EDIT: I no longer recommend Rainmakers in anyway, Yes, they were a part of my journey. I believe in remembering the past for its good and bad times, so though I do not recommend them, I will leave this post up as it is still part o f my journey. It is how I started to learn about Amazon, and I do think they taught that very well. Though I am grateful for my journey, an the people I met along the way I no longer recommend this company.
If this is the first thing you have ever read about me, let me preface:
In July 2012 my life changed forever. I was a victim of a mass shooting in a movie theater. I left the theater ok, but my boyfriend at the time passed away saving my life. Rest in peace Jon Baby.
Though I did not know it at the time, this was the day that marked the beginning of my mental health journey. Before that, I was the naïve and quite frankly uneducated person who thought depression was all in your head. SMH, I’m scoffing at myself.
Fast forward to now. I struggle with mental health. I struggle with anxiety, and depression, and have been diagnosed with PTSD. I have mostly found a way to not just survive my endeavor, but to thrive. I’d be lying if I said I was thriving 100% of the time. Finding JOY is a fleeting journey, you have to endure the sad times, to benefit from the joyful ones (see Inside Out for reference). Similar to healing, finding joy is not a one stop shop, its a journey, and there are turns and twists on this road. I have learned a lot, and one of the things I have learned is that no one is at rock bottom forever. So when I hit rock bottom, I tried to remind myself that I just need to get through this time, it too shall pass… but it’s hard.
One of those rock bottoms was in the fall of 2022. I was working three jobs in LA, and still barely making ends meet. I knew I was in my dream city, and mostly my life is/was good, but I was having some relationship issues, I was burnt out and it felt like even though things were mostly good, everything was crashing in around me. I never had time for myself or my hobbies. I felt hopeless.
I will never forget scrolling past an FBA ad. on September 10th. The ironic fact about that day, is that its Suicide Prevention Day. I remember seeing other friends posts on how they have climbed up from rock bottom, and being thankful to be alive. I remember trying to convince myself that I too shall get past this day. I remember crying as I read posts and begging for strength to make it through; as I planned how I would do it. When I scrolled past this ad. I think normally its something I would have skipped right over, but it caught my attention, the tag line “I retired from my 9-5”. I read through the comments because “scam right?”, and though a lot were negative, or weird, one caught my eye. A nurse, she said “It’s not a scam, it’s Amazon FBA, I do that now and I make more than my regular paycheck.” I then googled Amazon FBA. After watching a couple videos I was sold! I told my husband that night I wanted to start doing this, that I think I could do this! There are totally products I have tried to find on amazon that I can’t find, I’m going to sell those products! Well, news flash.. Its not that easy, if it was, everyone would do it! I watched many Youtube videos to start learning, and even though some videos said “you can learn everything you need for free on Youtube, a lot of others were saying “Join my masterclass for only $1000” etc. etc. It was very clear to me, that learning everything I needed to know on Youtube was going to be a very taxing journey. Looking back I cant help but laugh, I am hilarious. I honestly thought, I will soak up everything they have to say in one week, and then, if they have more, I will learn it on my own on Youtube. Yeah, right!I decided to hire a coach (Rainmakers) to teach me all I needed to know.
Finding a mentor was one thing, but I did not just find mentors to teach me Amazon FBA, I found the strength I needed to climb up from rock bottom.
I found hope.
I realized, that learning about Amazon FBA quite honestly saved my life. Even though the cost of starting a business was a lot, I determined, my life was worth that cost.
They say after tragedy it takes an average of two years to seek therapy. Well, I am a part of that statistic and I started receiving formal therapy exactly two years and three months post trauma. But unfortunately the fund for victims to receive therapy is short lived, they will pay for your immediate therapy after you seek it, but nothing past, and I have tried. So my therapy has run out, but that does not mean that I don’t still need help. I am on a waitlist for therapy, which is honestly just the sad reality of the mental health in our country. I could have taken my own life while waiting on that waitlist if it weren’t for finding a group that could help me change my circumstance.
I read somewhere that it is not that you want your life to be over, you just want your life as you know it to be over. Its never to late to change your circumstance.
That is just my journey to finding a business venture, but its also my journey to finding JOY. If you find yourself in a dark place, have faith that you too can change your circumstance and rock bottom never lasts forever!
