Have a seat. But don’t get too comfortable. For when we are comfortable we are forgetful. Forgetful of the struggle, the hardships, the long days and longer nights that we thought would grind us into dust.

But little did we know that the grind is what sharpens us. Toughens us. Tests our resolve. It is what we become. When I first moved to New York City I had $600 to my name and no job. In two short days I made my way to the flea market at 3 am on a blustery February Saturday morning and spent what was left of the little money I had. Realizing that eating at some point in the future would be interesting, I took those antique frames that I had bought and turned them into cash. The grind had begun. I was hungry. Quite literally. I got a few jobs at nightclubs, restaurants and antique shops - all concurrently. Sleep was an idea. Not a reality. I felt that time was clicking past and if I wanted to make the most of it, I had to be in every moment. The moments of self doubt, of failure, of mistakes were plenty. And I am thankful for them as they were the whetstones I used to sharpen my skills. But there came a point in my life when my blade became dull. I had settled into the proverbial La-Z-Boy and gotten comfortable. I did not merely stop to rest on my journey. I stopped. Complacency is the enemy of the hustler. For the house was on fire, but I lulled myself into a false reality of contentment in the confines of that recliner. It was easier to make excuses for my stalled career than to actually get up and do something. Those memories of the hustle had grown faint and I no longer questioned my stillness. Time had sidled up next to me and whispered, “sit, relax, you have nothing but time”... It was at that moment that I chose to awaken. To sharpen my skills once again. To fail. To succeed. To be in every moment. To be uncomfortable. ;-) hkv