um, think life life is a lot like water and can kind of take us in directions that if we're open to to follow and allow, that's that's how I got here. I believe that there there are certain opportunities that come across our path that if we take, um, yeah, the lead us in different places. So I always had a vision that I wanted to work with product and people, and with that kind of goal in that internal desire, it led me to get to know people from all over the world and to study some languages. And as that was my intention, um, and university, I studied business administration as well as Chinese. Um, and those opportunities just kind of people knew that I had what I had studied. I had talked to people, and I got my first opportunity with the cup with a company based on my ability to speak different languages. I speak Portuguese and Chinese, So I helped out starting in a customer service role that then transitioned into, um, kind of helping facilitate China as well as Portugal, and it turned into more of an operations role, making sure we got product into those countries. So again, that initial intentions that I wanted to work with product and people they started to manifest in ways that I wouldn't when I took the customer service really didn't think, Oh, this is gonna help me get into product. But fast forward, like nine years and I I'm I managed product programmes globally for the company. I'm with getting product that helps people's lives. It's health and wellness products all over the world. So, you know, at times I was confused and thought, Man, this isn't what I want to do. This isn't how I thought it would be and would get frustrated, um, on dso finally and I still get frustrated from time to time but realizing I know I want to be Ah, I want I've always wanted to I know what I've always wanted to be and that's I wanted to be a father and a husband, a family man. Sometimes I didn't know What is it that I want to do? But all the opportunities and my current experiences have helped me be a father and I have two Children now that I'm really grateful for, and my wife is a very wonderful support and example to May. So that's a long answer. Your question? What? How have I got here today? It's been with the help of people with A with a desire to get to know more people and to bring good products to people around the world.

So I work with a global company, um, and managing the product program. So we have a lot of different brands. There's probably over 160 different products. Um, and we're global. So decisions that I have to make are really does. Does the product do the proposals for new products or existing products into new markets? Um, do these proposals? Do we have approval from our finance department? Sometimes getting a certain product into Australia is more expensive than getting one into Europe. So financially, are we going to make the needed margin and generate the needed profit to make sense, to give a certain country a certain product. So as a as a product manager, program manager or even project manager, I'm more of a facilitator to make sure that the decisions are made by this important stakeholders across all departments in an organization. So I mentioned finance is a major player. We don't want to give a product to a country that we can't even make money on, which has happened. As we review some of the products selling, we say, Oh my gosh, By the time we spend but time and money, we spend a ship, a product to that certain market and a warehouse it and to pay the customs. All of that. We're not making money at the end of day. We need to stop that. So finance operations. What did they need to do to Tiu? Handle a certain product? We have products that are sensitive to heat if we send some of these products across the Pacific Ocean or Atlantic Ocean in the summer months, where temperatures can get a way above 100 F. So again, my decisions I have to make our really capturing the approval from all needed departments. And that's one thing I love about my job as a project manager. Working with product is it's never the same thing every day, and and I also get to work with every department from marketing, finance, operations, regulatory, even the executive team on making sure we can make and find win win win situations and a win win win situation is that it's best for our customer. It's best for our internal stakeholders, and it's best for our external shareholders where we're a public company and we want to make sure that our profitability is what we forecasted to be the work hours. Working with a global company can be pretty crazy. We do a lot of work in Europe and in Asia, really all over the world. So I have to be available for meetings early in the morning and often late at night. Um, I worked with some good management that they understand that. So as a project manager, I'm a lot of self managed. But I know that I have to get the minimum of 40 hours a week, and the last few months have been maybe an average of 50 to 60 hours a week. We're rolling out a lot of our new products and brands worldwide, so it's been a particular busy season. I know it will scale back to more that 40 hours a week at some point. But to be a team player, we definitely have to be available. And Cove. It has opened a lot of opportunity of working from home so I can work again. It's getting just making sure I get my work done, making sure that we get the right information to the right individuals to make the right decisions and then track that and follow up on that

So in a job like mine is making sure all right, relevant information for important decisions is accessible to all people. A specific example. Right now we have a new brand rolling out that's skin care. So suffer face both male and female, and it's going all over the world. Um, we're We are launching the first phase of this in two weeks. And even now, when I think man, everyone is a line, everyone knows the exact dates, the exact quantities to be shipped, the exact marking material to release. I still I'm getting emails from like, for example, China sent an email and said, Oh yeah, we're excited to launch this a week before what was planned. And it's just like, Man, we have had so many meetings and there's been so many emails saying, China, you know, your date is this state. That's the earliest possible. And here we are, two weeks from the launch and they're saying, Hey, we want to launch. We're gonna launch next week and it's just it was It's been a challenge because I don't want to tell our sales team who are responsible for generating the sales that Dr are our revenue that really pay our paychecks. I don't want to say I don't wanna be a stick in the mud. Say no, that's not my role. But I can remind them and send them the information that has been provided for months to help. Say, you know what you're putting yourself and your putting the market and sales at risk if you're going to go against what was planned. So as a project manager, really making sure that you're clear in communication constant follow up constant check ins. Sometimes you have to be annoying because if certain things are not being understood or you're not getting the answers that are needed, you have to follow up and it can be challenging because I'm a people person. I'm a nem path and I care about people. And I care about my team when they're working really hard that sometimes it's hard to me to say Hey, you know this is late. You really have to get this in, even if it means working in a lot of hours today, tomorrow, this week, it's It's do so finding that balance between, um following up on being consistent and not being like a jerk. Sometimes you have to be kind of a jerk, Teoh, to make sure that the project is on track.