Shaun Robinson

TV Host • Author • Producer • Motown Gal

Hidden Heroes

I am so honored to be chosen as one of CBS's Hidden Heroes! The show spotlights celebrities who are working to improve lives through their philanthropic work. We spent the day filming at my house and the crew interviewed two of my mentees. Was an amazing day! 

Being interviewed my CBS Hidden Heroes

Being interviewed my CBS Hidden Heroes

The Empowered Girl

What an amazing day! My new foundation  - the S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls - gave its first grant to Detroit-based charity, Alternatives for Girls, which helps rescue girls from human trafficking. The day was kicked off by a panel discussion titled, "The Empowered Girl: How NOT to be a Victim of Human Trafficking. An audience of girls and young women were in attendance and heard important advice from women who are on the front lines fighting human trafficking, including survivors who shared their powerful stories. The event, which was held at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, was sponsored by the Ford Motor Company Fund.  

Presenting the grant to Alternatives for Girls

Presenting the grant to Alternatives for Girls

#savingourgirls

Mykonos

On the second day of my birthday vacation in Mykonos, we took a combination walking/bus tour to see as much of the island as possible. 

One of my favorite things to see up close were the iconic 16th century windmills that the farmers used to mill wheat. 

 

Windmills of Mykonos  

Windmills of Mykonos  

Loving my Grecian birthday vacation! 

Santorini

We finally arrived! After an Uber to the airport (first car didn't show up), a flight from LA to NY, then NY to Athens and then from Athens to Santorini, then a shuttle to our hotel...we are kicking off my birthday vacation! My mom Joanne and sister-in-law Carolyn are the traveling trio.

So wonderful to spend this time with family. Our hotel is right on the beach against the Mediterranean Sea. Simply beautiful! 

Ready to hit the beach! 

Ready to hit the beach! 

My Birthday Vacation

Today I am embarking on a journey. It is so hard to leave because I want to stay connected to what is happening in our society surrounding the senseless violence we have seen. However, God made things called birthdays as a reminder that our time is finite and to find the joy in each day. So...Where in the world is Shaun going for her #birthdayvacation? 

 

Can you guess? 

Can you guess? 

Empowering Girls

I have been so overwhelmed with JOY these past couple of weeks because I finally launched a passion project of mine! It's called the S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls. It's my new non-profit that I formed to empower girls and young women. It is a grant-making foundation that will support small, grass-roots charities that are doing work in five key areas of girls' issues: (S)TEM, (H)EALTH, (A)RTS, (U)NITY and (N)EIGHBORHOODS.

I truly feel that if we invest in girls, we will empower her to change the world! I will be sharing more about the S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls in the coming weeks so, go to our website to get more information: shaunfoundationforgirls.org. And th…

I truly feel that if we invest in girls, we will empower her to change the world!

I will be sharing more about the S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls in the coming weeks so, go to our website to get more information: shaunfoundationforgirls.org. And thank you for your support! 

I truly feel that if we invest in girls, we will empower them to change the world!

I will be sharing more about the S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls in the coming weeks so, go to our website to get more information: shaunfoundationforgirls.org.  And thank you for your support! 

Getting out of our own way

My mother has always taught me to have faith and that "All is Well'.

That is oftentimes a very difficult philosophy to have, especially in these changing times. Fear can keep us immobile in its grips. Fear can lead us to some habits that sabotage our growth. I read that we may know that we are doing self-destructive things because we feel that we don't deserve love. We become involved with people who don't have our best interests at heart or we abuse our bodies or just neglect our own needs.

We can, no doubt, see that we are getting in our own way. But, we have to have faith in a power much greater than us and we have to step-aside and let that power in. But, sometimes we don't want to let go. We'll do the same thing over and over again and keep ourselves stuck because we fear change. But, once we let go, we can realize that there is power greater than us - we can have a spiritual awakening.

Someone once said, "we possess a gift and that gift is FAITH. Faith in our ability to change and grow. They said, that we are children of God. "All the creative power of the universe streams through us, if we don't block it."

 

Bibiana

I met an extraordinary young lady recently at a fundraiser held at the home of my friend. Her name is Bibiana. She is 17-years-old and was born in Tanzania. In her country, there are witch doctors who believe albinos possess magical powers. When she was only 9-years-old, some men broke into Bibiana's house where she and her sister were sleeping. The next thing that happened was simply horrendous. While one of the men held Bibiana down, the other cut off her leg and part of her fingers presumably to use in some potion or ritual that they believed would give them the powers they felt albinos possessed. They were also after Bibiana's sister but, the screams woke others in the house and the men fled. 

Bibiana survived that attack but, other albinos in Tanzania aren't so lucky. Bibiana was flown to the United States to be fitted for a prosthesis courtesy of the organization, African Millennium Foundation. They are doing amazing work helping Albinos and educating people about how they are mistreated in their homeland. Hope you can check out the work they are doing. ~Shaun

 

 

Your Goals are Your Own

If you follow me on social media, you know that I love to share inspirational quotes with my friends. I get these quotes from all different sources - my mom, from the gazillion inspirational books that I have, various social media sites and many times they will just pop into my head.

I just came across one that I thought was very cool and wanted to share with you. It is attributed to "Zero Dean" and I think it has a great message that will resonate with anybody who struggles to achieve their goals but, who gets frustrated along the way.

"Never give up on what you desire in life just because someone else appears to a have an easier time getting what they desire or is making progress more quickly than you are. 

Remind yourself as necessary, that life is not a competition and that some people will always make progress more quickly than others. That's life.

But, your life, your circumstances and your goals are your own.  Don't let the simple fact that others are working on and achieving their goals deter you from working on and achieving your own."

Isn't that powerful? When I read it, I thought that it was a great message because, let's face it...we often measure our success based on what others have and how quickly they got it. But, the author of that message is right...life is not a race. At the end of the day, when we look over our life, it's not going to be about whether someone else got more. THEIR success has nothing to do with you at all. Keep focused. Keep working hard and keep your eye on YOUR prize.

Just Bloom

"A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms."

This is one of my favorite "Ladies Empowerment" quotes. 

I think it's so important for women to be able to compliment each other and lift one another up without being in competition with one another. Like flowers in a garden, each one is beautiful and each one has something unique to offer. Together, they make an amazing, glorious and radiant display.

I love seeing other women achieve their dreams. I love it when a girlfriend is successful in her job, relationship or any personal goals that she has set for herself.  I've learned that it doesn't diminish me or my accomplishments in any way. In fact, it inspires me. It makes me more focused and if there is anything I feel that is lacking, I decide to step up my game. Having friends that are talented and successful makes it clear that anything is possible if you pray hard and work hard. For me, the two go hand-in-hand. 

Remember, ladies...The only competition you have is the with the person you were yesterday.

xo, Shaun

Mental Housecleaning

At the beginning of the New Year, one of my resolutions was to continue to live by the mantra, "No More Drama". (Thank you Mary J. Blige). That means to avoid, to the best of my ability, situations and people that cause stress. We have all been there - committing to something that we really didn't have time to do because of our busy schedules or spending hours talking to someone who is always complaining or full of bitterness. I truly believe that beautiful things happen when you distance yourself from negativity.

But, while we are cleaning up the outside, we must also take heed to cleanse from WITHIN. Sometimes our worst critic is between our two ears. We have to stop with the negative self-talk. We know that this is: telling ourselves we can't accomplish something because it will be too hard, or that we aren't good enough, not talented enough, not pretty, skinny or rich enough. We have to constantly fill our lives with positive thoughts and affirmations to counter any negativity that may be subconsciously sabotaging our dreams and goals. 

Oftentimes, patterns of negative self-talk begin in childhood. It has colored your thinking for years and you probably didn't even realize it. It causes stress and we know that stress can lead to all kinds of diseases. 

So, now is a good time to change the old destructive patterns and increase your productivity and self-esteem! One saying that I love is..."Tell the Negative Committee that meets inside your head to sit down and shut up!" Lol. 

No Grudges

I remember when Ben Affleck won his Best Picture Oscar for 'Argo' a few years ago. One of the things that stood out in his acceptance speech was when he said, "Don't hold grudges". I have interviewed Ben several times and I have always found him extremely smart, present and very gracious. And, I think he was totally on target when he talked about releasing ourselves from grudges - especially during times when we feel like gloating. He had the stage that night and could have talked about all the people who did him wrong in Hollywood. But, instead, he used the opportunity to be, once again, gracious and uplifting.

We have all had things that have happened to us that have made us angry. A friend who was inconsiderate, someone who was intentionally rude or even a person who tried to maliciously hurt us or someone we love.  You may have endlessly spoken about how this person did you wrong or even fantasized about plotting revenge so that "justice could be served".

But, you may have also heard the saying, "Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die". Being angry is just toxic to one's own spirit and really does nothing to make the situation better. Deciding not to hold onto a grudge is, just that...a DECISION. It is deciding to free yourself and not be under the control of the person who offended you. Holding onto bitterness zaps your creative energy, it affects your decision-making skills and can damage your relationships.

To move forward with your life, you must not wait until the offender apologizes. Realistically, they may not know they hurt you or they might not even care. And, that is okay. This journey isn't for them, it's for you. You will become the bigger person when you forgive. And you will find strength that you never knew you had when you make the decision to move on with your life and free yourself of the bondage of grudges. 

Reward yourself when you successfully forgive someone who hurt you. You deserve to be commended for taking such a big step because it's not easy. It can be a small gift to yourself or just a simple pat on the back. Or, make it a symbolic gesture. Write a letter to the person who offended you and tell them why you are releasing the anger. Then, tear the letter up as a symbol that you are tearing up the grudge and letting it AND them go. 

The gift you receive for doing this will be much bigger than an Oscar. It will be your peace of mind and your FREEDOM.  ~Shaun

 

 

 

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