October 8th marks my 5th year since the day I have arrived in Trinidad. To be brutally honest, Trinidad was supposed to be a short-term plan. I needed some space away from Toronto, to figure myself out, chill on the beach, be amongst the majority of my family and return back to Toronto in 2 years…At least, that was the plan.
I could never have predicted that the timing for me to move to Trinidad was all but perfect. I tell everybody, had I moved here in 2010, I probably wouldn’t have lasted so long. But the development and opportunities due to the advancement of technology has lead to some unforeseen opportunities for me to take advantage of.
[su_quote cite=”Tony Gaskins”]If you don’t build your dream someone will hire to build theirs. [/su_quote]
Before I left, the decision I was faced with was to move to Edmonton, Alberta and start applying for jobs in the Oil industry, or move to Trinidad and take some time for myself. I am glad that I decided to make way to the Lesser Antilles.
It seems like fate the way everything has been clicking for me and my brand. You see, is Trinidad is a very unique place. The money is there, the country lays outside of the hurricane zone, and is primed for innovation. T&T has been ranked the 69th most developed country out of 189 according to the United Nations report for 2018. 2nd Only to Barbados.
It’s a great place to start a business and begin to solve problems here in The Caribbean.
For me, my goal has been to build Droid Island and use mobile technology to enrich the lives of Caribbean citizens. There has been no greater feeling than returning home with all the knowledge and skills that I have acquired and using it to help my fellow Caribbean natives.
Sure there are challenges, mainly the mindset of people and trying to show them different ways to get things done, and the infrastructure for many institutions needs some real attention, but I would rather be here building with my people, than anywhere else.
Growing up black in a predominantly white society, I have always felt like life had a ceiling, which has dramatically changed since moving here. I now feel like, there are no limitations and no excuses. It is extremely encouraging when I see ethnicities from across the globe moving to Trinidad and other Caribbean islands, to build businesses. It reminds me that the time for the Caribbean is upon us.
If you are looking to start a business in the Caribbean, now is the time. We have the technology, the money and people are ready to jump on board and work with you to get things done. It is time for those who were born here or have dual citizenship because of our parents, to seriously consider the Caribbean and either moving here or spending time here.
With so many opportunities and problems that need solving. We can take all of the knowledge we have acquired from living abroad and create solutions here to move the Caribbean forward collectively. If you are seriously tired of living hand to mouth and are looking for some real fulfilment in your life, consider coming to the Caribbean and seeing what you can do.
The first I would recommend is, seeing if your parents still have citizenship in their home country (most of our parents do), and then taking the steps to get our passports from our Caribbean countries. Once you have that in place, you can begin looking at jobs, or brainstorming products/services, that we have elsewhere but may not have in the Caribbean and begin building that business.
For myself, I love technology. I have 2 other businesses that are coming online in January, and they solve major issues here in the Caribbean. It is Blue Ocean for us (untapped market). If you are thinking about making a change in your life, consider the Caribbean. The things you may have wanted to do living in the US/Canada/UK, that you may be unable to do for a variety of reasons, you just may be able to pull off here.
Exercise:
- Find out if your parents still have their citizenship for their home countries.
- If they do, go through the process of getting your passport through the embassy’s