If you’re struggling to find meaning in your life, you’re not alone. The journey to live out your why can take many paths, most of which can be the least we expect but, in the end, makes the most sense. In this episode, Erin Babcock shares how she lived out her why – by helping people through her Cannabis business. She and her business partner opened the doors of Primo Gardens Inc, a CBD retail and manufacturing lab that helps other people or businesses start their own unique CBD line and provides health and wellness products to regain balance. She shares her entrepreneurial and spiritual journey of finding purpose in her business. Erin also touches on the stereotypes and biases she had to deal with as a CEO of a cannabis business. She emphasizes how the purpose of businesses is deeper than just the products or services they sell. Moreover, Erin explores how there are many paths that can lead someone to a fulfilling life, from following your passion to creating your own opportunities. Tune in to discover the power of living with purpose and the many ways you can make it happen.
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A Cannabis Entrepreneur’s Story: Why Your Company Is More Than Your Product Or Service With Erin Babcock
YOUR JOURNEY TO LIVE OUT YOUR WHY CAN TAKE MANY PATHS
Thank you for taking your time out and spending it with us. Andy, it’s great to see you.
We are starting March Madness. The racket is out. I’m busy filling it out. I’m trying to put my best guesses together to see how badly I’m going to do because I never do well.
Mine is a crapshoot since I don’t pay attention to basketball the rest of the year.
I’ve dragged my father into it. I’m curious to see. When I was growing up, part of our father-son connection was I would put together all the NFL games every Sunday. We would try to predict the winners, keep track of it every week and see how we did at the end of the season. I always beat his butt in the NFL. He would negotiate to bring the college into it with the bowl games and then beat my butt.
College football is tough.
He knew college a lot better than I did and I knew the NFL. It was a great way to connect. I’m looking forward to rekindling that connection, looking at March Madness.
That’s awesome. Good for him as well. We can pontificate. I’m excited about our guest. Let’s dig in there.
We’re doing something that we haven’t done a lot of, Zach. That’s to bring the younger generation into the fold. Our guest is Erin Babcock. She’s out of Ohio. She’s an entrepreneur. Let me read her bio and then we will bring her in and get her perspective on some things. I’m looking forward to this conversation.
Erin is an ambitious entrepreneur, model and public speaker with a vision to elevate the health and harmony of humanity. She grew up playing elite soccer and played collegiately at The University of Akron where she also earned a degree in Exercise Science. In 2021, she and her business partner opened the doors of Primo Gardens Inc, a CBD retail manufacturing lab in Columbus, Ohio that provides health and wellness products to regain balance to the creation of customized targeted blends for individuals by helping other people or businesses start their unique CBD line.
She’s pursuing her Master’s in Medical Cannabis Science and Therapeutics from the University of Maryland and will be graduating. She’s a passionate educator and speaker about cannabis and the endocannabinoid system. She joined an educational initiative called Cannabis Business Practicum to help startups and small businesses thrive in the cannabis industry. Erin is also in the process of developing her personal brand, EEErinegy, which will include aspects of modeling, public speaking and entrepreneurship in the areas of holistic health and harmony. Erin, welcome to the show.
Thank you for having me.
Thanks for being on with us. You’re a fellow Health and Exercise Science undergrad. That’s fun.
Not only is age somewhat of a common thing between Erin and Zach here. We got health and wellness. Erin, the audience probably knows. You may not know but Zach and his wife are heavy in weight-lifting and body-building. His wife is an actual champion.
She’s nationally qualified.
That’s awesome. That’s so cool.
We like to start at the beginning. We’re big storytellers here. Let’s talk about your story. When did you get an interest in cannabis? When did the entrepreneur bug bite you?
I graduated with a degree in Exercise Science. My whole plan during college was to go to PA school. That’s Physician Assistant school. I was on this med school track. That’s what I thought I wanted to do growing up. I was dedicated to soccer. I did pretty well in school. I had a stigma against cannabis. I didn’t use cannabis at all during my soccer career. I only played my first two years at Akron. I had the second half of my college experience as a normal student figuring it out versus having the athlete experience too.
Throughout high school, I didn’t even look toward cannabis. I was so focused on soccer that it never even crossed my mind. I did struggle with some injuries like concussions and stuff like that but I treated it with ibuprofen, different pills, steroid shots in different joints and stuff like that. It’s not a very holistic type of path. After I stopped playing soccer, it was a little bit of an identity crisis because I had played since I was 2 years old to 19 years old. It was probably my main focus too but I fell out of love with it.
I had some mental health issues during my first couple of years of college. I truly was falling out of love with the sport. I didn’t even want to try to transfer anything. I took it upon myself to try to figure out who I was for a little bit. I did have fun too in college. I did that whole experience and then COVID hit my junior year. That allowed me to put a pause on the quick pace of college and be like, “Is this what I want to do?” I started applying to PA schools. I felt something in my gut that did not feel right.
I started to ask myself more, “Is this what I want to do? What would I rather do? What feels better? What am I supposed to do in this life?” I knew I always wanted to help people. My favorite classes in high school were these specialized sports med classes. That’s what led me to PA school. I always knew I wanted to help people. It was always somewhat health-related. Now, I’m helping people in the cannabis industry but that came about because my mom got her hemp cultivation license during COVID.
It was 2019 in Ohio. She had a greenhouse and was trying it out because she went through her journey to find the plant. It helped her with different mental health and other conditions. She took the first step into the cannabis door and then got connected with some people in the community here in Ohio. There was this group out of Colorado called Primo Gardens Inc that was trying to partner with some people and open up another location, which is a store with a retail front and a lab in the back.
Customers come in. They can shop in the retail area and get whatever products they want but they can also get a customized product that is made right in front of them in the lab. Other products as well are made in the lab. I ended up going to this random meeting with my mom, meeting these people. My mind was blown. It gave me a whole new perspective as to what I could do.
I had never thought about opening a business until that point or being an entrepreneur. I was thinking about it. I was at this meeting. I sat on it a little bit. I called my best friend right after it and said, “Our lives changed.” I told her what meeting I was at and the things that happened. I was trying to see if she was into it too because, during COVID, we were spending every day together and coming up with crazy ideas.
We were coming up with different business ideas back then but I didn’t consciously know that they were business ideas. We were imagining creating a cannabis cafe with infused drinks, food and stuff like that. We were dreaming about it at that point. We met these people out in Colorado and ended up going through with it. We partnered with them and opened Primo Gardens Inc.
I hope the audience pulled out of your story that your intuition and why are still in health. You’ve had that for many years through your childhood and upbringing and a desire to go down the physician’s assistant path. You ended up in a very different place but your why hasn’t changed. Life can do that to you. You have to be staying in the present and be open to what life can bring you. Hang on to that why. That’s where your passion is. That thing is going to get you through the tough times in business.
The universe has a funny way of working because I released an article for Brainz Magazine on this very topic about finding the path in life that brings you the most value even though it may take you a little bit longer to get to your destination. It’s funny how that works, to be sitting here and having that conversation with an article I put out. That’s fascinating.
It’s super interesting, Erin. I also had my eyes on the PA path. It’s the same track I thought I was going to go. I got into the corporate fitness world originally, which was a life suck. Health and fitness weren’t where I was called but to help people in a major way. I love it. You stepped out. Andy, I was thinking. We need to do something where we have a panel of like-minded guests because of that intuition or that gut feeling of trusting yourself. I was like, “Mario needs to be here. We could deep dive on that.”
That’s in the back of my head for next season to do 2 or 3 episodes where we’re bringing in multiple guests to talk about a specific topic, get a little bit of a mini-panel going and maybe go into videos. That’s an idea to talk about over the summer.
Andy has done it. I’ve done it. You’ve now done it. Every real entrepreneur has done it. Jumping out of the security of what the world tells us to do, which is, “Make sure you get all these degrees. Get a good job,” stepping out on your own and starting a business, what were your biggest concerns about starting a business? What short-term goals did you establish for yourself in a business plan or a strategy?
I didn’t know that much about business going into this too. My background is in science and coming up with those types of ideas and strategies. My biggest concern was, “Am I cut out for this? I don’t know,” but you can always learn something new and figure it out. It’s not exactly what you’re doing. It’s how you go into it, the effort put forth, the energy you have and the vibration you carry. That’s what I’ve been trying to hold onto. When I first started, I was not the person I am sitting here. I was not as mindful.
You can always learn something new and figure it out. It’s not exactly what you’re doing. It’s how you go into it, the effort put forth, the energy you have, and the vibration you carry.
I knew I didn’t want to do the 9:00 to 5:00. That came right away. I had a couple of jobs growing up but I mostly played soccer. That was my full-time job and then my part-time job here and there were like, “I don’t know if I want to do this.” I would see my parents working and they didn’t seem very happy. I was going toward this PA from 9:00 to 5:00. I didn’t visualize myself doing the job in the doctor’s office being a PA. That vision never came so I didn’t get there.
The short-term goals I had in the CBD industry and the cannabis industry starting our business were to get involved with our community and build a good network here. We have built a solid network in the Ohio cannabis industry. We’re spreading outward. It’s a great community of people. This plant brings people together. Andy said the endocannabinoid system in my bio. There are so many benefits that come from this plant. I truly think it brings kindness out of people.
When we get together, it’s a good time and a good conversation. Friendly people are all coming together for something great. Nobody is causing any drama or anything. The community was a big part. I’m trying to get my business in a place that is attractive because we’re creating a product that helps people. It’s about educating the consumers and people who might need our product and figuring out the best marketing tactics for that with all the restrictions we have on us as a cannabis company. It gets hard but we’re doing pretty well.
I hope people are getting this takeaway. You’re living by your why of helping people. If you live by your why, the how and the what present themselves if you don’t know what they are. If you truly stick to and cling to your why, the how and what come along anyways. You’re living proof of that. I love that.
The how and what may take you on a slightly different path. You’re going to still arrive at that destination of success and how you define it for yourself but the how and what are heavily involved in the path that you take. The why is the fuel that’s going to get you to where you’re going. I want to talk about the plant per se because the plant is used in other ways that through the years have caused a particular perception or stigma that’s out in the world.
That’s called propaganda. We can’t go down a rabbit hole about how I feel about Big Pharma and Big Oil dehumanizing the planet.
I’m trying to be a little politically correct here. We were talking a little bit in the green room before we hit the record button about this but can you give our audience an idea? I greatly appreciate that education is a big part of your marketing because you’re trying to overcome some things or opinions out in the world or the marketplace about this plant. Tell our audience about what you’re having to overcome with education because it’s more than education about the benefits. People might not know the exact chemical that’s in the plant that’s bringing the benefits as you would with any other oil or holistic solution. Talk about what that education looks like and what you’ve been trying to accomplish with it in an effort to grow your sales.
When it comes to the stigma and perception of cannabis for over a century, it has been looked at as bad, wrong, dangerous, harmful, addictive and all these different negative things that as Zach said came from propaganda in the early 1900s and misinformation spread left and right. It was first documented in 2,800 BC. It’s probably even earlier than that before the first documentation. Cannabis has been used therapeutically, medicinally and industrially for clothes, rope and textiles. It can be used as different fuel. It has been used for such a good purpose for thousands of years.
It’s this last century when the stigma has come. It started in the late 1800s or early 1900s at the end of the Spanish-American War when Mexicans were migrating to America to escape the conflict or the war. That’s when the term marijuana came about. Cannabis is the plant. It’s the name of the species. Cannabis is a scientific name. Marijuana stemmed from racism and that association with people coming to America. From there, they started taxing it. They raised the minimum punishment required.
Eventually, it was in our pharmacopeia, which is something that physicians use as a tool to help patients. It was in that until 1942 and then it was removed. 1970 was when it became a Schedule I substance internationally. That means that it has no medical potential and a high risk of abuse. It has neither of those things. It was the misinformation that was spread throughout the whole 1900s pretty heavily. From 1930 to 1970 was bad. The war on drugs came right after the Controlled Substances Act.
There has been this huge and heavy stigma. We don’t know what we don’t know. If society is telling us that it’s this bad thing that we should stay away from, then you either do that and stay away from it or rebel and try it out in your college experience. That’s all people know about it, “It gets you high,” but it does so much more than that. THC is the primary psychoactive component of cannabis. That is one component of cannabis. There are over 500 components that have been isolated from this plant. Over 100 of those components are called cannabinoids, which is what THC is. It’s what CBD is. There’s CBG, CBN, and CBC. There are so many of these little molecules that all interact with our bodies.
If society is telling us that it’s this bad thing that we should stay away from, then you either do that and stay away from it or rebel and try it out.
We all have something called an endocannabinoid system. The first component of the endocannabinoid system was discovered in 1988. For the next 2 or 3 decades, different components were discovered. We have known about the endocannabinoid system for 25 years at least. We don’t talk about it. It’s not in any med schools. It’s not in any curriculum. Only 13% of med school students have ever even heard of it. It’s probably a single module or a single PowerPoint in one of their classes They don’t go into it at all, but it’s a system in our bodies. We have receptors in every single other organ system.
We have endocannabinoid receptors that communicate with our body to maintain something called homeostasis, which is balance in the body. We produce our natural endocannabinoids. The two main ones are called anandamide. It comes from the Sanskrit word Ananda, which means bliss. It’s the bliss molecule of our body. There’s another compound called 2-AG. That one is the primary compound found in our brain between the two of those. We have CB1 and CB2 receptors. CB1 receptors are the most abundant receptor found in our brain. That’s what THC binds to and gives that euphoric effect.
That’s where that high comes from but there are compounds like CBD. When you use them, they don’t give you that euphoric high. They help to balance you out. They help with mood regulation. They can help with physical discomforts. It can help with imbalances related to sleep, energy, and focus. It’s all about balance, calming, and relaxation with that molecule but the stigma is still there. I know for sure. It’s because people don’t know about this stuff. That’s part of why I’m here. I’m passionate about the cannabis industry. I’m happy to be an entrepreneur but I’m starting to dive more into becoming a speaker and educator and pushing the material to make sure I can get it out to people as well.
What you’re telling me is that it has the same benefits that say the mineral magnesium brings or that calming balance. Why are we so scared of it if it’s in the same range as what a mineral called magnesium that we eat every day in our food brings to us? You’re right, Zach. It’s a lot of propaganda out of a particular industry probably.
This isn’t the Joe Rogan Experience podcast so we won’t go down those rabbit holes. It was a lot of Big Oil and Big Pharma. We won’t get into that history either. Erin, you and I could probably pontificate for hours on that and not get old. Andy knows how I can rant so we won’t do that. Let’s get into the business side of it. You blew me away when we were in the green room and you said, “I’m not a Millennial. I’m a Gen Z.” I’m like, “I’m old now.” What is your opinion about how Gen Z feels about business ownership compared to former generations from your perspective?
I have a business partner. She’s the same age as me. It’s cool that I have her. We are going through this together but besides that, I only have a handful of friends my age still. We’re not living the same type of life.
They’re in a different phase mentally. That’s what you’re saying.
I wish the best for everyone. I want them to love their life and love every second of it and be happy but I’ve prioritized and set up boundaries for what I’m going to focus on and spend my time doing. As a whole, I do think that Gen Z is figuring out ways to monetize their passions more. With social media and the digital age, there are a lot more opportunities to do that. There are a lot of people out there who are taking advantage of it. I’ve got a couple of people in my circle who are doing it.
Gen Z is figuring out ways to monetize their passions more. With social media and the digital age, there are a lot more opportunities to do that.
One of my best friends plays professional basketball overseas. She got an Exercise Science degree like us. She taught herself how to make websites on YouTube. That’s what she’s doing, making websites and playing professional basketball. There’s an opportunity to be able to do stuff because all you need is your laptop. A lot of people want to be traveling the world and stuff like that. With the world now, you can. Maybe people are more open to starting a business. Even if you’ve got your job, you start your side hustle. When you get to the point, you transition.
Let me jump in here as the old fart and ask both of you this question. If you feel like you have some need in life that you need to reach out to find a company to provide you with a product or service and you’re going to start your research, what would you be looking for in a company that you want to do business with? Is it strictly, “Their product or service fit my needs. I could care less what the company is doing or what its culture is. If you’ve got a good product or service with the right price, then I’m there. Send it to me. We’re good,” or is there something else that you’re looking at as well that’s as important in your decision-making?
Culture and social impact are things that as companies and business owners we have the power to include. It should always be there. It can always be there. You don’t need to have a great product or a service without doing good in the world. You can do good in the world with a great product or service or maybe in addition to a great product or service in that way. If somebody is doing something positive for the world we’re all living in, then that attracts me more than somebody who’s just selling me something.
Zach, how do you feel?
I look at their culture, what their beliefs are, and what they stand behind because there have been companies that I quit doing business with because I found out something about the CEO or the leadership of the company. That’s across all industries. In my industry, I’ve stopped partnering with certain companies because of management changes. The culture and their belief system have to align. If it’s me going to buy a pack of batteries or something small, I’m probably not researching Duracell or something like that but when it comes to the more important stuff, big brands and stuff like that, I’m looking at that.
What I’ve read in the research and everything is that the younger generations are very concerned about what the company is doing in other areas of life besides providing the product or service. It’s part of the reason why you’re starting to see companies take stances. Look at the whole Governor of Florida versus Disney Battle that has been going on from that perspective. Companies feel like they need to start taking stances on issues going on in the world and not be silent about them. It’s causing consternation with some other folks that can make their life a little bit more difficult.
Erin, you mentioned all the amazing effects and benefits on the human body that cannabis or cannabinoids can have that most people have no clue about because they’re blocked by this old-school stigma. With that, what other products do you mix with cannabis to create specific therapies? You talked about a store in the front and a lab in the back. What custom products and other things do you mix to do that?
We have a lab where we make all of our products but specifically, we make customized blends for people. A tincture is an oil that you put under your tongue. It absorbs into your bloodstream because you have a high density of blood vessels there. We also have roll-ons that are more a little topical. You put it on your temples or your wrists where your skin is thin. That plays more of a role in aromatherapy but you can build your whole product based on your specific needs. It’s such a new thing so we are here to consult somebody on building that blend because I wouldn’t expect everyone to know what terpenes and things to include.
You pick your potency of CBD. Everybody’s dose is different depending on how much CBD you need to take. Usually, between 5 and 15 milligrams is a good place to start, but depending on what you’re trying to address, you might go up to 50 milligrams or more. We start with potency. From there, you can pick the full spectrum or broad spectrum. The full spectrum contains trace amounts of THC, less than 0.3%. That’s the legal limit for hemp. We work with hemp products.
There’s the broad spectrum, which has no THC in it. They have similar effects. If you consume the full spectrum over a long period, it could build up in somebody’s system and they could test positive on a drug test. That’s why we have a broad spectrum for people who do have to undergo drug testing and want to be super conscious of their THC intake but if it’s not an issue, I always recommend full spectrum because having the entire profile of the plant working together produces a synergistic effect.
In cannabis, we call that the entourage effect. When all the compounds are working together, they produce a greater effect than any one of them by themselves. That’s what we’re recreating with this custom blend. You pick full spectrum or broad spectrum. From there, we add different plant extracts. That’s essential oils, which I’ve talked to Andy about essential oils and terpenes. Terpenes are small compounds found in all plants. They’re special in cannabis because of different strains.
The different smells and tastes that come from different strains come from the different terpene profiles. We can add terpene isolates and essential oils to these tinctures. A tincture is going to provide whole-body benefits like mood regulation. If you’ve got specific whole-body imbalances, that’s what we would use. You can put it in a roll-on, which is good to on the go put it on. Essence and aroma can help influence a lot in us, our emotions, our moods, and that kind of stuff. That’s how we build the custom blend for people. It helps to target whatever they’re specifically concerned with.
What’s a higher percentage of your business? Is it somebody coming in and buying off the shelf a combination or the cannabis oil by itself? Is the higher percentage of your custom blends where somebody comes in and says, “I’ve got a pain here. What have you got for me? Let’s put a blend together of CBD oil, essential oils, and everything that will help to address that specific problem.”
Our custom blends are about 20% of our retail sales. It’s not a huge amount. We also have gummies that people like. It’s more convenient, easier, and friendlier for somebody who might be new to CBD to eat a delicious gummy than the oil. Some people don’t like the oil but I like it. It hits you a little bit quicker than the gummy because that has to go through digestion. You get more of the CBD in your system because of digestion as well.
We also have a topical salve that you put externally on achy joints, sore muscles, and areas that are causing you pain but it’s more of a specific area. You put it right on that. They’re super concentrated creams. It helps to bring circulation and blood flow to that area. CBD is pretty well absorbed on the surface of the skin. It doesn’t get to your bloodstream but it works in that area.
On average, how quickly do your customers see results? Is it the next day? Is it in a week? Does it take a couple of months of usage? What is it on average? We know everybody is different.
For the topical salve, on the same day, you feel the effect. It depends on the person for an ingestible like the tincture or the gummy. Max, it would take 1 week or 2 weeks for you to start feeling it regularly but some people feel it right away too. CBD doesn’t give that euphoric effect. Some people are always like, “I don’t feel anything,” but it’s taking away the negative to bring you back to balance.
It’s taking away the stress and physical aches and pains depending on what your ache and pain are. I would have to figure out the product with that. It’s bringing balance. I’m always like, “Are you feeling very stressed? Are you still in pain?” They’re like, “Not really.” It worked. It’s not supposed to give any psychoactive effect. That’s not its job.
When I was reading your bio, I was drawn to the fact that there are colleges out there that have degree programs in this area. How difficult was it for you to find a Master’s program in this arena? Do you have any idea how many colleges or universities in the US are offering programs?
When I joined this program back in 2021, it was the only Master’s program. I’m the third cohort. I’m graduating. I’ll be the third class to have gone through. When I was looking, some other programs were more of a certification, which is still good for sure. I did a Google search before this and saw some associate programs were coming out. I don’t know if there’s a four-year program. I don’t know if there are any other Master’s programs but I’ve seen electives popping up in different schools. It’s not a whole program but I’ll see a couple of classes. At Ohio State, they have some hemp courses and cannabis courses.
I partnered up with some people to create Cannabis Business Practicum, which is supposed to bring some information to people who either want to get into the industry or maybe are already in the industry. I partnered with a cannabis compliance expert and a professor of business marketing sales to take our knowledge and pay it forward to the next group of people who want to get into the industry.
I have to imagine it’s all the winemaking business. UC Davis has a full degree program in the wine industry and winemaking because of how big it is in California and so forth but I can’t imagine that there are a lot of colleges in the United States that would offer it as a Bachelor’s or Master’s type of program. I’ll have to check their website. UC Davis has both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in all aspects of the winemaking business and so forth, but I can’t imagine that there’s a lot. There’s a handful around the country. Cannabis is going to be the same way in that perspective.
There’s more to come, I’m sure. It has been cool with my program and because it’s so new, they are upgrading it and tweaking it as they go. They will bring in an expert from that specific area for one specific module or point to make. My one professor who taught us about the chemistry of cannabis has spoken in front of Congress about cannabinoids and opioids doing cool stuff.
I’m grateful for my Exercise Science degree too. I had a good program but sometimes with undergrad or where I went to school, the professors don’t have that real-life experience. They’re teaching you off of a syllabus or the course objectives but they don’t have the experience. I can’t assume that every business professor out there has run their own successfully.
That’s one of my other rants as well about college. I’m sure you might have heard peers and colleagues say stuff like this as I have like, “I’m going to college for entrepreneurship.” Hold on. Who’s teaching that entrepreneur class? Have they ever run a business before? They haven’t. They’re a theoretical student that was in their Master’s program and wants to teach a course. They’re driving a busted Toyota Corolla with bald tires. The bumper is being held on with duct tape. That makes sense. Learn how to run a business from them. You still want to enjoy life. It’s not all work and no play because I’m still there myself. What do you do for fun? How do you find that work-life balance or that business-life balance? I don’t even call it work-life balance because it sounds like you have a job.
I’m super passionate about this space. It feels like work but there is a lot of crossover with my cannabis community in Ohio. If I’m going somewhere for an event, it’s not just, “I’m the business owner of Primo Gardens Inc.” I’m like, “These are my friends. I’m going to have fun and stuff.” It’s somebody’s 40th birthday. We’re going to do karaoke for a cannabis event for her birthday. That’s fun. One of my most recent trips with my business partner is we went to Miami, Florida for a girls’ trip. That was the intent.
As we were trying to figure out what to do, there was a Cannadelic conference going on. It was cannabis and psychedelics. We were like, “Let’s check it out. That sounds fun.” I still want to have my youth but I’m grinding a little bit. I grind for a certain amount of time and then I’ll have all my freedom. I know I will. It’s coming. I like to be outside, go to pretty parks, and travel. I do get to travel quite a bit, going to different cannabis-related events or networking events. I find those things fun.
Grind for a certain amount of time, and then you’ll have all your freedom.
Erin, our time is coming to a close. It has been a wonderful experience talking with you and getting to hear what the younger generations are thinking firsthand instead of reading it in an article. If somebody was interested in cannabis by itself, getting into the business, or understanding it in some other way, what’s the best way that they can reach out to you to connect with you?
LinkedIn would be the best way to reach out to me to connect. If you have any specific questions, make sure you mention this episode. My LinkedIn is Erin Babcock. You could connect to my email as well. It’s EBabcock@PrimoGardensInc.com. Any questions at all if you want to go straight to building your blend, there’s www.PrimoGardensInc.com.
If you want to get on our newsletter for Cannabis Business Practicum, we’re going to be sending out all kinds of industry news, tips, and tricks for being in the industry. You can connect with me on LinkedIn and I’ll make sure I help you get there. I would love to talk to anybody who has questions about this industry or me being a business owner at this age and anything like that. I would love to help.
Erin, it’s that time. We forewarned you that it was coming. It’s something that we do with every guest that comes on to the show. Zach and I like to elect the answers, try and find the themes and see what people are thinking about three special words. Those words are Generate Your Value. What do the words Generate Your Value mean to you?
Generate Your Value to me means finding that light inside of you because we all have it and it’s all unique to us. We all have something that’s already inside of us that is powerful and beautiful and does something amazing. It’s about going internally, finding that thing, and then sharing it with the world with as many people as you can. Share your value because, in that aspect, you’re shining. You are helping people. That’s what Generate Your Value means to me.
It’s about finding your uniqueness and why. That’s what you did at an early age. You found a different path to go down while still holding on to the why that brings you joy, happiness, and success in life. You’re using that uniqueness combined with creativity to go out and generate that value in the world. Erin, we can’t thank you enough for coming onto the show, sharing your wisdom and your energy, and educating us on that little plant.
Thank you.
Hopefully, we made some dents in getting rid of the stigma and understanding that a plant is made up of a multitude of molecules. Just because it comes from the same plant doesn’t mean that you’re going to get the same effects. You might get other benefits that the other molecule in the plant is not bringing to the table. We have gone down the road enough with science to understand how to pull the molecules out of the plants and use the ones that bring benefits to us.
If you can bring curiosity to the forefront in your life and be open to conversations to educate yourself on this, you would understand that no matter what the subject is, not just this particular one but anything in life, the better you’re going to be able to make choices for yourself. The most powerful tool a human being has in the world is choice. The more educated you get on a particular subject, the better choice you’re going to make for yourself.
Don’t write it off.
I’m trying to remember what the product or service was, “I heard it on the internet. It must be true.” You might want to rethink that.
Dig a little deeper.
Pull out a thing called curiosity out of your back pocket and make sure somebody is not blowing smoke at you. Do the research, understand what the truth is and then use that to make the best decision for yourself depending on what direction you’re trying to go in your life. For the audience, Erin, we call them golden nuggets. We hope you found some golden nuggets out of our conversation with Erin that you can extract and integrate into your life or into your business that’s going to further your path down to finding joy, happiness and success in your life every single day.
While you’re at it, I didn’t interject when we were in the conversation. Zach and I have an episode in the first season about two little words, AND and OR. We were talking about that generational thing. You can have both. You can have joy, happiness and success in your life and generate value in this world. It’s an And. You get in trouble when you’re making an Or.
That’s out of balance.
You’re forced to make one choice or the other. You might be generating value in your pocketbook but not for anybody else. We encourage you to go check out that episode on AND and OR for the audience. We talk about those two. They’re small 2 letters and 3 letters but they’re very powerful in life. We appreciate you reading this episode and joining Zach, me and Erin for this conversation. We hope you have a great time. Keep going out there. We can’t encourage you enough as Erin has done at the age of 23 to find your why and your uniqueness and live them out loud because when you do so, you start generating value in this world. The world is asking for your uniqueness.
The world needs it. That’s why you were created for that uniqueness. It’s time to work, get it out there and generate your value in this world. Zach, I, and Erin can’t encourage you enough to go out and do that in your life. That’s why we’re here to help you with it. You’re not alone. We’re much more powerful when we do this together as opposed to doing it alone. We can’t thank you enough for joining us on this episode. We will see you for another great guest like Erin. In the meantime, be strong. Take care.
IMPORTANT LINKS
- Erin Babcock
- Primo Gardens Inc
- Cannabis Business Practicum
- Mario Lanzarotti – Previous Episode
- EBabcock@PrimoGardensInc.com
- AND and OR – Previous Episode
ABOUT ERIN BABCOCK
Erin is currently pursuing her Master’s in Medical Cannabis Science and Therapeutics from the University of Maryland and will be graduating this May. She is a passionate educator and speaker about cannabis and the endocannabinoid system. She joined an educational initiative called Cannabis Business Practicum to help start-ups and small business thrive in the cannabis industry. Erin is also in the process of developing her personal brand, EEErinergy, which will include aspects of modeling, public speaking and entrepreneurship in the areas of holistic health and harmony.
