As the days are heating up, so are the opportunities to hear, learn and be inspired by what we are doing here at F.I.A.T.M.. As details unfold this post will reflect pertinent updates.  If you'd like more information regarding event specificity, feel comfortable emailing: [email protected].

May 31 2022     7-9:30PM.    TAYLOR MADE CONSULTING PRESENTS:  @ MEMELLI SPORTS BAR, TEMECULA, CA

June 1 2022.            7AM.                     RIVERSIDE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE INTRODUCTION EVENT

June 4 2022.             9:30-11A,           F.I.A.T.M. LUNCH + LEARN @ GALLERIA AT TYLER, UNIT 2202

June 9 2022                                           GOOD MORNING RIVERSIDE with GREATER CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

June 13 2022                                       LEARNING EDGE LEARNING CENTER PRESENTS KIDS CODING CLASSES (IN PERSON/REMOTE) BEGINNING JUNE 13TH.

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This is a Public Service Announcement. In an effort to continue growing, changing and expanding we at F.I.A.T.M. are working tirelessly in the background to inform our Friends of F.I.A.T.M. up upcoming events, recurring activities, volunteer opportunities and much more!!! Why are we doing this? Because we want you to feel welcome participating in the incredible work we're doing. We are expanding our reach and need all hands on deck. The saying, " A closed mouth doesn't get fed" is true. We are not martyrs. We are warriors making positive impacts one family at a time in our communities. What brought us here won't take us there. What has enabled us to experience breakthroughs, triumphs and victories last week, two years ago is outdated today. We strive to continue evolving and confirming our relevancy. In order to do this we must stretch, change, adapt and innovate. You guessed it! We are hard at work doing that and more. I'm going to ask that if you consider yourself to be a new or old Friend of F.I.A.T.M. that you comment here and let me know you're in or send a quick email to: [email protected] letting me know your availability, interest and/or expertise. 

Check back often as we begin providing advance notice of upcoming events that we are hosting or collaborating on. 

Until next week,

Jacqui Dobens

Jacqui Dobens byline:  Jacqui Dobens has often held the truism that: He/She who has the most friends wins. Because of this you will often find her catching up with old friends, making new friends or coming up with creative ways to do both!

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What is it? You know, the thing. It is typically indescribable. Sometimes you can't put your finger on it. However, if it is missing you miss it. Well, before I share what it is I'll share with you how F.I.A.T.M. exhibits it. If you have ever had the pleasure of speaking with F.I.A.T.M. founder, Kuba Brown you've just experienced it! If you've ever sat in on a recap of recent activities from COO, David Layne you just had a hefty dose of it! If you've ever eavesdropped on an exchange discussing the fundamentals of growth and impact by Advisory Board President, Yundra Thomas you've just run smack in the middle of it! The it factor is known by many things: charisma, personality, joie de vivre and energy.  There is nothing run-of-the-mill when it comes to the it factor. It's been known to open doors that were closed, curried favor, materialized fanciful dreams and much more. Each time I've had the honor and priviledge of speaking, sitting in on or running smack in the middle of a F.I.A.T.M. event, planning session or even breaking bread I have been touched by it's it factor. You see, F.I.A.T.M. is a living and breathing organism. It is predicated upon an intense desire to make a positive impact one family at a time. Not one to rest on laurels, F.I.A.T.M. is committed to increasing it's it factorness (I just made that up)! Whether you are presently helping us officially or as your schedule permits, interested in furthering our cause, supporting us on a consistent basis financially or simply our loudest cheerleader we invite you to up your own it factorness so that we can collaboratively make a greater impact. Keep in mind; what brought us here, won't take us there.  Here are 6 suggestions to help us increase our it factorness. I'd love to hear from you on any that aren't on the list that you'd suggest. Also, let me know which one or two resonate most with you?
1) Empathy. That is walking a mile in someone elses shoes. The inner critic minimizes the importance of this point. I encourage you to silence your inner critic because it makes you more relatable. 2) Good listening skills. Undoubtedly, you've heard the axiom, "You have one mouth and two ears for a reason". True. I like to take it a step further and listen to what is not being said. Sometimes that is more important than what is being shared and is a surefire way to confirm you're providing active listening. 3) Eye contact. Good eye contact sets the stage for seeing someone. It can mean you see what they are saying, you see their point of view, you see inside their soul (mind, will and emotions). A bonus is if you give good eye contact and your cell phone is either out of reach or out of sight. 4) Enthusiasm. You can say excitement. Remember no thing happens until someone gets excited. Enthusiasm actually means God-breathed. 5) Self Confidence. This is tricky because many are other people confidence versus confident in themselves. Self confidence is a muscle that grows each time you keep your word to yourself. 6) Skillful Speaking. Communication is everything. Effective communication or speaking is message given and message received. Ambiguity has no place in skillful speaking. Be clear. Succinct. Concise. Okay. I went way over today in sharing with you about how F.I.A.T.M. has the it factor. If you are interested in helping us further our messaging, feel comfortable reaching out to me at: [email protected]. I'd love to get into a conversation with you and brainstorm. Feel comfortable sharing in the comment section any anecdotal instances that you experienced the it factor of F.I.A.T.M..
Until next week,
Jacqui:~)

Byline: Jacqui Dobens enjoys listening to live music, still needs a shot of liquid courage for karaoke because she feels rusty and secretly yearns to go hiking up the Himalyas.

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​Years ago I remember my sister, Janet saying to me, "It doesn't take all that". I quickly quipped back that it takes that and then some. You, dear reader are getting a sneak peek into my psyche. You see, I've never been the type to run away from difficult, challenging or even the seemingly impossible. I'm a results oriented person. Results and the possibility of results gets me going. In deciding to make a difference, all it takes is all it takes. While I realize that F.I.A.T.M. makes it look easy mentoring our youth, encouraging creative expression to emerging talent, teaching life lessons through sports activities, closing the digital divide with ESTEAM and much more, it is not. An all it takes, is all it takes mentality is necessary. Now, admittedly, those words are not spoken. Instead they are performative especially during challenging times.  There's an old saying, Grist to the mill. I know. I'm an old soul. It means something that is useful for a particular purpose or helps support someone's point of view. So, you see, the adoption of this mindset is critical in making a positive impact in the lives of our youth. 
In an attempt to share a little behind the scenes of F.I.A.T.M. I realize it takes a willingness to express our vulnerabilities. One of our most obvious is in the brand awareness department. Instead of simply stating a challenge, I'm going to go out on a limb and ask you for specific help. Here goes. Deep breath. Okay. It would help us out tremendously if you feel comfortable sharing a link of this blog to your friends, colleagues, peers, family and decision makers that have a heart towards our youth.  We've already tried to simply put the work in hoping that we'll be discovered by decision makers, potential sponsors, potential mentors, school district introductions and much more. Guess what? It hasn't happened on a grand scale....yet. I can often be found sharing the principle that what brought you here won't take you there. Well, it's true. Now, while I'm in the asking mood, I have one more ask for you. I only want you to do this if you are comfortable. Ready? I am! We need introductions to individuals and/or organizations that are in search of wheels-on-the-ground youth and family based organizations to donate their financial resources, company talent pool, and participate in team building sessions. If you are or you know of someone feel comfortable sending me an email:[email protected]. 
Until next week,
Jacqui:~)

​Byline: Jacqui Dobens is known as being the person you want in the foxhole with you because of the challenges she's overcome. She is known to stay calm in moments of chaos. Almost immediately after recognizing the moment has passed she will find something humorous in it.  Her thought being that man is most funny when they are able to laugh at themselves and not take themselves too seriously.


 

In the picture above, F.I.A.T.M. Founder, Yakuba Brown (a.k.a. Kuba Brown) is passionately describing where we are heading. If you’ve ever encountered him you know precisely what I mean. Before you even know what happened, you’re knodding along in absolute agreement that the vision will come to pass. Recently, I’ve been on a quest to refamiliarize myself with the deep intricacies and subtle nuances it takes to see a goal, mission or vision materialze. I’ll spare you the details behind that for now. Suffice it to say, it is highly important to align yourself with an organization that not only knows where its been, but is crystal clear on where it is heading. Highly important. The reason behind that is we all have a certain finite number of hours on this earth plane. It is important what we do with those hours. I don’t know about you, but I’m not interested in chasing good time after futile time. Instead I enjoy knowing that the future looks so good for F.I.A.T.M. that we’ll need shades. Now, lest you think I’m on my pollyanna bandwagon, I am not. It’s going to take work, tapped and untapped resources, newly honed skillsets, excellent communication skills and so much more. Most importantly, it’s going to take you, dear reader. We need help. There is nothing wrong with asking for help. There is something indeed wrong with not asking for help. In not asking for help we are inherently limiting our reach. We are denying the efficacy of the great work that is being done at F.I.A.T.M.. We are hiding our light under a bushel. We are basically letting down our community. We are preventing a success story from being created and told which could create hope in a child and a family. We are blocking our blessings and yours. We are sitting in the bleachers instead of being active participants for change. How can you help? Glad you asked. Here are some pressing needs that we have. Hopefully either you or someone you care about feels comfortable helping us. If as you peruse this list of immediate needs someone comes to mind feel comfortable sending an email to: [email protected]

1. We need all hands on deck. Here’s what that can look like for you: Register to become a volunteer/mentor for a child. We are looking to expand our reach in various schools. In order to accept those requests, we need more people.
2. Introductions. It’s been said that each person knows 150 people. We need to be introduced to our next sponsor, benefactor, supporter, backer or patron. Who’s the next person or organization that you know that would feel comfortable investing in the youth? You know someone. Whoever came to mind first, feel comfortable making an introduction.
3. We need your skillsets. You’d be surprised what a positive impact your natural talents can make in the lives of others. If you have a few extra hours to spare we’d love to conduct an exploratory conversation with you. Some of the skillsets we need right now are: Social Media poster, CRM + database segmentation, video + audio engineering, photography, familiarty with apps like: Canva. Photoshop, MailChimp, Excel, PowerPoint and Slack.

Well, that will do for now. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel comfortable sending an email to: [email protected]. Feel comfortable leaving a comment here on the blog. Looking forward to seeing you next week!


Jacqui: Dobens~)




Byline: Jacqui Dobens has an eclectic shoe collection, loves karaoke (admittedly she’s not very good at it), enjoys discovering the etymology of words and is addicted to BBC detective series.