Ideas in the Wild: Brian Paes-Braga Shares the Lessons He Learned When He Redefined What Success Looks Like
Our twenties are a radical time of change, and just when we’ve figured it all out, the quarter-life crisis hits — hard. Whether we’ve chosen a traditional path or a more unconventional one, this decade can be filled with obstacles and heartaches along with triumphs and milestones.
Brian Paes-Braga has been there. Even though he achieved his most ambitious goal — to become a multimillionaire by age thirty — he found himself confronting his own quarter-life crisis and feeling personally bankrupt. Brian made the pivotal decision to pursue balance over the bottom line and redefine the word “success.” His new book 8: Reflections on Building Business + Balance is packed with stories and insights from Brian’s unique coming of age.
In this book, Brian shares the lessons he’s learned as a son, partner, university dropout, and seasoned entrepreneur, from the art of dealmaking to handling life’s most humbling challenges with resilience. 8 is an invitation to think about our own Personal Balance Sheet and become an active part of the future. I recently caught up with Brian to learn more about what inspired him to write the book, the biggest lesson he’s learned, and how he’s applied that lesson since then.
What happened that made you decide to write the book? What was the exact moment when you realized these ideas needed to get out there?
There wasn’t an “exact” moment. Many of my friends remind me that I had mentioned to them earlier in life I wanted to write a book. What allowed me to write a book was time — time I didn’t have or create in my life when I was frantically running around to be “successful.”
As I took time, reflected, and moved to a new city (Vancouver to London), it gave me the opportunity to sit and be in my thoughts. In doing that, I realized I wanted to find an outlet for the experience I’d accumulated in my life thus far, combined with the thoughts that were spinning around my mind. Writing this book has allowed me to speak to many young people about my lessons, imperfections, observations, and philosophies — and hearing from different readers how much of a positive impact it has had on them has been food for my soul.
What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned going through the journey you share in the book?
When I sat down to write, I had no idea how much unpacking I’d be doing over the coming months. There was so much life and so many lessons I’ve learned that came pouring out when I got behind the keyboard. In committing to the book, I wasn’t just committing to writing. I was committing to examining my own story, which is itself a worthwhile process. And I can’t describe to you how much “lighter” I felt after releasing everything I unpacked during that process.
How will you apply this lesson in your life moving forward?
Writing this book and the process I went through has been transformative for me. I’m going to prioritize slowing down, being in thought, and writing down my feelings — even if not an entire book! I’ve always found tremendous value in auditing one’s life, even a few times a year. It’s a great commitment to have to one’s self in an effort to living a life of peace, love, and joy.
