My name, "Popelka", translates to "Cinderella "- rising from the ashes. 

Born into a house of abuse and addiction, I was in constant trouble and barely graduated high school.

I was on the road to nowhere.

Joining the Army probably saved my life, allowing me to unlearn early rules that were destructive. 

Army to night school, then college, all while serving, then to corporate America. 

For years in corporate America and in the military, I was the "get it done” guy - I delivered. 

Long hours demonstrated my work ethic, and the promotions and bonuses came.

In 2011, I returned from a deployment in Afghanistan and to my dual career - both in the National Guard and leading an international 24x7 operation for a large corporation. 

That's when big questions came:

Why must I choose between family and work?
 
Is this work why I’m here?
 
What do I really want to do?

For the next decade, I dove into these questions and I've helped others do the same.