My Friend Josh, The Future President Of The United States Of America

This blog will be a bit of a change of pace. As the last blog of the year, I wanted to move away from satire and my silly opinions to write something genuine. In an attempt to end the year on a positive note, I decided to write a piece about a person who has inspired me whether they know it or not; my friend Josh Lafazan, the future President Of The United States Of America.

Josh’s story is fascinating. During his senior year of high school he decided to run for a position on his school’s board. These positions are traditionally held by older, more out of touch, incumbents, and Josh saw an opportunity to start making a change at the most local level of government. And that’s exactly what he did. Following his historic victory, he got into office and started shaking up the status quo and fighting for the interests of the students. Following his term as board member, he finished his undergraduate education at Cornell, received his masters in Education Policy from Harvard, and ultimately made his run for Nassau County Legislator where he has being serving for a full year now.

Now I apologize for that super sparknotes version of Josh’s story but I wanted to make sure I got to the real reasons I find him to be such an inspiration. Sure these accomplishments are incredible, especially at such a young age, but Josh has two specific traits that I find to be even more impressive.

Resolve. No one wants to admit it now but during the days he was preparing to run for the school board it didn’t seem like one person, outside of his immediate family, was in support of his choice. You think you have haters? You think people don’t believe in you? Think again. Every time I was with Josh it seemed like everyone wanted to give him their opinion on why he shouldn’t be going through with what he wanted to do. How it was risky or just plain ridiculous. The theme of “come on man, just be normal and go to college like the rest of us” was overwhelming. But not to Josh. I remember having a conversation with him after someone had openly scoffed at his plan and he was completely unfazed. Most people would be angry, and maybe some people are able to turn that anger into further motivation, but Josh wasn’t even mad. He basically laughed it off. He understood that most people wouldn’t agree with his choice and he was okay with that. He was unstoppable but also forgiving. That to me is baffling. To be so determined but also to have no chip on your shoulder about proving people wrong. He had a plan and if people didn’t see it yet that was perfectly okay. No sweat.

Secondly, I’m in awe of how he went all in on his plan. If you haven’t gathered this yet, in order to serve on the board he had to stay local during college. He forwent applying to the many prestigious colleges that would have accepted him to go towards this goal that no one had ever done before. There was no blueprint or example of how it had all worked out for someone else. He was the guinea pig and happy to be it. And college for the first semester couldn’t even be a backup plan. College acceptances come out in April and he wouldn’t find out if he was elected to the Board until June. All of his friends knew what their futures were going to look like for the next few years while he was skating on a whim. There was no backup plan.

So what do I hope people take from Josh’s story as we enter 2019? First, I ask that everyone supports each other’s crazy ideas. It doesn’t matter if it’s a close friend or a complete stranger. There is no reason to be anything but positive towards that person. If they believe in something then who are you to give your two cents on why it won’t work. By the way, the people who hated on Josh when he started his run are now his biggest fans and act as if they were always on his side. When he goes out in his town he’s a local celebrity and gets embraced with open arms. Funny how that changes.

Secondly, have empathy for those who still want to be negative. There is no use in getting mad at someone who wants to tear you down. In reality, they don’t hate that you are chasing something, they hate that they have nothing to chase themselves. All hate comes from self-hate. Have empathy.

Finally, go all in. I’m not saying that everyone should quit their jobs or eliminate their back up plans but in terms of effort its time to go all in. The world is full of examples of how someone can accomplish the goal that you are interested in. And even if there isn’t a blueprint, be like Josh and create your own.

I’m lucky to have a friend like Josh, a true leader and an inspiration, and in 2019 I will strive to be more like him.

Photo Cred: Justin Cristando