Learn How I Can Help You
“The dream is free. The hustle is sold separately.”
— ABOUT ME
Who is Donna Kassin?
I am a naturalized American from the island of Jamaica. Which may be the thing that surprises people the most when they judge this book solely by the cover. I have now lived in the United States continuously for over 30 years.
I bring with me the education and credentials that are expected at the MBA level. However, my PhD in life experience informs me that we can be educated beyond our intelligence, yet still fundamentally lacking in wisdom. Many such credentials are not worth the paper they are printed on if they are not backed up by integrity and good character, trustworthiness and dependability, a kind heart, and the willingness to grow in consciousness. These are the elements by which I want to be known; they comprise the foundation that now guides all that I do and am.
Indeed, there are six life principles that undergird my life:
- Ability will only take you where it is your character that must sustain you.
- You may not always know where you are going, but you always know where you can no longer stay.
- It’s not the one who gets lost in the maze that wins. It’s the one who finds his way out.
- Too much truth without grace is brutality. Too much grace without truth is hypocrisy.
5. Trust that the universe is unfolding as it should—you are exactly where you’re supposed to be, doing exactly what you’re doing at any moment in time. And if where you are doesn’t reflect who you believe yourself to be, move—you are not a tree.
6. He who dies with the most toys didn’t understand his mission.
These principles have served me well through many of life’s challenges and the kinds of hardships that took my steeliest resolve. In leaving a first marriage of 13 years, which by anyone’s standards should have ended two weeks after it began, and losing a second, beloved spouse to cancer after a near-five year battle, suffice it to say that I have walked the walk to be able to talk the talk. My most beloved witnesses, my two daughters—now thriving adults—can testify. One, an immigration attorney and budding politician, and the other, a Berklee School of Music graduate and recording artist, have made me proud and, if they are a reflection of the lessons I’ve taught them, I have done my greatest work.
In my emerging phase of life—as author—I have much to say on several fronts. Much of it is intended as a legacy for my daughters, a guide for when I am no longer here. Some truths are self-evident. Some are learned the hard way without proper mentorship. I truly believe that hindsight is 20/20 only if you get the lesson. I have no doubt that my two girls will revisit many of our shared experiences, decisions I’ve made, advice I’ve given, and reevaluate them as they mature.
I have done that work throughout my own life—and made peace. I will continue to live my truth.
Donna Kassin
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