Jack Wardale

So this week has arguably been the busiest week of 2019, at least for me anyway…

I wanted to address a topic this week that has really consumed me of late…expectations. Expectations of others and expectations of myself.

Although I could entertain both facets, I wanted to instead talk more in depth about the expectations I have placed on others over the last eight months.

One of the hardest things for me about starting this business has been asking others to buy the clothing. Although an extrovert by nature, I struggle with the idea of asking others to buy Impower clothing. This is a byproduct of a multitude of thoughts that run through my head, but these are just the highlights:

“Why would they buy something from you?”

“They’re students, they don’t have money to buy anything, let alone an unknown clothing brand.”

“If they do buy it, it is probably out of guilt rather than support.”

For the most part, I have been asking friends and other people within my social network, but it has been a difficult task. Something I never want to do is make others feel that I am guilting them to buy the clothing. Moreover, the last thing I want is to feel like I am pushing my products on people.

The catalyst for all of this occurred earlier this week. I actually had someone tell one of my good friends something along the lines of, “Did he try and sell his clothing to you too?”

It hurt. The last thing I wanted to hear is that I was shoving it in peoples’ faces. I am excited about the potential to change the world through fashion. Maybe this does come off as pushy, although I have been as conscientious about this as I can.

This is my platform to say that I am striving to make this company so much bigger than myself. Of course, some people are buying my clothing to support me, and I am so thankful. However, I also want you to consider supporting the brand and the larger mission I am proposing here. I truly believe this movement could change the world for the better. For anyone who knows me well, you know that I probably will not stop until this is actualized!

This did however make me reflect on how much I have pushed my peers this past year.

First it was YouTube. I tried getting people subscribe and watch my videos. It was a time commitment on their part, every single week. Although this commitment is technically ‘free’, you know what they say…time is money. This is a quote I have certainly appreciated more as I have grown older.

Gosh I look young…

Still I pushed. I launched my clothing company last month. I asked people to follow the Impower account, like the photos, and finally…buy a piece of clothing. You can check out the instagram page below:

https://www.instagram.com/iamimpowered/?hl=en

I even started a blog. Not only did I want people to watch my videos and buy my clothing, now I wanted them to take time out of their week to read my life too?! It finally hit me. I had pushed my social connections so far, and for that, I apologize. The intention was to grow my social presence in different directions, so that people who preferred reading could read, and those who preferred watching could watch. I even dabbled with the idea of a podcast, but thankfully I sparred you all from that!

I have been on this journey of personal branding for about eight months now. It has been a rocky road of managing expectations, of both myself and others. I have pushed myself to the limit, expanding my social reach as far and as fast as I could.

So here is my opportunity to ask one thing of you…

If you enjoy watching me, continue watching.

If you enjoy reading my experiences, continue reading.

If you enjoy supporting me, feel free to continue.

If you don’t, then stop.

I won’t love you any less. I won’t think of you as any less of a friend. Part of this self-branding process is to reach people who I have not reached yet. I want people who do not know who Jack Wardale is to type my name in Google and see for themselves the real me.

The ultimate goal is to help as many people as I can, so that they can live a more fulfilling and happy life!

Thank you for anyone who has reached this point in the blog. I know I always make a point to thank people for following my journey, but I do this because I know how valuable time is. I am honored that you have chosen to spend some reading this.