Growing up I didn't have many positive role models. I didn't meet my father till the age of 13, so you can imagine how difficult it was being raised by a single mother. For as long as I can remember my brother, Justin Cooper, has always been there for me. Through the thick and thin Justin has continued to guide me in the right direction, and I can truly say I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for him.
Both Justin and I were born in Hartford, Connecticut. Even though we were only half brothers, we shared a bond that was unbreakable. We had different fathers so it wasn't easy when it came to splitting time between our mother, but still we managed to always be with each other.
In 1999, eighteen year old Justin Cooper graduated High School. In between following his high school sweetheart and getting into the college of his dreams at Florida State, Justin had many important decisions in front of him. He followed his heart, and his girlfriend at the time - and accepted to attend school at the University of Connecticut. Unfortunately, only after one semester Justin and his long time girlfriend of five years broke up. This left him in awe and right away he made the decision to transfer to FSU.
The following year my brother was living in Tallahassee and landed an internship with a country radio station. From there he climbed his way up, and was eventually offered a position with the company on a full-time basis. Our grandfather always told us no matter what we must finish school, so instead my brother respectfully declined and continued to pursue his degree at FSU.
In 2001, Justin was diagnosed with glaucoma and shortly after he became 100% blind in his left eye. The doctors told him that he may lose his vision entirely and that he should plan on taking off next year of school, because of how long it would take to recovery from surgery. He listened to the doctors and after a successful surgery and a speedy recovery Justin enrolled back into classes.
Over the next two years Justin pulled off a miracle. He graduated with honors and landed his dream job with Cox Media in Orlando. After so many people told him to slow down, he did the opposite. He knew with such short time he had to make a difference. We spoke almost everyday during that time and he always preached to me how we should never give up. Even though he was going through some of the worst times of his life, he always stayed positive. Not only did he help his own case, but he gave me motivation and helped me understand what was really important in life - that is family and friends. I was only beginning high school at the time, so for him to rub off on me at such a young age it really inspired me to reach my full potential.
After struggling with his loss of vision in his left eye Justin still continued to turn heads. At Cox Media in Orlando, Justin went on to earn multiple rewards including the, "Salesman of the Year" in 2004 and 2005. The following year Justin was promoted to Executive Manager, it wasn't till 2006 when he took a leap of faith and moved to Atlanta to chase the love of his life. Justin gave up everything and he tells me, still to this day it was one of the best decisions he has ever made. He always told me to follow your heart no matter what, and to see him risk it all really was an eye opener for me. Justin continued to nail this into my head growing up and often he would use metaphors to show me how materialistic things weren't the most important thing.
In 2008, our mother passed away. Justin and I were at an all time low - we were thousands of miles away from each other and it was hard for us to cope with the pain. Following the funeral Justin took time off work to come stay with me. During that time we became even closer, we did everything together. Justin describes it as a, "blessing in disguise" because it brought us together which led to me choosing the University of Cincinnati over a school in Connecticut.
Somehow Justin picked up right where he left off. In 2009, he moved to Chicago and interviewed with a start up digital company. In just two years my brother turned the start-up into a multi-million dollar company and in 2011 my brother parted ways with his shares when his company sold for 20 million dollars.
Justin showed me that if you continually do the right things and take care of others while following your heart, you can conquer anything. Courage, faith, and sacrifice was just a few qualities my brother possessed. After facing extreme adversity and almost becoming blind in both eyes, Justin fought his way to the top financially and into the heart of the girl that he always desired. He truly is an inspiration to me and with his love and support I have grown to become an entrepreneur myself. I couldn't ask for a better mentor and still to this day, every morning we send each other positive, motivational quotes to help kick-start our mornings!
One of my favorites I'd like to share:
"There's two rules:
1) Don't sweat the small stuff.
2) It's all small stuff"
