My name is Curtis Weeks. I am a man of mixed race, who embraces being Maori. I grew up on the North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. Growing up as a half-caste meant I got the best and the worst of both worlds. Living on the Shore was beautiful; it was a very diverse lifestyle. Being surrounded by many different cultures was amazing because I was exposed to varied cultures and religions from a young age. One of the downfalls, however, was the level of racism we were all exposed to as children. As a child, as well as racism, I experienced discrimination, bullying, and many other hateful things that children shouldn't have to endure. I have written this book to give readers an insight into only one story of the many that can be told. My story is very tame compared to others I have witnessed and heard. However, I feel if people read this book and listen to my life experiences, they may be encouraged to speak up about their pain. This is my story and it is dedicated to all the children, teenagers, and adults out there who think they're alone, outcasts, or misfits. This is a self-help story about how I tried to build myself up and was knocked down numerous times. It's a story about managing to brush myself off and get back up, no matter how sad it made me, how angry I grew, or how many dark paths I ventured down. No matter what life threw at me, I was able to regain my feet and get back up. Over time, I was able to build what I think is now a strong character, and I think this character has been created to help others, especially those who are like I once was. I had a bad victim mentality at first but managed to understand how leadership works and now I have become a leader for those around me. Instead of thinking, "e;Why me?"e; I now think, "e;Try me!"e; This book is about my perspective on my life, formed while growing through testing times, and about putting on masks to conform with the masses. It outlines my perspective on how to adjust the mindset over time in small shifts that lead to a greater mental shift. When I was growing up, I got good at adapting to the situation in which I found myself and learned to blend in with the crowd to protect myself from predators, embarrassment, and judgement. I found myself putting on an invisibility mask so I could hide in plain sight to avoid conflict. For a long time, I played the victim. I viewed the world pessimistically and saw only the negative in everything. Doubt and fear ruled my life. I internally questioned everything: "e;Why is this happening to me? Why do these people enjoy embarrassing me? Why are they humiliating me? Why do they think they're better than me? Why do they want to fight me? Why me?"e; This mindset trapped me within myself and prevented me from achieving anything. I was too busy thinking about the 'what ifs' and not focusing on what was real. At the age of 17, I had had enough and decided to recreate myself by joining the Royal New Zealand Navy where I started to adopt the mindset of "e;Try me!"e; Doing that was hard and I shifted from one extreme to the other. It became a balancing act and a journey of self-discovery
