Plan With A Purpose

Everything that looks good ain't good for you, and this is this principle also applies when it comes to business. When it comes to deciding whether an upcoming project will be a burden or a blessing, it helps to decide whether or not that endeavor aligns with your purpose and your long-term goals:

"It's so easy to get knocked off your path just because of opportunities that people bring to you. They may sound good at the moment but then you look up one day and you're way off the path that you had."

Surround Yourself With Bosses

You can't pick apples from a banana tree, and you can't expect to get solid business advice from someone who's never started or ran one effectively. That's why Necole says it's important to keep a tribe of experienced bosses around you to help you navigate uncharted territories. According to Necole, this advice came in handy when Will Packer offered her an acquisition deal for xoNecole:

"When I was pursuing an acquisition, I had this huge fear because I didn't know anyone that had ever sold a business before and the only black woman I knew that had sold a business at the time was Lisa Price [of Carol's Daughter]."

Necole said that although it's cool to get advice from your homegirls from time to time, it's also important to consult with mentors who have already pressed past where you are right now.

"Side to side mentorship is super important but I don't think we pursue it as often because we look at mentorship as someone that has been in the business for 'x' amount of years. Sometimes that's really not the case, it could just be pursuing mentors that are in fields similar to you - you guys can have an exchange of information, you can contribute whatever your expertise is and vice versa."

Know Your Audience

When it comes to your business, it's easy to say that "everyone" is your target audience because when it comes to customers who will spend a coin, we don't discriminate. But ultimately, to run a successful business you have to define, understand, and cater to a unique customer who is crazy about your product. For Necole, she found that xoNecole's tribe was comprised of predominantly Black women from Atlanta, so she packed up her things and moved to the big peach. Since then, our readership has quadrupled and she feels more inspired than ever before:

"The Atlanta move was the best move we could have made for the brand, that's where our audience is."

Don’t Forget About Mind & Body Maintenance

One thing Necole doesn't lack is body, child, just thinking about her makes me feel like I need to hit a few squats. But according to her, her bomb body and ferocious abs didn't come without hard work and discipline, both qualities that have helped her along her business journey as well.

"When I went into my fitness journey, that's when xoNecole started to really take off in terms of me pouring what I was learning from fitness and getting in the gym every day and the discipline it takes getting up at 5 am every morning to get your cardio in before work, getting your meals in on time."

To Necole, working out isn't a chore, issa gift; one that she takes full advantage of every damn day.

"As an entrepreneur, our whole day is a hustle and grind, and there is no space for things that fill us up and for me its fitness."

Put It On Paper 

The Lord told us that if we have a vision, we should write it down and make it plain and this phrase is more than just some scriptural mumbo jumbo that your grandmother used to say, it's big facts. A little over a year ago, I wrote in a personal journal that I wanted to be paid to write. Today, I'm a full-time freelancer who works for one of the women who inspired me to be a journalist in the first place. Little did I know, only years before that Necole was somewhere writing intentions that helped my vision become a reality. Necole explained:

"I used to set intentions every morning. I would write out exactly what I wanted to happen. The day I started doing that was January 2016 and one of the things I wrote that day was 'You will receive a huge opportunity today.' And that's the day that Will Packer emailed me. I wake up every morning and I write down exactly everything, and I'm detailed. If I want 2 million new readers tomorrow, I write that down."