Conquering Personal Limitations and Elevating Injured Warriors

Have you ever felt like an imposter in your own success story, grappling with self-doubt despite your achievements?

You're not alone, and just when it seems insurmountable, this very syndrome can morph into an unexpected catalyst for growth. Join me, Shireen Botha, and a dynamic panel of business professionals as we unravel the complexities of imposter syndrome and share personal anecdotes that illuminate the power of acknowledging our strengths and outsourcing our weaknesses. My own tango with bookkeeping taught me the invaluable lesson of keeping a vigilant eye on every aspect of business, a wisdom nugget I'm eager to pass on.

Carlos Vazquez

• Email: carlos@miamimarketer.com
• Tel: +1 (305) 876-6606
• LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/carlosvazquezsr
• Website: https://miamimarketer.com/

Venturing into more heartfelt territory, we pay homage to the Wounded Warrior Project, an organization that holds a dear place in our hearts. The emotional and physical sacrifices made by injured veterans touch us deeply, and we discuss how support transcends financial aid, encompassing volunteering and raising awareness. With a gentle pivot, our conversation lightens up as we reveal the dreams and aspirations topping our bucket lists for 2024. Whether it's mastering a physical challenge or fostering entrepreneurial success, we're all about setting ambitious goals and reaching for the stars.

So, stay wild and keep tuning in weekly to our show, “Friends from Wild Places,” where we tackle the exhilarating journey of business and personal growth. And with a heartfelt 'Dale,' we promise to meet again on the wild paths of life and ambition.

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Transcript

Voiceover: 0:03

Tales from the Wild, stories from the Heart A journey into the mind and soul of fired-up business professionals, where they share their vision for the future and hear from a different non-profit organization every month as they create awareness of their goals and their needs. Dive into a world of untamed passion. As we join our host, Shireen Botha, for this month's episode of Friends from Wild Places.

Shireen Botha: 0:34

You know, this podcast is all about this very thing. It's business owners and entrepreneurs. Just come in around the table and let's just chat, you know, share some of the struggles we've faced and how we've overcome them. And let me tell you, the imposter syndrome has come up so often. It is a very big thing that we all face as business owners and entrepreneurs. This is real and I don't think you do ever get over that, Unless you. I can't speak for every business owner. So if you have gotten over that and you're listening, please, you know reach out to the show.

Tanya Scotece: 1:17

Yeah, how about the show? Have you a new episode? Yeah, man.

Carlos Vazquez: 1:21

How to overcome our imposter syndrome. I mean, I could probably create an episode, but the real underlying secret is you will never get over imposter syndrome. And you know what? I think it's actually a good thing. Imposter syndrome is a humbling feeling within you, so that way you can take a moment and just realize that it's not about you. I actually see it as like a like, a like a balancing act, because there's moments where you think I'm really good, I'm awesome, I'm the best Shoot, I'm the number one guy. Then the imposter syndrome, because it's the loudest voice, will say now, you're not. Chill out, buddy, chill out. You need to prove yourself every time you get the chance. I think it's a good thing and that I guess that's the way to overcome it. Use it as a tool to keep pushing forward and always improving.

Tanya Scotece: 2:11

It's interesting in the and the death care realm, which is, which is my expertise, is we use the word you know, like a lot of people will say, like you know, getting over grief or getting over something, as if it's. It's like if it's a physical, like you know, going from point A over to point B, when, where the new verbiage is kind of like going through it, like you know getting through it. So I think sometimes it's not, it's almost like a journey within us that you said, like it's never done and it's just part of us, but it's just kind of quieting those voices or voice when it, you know, becomes too loud, as far as you know, exhibiting that imposter syndrome.

Carlos Vazquez: 2:49

And that's that's true. I mean, it's like the grass is always greener on the other side. It's never true. It's basically you got to work with the grass you got and if you have something you can't change, find a way to leverage it to your benefit. So I could totally see that.

Shireen Botha: 3:04

Yeah, yeah, it is. It's so real Every day. It's something I'm fighting on a daily basis. You, yeah, you Imposser, come on Everyday.

Carlos Vazquez: 3:19

I guess you guys do. I'm taking your word for it. But you guys do a really good job at acting like you got your stuff together, because no one will see that at all. Dr T, when you give your lessons every week, listen, I did what you did before and there's preparation. Then there's just natural and you are a natural. I bet you that you can wake up and just get on camera and you don't admit it. But I bet you you can try to just do a quick little educational moment last minute and make it seem like you prepared. Like yesterday you came up here but I get a paper pencil, let's do this. It sounds like you planned that for weeks. So for me, maybe I would do that, but you made it seem so natural. If you didn't do that last minute, you could have fooled me if you did it, if you just did it last minute, put it that way. So, yeah, kudos to you. You imposter you.

Shireen Botha: 4:20

She can exactly, carlos.

Carlos Vazquez: 4:22

I'm revealing it. I'm revealing her secrets.

Shireen Botha: 4:26

She'll wake up and she can improvise something on the spot just like that, and hence the reason her and I work very well for the podcast, so from my educational moments.

Carlos Vazquez: 4:38

I had to pre-record them, I had to plan them.

Carlos Vazquez: 4:42

I mean, I enjoy. I enjoy it, but it takes time. You can't really just rush it and I have fun with it. I get so fun to kind of create those little animated gifts and I did all that, those little nuggets, little Easter eggs, but I wish I had your gift to do it. Oh no, I'm not saying you did it last minute. There's nothing that indicates you did it last minute. But if you did, I wish I had your skill to do that that way.

Tanya Scotece: 5:08

Well, I'm going to get with you. I want to do animations. That's not my area, so I'm looking forward to working on animations with you.

Carlos Vazquez: 5:14

All right. We'll geek out together and animate it.

Shireen Botha: 5:18

I think the amazing thing about us is there is a strength in each of us and then there is a weakness, and you should so thrive in the strength and you should definitely outsource your weaknesses, so that which you are not so good with, it's the best ideas to to rent a Tan. Tanya I'm just kidding.

Carlos Vazquez: 5:42

You know I'm going to add because you know we're targeting entrepreneurs and business owners because I learned this the hard way. So I always try to outsource my weaknesses. But there's one little extra step that I learned the hard way, and that's just because you it's your weakness doesn't mean you don't need to understand it. I've learned that the hard way. Bookkeeping was one of them. I just hired a professional to do it and then at the end of the year you realize, ok, why didn't you tell me this earlier? Well, you know, do we know this? Oh, but I didn't know. That's what that meant.

Carlos Vazquez: 6:13

And maybe you don't have to be the expert in bookkeeping or whatever, but you definitely need to do your best to understand it because it's something that will impact your life. So, listening to your voice, sharon, if I had someone like you softly telling me what I need to do, I think I would. I would gently accept it, because if I was just like you know, taught like a, like a rugged, hey, hey, carl, you need to do this my Marine Corps instinct like look, listen, I'm a grown man, don't talk to me like that, you know, you make it seem like you make the pain points seem smooth. So good on you. So, yeah, understand it.

Tanya Scotece: 6:50

I want to ask you another question on this, on the fitness side. So obviously you take care of yourself working out. You know you walk to the gym, you do your exercise there. What kind of water do you drink? Do you drink regular tap water, special water? I'm like a water connoisseur and I'm always looking for new, new ideas. Because I box 12, 14 hours a day. What do you like for water?

Carlos Vazquez: 7:12

Nothing, nothing special. Ok, actually there's something special. So I learned that you just can't drink water. Why? Because it will flush your system out. So what I do is I do drink tap water from my fridge. I also have this little machine that I refill bottle in public supermarket over here and I got a little machine that makes it nice and super cold. But what's special about my water is that I have this little container for electrolytes and I put electrolytes in the water flavorless electrolytes, so that way, although I'm hydrating and everything but the electrolytes you know help me not over hydrate or hurt myself. So I do that and drinking water is just super important for me.

Carlos Vazquez: 7:57

I learned that also in the Marine Corps and, depending on the color of you know, what comes out determines how hydrated you are, and water could be boring.

Carlos Vazquez: 8:08

I always have like a little water bottle next to me, but on my walks I have a two liter Camelback, which is basically you fill it up with water. It's like a bladder you put on your backpack. I have my keys in there, my phone in there, my tanning glasses because Planet Finis has tanning and I drink my water on my way while I'm walking. So I'm basically hydrating to and fro, I refill it again, I finish it on the way there and I finish it on the way back after I refilled it. So put electrolytes in there. That's what I've learned to do and just find something that fits whatever you're doing. So it's a natural, because I basically walk with the straw in my mouth and I'm just drinking water and I'm hydrating without really thinking about it. So I know that hydrating act of drinking water is tough for some people and just find what works for you and that's a work for me.

Tanya Scotece: 8:58

Awesome, any brand, in particular for the electrolytes you want to give a plug out for.

Carlos Vazquez: 9:03

Amazon 4.6 stars and above. Ok, ok, with a lot of more reviews, not just one.

Tanya Scotece: 9:10

Yeah, I've heard different ones like IV drip, I think it's called, or like IV drops. There's like different brands out there for a while.

Carlos Vazquez: 9:16

I don't know, you know what. Maybe there is a brand that I'm consistent with because I just order, but I try not to stay too loyal for every brand, because I've had instances where I absolutely love this brand but then they stop for whatever reason. Now I'm stuck and I got to find it, so I always want to keep changing up a bit. For example, if you guys can't tell, I usually get a haircut at least once a week and I have my barber that I go to. But I always like to go to other barbers because just because my barber stops Doesn't mean I'm going to stop getting a haircut. So I always want to try to find ways to come up with alternatives that work. Sometimes it's a miss and sometimes it's a hit. It's probably good and bad. It's good for me because I'm not stuck to one provider, but it's bad because I'm not 100% loyal. But Mac and Apple computers I'm pretty loyal to that. So if I'm loyal to that brand, I'm really loyal to that brand.

Shireen Botha: 10:13

Right, well, thanks, yes, thanks for sharing that. We really appreciate that. So here at Friends from Wild Places, every episode every month, we support a non-profit. So for the next three, no, this will be episode one. We've got another two with Carlos, so the next three part of the series we'll be supporting Wounded Warrior Project. That will be found at supportwoundedwarriorprojectorg. So, Carlos, please tell us a little bit about this organization and how we can support it.

Carlos Vazquez: 10:55

All right. So that Wounded Warrior is veterans that were serving and they got injured during their time serving, and a lot of these veterans they join the military whole, meaning they have all their limbs, their body parts, everything. And then when you're serving, things happen you might lose something, a sight, your arms, hands, whatever. You become disfigured. And it's such an emotional thing because you see your older pictures and they see who you are now and it's an internal battle and then you can't do the things that you used to do. Not only do not feel the same way, you can't do the things you used to do. And it's a battle to even, you know, live your life. So when you're in that dark place, it's easy to feel like you're alone completely, and the Wounded Warrior Project is designed to help veterans that are going through that, to remind them that they're not alone. Everyone else, there's other people that are going through that. So it's not only to support program as a community, they also fund certain projects. They also do things to help make these veterans that don't feel whole whole again the best way they can. And I've seen so many successful outcomes because of it and I feel like if it didn't exist these, you know, so many bad things could have happened. You know, these great people would have not been with us if it wasn't for these organizations.

Carlos Vazquez: 12:35

So Wounded Warrior Project is a big deal, because I know, I know several service members that are like that. I'm glad, you know, I, I, I thank God for my circumstances and there's a guilt that I have Like, oh my God, I came back. Some people did it and the ones that did they, they got hurt, didn't come back whole. So how do I help, how do I contribute? This is one of those organizations that you may not be able to have the time to do it, but any little bit that you could to support this project you're helping people that are already thinking about their country first and people first before them. Now it's time to kind of think about them too. And they're not going to think about themselves. They're just not. They're just, they're selfless, they're not going to do anything, and this is just a program designed for people like that. So when the warrior project big, big organization, if you can support it, they can use your help.

Shireen Botha: 13:35

I love that, yeah, so, listeners, please go and take some time out of your day and go to support WoundedWarriorProjectorg. org WoundedWarriorProject. org. The donation tab is right on the top. You can't miss it. But if you want to look into it a little bit further, all the information is on the website. It is amazing and some of their stories are so heartbreaking and I can only imagine well, I can't imagine what they're going through and what a life like that could be like. So the struggles inside of themselves, the you know what you're talking about the demons that they fight after returning, as you say, not whole, I mean. All we can do is just give and do whatever we can, in whatever way, shape or form that might be, to give back to them and give them hope and give them a smile and faith that they can finish Absolutely their life on this earth.

Carlos Vazquez: 14:46

Yeah, Even if you can't give money, listen, by helping promote WoundedWariah Project, exposing that if you get the chance to volunteer, it's not just about money, it's whatever you could do. They'll take any type of support because there's so many different areas that that they support their, their members and and time money services, anything If you can put it out there, they'll take it.

Shireen Botha: 15:16

Right, Because they can. They can finish this life with a nurse held high and live it to the best of their. You know, live life to the fullest they can still do it, oh yeah. It's not lost on it. There's a section.

Carlos Vazquez: 15:28

There's a section for, like you know, success stories they're able to capture and you know it's going to. It's going to blow your mind. You're going to be like wow.

Carlos Vazquez: 15:36

People. You thought that if it was you you'd be like oh my God, if I was me, I would have never, I would have given up or whatever. But when you see these stories, they attribute it, their success or their trajectory, to the fact that there was organization like that to build them up and then to be surrounded by others like them. So it's such a beauty. It sucks, because what got them to that point? But then you know, you see life differently when something like that happens, you start appreciating things that you never really thought about.

Carlos Vazquez: 16:07

Like the other day I was watching TV and I'm not trying to minimize it, but I was watching TV and then I was playing with my dog and then she hit my eye and I'm thinking, oh my God, I couldn't even see it out of my eye. It was at that moment I realized, oh my God, what if I? You know, I can't see anymore. I started kind of panicking a little bit but I started appreciating my sight. I started appreciating those little things that you know, at least I have a dog, I have, I'm able to see. So there's so many things that we take for granted that you don't recognize. And then, if there's anyone that really understands value, or these guys for sure. These guys definitely understand the value of just even the little things that we never would have thought would have been important. So big, big help anything you could do.

Shireen Botha: 16:47

Absolutely awesome. Okay, we have come to the part of the podcast where we're gonna we're gonna we're gonna have a little bit of a lot hearted question to end the podcast off. So this is gonna be fun. The question that I wanted to ask us is what is the one thing that you have on your bucket list right now that you would like to achieve in the next, if not 2024, possibly in 2025, but what is that one thing that's at the top of the bucket list right now? Tanya, go ahead.

Tanya Scotece: 17:24

Okay, so it's actually a physical goal. Okay so, like I know this may sound simple or minimal to Carlos, who sounds like extreme Marine but, I wanna be able to do a proficient pull-up. A proficient pull-up Like that is. I've been trying that, I worked at it and I'm gonna get it for 2024.

Carlos Vazquez: 17:46

What's a proficient pull-up? What's that mean? To be able to actually go above the pole like an actual Okay, so like your arms locked out and then being able to pull yourself up.

Tanya Scotece: 17:57

Yeah, I wanna be able to do the front one though.

Carlos Vazquez: 17:59

That's not easy. It's not easy, yeah sure, marines do it, but it's not easy. So you could do it, though I'm sure you could.

Tanya Scotece: 18:05

I'm trying, I'm trying, so I'm gonna make it 2024 goal. That is my bucket list to be able to. This one does it. I don't wanna, I don't know. I'm not really interested in whatever this part, but the forward one Overhand.

Carlos Vazquez: 18:17

You call that overhand and then underhand. Yeah, so I call that as no, that's what we call it.

Shireen Botha: 18:21

Yeah, it's the.

Carlos Vazquez: 18:24

Yeah, with three hands up, pull-ups.

Shireen Botha: 18:27

I love this. Okay, that's awesome, tanya, and I'm going to be supporting you with that all the way. What about yourself, carlos?

Carlos Vazquez: 18:36

Man, all right, I have several short-term goals, but one big one that I think would be a big deal is I wanna help 25 entrepreneurs break $1 million in sales revenue 25. So that's my goal for 2024. If I exceed that, great, but 25 is my minimum.

Shireen Botha: 19:01

I like that. I like that. That sounds awesome. So I'm not sure if I'm gonna be achieving this in 2024. That's why I said you know, if it's on the top of your bucket list, then that's fine. So for me it's to see the northern lights.

Carlos Vazquez: 19:16

Oh, is that like the nighttime, like the stars and it's that blue green.

Shireen Botha: 19:20

Where's that At night? Where is that? What's that?

Carlos Vazquez: 19:24

Where is that? Excuse my ignorance. We can, oh, iceland.

Shireen Botha: 19:30

Apparently you can see it in Iceland. It's the north Alaska side of things. Apparently you see it quite often there.

Carlos Vazquez: 19:37

OK, it's not 2024, but I'm definitely going to put that on my bucket list.

Voiceover: 19:41

Northern Lights. I'm a traveler.

Carlos Vazquez: 19:43

So Northern Lights and Iceland, and I learned that Iceland has no ice and Greenland has no grass. Is that true?

Shireen Botha: 19:51

I don't know, I've never been. Oh, another, ok, so, yes, so with that, that does bring us to the end of the podcast. So thank you so much to Tanya and Carlos. If you could just take a moment for the listeners. If they're really connected with you through this episode today, please just tell them where they can reach out to you and contact you. If they would like to Tanya, go ahead.

Tanya Scotece: 20:19

OK, so most of the listeners know I don't have a TV. I haven't watched TV in about 28 years, so I spent a lot of time on LinkedIn. That is my hub. I am not techie like Carlos, but LinkedIn I know pretty well so I spent a lot of time there. You can find me and be able to. You know, connect with me, get together for a one to one. I am a professor at Miami Dade College at the North Campus. I do oversee the mortuary program there. I'm also involved in senior placement, matching people who can no longer live alone with a community they're able to thrive in. In addition, I do serve as expert witness for anyone that has any interaction with the funeral home or cemetery that has situations. So those are the areas that I dabble with, but just happy to connect and share any words of inspiration to anyone, including career changes. Anybody want to become a funeral director and embalmer, maybe never knew much about it? By all means, contact me. We are one of three programs in the state of Florida, so how about you, carlos?

Carlos Vazquez: 21:25

OK, I'm not that big on LinkedIn. I do have automations running through LinkedIn. However, miamimarketercom is the hub for everything, but if you really want to interact with me and see most of my stuff, I usually put it on Instagram first. So at MiamiMarketer, all one word I'm there. And if you are a high ticket service provider meaning that you provide like lawyers, coaches, consultants basically if you're charting four figures and above for your services, I can build you a system that will help you get to that one million dollar mark. So one million dollar mark and beyond. So if you need to reach out to me at MiamiMarketer, my email address is Carlos at MiamiMarketercom. If you want to find me anywhere else, starting poppy should probably be out there somewhere. So I did buy that domain to just in case, because I haven't let it go.

Shireen Botha: 22:13

I have had it since I was a recruiter and I'm going to keep that till, I don't know, till the end, oh I love that Well, yes, so you can find me and Friends From Wild Places on LinkedIn as well, but you can also find us at friendsfromwildplacesbuzzsproutcom. As well as all the platforms Spotify, itunes you'll find us on all of them. You just have to search Friends From Wild Places. You will find us there. But please go ahead. You find us on YouTube as well. Like comment, subscribe. Tell us about it. Like comment, subscribe. Tell us what you think. We'd love to hear from you. But another way of coming to see all three of us is if you come and join us at our virtual networking group every Tuesday on Zoom at 7.30, est time. Miami partners. Come and join us. You can find us at MiamiPartnersbni. Miamipartnerscom. Did I get that right, carlos?

Carlos Vazquez: 23:13

Yeah, you got it, you got it, you remember us. Wow, you're impressed.

Tanya Scotece: 23:18

Carlos is our fearless leader, so he is our president, so happy to support the mission.

Carlos Vazquez: 23:25

Listen, that just means that I just run the meeting, because the real work is done by everyone else behind the scenes. Like Shereen, you're doing the visitor, hosting Tanya, you're preparing for all these educational moments. And Maria Magak she's the vice president. She's the one that she has her plate really full, like I used to be I did that role back in the day and she's the one that really keeps everything. She's like the glue for everything else. And Patricia, I'm not saying she's not the glue, but her plate is not as full as Maria's. And when you're a vice president, you know exactly what that means. So, president, I think it's fun. I'm just running the show, baby. That's all I do, basically a weekly podcast with a bunch of pros.

Shireen Botha: 24:06

Absolutely Come and find us there, Come and join us there. You can just come and visit. There's no pressure. And with that, thank you so much for listening and we'll see you next time. Guys, and remember you got this and stay wild. Bye, guys.

Voiceover: 24:24

You've been listening to Friends from Wild Places with Shireen Botha. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast from the links to catch every episode and unleash your passion.