Making Something Out Of Nothing.
It's been a long journey of learning and accepting that success comes with failure. Here's to something new, made by me for you.
From Hard Knock Beginnings
In the early stages of my entrepreneurship journey, I created a brand called Hard Knock Leadership. It was a platform where I could share my journey unapologetically by pulling from my lived experiences of growing up in marginalized communities. It was my first taste at freelancing through a brand identity that I could build from the ground up.
It allowed me to chase my passion for supporting people and building communities. It gave me purpose as a creator, changemaker and aspiring humanitarian. Without a plan or guide, I was pushed far beyond my comfort zone and learned some of the most valuable lessons through failures and successes on the road.
I strived to become the king of bounce back from many of those failures, but some of those losses hit hard, and the successes no longer felt as relevant. As the world started sharing more, I found solitude in sharing less. Imposter syndrome mixed with burnout can be a silencing drink. After stepping into an executive leadership role, I felt Hard Knock Leadership had served its purpose, so I retired from the alias to focus on a full-time career.
My hard-knock beginnings put me in a position to chase challenging roles where working became my only focus. Where I lacked experience or talent, I knew I could make up for those shortcomings by being the hardest working person in the room. I took pride in telling myself I could last the longest on the treadmill, until I could not. It was the gift and curse of inheriting a “no such thing as work-life balance” from my immigrant culture.
When I lost that career that I spent almost a decade nurturing and building due to political forces, I partially lost myself and the confidence I once commanded from being someone who always got the job done no matter what. Setbacks can make you doubt yourself and forget the purpose you once had. If you ever get here, It’s important to remember that a setback is an opportunity for you to step back and rechart your course.
The Change Made
My life has always been a constant evolution of ideas, experiences, and growth. I've tried my hand at various creative endeavours and have been fortunate to work on a number of projects that have positively impacted others. As I continue to learn and grow, I find it increasingly important to get back to documenting and sharing my experiences and knowledge.
When you are at your lowest, it’s easy to forget about all you’ve accomplished to get this far. Failing made me feel like I needed to start from scratch again and carve a new path for myself, so I did:
I went back to school for international development and graduated with honours as someone who almost dropped out as an undergraduate student.
I put my time back into passion projects, leading me to co-found Scarborough Made, which has grown into a recognizable community arts organization in Toronto’s East.
I raised over 160,000 in grant funding to support creative projects and businesses after my master’s application was rejected because of my decade-old GPA.
I started my creative firm SNCD (pronounced as the word Synced) as a full-time artist and creative entrepreneur during the pandemic to show others that it is possible to thrive in the creative economy.
Why this, Why Now?
My journey and experiences working across different industries and sectors have taught me a lot over the years. I want to share some of those insights and lessons that I’ve learned to highlight the change that’s been made.
As someone who wears a lot of hats, my work is spread across different platforms, so I wanted to create more of an open space where I can be candid about my successes, failures and everything in between, hoping that my stories and experiences will inspire and empower others to embrace their own creative paths.
Help Me Build This Community.
I envision this as more than just a personal newsletter. I see it as a way to build a supportive community of like-minded individuals and create a space which can act like a collaborative hub that asks questions and shares experiences to support people as they navigate the complexities of creativity and personal growth.
As I grow this new platform, you can expect me to share something with you once or twice a month with the goal of creating and curating new content as more people join my substack community.
Here's what you can expect by subscribing
Personal stories from my journey as an artist & creative entrepreneur.
Interviews with fellow creators, changemakers and entrepreneurs.
An inside look into my unreleased creative works.
Tips and resources to help you cultivate your path as a creative entrepreneur
News & updates on projects I’m working on before it goes public.
I can't wait to embark on this adventure with you. If you’ve been following my work and are excited about joining me on this new platform, please consider becoming a paid subscriber and supporting my work as a creator & changemaker.
Doing so will give you insider updates, resources and exclusive content to fuel a community of people passionate about creativity, entrepreneurship and social impact.