DA: In your book “Restoring The Male Image… A look from the inside out” you discuss the importance of personal image and the importance of integrity and Self-Confidence. What are some of the things a young male can do to start working on improving his personal image and integrity?
A.E: We are a society so driven by external images. With all of the plastic surgery shows, and reality T.V shows, and M.T.V and B.E.T hip-hop videos that showcase a man with the latest luxury car, or how much Ice he has on, or how pretty the young lady in his video is, this all shows how much this society is driven by external image. What I teach young men is that yes image is important but it begins from the inside out. So I walk these young men through a self evaluation, so that they are living a life of character and integrity, that there are certain rules to govern their lives by. We talk about respecting others, and making sure that you esteem women, that your obedient to those who are in authority, because we want our young men and adult men to not only look well but we also want them to be well. We want you to have great relationships, and a productive member of society. These things all boil down to character issues and it’s that holistic approach to image that the book covers. The book also covers men really wanting to take their image to the next level. I am a custom clothier by trade, I have a custom clothing company called Simply Ellis and so by being a custom clothier I know the importance of image and style. I give you all the fundamentals and basics for any man that desires to take his image to the next level. So we teach things such as a gentleman’s wardrobe basics, the several basic things that every gentleman should have in his wardrobe. We also give tips on what to wear fro certain occasions, whether your going to a funeral, or a job interview, or a picnic or even a Barbeque or wedding, we tell you what attire is appropriate for a man. So those type of things give a man insight on how to take my image to the next level, so that I’m always putting my best foot forward. It is a powerful read and is getting rave reviews across the country.
DA: Mr. Ellis you are truly a Definitely Amazing man, and a role model for young men. Could you name some other distinguished gentlemen that you would call Definitely Amazing men?
A.E: One such person would be Mr. Earl Graves, the C.E.O of Black Enterprise magazine, and he is definitely a role model of mine. He has left a tremendous impact on my life, one because he is a tall gentleman that’s always distinguished, well-groomed, always looking sharp. He reminds me of that whole Harlem renaissance generation where men always looked their best, their shoes were always shined, suits were always pressed. Don’t get me wrong this didn’t mean that they necessarily wore the custom shoes, or the finest of shoes, it was the fact no matter what they had they took a pride in it and they carried themselves with a sense of class. This is the type of persona that we try to really instill in the next generation, not only is he a very distinguished and sharp man, but he has accomplished great things, Black Enterprise is one of the top business magazines, not just African American business magazines but magazines nationally. I definitely would like him to know that he has left an indelible print upon my life and has definitely been an inspiration to me as an entrepreneur.
DA: I’m actually a big fan of Black Enterprise myself. One of my top goals in life is to either make the cover of Black Enterprise or to be mentioned in an article inside that prestigious magazine.
A.E: Likewise, I scored an article in the December Issue, I didn’t quite make the cover yet, were working on that.
DA: In your book, theire is a chapter entitled by the acronym I.M.A.G.E, can you describe this chapter’s meaning and what you want a young man to take from this chapter?
A.E: I came up with an acronym for the word image, the “I” stands for integrity, that’s living a life according to a set of moral values. In life we are so tempted to take the easy route, I believe a man of true Image you do the best you can to live a life of character. The “M” stands for manhood, this means no matter what hand your dealt in life you step up to the plate when it comes to your responsibilities. If you’re a father, you take care of your children, if you’re a young man you have a certain responsibilities to your parents and you do what you are supposed to do. The “A” stands for authority this means no matter what hand im dealt in life I believe that I am in charge with the help of God of my life, and I wont sdit by and let life run over me, I will take authority and take everything that God has ordained for my life to posses, I take the authority and walk in that place of power. The “G” stands for generosity, the Latin meaning for money is currency, this means money was meant to flow, money wasn’t just for you and yours but money was meant to be given to others, to help be a blessing for others. Lastly the “E” stands for excellence, which means no matter how well I did a thing before , if you give me another chance I’m going to do it even better, it means I wont stand for a mediocre lifestyle, everything that I am and everything that I aim to do it with everything that I have because I’m committed to a life of excellence.
DA: What else would you like the Definitely Amazing audience to know about you and or tied to greatness?
A.E: Well I would like for men to know that we all have a spear of influence, and we all can bring about change. I was really touched by an interview I seen with Oprah, and the interviewer asked her about the state that Africa was in with the work she was doing with her school in Africa. They were giving statistics, and throwing numbers at her and the percentage of AIDS were staggering numbers what do you think you can do? Oprah replied saying we can’t look at those numbers, because if we do no one will do anything, but if everyone can do their part no matter how small or how big, in time we can see the change we desire to see. I just want to encourage men, to come on board and be of assistance with Tied To Greatness. Spend a couple of hours at a city near you as we try to target the lives of the next generation. It is easy for us to walk past a young man and shake our heads and say “why does he have his jeans hanging down, and doesn’t he know any better?”, In order for young men to do better, they have to see better. They see better by seeing adult men model a better image, so when they walk into a Tied To Greatness assembly and see well dressed and well groomed men it does something to them. I believe in the power of visualization, I think it was important for young men to see the election of our now President Barack Obama, just the visual alone makes young men work harder and aim higher to pursue their dreams. I encourage your readers to visit www.Tiedtogreatness.org to find out more information about the organization and how they can participate, volunteer, and contribute because even to do good things it cost money so we also want to make opportunities available to those that would like to donate. I appreciate your time and I thank you again for this opportunity.
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