Today we’d like to introduce you to Jacob Pacheco.
Hi Jacob, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
It is 11pm my best friend and I are sitting in his old jeep Cherokee after our graduate class for Kinesiology. We were both working and going to school full time, totally exhausted. I graduate in less than six months with a Master’s degree that would help elevate my career and validate my skills and experience as a professional sports coach, or so I thought. This was my moment, I would break through barriers of professional sports to live my dream instead I experienced one of the biggest breakdowns that changed the course of my life I have never looked back since.
Can you imagine putting thousands of hours into your passion that gives you a smile on your face and love in your heart, then be told you are not good enough? It happened to me and shattered my self-image, in my opinion that was what I needed: a hard look in the mirror to make a choice and confront hard truths about who I want to be. A self-realization that I was living my life dictated by what someone else or society thought was suitable/acceptable for someone who was different. I was born with a difference: a physical disability called Cerebral Palsy. On day one, I was slapped with cold hand of reality that everything in life, both the internal and external would be more difficult. At certain points, it became center of my existence and if I “overcame” this challenge: acceptance and validation would follow from the inside to outside. It was a results-based or performance-based form of love that my life choices were based around, a checklist that told me I was good enough but what happens when you can not check off a box because it is out of your control? When I was informed that I did not possess the ability or experience to work with athletes, I spent some time in sadness because I could not perform up to my own personal standard. Then I remembered the one word that had kept me going up to that point, past bullying, abuse, medical setbacks, depression and myself: change.
Change is absolutely terrifying and exciting all at once. It is embracing the uncertainty in life and placing extreme amounts of personal responsibility and accountability on your own shoulders. That is a heavy burden which can crush a spirit, I have been there a few times but my family, my community were there to give me a helping hand out of the hole I was dug in. I decided in the Jeep Cherokee at 11pm that night with my best friend’s support that I would create a platform that would be adventurous, creatively fun and share experiences that empowered someone else to believe in their own dreams. That story started in the jeep, to a garage with a camera and a small gofundme project. There were no expectations, only a willpower to keep creating, changing and evolving into what I’m extremely proud of today: ProneToRide.
In 2015, entrepreneurship, content creation, public speaking and pro-surfing were far from my own reality. In 2016 it became my reality because I embraced the necessary change needed, the alternative would have taken my life and heart down a dark road. However, today is much different I get to do what I love most: connect with people from all over the world and speak to them human to human. Create exciting content with other amazing humans and working with brands and platforms that want to share and build the message. It has been five years and time well spent, with more to come on the horizon. It has been worth it including the ups and downs with no regrets.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No road is smooth, but the road was worth the effort and sacrifice. Some of the struggles were: internal doubt, confusion and inconsistency because of unacknowledged issues that manifested at times.
Progress was really slow at times with no collaborations or paychecks coming in. It was hard.
Self-taught content creation: how to edit, shoot and create and evolve content over time. I had to become the one stop shop for all things.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a speaker, content creator and entrepreneur. The ProneToRide platform is where I have created the opportunities for speaking engagements, selling merchandise, and paid collaborations or sponsorships.
What I am most proud of is being known for creating opportunities through adversity and building a community filled with acceptance and love. I am so proud of taking my disability and pain (something I never asked for but was given anyway) to transform it into beautiful life while uplifting the community at the same time.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
The most interesting lesson I learned during the COVID pandemic was: if you build good relationships, you will build good opportunities in life and business.
Through networking and relationship building, I experienced exponential growth in my personal and professional life.
Secured a TED talk because I emailed every opportunity I could and had a conversation.
Secured multiple content creation contracts remotely because the relationship of trust built over previous opportunities. I took initiative, asked what was possible, and received what I was looking for.
** If you create good relationships, your name ends up in many more conversations than realized.
Pricing:
- Short Sleeve shirts – 25
- Long Sleeve – 28
- Hats – 21.50
- Beanies – 18.50
- Sweats – 34.98
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.pronetoride.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pronetoride/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pronetoride
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/0603jake
Image Credits:
Joseph Barber Photography Zappos Adaptive Team
