As I’m writing this, my heart is racing, my eyes practically tearing, and I’m overjoyed with excitement. Why you might ask? I didn’t win the lottery so let’s put that thought to rest. I’m feeling this way because Jerrid, my business partner, just told me that we’ll be in AdAge, one of the leading sources of news and inspiration for the media and advertising community. This is probably where you’re wondering what I’m smoking. It’s a fair assumption; I’m not.
I’m overjoyed about this news, small as it may be, because life is fragile, it’s precious and sometimes it’s really hard. I’m an entrepreneur embarking on a journey to change something, have an impact, constantly striving for my life to have meaning. Pressboard is my second startup in five years and I know this is just the beginning. There is a long road ahead. I have learned that effort, perseverance and patience are the only way to achieve my dreams, and success is not guaranteed. It’s difficult to know that I’ve lost friends, live in constant anxiety, make frequent trips to the doctor and sacrificed relationships for a life journey that may end short of my ambitions. Soon I’ll have to worry about kids, aging parents and unforeseen health problems, amongst millions of other things that I have no control over; life can deter me any moment. I know I’m not alone and such is life and I accept it.
This is why it’s so important for me to enjoy the journey, and take every opportunity, big or small, to fuel up on the magic that carries me through the difficult times. I choose not to take this news for granted. Let’s face it, I know companies partner up with media outlets for PR and marketing all the time and it’s hardly earth shattering. In fact, relative to everything we need to do as a company to succeed, this is a small step. Nevertheless, I know that Jerrid put a significant amount of time and effort into crafting this story and until today, there was a chance the partnership with AdAge wouldn’t happen in time. After all, the story is the “Best Branded Content Partnerships in 2014” and it’ll be 2015 in less than two weeks! It’s a chance he took with his most valuable resource – time – because we are Pressboard and we believe in great stories.
Today, is an awesome day. Now I’m going to sit back, let go and soak in the moment by literally shouting what I emailed Jerrid, “YES!! A 1000 TIMES YES!!! You ROCK!”