Hey! Taking a chance to introduce myself.
Kassim asked "What do I have?" I have courage. By the time I was 9 I was suicidal, by 13 I was pulled out of school, and by 16 I was in the police station getting interrogated with my mom in tears watching it all happen. I was so lost. I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. I didn't know that I needed to feel the pain of the world, so that I could have compassion for others. I needed to feel how lost we are in modern society, so I could help create solutions. After 12 years as a target inside the public education system, I didn't trust my teachers when they told me 4 more years of college for $80,000 would prepare me to thrive. So I placed a bet on myself, saved money, and seized the reigns of life. The day I graduated high school, I bought a one-way ticket to India. It was a rite of passage, marking the end of my childhood, and the beginning of manhood. I was ready to kill the old identity of who I had become and how I was perceived in my hometown. I was ready to become someone new. So I became a student to life. I learned from cultures around the world, sat in 10 days of silent meditation, solo climbed to views of Mount Everest, bought a motorcycle and rode it 1500 miles from northern Vietnam to southern Cambodia. I got to know strangers, friends, dangers, and mentors from China to New Zealand, Nicaragua to Bolivia, and California to New Hampshire. I found myself sitting up all night in native american ceremonies and learning to sing and pray. I found myself fasting for 4 days and 4 nights in the desert, and becoming a part of a nonprofit that helps men become better leaders for their families and communities. Eventually, I found myself living in the Caribbean. First in St Thomas, now Puerto Rico where I'm putting roots down. But there's a key that I haven't told you. I unlocked many doors because I had a camera in my hand, and I knew how to use it. One skill led to my first LLC, Wayfinders Media, that is now a full-service brand development and marketing team with a strong reputation.