I remember exactly where I was 23 years ago today. I was driving in my cute lil car, heading to the office in Miami…late b/c I was already mentally checked out. The radio stations were doing business as usual.
I knew something was up but didn’t know what. Only the Spanish language stations were talking about it and my comprehension skills were meh.
When I got into the office, the other New Yorker was there frantic. Once I found out what was happening, I was calling whoever I could reach. Everyone else was captivated but not urgently concerned.
I couldn’t articulate it at the time but it was a traumatic experience and to have people dismiss that felt like an emotional gut punch. No one understood why I couldn’t “work” as if nothing happened.
I was expected to continue my duties despite the anxiety of not being able to track down people who I knew were in the vicinity. We’re not talking random friends from high school…but blood family.
I had been on the fence about staying in Miami and that helped me decide. I left the job maybe two weeks later.
Fast forward to 2002. I’m a precocious worker with her first real full-time job in social services. I got a job in a special vocational program for the displaced workers of 9/11.
9/11 brought me back to NYC. It brought me a job where I would meet the people who put me on the entrepreneurial path. And now, I’ve returned to my social services roots.
Sometimes “full circle” is a kaleidoscope.
It’s not a perfect circle but rather a collection of broken pieces, coming together to make something beautiful.
What is your kaleidoscope moment?
Do you look back on your life and recognize the kismet moments that set you on the path that has you reading my musings?
I did a writing challenges many moons ago and used the therm “life markers” as a way to track where we’re at, kinda like the mile markers you see when driving on a highway.
9/11 is a life marker for many of us, for various reasons. It can also serve as a reminder to check-in with your journey and see both how far you’ve come as well as acknowledge how far you still have to go.
I don’t emphasize the business aspect of your hustle as much as I do your brand. This is intentional.
A brand is how you leave a mark in the world. This is your imprint.
Over time, this imprint changes. The legacy you leave is determined by how intentional you are with your brand.
You can make money doing anything.
You can’t make a lasting impression without authenticity, integrity, and purpose.