Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Stephen Spence. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Stephen, thanks for joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

When I was a teenager, I had a job at UPS. I was bringing in over $300 a week which is not a lot of money now but in 1998 when you’re still living at home with no bills and no responsibilities, I thought I was living the life. I felt like I was on top of the world. One day I was working in the back of the trailer unloading packages and I came across over 20 large boxes that were from T-shirt companies. Any business that deals with package handling you know that boxes will rip, tear, and split open. One of the boxes that came from the T-shirt manufacturers split open. I volunteered to tape up the box because I wanted to get a quick look inside to see how many shirts will come in one package. The person that was in the trailer with me recognized the company on the box because he said he uses them for his shirts. I asked him nonstop questions for the remainder of our shift. He had just got a contract to have his shirts sold at a major shoe store, and that day was the last time I ever saw him. I was happy for his success, but I wanted my own success. He showed me that it was possible. I remember having to memorize the name of the T-shirt companies on the box and writing it down on a piece of paper after my shift was over. The year was 1998 so computer, Internet, and cell phone access wasn’t accessible as it is now so most things were done by pen and paper, and having to make landline phone calls. I called that company and realized quickly that they only sold in bulk, and the price was far out of my reach. I was disappointed, and had to come to the conclusion that it wasn’t going to happen at that point in my life. Truth be told, I didn’t even have the designing skills during that time. I planted the seed by doing the research and I knew at some point in my lifetime it would happen. Knowing what I know now, if I could go into a time machine and return to that point of my life with the knowledge and skills that I have now, I would do things exactly the same way. Everything has its right time and during that time I wasn’t ready yet. Technology wasn’t as advanced as it is now. Could I have done it sooner in my life? Maybe I could have but even thinking about it now it wasn’t the right time. I didn’t even have the skills to even operate the software that was required. As a matter of fact, I didn’t even know what the software was to even create the designs. The skills that are required to make it work were graphic designing, marketing, money management, and physically having to talk to people. Any business deals I would have made I would have been taken advantage of because I was still too young and I wasn’t ready. The obstacles that stood in my way during that time were more youth than experience, lack of money, lack of skills, And even if I had all of those, I didn’t even know which direction to go. In my case, the dream was free, but the resources were sold separately, so what I’ve done was held on to the dream taking advantage of the free until I was in a position to acquire the resources and the skills

Stephen, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a person who moves by the beat of my own drum. I don’t do things just because everyone else is doing it. I do things because that’s what I want to do. There’s a song written by hip-hop artist; Nas, titled: “EVERYTHING”. In the Song, he says “ you never been the same as anyone else, don’t think the same as everyone else. Those words describe me perfectly. I was a part of this business the moment it was just a dream, but it didn’t manifest until way later in life. To give an example, if a little boy wants to grow up and win the Super Bowl it’s not going to happen at the age of seven, but the moment he sees that it’s his dream and makes a decision that it will become a reality, It will happen later on in his life when the right time comes. Discipline is required and I had no one to teach me any of this at that age. I developed my discipline from always listening to older people when they talk. Unlike my peers who thought at the age of 18, they had life figured out, I was the opposite. No matter if it was failures, success, illegal activities, business moves, prison stories, or old military stories. I would always give my undivided attention. Just because their path may have been different from mine didn’t mean there was nothing I couldn’t learn from them. Fast forward to now I’m the right person equipped with everything I need to proceed in this business. Is there room for improvement? The answer is yes, but I have enough knowledge and resources to proceed. The first shirt that I sold got a five star review instantly. After seeing that I was excited and eager to sell another one and I did and got another five star review. The challenge I face is having to connect with my target audience. When you’re first starting off, it’s not like you can just post your product and your customers are going to automatically come. I learned quickly that I have to advertise wisely and respond in a timely manner when customers have questions. Usually when you think of a new business venture, we always have a tendency of thinking about the rewards, but never the risks. I know that taxes and hosting fees play their part, but there are many other expenses when it comes to having a T-shirt business. The advice I would give to someone who’s thinking about getting in this business I would say prepare to take losses in the beginning. The money that you do make will have to go back into the business. It will take time before you start seeing profits. Most people won’t like the sound of that but it’s always better to start your business on a solid foundation. What separates me from most people is the fact that I am not afraid to fail. I understand that losses are a part of the process. If I had to part ways with the business, for any reason, I could do it easily if it made sense. The proudest moment that I’ve had was the day I had my first set of shirt designs was posted on my website, and the other proudest moment was when I sold my first shirt. What makes me proud of those moments is the fact that this was only a dream 25 years ago and even though it took long to actually do it, it’s been done and I completed something that I said I would complete. Now I must raise the bar and expand the goal.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to unlearn the mindset that was instilled in me from a child. When I was taught that good things come to those that wait, I actually believed that. I’ve waited and watched others receive opportunities. I believed as long as I waited, I would have the best opportunities in the end. Years began to pass in then I started wondering where are these good things that I’ve been waiting for? It wasn’t until an older man told me that good things don’t come to those that wait, good things come to those that go out and get what they want. He also told me we don’t get what we deserve, we get what we negotiate. Before I heard that I was just floating on the Sea of life going wherever the currents take me instead of grabbing my oars and paddling in the direction I wanted to go. Another thing I had to unlearn is what I was taught about money. I was always told as a small child growing up. That money is the root of all evil. With all of the crimes that take place and evil things that go on usually took place over money, so yes, it was easy to believe that. As I got older I heard a motivational speaker say money is not the root of all evil. Lack of money is the root of all evil. He proceeded to say that people are not killing, robbing and stealing because they have money, people do it because they don’t have money. That made a lot of sense so I proceeded to listen to what he was saying. After listening to his speech, I immediately changed my views about money. It’s better to give than it is to receive is another thing that I was taught growing up. This one right here really messed me up in a lot of ways. I gave so much that I didn’t know how to receive. It was to the point that if someone offered me something I wouldn’t take it because of that belief. You can only imagine how many blessings I’ve missed out on because of that. And if someone even gave me a compliment, I immediately gave them one right back, robbing them from the chance of giving because I refused to receive. It wasn’t until I had the privilege of coming across a spiritual healer that I was able to stop that behavior. She taught me the spiritual meaning of money. When she mentioned giving and receiving, she made it clear that giving and receiving are two sides of the same coin in order for someone to give someone Has to receive, and in order for someone to receive someone has to give. She proceeded to teach that money has a spiritual energy like everything else. She said if someone called you evil, would you want to be around them? My reply was no. Then she said if you refer to money as evil, why would money want to come into your life? That was a very good question. She also asked me what does the air that I breathe, the water that I drink, and the electricity that I use, have in common with money. I asked what? She said currents. Immediately I knew what she was talking about. Because currents flow constantly and the spirit of money flows from multiple sources constantly, the same as water, air, and electricity. At that moment, I understood why money is called currency. There are other things I had to learn, but for right now, we’ll just keep it at that.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

In 2005 I had reached the highest level of success up to that point in my life. After years of hard work, struggles, and growing pains, I finally had every resource that I needed to work with. In the midst of celebrations, photo shoots, and new form partnerships I ended up getting diagnosed with an unexpected illness that took away the ability to utilize my arms, legs, and neck. I ended up sidelined before any contracts can be signed. Instead of learning my way around in this new level of business I had to learn my way around the rehabilitation hospital. I had to learn how to walk all over again, which took several years. I started in a power chair, to a wheelchair, before finally being able to stand. You would think that the storm is over, but the new challenge was now dealing with all the weight gain that’s been accumulated from the medication and the long period of time I spent not being able to walk. I had gained over 100 poundsmy normal weight and not to mention not having full strength in my muscles. I had to adapt to the weight and the muscle weakness and continue what I started. For two years, I studied to become a pro. I’ve upgraded my skills and equipment then after that is when I decided it was time to make a comeback. With that come back, I’ve accomplished, things that I never thought I would accomplish. Someone recently told me when things that seem to be a tragedy in your life that stops you from accomplishing something sometimes may be a blessing. He said that you will one day be thankful that what was stopped didn’t happen. Now that I look back on it, there are certain things within the contract that I never got a chance to sign that would have been bad for me. During that time they could have gotten me to sign easily, because I was young, unwise in the ways of the business world, and too trustworthy towards the contractors. As much as I hate to admit it, the sickness upon me stopped me from doing something that could possibly damage myself financially when it came to business. The truth is, I am thankful that certain business deals during that time didn’t happen, but I certainly didn’t feel that way then.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/DiamondGlobe?ref=seller-platform-mcnav
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