You are the captain of your ship; lead it right. This statement may sound cliché, like something motivational speakers tell you to get you pumped up and excited. You have come to associate such ‘high-spirited’ words geared to push you to work as uninspiring and dull. “It doesn’t work,” you tell yourself.

Avi Grondin, a TedX speaker, entrepreneur, and digital marketer, disagrees that those words are cliché. For the 24-year-old, who was raised by his single mother, Avi strongly believes that every human being has it within their capacity to become the best. He opines that the hurdles that we face shape us into becoming better persons only if we allow ourselves to learn from the experiences and not get sucked into the experiences.

Avi Grondin says his mother’s determination to see that he succeeds has taught him to do anything he set his mind to. The Californian-born, Toronto-based entrepreneur had a rough growing up.

His single mother had to work three jobs to pay for both him and his brother’s expensive school fees. Avi attended a private school he says had lots of rich kids, with him being one of the few poor students. His college experience, seeing his rich friends and classmates live the ‘rich’ life, was a strong motivation for him.

He knew how hard his mother was struggling to pay his school fees. Although she worked three jobs daily, her yearly income was 35k dollars. She is Avi’s motivation, her resilience is a virtue that Avi admires a lot.

“It wasn’t easy going to a school where everyone else had a car, but you didn’t. It was hard sometimes seeing all your friends live life, the rich, luxurious life, while you struggle to get the basics for yourself.

“But I didn’t allow the riches that I saw demotivate me. If anything, being around rich people motivated me to get better and make the life I want for myself.

“Getting the best out of life for a man like me was hard, but it was worth it. I knew the road to success wouldn’t be easy but I was determined to take the route nevertheless. I was prepared to take the wheel of my life in my hands and direct the ship to where I wanted it to be.

“I took responsibility as soon as I could when I started Vinicci Valet and scaled it to 35 drivers. After selling Vinicci Valet, I started Variance Marketing and it has been amazing so far.

“Taking charge of who I want to be, irrespective of the things around me is how I know how to live. And it is how I think many people should live. Life gives you lemons, you should be squeezing as much juice out as you can,” says Avi.

Avi has built a sustainable marketing business that he believes would lead the park in digital marketing in Canada in a few years from now.