As far back as I can remember, I’ve always loved Thanksgiving: two days when everyone comes together to share meals and share gratitude. Today I’m thankful for so many people: my wife, our daughters Orla and Oona, my family, my friends, and my coworkers.
Throughout my life I’ve been very fortunate. It started with my grandparents being daring enough to leave Cuba in the early ‘60s. My dad grew up and decided he wanted to work for himself, and my mom was crazy enough to marry him and build a family. They set a great example for togetherness and hard work, which in turn afforded me and my siblings pretty much anything we wanted: great experiences, travel, and education.
We were also taught to work—it’s what makes my family who we are. To this day, when I check in with my parents, their first question is, “How’s work?” I started working when I was twelve at a burger shack in Miami, then a comic shop, then a grocery store, then for my dad—a real estate developer—all throughout high school and college.
I love to work. I believe it’s because I’ve been lucky to have supportive role models who taught me that we can love our jobs and that we shouldn’t rest until we’ve found careers we love. Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t have the chances or the support I’ve had to pursue their own career passions.
I want to spend the rest of my life helping those people. I believe companies should be a force for good and I want to build a company of my own that shows that it’s possible. Over the last few months I’ve been working on something new with anyone that would listen to me, and I’m thankful for all of their help and support. The result of that work is Teal, a company that will help people build meaningful careers of their own.
Careers take work and dedication to build. Without advocacy and support, it’s easy to find yourself in a job that stresses you out and drains you. We want to help people find work that energizes them and supports them.
It’s still very early and I’ve been incredibly lucky to have a few brilliant people join me already. Be on the lookout for more from Teal in the coming months as we grow and start to release technology that helps people in their careers. You can sign up here to stay informed: www.tealhq.com
On this Thanksgiving, I feel so fortunate to have people in my life who support me and enable me to pursue my passions. I hope I can spread that good fortune to others, too.
Happy Thanksgiving!
