When Notoriety Slaps You in the Face

F*ck Rock Bottom ranked #1 on Amazon in Survival Biographies. Thank you to everyone who grabbed a copy, left a review, and shared your own story with me.

At the worst possible moment, The Triangle Business Journal published an article that shattered my world:

“Prominent Raleigh Restaurateur Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.”

I still remember that moment like it was yesterday. I was in the middle of pitching a $4 million investment to scale my business. The boardroom was sleek, polished—everything you’d expect from a high-stakes meeting. Investors were engaged, nodding along to projections of what looked like a bright future.

Then, a phone buzzed.

And just like that, the illusion of control unraveled.

The article went live earlier than expected, blasting every detail of my personal bankruptcy for the world to see. 

The oxygen left the room. My head swam. And deep down, I knew: the first domino had fallen.

This was notoriety at its worst—when making headlines shifts from being something you once dreamed of to becoming the slap you never saw coming.

Moments like this don’t just break you though, they show you what you’re made of. What you do when the weight of the world is stacked against you defines the next chapter of your life.

My story didn’t end with that article. It may have gotten darker before it got brighter. But ultimately, it was the catalyst for my comeback.

F*ck Rock Bottom is my raw, unfiltered account of how I took my biggest failure and turned it into the foundation for a comeback. Never hide from rock bottom—own it, face it, and use it as the launch pad for something greater.

If you're ready to build resilience and turn your rock bottom into a foundation for success, grab a copy of my book on Amazon: https://a.co/d/04huUTL

And if you find value in its pages, please leave a review. I’d love to hear how my story connected with you or helped you take the next step.

G aka The Rock-Bottom Climber

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