As the story has it, one day I headed to the opposite side of the globe – the Flipside. I arrived in Korea February 16th, 2005 and thought I’d do a year, then leave. I was wrong. I stayed, launched my first company, Flipside Fitness, and then opened Korea's largest boxing club, Hulk's Boxing (now called Hulk's Club).

After 11.5yrs in Korea, I then picked up one day and returned to Toronto, Canada. But then I left again.

Now I live in the Philippines where I am the CEO and head coach of Empowered Clubhouse, the Philippines' first and only boxing clubhouse exclusively just for women. I also am the founder of the Lil' Sistas Project, CEO and designer of Slay Gear and Baa Baa Black Sheep .Ph.

Thursday, April 20, 2017

A VIP Kind of Meeting... Thursday, April 20

I met up with a particular lady in Fort Bonifacio who has become somewhat of a business mentor to me.  She's very much a modern day gal, a life coach who is as fierce as she is fabulous.  In many ways, she is the Filipino version of Kris from Clancy's back in Toronto, and I think that's why I'm so drawn to her and her opinion on things.

I met with her today to discus my second decision I need to make -- open up my business in Canada or here in the Philippines. 

We met at a posh little corner coffee shop and chatted for quite a while about the decision I need to make.  In talking with her, I opened up about Korea and how I had got into a situation there with Snickers and my business that left me so completely lonely.  No one knew what I was going through and I didn't care to tell anyone because I didn't think they'd ever understand.  I was all alone in a country busting at the seems, a country invested with people.  In telling her this, I told her that I wasn't sure about opening up a business here in the Philippines because I didn't want a repeat of what happened in Korea.  She then looked at me and said something that was both so incredibly blunt and true but also shockingly sad.  She said "every thing that happened you let happen.  It didn't have to be that way; it was your choice."  I didn't know whether to be mad, sad or happy but she was right.  She was 100% right.

"Philippines doesn't have to be a repeat of Korea if you choose it not to be."

So now... What is my choice?!  I won't let the Philippines be a repeat of Korea, that's a clear choice, but I don't know if I'm really any closer to choosing the Philippines or Canada.  

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