Don't Beat Yourself Up
Shit, I've made tons of mistakes
Even ones I thought would "ruin" my life
But in the end, each mistake came with a lesson...

And many of those lessons I wouldn't be the same without
It's interesting, because back then, I didn't understand the impact
I didn't realize how important these lessons and teachings would be for me
But as I advance in my career and build a personal brand in cannabis
I can't help but be grateful for all the things I've learned to date
Because many of my mistakes weren't even mistakes at all
They were important steps in my journey to today
They were the things that shaped who I am
They were lessons I needed to learn
They were what makes me, me
And the same goes for you...
We Were Children
18 years old feels so young
In fact, I started college when I was 17
And I had no idea what life was about at that age
But like you, I was supposed to know what I wanted to do
Not to mention all the societal and parental pressure on top of that
So what did I do? I took the most logical decision I could, and studied finance
Not because it's what I loved, but instead because I was great at math
And the finance industry was also known for good salaries
Those two things were enough for me to start out
But I had no idea I would end up hating it
And telling myself it was a mistake
One is true, the other not
Let me explain...
The Dilemma
I'm not BSing you at all
I really hated the work I was doing
My colleagues were great, but that was it
I dreaded going to work in the morning most days
The only thing that kept me going was the commission checks
And I was able to stay in that industry for over 5 years without exiting
Which I thought was a huge mistake, why didn't I leave this sh*t career earlier?
This often crossed my mind after a couple of years living in Portugal
But the more my career advanced, I realized it wasn't a mistake
I realized that those 5 years in finance built a foundation
A foundation I could then build on in the future too
The same foundation I'm building off of now
You see, it was one thing I learned there
That I will never ever forget about
The ability to own the stage...
Entertaining
As a young child
I always wanted to entertain
And be up on the big stage one day
Maybe as a musical artist or famous star
But neither of those have become reality for me
Instead, I found my way to the stage in a different way
It's still entertaining, but it's in the form of public speaking
And I find it to be one of the greatest things I get to experience
The rush of adrenaline you get is something I can't explain
At times, it feels like you are floating up there on stage
And once you're finished, a new energy appears
But public speaking is not a simple task
In fact, it rivals death in fear level
Luckily, I had great training...
The Lesson
I'm grateful for it
Yeah, those 5 yrs in finance sucked
But I learned how to own the stage there
And that foundation, gave me more confidence
Confidence to get up on stage and entertain people
Something that would come in handy while brand building
In fact, I'd argue it's one of the most important skills in personal branding
And this year alone, I landed 2 keynote slots, and a panel invitation
I gave the first one last Friday, and I got a ton of great feedback
In the end, going the finance route wasn't a mistake at all
I took what I needed from it, and then I moved on
And it gave me a skill I could leverage for life
Without me giving them my entire life
So don't beat yourself up as I did
Instead, try to find the lesson
And then move on...
With Love,
Steven Arthur George aka CannaBeMe