Chatting with Justin Trudeau


#IsThisRealLife

Wednesday came very quickly. I had spent the rest of my Monday numb. Did that really just happen? Did I just get the opportunity to video chat with Justin Trudeau, the 23 rd Prime Minister of Canada?

Tuesday came and I started to freak out. My insecurities instantly reared up and I started to doubt my abilities to remain an intelligent life form. I reached out to my many intelligent friends and colleagues for advice. They all said the same thing: “You got this!!!”. Ugh……I so hope they were right.

Wednesday! The day! It was here. The video chat link was sent to my email and the connection was great. I will admit, I struggled with the lighting but Dioné’s Highlighter had me poppin’ so I was confident in my makeup game.

At 4:00pm, I closed the Faboutique and placed a sign on the door stating, “Closed early due to a conversation with the Prime Minister of Canada". My bestie, Court came down from Moncton to record the chat….mostly because if it wasn’t recorded, it didn’t happen….lol! The minutes ticked away as I went over my question in my head. I wanted it to be poignant and well thought out.

Deep breaths! You spoke to the Backstreet Boys. If you can speak to them, you can speak to anyone.

Promptly at 4:30, Mr. Trudeau sat down in his chair shrouded by two draping Canadian flags. There he was. THIS IS INSANE! My time came to ask my question and as soon as he said my name, my game face went on. Time to kill this. I spoke to him about my struggles with mental health and accessing it to be able to continue to grow my business and help my local economy. He told me things I was unaware the government was implementing and stated that he was thankful I was brave enough to discuss
something that is so stigmatized.



In total, it was a 3 minute conversation, but how many people can say that they had a video chat with the PM of Canada. I feel completely honoured that I was given this opportunity. Running a business isn’t always about dollar signs and bottom lines…..the experiences I get to have are amazing, which solidifies my roots and makes me push harder.

#ThisISRealLife