A decision that changed my life 6 years ago today..

6 years ago today, on a cold 2019 morning in Toronto, I walked into my Academic Advisor's room to do something that I had always wanted to do.

Something that is scary to do as an immigrant.

Drop out of school and tell my immigrant parents that I am going to do this "email" thing online.

The same parents that gave up everything 10 years prior so their son could have a better education and future.

The same kid who used to be top 3 every year for academics.

And here he is saying he's going to be a dropout.

You can see how everyone around me was confused with my decision.

I've never actually shared the moment that led up to me dropping out, so here it is.

I used to live by my University in downtown Toronto with my high school friends in a small 2-bedroom condo that 5 of us would share.

As I aspired to be an entrepreneur at this time, they had their own aspirations as well... to be rappers.

Which meant I never got the best sleep as the noise would always keep me up at night.

This one night, I got woken up by their music so I started browsing Instagram and saw that my friend who was also 18 years old at that time had just bought a Lamborghini CASH.

I had just spent the summer with him a couple months ago and it was one of the most transformational periods of my life.

So I got on my Notes app and wrote down what makes him different that at 18, he's buying a Lambo cash.

Now, guys... I don't care about a Lambo.

I actually don't even like cars.

But it was just the fact that he's able to get to a point in his life where he can do this at 18 that stood out to me.

So I wrote down all the things I could think of:

• he thinks big!

• his work ethic is super high

• he dropped out of high school

Then I wrote, "I am going to drop out of school tomorrow."

So I went into the Academic Advisor's room and dropped out the next day.

I didn't tell my parents for 2 weeks because I was scared.

The day I told them, my mom was crying and my dad was visibly sad.

But as time went on and I started working hard with my email business, they were on board with me taking this route.

Looking back at what I have been able to do for my family…it was all worth it.

What's the lesson here in this?

I don't know...

Is it to go all in if you believe in something to the point where disappointing others doesn't matter?

Is it to always focus on what's best for you even when no one supports your decisions?

Or is it even that serious? It was just school.

I don't know, but writing this from a Starbucks in Cape Town and reflecting on what has happened in the last 6 years is giving me a sense of pride.

:)

Hope you all have a great day,

Splash.