My Dad aka Papa {if we are friends you’ve seen him all over my stories} raised me solo, while simultaneously building and running his own business as CEO. He is one of those people who spits golden nuggets of wisdom, while others are just sipping their coffee; often compared to that guy in the Dos Equis commercial – the most interesting man in the world. He is also an immigrant, moving here from Greece at the age of 18 and hustled to get every dollar he has ever had, so with this in mind and be that it’s Father’s Day week {in my house a BFD}, I thought I’d share some of these perils aka knowledge bombs with you as I can guarantee if internalized, will make you a better human. Alright let’s go!
5 Lessons My Dad Taught Me That Will Help You Too
Always Invest In Yourself Because No One Else Will
No one is going to give you a moment to breathe, push you to take on that side hustle, indulge in picking up that extra hobby you’ve always wanted. Push the brink, take it on, try it, fail and pick yourself up again. Sounds really lofty right, but he’s a practitioner and has been my only example. When he turned 50, he decided fuck it, I want to learn how to fly a plane. So he did. He wanted to write a book, so he did.
When others are usually slowing down, he’s revving his engine and just landed another CEO position, like what? Literally makes me look like a degenerate in comparison, but all of this to say that I took a risk and investment in myself when I left my job to work full-time for myself and why I decided to take on the creative challenge of starting this blog. More on that soon by the way 🙂
Don’t Give A F*ck about What People Say
The message there? Don’t give attention to those that are only trying to bring you down and whose words do not matter. As I’ve gotten older, I have really internalized this one. Giving energy to those who are just going to hate is worthless, so stop exuding the energy and keep it moving, or as the twins say – chugga choo choo it the f on.
You Don’t Get What You Earned, You Only Get What You Negotiate
When I was 10, he brought me to the dealership to watch him negotiate a lease for a car, where I saw him get the price he wanted to pay, created value by getting creative and made it a win-win situation. From there, he helped me negotiate my first salary that later gave me the confidence to teach others how to position themselves to get what they deserve and led me to my career in sales. You have to ask for the opportunity, knock on the door, ask for the business, take the chance because the worst that can happen is they say ‘no’.
Cash Is King, Your FICO Score Matters, So Don’t F*ck It Up
I don’t think this is talked about enough and it’s something that impacts us daily. Don’t spend outside of your limits and above all else, don’t f*ck up your credit because it will haunt you for years to come. Like why isn’t that sh*t taught in school? Seriously though? Anyways, we all had those high school/college years, where we had a credit card and spent like ballers, but dear lord pay it off and don’t find yourself there again. Okayyy
Make Time For Those Who Matter
I always asked him how the hell he did it when he was juggling me, my teenage girl drama, his own life, running his business, making time for his friends, etc. and I swear to you this is not an exaggeration; he never missed or misses a moment. NEVER. So when people ask me how I fit it all in, I had the best example. Those who are worth making time for, we will find a way to make it happen. Those who aren’t, won’t get an iota of time and that’s it.
Not going to lie, this was really hard for me to narrow down to just five, but I figured we’d start here and keep it going? You let me know. What did your Dad teach you that impacts your life each and every day? Need more Papa in your life? Keep watching the stories as he seems to make a lot of appearances.
Till Next Time.
P
xo