officially #funemployed: a goodbye note to @dedicatedmedia, my home for the past 3.5 years

Aloha!

I just got back from my first trip to Hawaii, so I still feel like I’m a local.

If I saw you in person, I’d most likely throw you the Shaka instead of my usual dap.

Beaches, waterfalls, surfing and new homies: a solid trip for the ages.

I returned to LA feeling refreshed, recharged, and rejuvenated…

..only 6 more weeks until the end of the year and I still had some last minute goals I wanted to knock out.

This blog post comes at a little bit of a surprise, but I thought that I’d share this part of my entrepreneurship journey with you:

After 3.5 years, I’m no longer working at Dedicated Media.

While some of me is sad, most of me is excited: this gives me the opportunity to give California Cannabis Tours and Food Tribe a real shot at success.

Ultimately, it came down to having to choose between focusing on my day job, and my side projects, and at this stage of my career, my passion projects are my primary motivators.

During my trip to Hawaii, I got to spend time with friends, reflect on some of the challenges and disappointments I faced this past year, and ultimately make peace with my desire to be financially independent.

“Burn the ships and march onward.” was a phrase I heard during my trip to Hawaii: my friend Eke Keliinohomoku (a fellow entrepreneur) and I had some great conversations on what it takes to run a business: a lot of fear and uncertainty.

Eke is owner of Aloha Trikke, a guided tour company based in Waikiki. Aloha Trikke provides tourists a fun and new way to explore the natural beauty of Oahu!

My buddy Andres works with Eke at Aloha Trikke, and together they help Hawaiian tourists have an amazing experience while hanging out in Honolulu.

After returning from Hawaii, I came back with a new found sense of excitement: my time out there helped stimulate some creative juices and gave me some new ideas on how to approach the growth of Food Tribe and California Cannabis Tours moving into 2017.

Don’t get me wrong: a lot of me is tripping right now. The security of a day job is always appealing because it means that rent gets paid, Sallie Mae gets paid, and I might have a little extra to stash towards that 401K.

Most of me has understood that in order for me to build the types of businesses I want to build, having a day job wasn’t going to allow my companies the chance to grow.

I learned earlier this year the importance of contentment: if you’re not able to find your happiness during the toughest storms, you may not have the ability to recognize you’re living your happiest days.

Dedicated Media taught me a lot about business: mentors like David Palmer, Chris Berman, Scott Yamano, and Holly Martin gave some great examples on what it takes to run a company, lead a team, and have fun while doing it.

I’ve made some lifelong homies: who knew that when I started my journey there 3.5 years ago, I’d be walking away with so many new members of my family.

And for that, I have to be forever grateful. Like the great PARTYNEXTDOOR said, “things change, people change, feelings change too,” after 3.5 years of gainful employment, it was time to move on.

With that being said, I thought that I’d share the goodbye note I sent to the Dedicated Media / Media General team before I left. I hope it conveyed the memories I shared with my DM family.

Hey Dudes,

It’s with great sadness that I let you know that today, I will be transitioning away from Dedicated Media.

When I started this job 3.5 years ago, I knew just about nothing about sales; the past few years have offered me a crash course in what it takes to build a book of business, service clients, and ideally, add value.

Thank you to Holly Martin, Chris Berman, David Palmer, and Scott Yamano for taking a shot on me several years ago.

There’s lots of highs and lows in sales, but it’s with great pride that I look back on my career with Dedicated and all of the things that I’ve learned.

Working alongside you amazing people, has been the greatest pleasure of all. Dedicated Media people past and present have become more like family, and I can’t wait to see where you guys all end up.

Thank you so much for allowing me to grow with you.

This next phase of my adventure is going to be focused on two things I’m super excited about: recreational marijuana, and food.

I’m launching two companies in 2017:

California Cannabis Tours — a guided tourism company that pairs the medical benefits of cannabis with the excitement and adventure of travel.

Food Tribe — a restaurant review platform dedicated to ending hunger.

I’m excited about this next phase of my career: working as an entrepreneur is something that I’ve been both passionate about and fearful of, and look forward to embracing the journey in 2017 and beyond.

For all my peeps in satellite offices: I love you!

Remember to treat each other with kindness!

T