10 Weeks Down, 42 More to Go…

Well this is my first time to post anything in quite a few weeks, and since the last time there has been fair bit going on. A lot to do with work, especially! Opening this store, I feel as though I’ve been a paradigm example of Murphy’s law. Every single possible thing that could have gone wrong has! Most of it has worked itself out, but it has been difficult to say the least. And it’s nice know that the people at the top are aware of the circumstances, and tell me how great of a job I’m doing and to keep it up. I’ve never been one to need validation or a pat on the back, but being in a foreign country all by my lonesome, it definitely helps hehe. One of the biggest challenges in training a new team here in Canada is that the immense cultural difference between the culture of our company and the culture of the Canadian employee. Don’t get me wrong, everyone is wonderful and very nice, but they’re missing that haughtiness and Je ne sais quoi that all of our employees in America have, and that single factor is what makes one successful in our company. If you don’t go after something with panache and a proactive disposition, then how does one expect to see results? With that being said, my team has improved tremendously since opening. But there is still a long way to go.

I’ve come to actually begin enjoying my time here in Montreal A LOT more than I was in the first few weeks. The first few weeks it was all work, no play and very cold weather. But now that the team is actually capable of somewhat sustaining things when I’m not present, the quality of my personal life has improved tremendously as well. I’ve met a lot of people outside of work over the past few weeks. Some have been crazy, weirdos, liars and some have actually been really cool and amazing people! So I definitely look forward to nurturing those relationships and seeing what course they take. I only hope they turn out to be at least half as amazing as my loved ones, friends and family back home. It’s been so wonderful having long phone calls, getting texts and the like from everyone. To take time out of their existence and out of genuinely organic desire to want to communicate with me, means more than I could ever articulate into words. And for those who haven’t uttered a peep, well they will fade into oblivion without even so much as a passing thought or mention, like so many of the others before them. I really don’t treat people like they’re expendable, but being here has really made me realize how much I’ve taken things for granted and I shall certainly try to stop. Things like driving, nice clothes, a roof over my head, great social life, family, friends, being loved and even language, are things I’ve taken for granted and come to expect in life. Each new day is a opportunity to experience something amazing, if you allow yourself to be open to such things. Which is why I don’t mourn the loss of things lost and people gone. Now that I’ve been going it alone, I have extreme clarity into every aspect of my life, and I’ve come to realize that it is pretty damned good.