heart goal. Have multiple SMART goals working together to achieve your larger heart goal. This way, you're able to break down your big dreams into manageable, actionable steps. If you're in a safe space and you're able to close your eyes and, on the canvas of your imagination, paint the life that makes your heart sing. Imagination, paint the life that makes your heart sing. What does it look like? How does it feel? The vision that you're thinking about right now, that vision right there, that's your heart goal. Now open your eyes and write down one small step, one smart goal you can take today to move toward that vision.

Speaker 1: 14:17

I want to leave you with this thought Whatever adversity you're experiencing housing insecurity, job insecurity, financial insufficiency, family drama, whatever it is that causes dread in your heart, hopelessness and despair it is up to you to bring light to that darkness. Light your candle of hope. I think that's going to be a podcast episode. Light your spirit candle of hope. Sis, it's your actions, your movement that drives the darkness away, so that you can see your way, whether it's the stepping stone in front of you or a segment of the path laid before you, whether it's the traps in the path or the distractions on the sidelines, my God, get up today and light your spirit candles of hope.

Speaker 1: 15:16

Don't forget to go to our Facebook, instagram and TikTok, like and follow and share it, because I'd like that. Thank you to the beautiful souls who give their financial support to One Degree to Victory, because that support is helping to keep me in this space as I make the hard parts of life just a little easier to bear. Another awesome way to show your support is by leaving a five-star review on Apple or Spotify. Until next time, beautiful souls, this is Marita Hart on One D, going to be the big girl reminding you to love yourself a little more than you did yesterday. I love y'all. I gotta go.