Young Black CEO Created $60,000 Per Month Business by Making Phone Calls

 

Click to watch the interview with Lawrence Watkins, founder of GreatBlackSpeakers.com.

Ephren Taylor Gives Interview about Bishop Eddie Long Financial Mix-Up

Interview done by Dr. Boyce Watkins 

Quite a few people took notice when Bishop Eddie Long went to YouTube to issue a very direct challenge to young entrepreneur Ephren Taylor over money that Bishop Long felt Taylor to have shaken out of his congregation. According to Bishop Long, Taylor should give $1 million to the members of his congregation who made investments in response to a seminar being offered by Taylor. Long's video seems to imply that Ephren had been unethical and misleading in the way he delivered the information and that people had lost thousands of dollars as a result.

I've never personally met either Bishop Eddie Long or Ephren Taylor, but I watched the Eddie Long video with extreme curiosity. I felt it to be entirely possible that Taylor could have been less than ethical, since pure capitalism tends to put ethics at the bottom of the priority list (legality is not the same as morality, so someone could be unethical while remaining within the boundaries of the law) . At the same time, there was also the possibility that Long's parishioners may not have read the fine print or had a misconception about what it means to invest. Some investors believe that investing means that you are guaranteed to make money. This is far from the truth. You can easily lose everything, so you should make sure you're prepared to stomach the risk before putting up your money.

 

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Sex, Church and the Single Black Sister

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

One of the most intriguing things about the black community is the power of the black church. The church is one of our most powerful and impactful institutions. With the power of the black church comes the scandal that we all know about. Books are written about the things that happen in church that we don't want to talk about, in large part because the black church can be as much of a social institution as a spiritual one.
Sha' Givens has written a book about single black women in the church and the ways that they can achieve their goals without selling their souls. She is also a young black entrepreneur working to make a mark on the world in which she lives. It is for that reason that Sha' Givens is today's Dr. Boyce Watkins Spotlight on AOL Black Voices:

 

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Should Black People Reject Valentine’s Day?

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University – Scholarship in Action 

Most men know how expensive Valentine's Day can get. Someone decided that spending money is somehow a translation to showing love, which is an interesting misguided relationship philosophy. Valentine's Day is one of the most over-hyped holidays known to man, with advertising starting right after Christmas. Any man in a serious relationship is well-aware of the pending doom of his social life if he doesn't flex his wallet at least a little bit on that special day.
According to the National Federation's 2010 Valentine's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, over $14 billion is spent on Valentine's Day related purchases. This is roughly $103 for every single man, woman and child in America. Yes, the hype has real economic consequences.

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S. Tia Brown: Dating a Black Entrepreneur

by S. Tia Brown, Essence.com

First let me say this: I am single. However, just like you don't have to smoke crack to tell "rockheads" don't do it... well, you get the rest.
Second, I'm an avid, calendar-clearing, repeat-watching fan of the "Real Housewives of Atlanta." You know the type. I text my girls during the commercials. I feel like I know the "ins and outs" of the cast intimately. And, occasionally I pass judgment on their decisions.
With those two details out the way, it's time for my third assertion: When it comes to marriage, particularly to an entrepreneur, it can't always be tit for tat. Over the last few weeks I've watched Cynthia Bailey's now husband, Peter Thomas, try to pull out the dagger ripping his heart apart as his business -- their family's bread and butter-- revenue dropped lower than NeNe Leakes' cleavage line. Thomas shared his woes about picking up the pieces. Bailey worried about financing their wedding. Thomas grew angrier about not getting investors. Bailey balled about being owed her investment in his business. Thomas was forced to close his restaurant and rebuild. Bailey cried about not going on a honeymoon. All I kept thinking is, "where dey do dat at?"

 

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