I come from a very academically oriented household.
But thanks to my parents, I’ve never felt even an ounce of self doubt about myself, despite the fact that my sister was so academically gifted when we were growing up, and I was so mediocre.
(Go here for the post about that).
My dad went to the equivalent of an Ivy League School back in Korea, and has spent his entire life as an educator in one form or another.
My mom was one of the first in her family to go to college, and she went to medical school after that. This was almost unheard of in her generation.
So you would think that my parents would have pressured me to match my sister in the academic category.
But for some reason, they never did.
Because as soon as any talk about academics or careers came up, my mom in particular would stick for me, saying…
“James, do you know why we don’t worry about you? Because ever since you were young, we immediately saw that you knew how to COMMUNICATE with people. If you couple that skill with the ambition that you already have, there is no way you can’t be successful.”
Wow.
I think back on these kinds of statements and am so thankful to her for giving me the support to discover my own path, rather than trying to force me down a path I wasn’t meant for.
It’s interesting, because I think that most of us as Internet Marketers have tried to explain what we do to our friends, family, and acquaintances at some point.
And if you’re anything like me (I do a lot of copywriting), it’s kind of tough to describe.
“I write advertising/marketing copy for businesses both online and offline.”
(And in reply I’ll get something like, “Oh, you write slogans?” Then I sigh and shake my head.)
“I’m an Internet Marketer.”
(And in reply I’ll get something like, “Are you the one sending me Viagra emails?” And I roll my eyes.)
But again, despite the fact that my mom doesn’t 100% understand the concept of direct response marketing, or salesmanship in print, or what an autoresponder is, it is enough for her to know that I am happy.
And it’s that quiet support and encouragement that makes it so much easier for me to pursue my dreams.
Although every day should be a day to celebrate our mothers, today is specially dedicated to them.
So from the bottom of my heart mom, I love you, and Happy Mothers Day.
I hope you all feel the same way about your mothers.
-James D. Lee
p.s. The inspiration from this post came from a blog entry I read from Ryan Healy’s blog, who coincidentally, had a very similar experience with his father.
It’s funny how smart we think we are, but as we get older, we realize how wise our parents have been all along.
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