Today we’d like to introduce you to Harold Trotter.
Harold, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’m originally from San Diego, California and went to college at Grambling State University in Grambling, Louisiana, where I studied music and theatre. It was after I finished college that I decided to take a leap of faith and move to Houston, Texas. I know moving to Houston was a God thing because I didn’t know a single person here, I didn’t really have a solidified place to live, and I had a job offer, but it was really sketchy. I packed my Jeep with all my belongings from college, got on the road, and stayed in a hotel my first couple of nights in town. I was working for a small low budget production company that specialized in making TV shows for public access channels. I was making little to no money but was having the time of my life. After a few weeks of being hungry and not seeing enough growth in the business for me personally, I decided to start my own venture and begin a career in education. My first couple of projects and production companies were complete failures. I won’t even call them startups because they never started. They were all ideas and no product. It wasn’t until 2016 when my grandfather unexpectedly passed away that 1989 Dreams Productions was born. It was in this moment of having the first major death in my life that I realized I wanted to do something that would make not only my grandfather, Lloyd Patterson, proud but my family and myself. It was his death that motivated me to inspire others to live.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’ve constantly faced with challenges, and I try and live with two sayings, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me and also, expect problems and eat them for breakfast. Working with people is always a hard task, working with limited funds is an even harder task, and working with a dreamer is by far the hardest task. I’ve learned though that no matter what the struggle or the obstacle is that there’s always an answer, there’s always a way out, and if there’s not one in sight, it’s now my job to create it, The biggest part of walking by faith is to have faith. Entrepreneurship, leadership, and dream walking aren’t designed for those who are only capable of seeing what’s directly in front of them. You have to be able to see what’s in front of you, behind you, to the left, right, and what’s coming ahead. When you’re able to see all these different views, you then realize hell no this road isn’t going to smooth, but I know where I came from, where I’m going, so then I can handle the journey along the way.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about 1989 Dreams Productions – what should we know?
1989 Dreams Productions is a Houston based multimedia company that specializes in creating entertainment, innovating minds, and moving generations through the work we produce. In addition to the for-profit, we operate a non-profit organization called The Dream Walking Foundation. Through the non-profit, our goal is to inspire people to not sleep on their dreams but instead begin to live in them.
As a company, we’re extremely proud of our capability to bring professional, personal, and positive experiences to a wide-ranging of communities. Our award-winning touring stage play Ain’t Always Been Saved traveled several cities and states, and we were flooded with messages of how our show impacted people’s marriages, relationships with parents and kids, those struggling with addiction, and so much more. It’s this impact that helps realize that we’re fulfilling our vision, which is to create entertainment, innovate minds, and move generations.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Perseverance is probably the most important characteristic to my success along with faith. I actually believe that they go hand in hand. Now having perseverance and faith are both characteristics that often feel like a daily struggle sometimes. One of my favorite boxers, Muhammad Ali is quoted as saying, “If your dreams don’t scare you, they aren’t big enough,” and then he also said, “The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up,” On days when I feel like going to bed, not getting up, and just saying forget it to the obstacles ahead of me I remember that champions don’t necessarily enjoy the process of training, but they push through and suffer because they know the outcome that they hope to achieve.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.1989dreams.com
- Phone: 8323569363
- Email: htrotter@1989dreams.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/ifam30us
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/harold.j.trotter
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