Paige Johnson-Serjue – The self-proclaimed failure

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

For this edition, I thought it was important that I highlight a demographic that seems to take a lot of heat. The demographic I am referring to are millennials. I recently read an article that had a lot to say about this group of young people, and I think some of these sentiments are echoed in the thoughts of the older generation.

The article spoke of millennials being lazy, entitled, and over informed. The writer spoke of them constantly being on their phones, and constantly wired to hear where the grass is greener. For them, everything is about living the high life, and at the first sign of difficulty, it’s a choice of fight or flight, and millennials typically choose flight.

I will be honest, I have had some of these thoughts about this generation, but one thing that I have come to realize is that you cannot judge an entire generation by the actions of a few. It is why I am so happy to be presenting a young woman from this demographic whose light shines so bright, that it has the potential of wiping out all negative thoughts that we may have about millennials.

She is a speaker, a published author, a thought leader, and she sees herself as a cool mom. Her focus is on helping millennials uncover their potential both personally and professionally.

She is the founder of @Paige1ofSome (Instagram), a platform aimed at empowering the millennial generation by addressing situations and experiences that they face. Her approach is vulnerable because she openly shares her story of failure, and overcoming that failure. People continue to engage in her social media conversations, which have progressed to multiple speaking engagements, and her recently released book, “Break Free of the bullsh*t.” 

She continues to help people out of dark places, assists in bringing new businesses to life, and coaches people to gain the confidence to get their dream jobs. She has been a Panellist at Humber College, Keynote Speaker at The Learn Life Series – ManifesTO, Guest on Black Canadian Content Creators Podcast, and a Co-host for “Millennials in Motion” for Revibe. I am so proud to present the vivacious, spirited, and self-proclaimed failure, Paige Johnson-Serjue.

“What do you do to make things better for the next generation? What is going to be considered normal for my daughter?”

What I loved about speaking with Paige was the energy she brought to the conversation. My energy was low on the day of the interview, and she noticed it right away.

“Don’t worry Simone,” she told me. “I am going to share my energy with you. Where would you like for me to start?”

“How about we start from the beginning,” I said.

“Alright,” she said with a chuckle. “I was born in Toronto at Women’s College Hospital. My dad is Jamaican, and my mom is Irish, and African American. When I was growing up, I spent more time with my dad’s side of the family because my mom’s side lived in British Columbia. I am the oldest of two, and from what I can remember, my childhood was amazing, I had the best of both worlds because I was lucky enough to have both of my parents in my life. A lot of my friends came from single parent households, so I knew I was blessed.

 I spent a lot of time at my grandparent’s house. There was always that family energy, the vibe, and a sense of togetherness. My parents worked very hard, and did everything that they could to ensure that my sister and I had a good life. I am not going to sit here and say that life was perfect. Every family has their drama, and my family was not exempt. There were sometimes tense situations within my extended family, and I was someone who held onto emotions and felt the internal drama.”

Paige went on to tell me that when she was younger, she didn’t think about getting married. Her dreams were to become a talk show host and save the world.

“I was acting, and in school I was super social. I got away with things because of my personality. I didn’t have to work too hard. Life was great. I was doing a lot of speaking in the school, my teachers, and social workers said that I had a gift. When the honour killing happened in Mississauga, I was a source of support for the students, and this is why I decided to take psychology in university.

My monumental moment was my experience in university. It changed my life. It was the one time that I could not charm my way out of a situation.”

She started psychology classes, and her first year did not go well for her. She was put on academic probation the first year. The second year, she was caught for plagiarism. In her third year, she received a letter for academic suspension.

“My parents were paying for school, and here I was messing things up. I was the first person to go to university. There was a lot of pressure on me. I had to act like everything was fine.

My academic advisor told me to drop out. I ended up speaking to someone who turned my life around. She held me accountable, and I began to put in the work. I graduated with honours.”

After graduating, Paige began to see what it was like to be an adult. She discovered things about the real world that shocked her.

“I ended up in the corporate world. I actually got that job by telling them my experience with university. I got promoted very quickly because of who I was.

I waited until the three-month mark, and then I told them all the things that they were doing wrong. I got promoted to management, and now I had a seat at the table.

There were so many adulting moments happening that I did not expect, all at once. Why was I not taught to negotiate my salary? How was I supposed to be a good wife? How was I going to be a good mother? I had to come face-to-face with the fact that elders can be wrong. There were moments that I was just angry. I decided, let me just go on Instagram and talk about this adulating stuff.”

Who is Paige Johnson-Serjue? She is a young woman who taught herself how to get out of her head, learn from her mistakes, not dwell and make shit happen. Her book, “Break Free of the Bullsh*t: A Millennial Empowerment Guide” is a book for the excuse making, procrastinator that has goals and wants to escape a life of mediocrity. The book forces readers to unlock who they are meant to be by confronting their fears, overcoming traumas and bringing self-reflection to a whole new level.

Well there you have it. A millennial that is doing her best to change the way the older generation views her cohort. Go ahead girl! You are doing a great job.