Go Forth and Be Great - Invest Fest 2023

Greetings all!  I pray that this article finds you in good health, happiness, and joy.  As I write this article, I think about everything that I envision for my life; wealth, great health, success, peace, abundance, love, prosperity, and so much more.  This is why I attended Invest Fest 2023 in Atlanta the end of August, and to be quite honest, I am still on a high from that conference.

Invest Fest, which is put on and hosted by Earn Your Leisure, is an in-person experience that combines entrepreneurship, pop culture, and entertainment in a festival setting, and this was year number three.  Ultimately, it is about financial literacy, and really building your empire and creating wealth not only for yourself, but for those generations coming after you.  I also attended last year in 2022 and spoke about the event and the speakers including Tyler Perry and Steve Harvey in Podcast Episode #8 entitled “The Sky is NOT the Limit.”  You can check out that podcast episode by clicking here or on Apple Podcasts.

 This year, topics at Invest Fest ranged from Estate Planning, to Investing and Taxes, Real Estate, Building a Business Empire, Artificial Intelligence, Mental Health, Healthcare, Social Media, and much, much more.  There was also a musical performance by Jeezy.

While major gems were dropped by all of the speakers, which included, to name a few Tabitha Brown, Lonzo Ball, Maverick Carter, Ms. Business, Cam Newton, and Humble Lukanga, my absolute favorite was Robert F. Smith.  If you are not familiar with him, please do yourself a favor and google him.  In addition to being the wealthiest black man in America, being worth several billion dollars, he is also a philanthropist and the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, which is a private equity firm.

One of talking points that stuck out for me was when he said that your family and friends may not always be able to understand your dream, but the thing is, it is not their dream to understand.  You still love them, but this is your life.  In a previous podcast episode, I spoke about how people tend to project their own fears and insecurities onto others because they do not see the vision.  But again, the vision was not given to them but to you. 

Think about this.  If you wear prescription glasses and I try them on, I’m not going to be able to see out of those glasses as clear as you can, or possibly at all, because they were created just for your sight, not mine. 

He also spoke about building your skills and habits, and the importance of being around likeminded people and finding mentors.  Being around like-minded people with positive, wealth building mindsets is also super important.  Surrounding yourself with people who have high standards and a positive mindset, and who are constantly elevating and going to the next level, will inevitably affect you in a positive way. 

The other headline speaker for the event, Sean Combs, also known as Puff Daddy or Diddy, also dropped some gems and relayed the story of how getting fired back in the day was the catalyst to push him into creating all that he has created and moving forward to build what he has built.  Had he not been fired he may not have fully realized his potential.  And we all know what he has created since the 1990’s and continues to create and produce.  

This reminded me of a blog article that I wrote a while ago entitled “Delayed Not Denied,” where I recalled the story of the process of purchasing my condo, which you can read by clicking here.  The overall message in that blog article was that oftentimes when certain things happen, we may not see the blessings until later, and in those times all we can do is look back and say thank you.  Sometimes, even when things fall apart, we have to know and believe that something better is on its way. 

Overall, the energy and vibe at Invest Fest were high, and I had an amazing time and met some great people.  Being around like minded, positive, high vibrational people who look like me was absolutely wonderful.  People who, like me, are on a mission to build their empire, create generational wealth, and live a life of abundance, joy, prosperity, peace, and most importantly, good health.

I am super motivated to continue going after all of my goals and dreams, to put in the work and execute, and I encourage you to do the same.  If it has been placed on your heart, it was placed there for a reason, so stay focused and keep going.