11/17/2025
Do you remember going to hang out at the mall as a kid?
When I was growing up in the late 90s, going to the mall was the “cool” thing kids did with their friends.
I never had that.
I didn’t have a big friend group to hang out with.
So the mall became this mix of feelings for me:
a reminder of what I didn’t have, but also a quiet reassurance that maybe my time was better spent reading books and building my own world of imagination.
So when I finally visited the Mall of America, my expectations weren’t high.
And I was completely surprised.
We spent the whole day exploring - crazy roller coasters, an aquarium, immersive rides, and even Legoland.
That last stop sparked something I hadn’t thought about in years: my love of LEGOs as a kid.
Back then, my parents couldn’t afford the big sets.
But as an adult, I realized something:
I could buy them for myself.
So I did.
And I started collecting LEGO sets again.
Here’s the bigger lesson this reminded me of:
So often in business (and in life), we get stuck thinking our opportunities are limited to what we had access to growing up - the resources, the connections, the confidence.
But as adults we have the power to give ourselves what we didn’t have back then.
That might look like investing in a new skill, taking a leap into a new market, or finally building the thing you’ve dreamed about for years.
For me, it started with LEGO sets.
As entrepreneurs, it often looks like building a new strategy, community, or system that unlocks growth and freedom.
And sometimes, the key to moving forward is simply realizing:
you don’t have to wait for someone else to give you permission anymore.
💙 What’s something you’ve given yourself as an adult that your younger self never had?
