the art of giving back

I’m in Croatia right now, just finished speaking at an event.

But this time it felt different. I met someone…

Ubaid from Pakistan, a freelance designer.
He’s been following me since I had 10,000 followers.

I’ve seen his journey unfold from the sidelines.
Hired him a few times and referred him to clients too.

He’s a very talented man, but he had something else.

I saw myself in him a lot.

He rejected the idea of being a victim.

A victim to where he is from.
A victim of the ‘language barrier’.
A victim to the idea of not fitting in.

And he made it out. He made his vision a reality.

He just put his head down.
Mastered his craft.
Learnt how to monetise it.
Built his personal brand.

Today he is living in Europe.

And to those who don’t know, this is a hell of an achievement coming from a third world country. I empathise with the resilience. 3 years in the making.

Ubaid is following the same path I once walked 4 years ago.

He’s told me that I changed his life.
He’s thanked me more times that I could count.

Reminded me about my early support of him and else… helped him gain the confidence to keep going.

But I don’t think him and people like him know how much they’ve changed mine.

Because behind my “success” there still is a little immigrant girl with a broken accent and a lot of fear. Hoping someone would believe in her.

And many people did. My parents, my mentor and a lot of my friends today who were way more succesful than me at the time.

They gave me their time. And that is more precious than anything else to me.

Sometimes giving back isn’t about giving people money.

It can be

A kind word when they’re doubting themselves.
A referral when they’re just starting out.
A bit of belief when no one else gives it to them.

That’s all it takes to create a ripple effect.

Ubaid thought I changed his life.
But the truth is…he reminded me why I started.

Because success isn’t just about what you build.

It’s about who you lift while you’re building.

To the beginners reading this, just know I believe in you.

And to the pro’s reading this, take time today and give a small creator or entrepreneur a nudge of encouragement.

Love, Lara.

A big dedication of this email to Richard Moore my mentor, who undoubtedly was that person for me in the world of business.