Invest in yourself. BANK ON YOU

As a chef, I'm blessed to meet many people and have different opportunities come my way. Tomorrow, I'm honored to have my company, Food Innovations featured at The Field of Dreams Wine and Food Festival at Dell Diamond in Round Rock. I'm honored and feel great that I can proudly serve my food at this festival. I've come such a long way. I never knew anyone in the food industry. My parents aren't in the food/restaurant industry, no family friend gave me a job, no hook-up. Everything I have has been a direct result of my hustle, drive and persistence. I wouldn't have it any other way. Every success is all mine. Any failure isn't a failure, but a life lesson. There's no one to blame, no boss, no partner, just myself. At the end of this year, will be my 4th year being self-employed. In this downward economy, most businesses are failing. For some reason, I'm excelling. Failure just isn't in my vocabulary. It's not even a remote option. Loving what you do for a living isn't something I take for granted. I thank God every morning and night. I also thank my mom for instilling the importance of cooking at an early age. I find inspiration in every chef and all their stories. I can learn from it all. Even the "bad" chefs inspire me to never get complacent and always strive to outdo myself. I'm definitely my biggest competition. Though things are great, I still want more. I have this insatiable drive to make my restaurant a reality, my book a reality and eventually my own show. I'm just putting it out there. I'm just excited to be able to carve my own path. It's thrilling to know that no one has every gone down this path but me. Banking on yourself can be scary, but is ultimately the most rewarding and gratifying part of my life right now.

Whether you cook, bake, invest in real estate, are in the medical field or teach science to 7th graders, be the best you can be. Learn as much as you can. Compete only with yourself. Be able to be take your own self critiques. Also, be able to pat yourself on the back for a job well done. Don't let people tell you how you need to be. They can take you or leave you. Allow your inner voice to be the only one that guides you. Be thankful for every little you have as often as you can. Life is short. Life is like a candy store. Fill your bag with only the sweetest treats. You deserve it. If you don't someone else will. Why don't you deserve to be the best you can be? You do. Always bank on yourself.