We’re looking forward to introducing you to Quinton Blanche. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Quinton, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What do you think others are secretly struggling with—but never say?
I believe many people secretly struggling with feeling good enough to achieve significant success in life. People yearn to be recognized. To be seen as someone valuable, especially to another person. Even people with high self-esteem have to utilize discipline to maintain a healthy sense of well-being.
From a young age a majority of people experience negative self-talk. This usually stems from negative circumstances and environmental influences during a child’s upbringing. This degrading form of communication erodes a person’s self image. Many of us are told we just aren’t good enough, or good looking enough, or strong enough, or tall enough, or even smart enough growing up through life. This creates dissonance between where we are and where we want to be.
Through all these outside judgements from other people, with some who are close to us and some who are not, people conceive a limited self concept of what they’re capable of. They set limitations upon themselves because deep down they don’t feel good enough for the success they truly want. Going through life people told them numerous times that they aren’t worthy enough. So we have to learn how to become our own best friend and reprogram our self concept positively. We begin recoding our mental perception of ourselves. We also begin to surround ourselves with people who see the best in us.
We have to new create habits, self affirmations, and new tasks that strengthen our personal resolve. This new way of acting and thinking can embolden a person to move forward through life despite the criticisms of hardened spirited people.
Personally, I do my best to speak to a person’s gifts. Their positive attributes. I aim to call out a person’s best traits and lift them up to see themselves as more capable than they are.
At the end of they day we all just want to be somebody. We all want to feel important I am here to tell that you are somebody. You are important. The world needs your gifts and talents to make a positive difference for somebody else.
If you can just believe in yourself, the world will make room for you.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hello everybody, my name is Quinton Blanche. Most the time you’ll hear people call me “Q” like from Star Trek or James Bond. However, I really like both my name Quinton and the nickname Q.
I like to think of myself as a modern day renaissance man. To me that encompasses being a creative artist who has made his gifts and passions his living along, with his major pursuit in life. My goal is to also inspire other people to believe in themselves along the way as I create the philosophy of success in my own life.
I started my teen life invested in sports and video games (gaming I still do much of) while learning leadership skills from my family. Later in life I decided to take my athleticism into the martial arts world to capture the art form in movie making.
So ultimately I am a college dropout who found his way through the school of life. I found I was naturally inclined towards entrepreneurship, leadership development, and the performing arts.
I guess can say what makes me unique is I have found a way to maintain that inner child like fascination and mesh it into the focus of adulthood.
My brand overtime began to coincide with the local acting industry in Colorado. After being cast as an extra in a local movie called “The Ascendants” playing a regal vampire, you could say I got bitten by the bug. After being on the film set I went on to do a local commercial which led to my acting coach Steve Austin at the Actors Voice Workshop. Feeling even more inspired some friends and I began producing our own films.
Since starting acting now about 3 years ago, I have acquired a little over 100 acting/modeling credits. Now I pursue an acting career, as well as building an entrepreneurial brand of consultation around that.
I have been fortunate enough to play some enjoyable roles in the independent film world. I’ve played a Detective, Doctor, Air Force Combat Controller, Prisoner, Father, A French Commander, A Jedi, and all the way to playing The Black James Bond. It’s been one of the most enlightening self-discovering aspects in my life.
From business to the performing arts, I would say my brand is expressive. I aim to leave a lasting impression in everything I do. I don’t overly focus on that outcome. I tend to focus on showing up in life as the best version of myself in all my endeavors. I make sure to keep my faith strong in God as well. It keeps me fulfilled and revitalizes me when navigating through life as an Entrepreneur.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
If I go back far enough and really think about it, I’m sure I can recall an earlier memory in my adolescent years, however I can thoroughly recount what it felt like to receive public recognition at an entrepreneurial event with about 100 people in my early 20s.
The reason it was significant is because the morning of this event I hadn’t achieved the goal quite yet to receive the recognition. I was at the time working with a sales organization for about 3 years and was extremely close to achieving a certain sales base. There was a major goal of mine to speak at the event but I had less than 24hrs to achieve it. With some ingenuity and teamwork my sales team and I hit the goal.
I then was able to speak on stage for about 5 mins to share my own story for the public. It was a major recognition. It felt like years of ups and downs, emotional waves of challenge, along with many life lessons finally paying off.
That particular win empowered me to stay committed to my goal long term because I realized that eventually you’ll figure out how to succeed. After that experience my business would steadily expand more. It felt like I unlocked another level of skill in my mindset and capabilities.
Honestly it helped me feel like I could be somebody..
Through leading teams of people, I think a major part of the human condition is feeling like you are valued, That you are valuable to something meaningful. This major milestone in my life fortified a stronger self belief. That same conviction I’ve been carrying with me since and now supports my self-esteem when pursuing a career as an actor and performer.
If you want to feel powerful, set goals that require you to grow. When you grow to achieve them, you’ll sense that inner resolve to succeed at something worth while. You will find much of your inspiration coming from your own self-discovery.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
I believe there comes moments when pursuing a major dream where you are tested to see just how bad you really want to achieve it. I like to think that many people are three feet from gold in life. Meaning so close to their goals and dreams. However, most people quit when they are right at the tipping point. When everything changes. When everything would change. If only they kept trying they would realize they were only three feet from gold.
In the book ‘acres of diamonds” the premise metaphorically speaks on how the dreams we seek are usually found close to home. To me that means my gifts, talents, and ambitions are somehow aligned. Many times people give up right before the miracle happens because they haven’t looked right in their own backyard. They haven’t looked within.
I say that to say there’s been plenty of times where I wanted give up. I wanted to give up after failed businesses. I wanted to give up after failed relationships. I wanted to give up after losing out on auditions. However I just somehow believe if I keep going something magical will happen. I may need to make an adjustment or change my perspective but the answer is closer than it seems.
I was a Marketing Director in a travel organization with over 10,000 members in my direct organization. After a decade of building that business the year 2020 hit. The travel industry came tumbling down overnight. Locked downs, new restrictions, and a whole new way of navigating each day. My organization crumbled instantaneously. I lost much of my entrepreneurial hopes and dreams.
For a while I felt like I had failed. I didn’t know exactly what to do. I think I kept an inkling of maybe something good can happen.
What I did right was stay in contact with positive people. Somehow I attracted some working opportunities. Shortly after picking myself back up I got introduced into the acting world. Little did I know that my expressive spirit would make a way for me. If I didn’t lose my prior business I would’ve never became an actor.
Now I have re-established my conviction. I began utilizing everything I went through to help propel me forward as entrepreneur pursuing the creative arts. The lessons of losing a business, toughened me up. Made me wiser.
The moral of the story is, people can achieve gracious amounts of success, if you can just get back up again. You might be three feet from gold. Everything you’re going through could be preparing you for your moment.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
I would assume my closest friends would say that living a life with passion imbedded in forward thinking matters to me. I imagine they would say I’m a person who believes in doing your best job and putting your best foot forward. My friends who probably say that I am a dreamer as well. That I am a person who works hard at making those dreams a reality.
Personally, I tend to feel as if I get along with people very well. However, I can be a bit of a direct person too. I also hold myself to a high standard in business and personal talent, so I suppose that I can sometimes come off as highly assertive. Which could be taken as overbearing in some cases. I would guess my friends would say they help balance out my directive nature with their personal perspectives on life.
Over time I have worked in learning how to blend with varying personalities. Which I sense has made me diplomatic in several ways and has improved my life. I could see how the closest people to me might say that I aim high in life but am gracious enough to help bring others with me.
At the end of the day my closest friends have me in their life because I bring positivity that re-energizes their ambitions. I am a low maintenance high value type of friend. Wether it’s laughing, dreaming, building, or creating, my friends would probably say that approaching life looking to fulfill your potential, is what’s important to me.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days.
There’s something about making films, adding in a score of original music, being on set and bringing a high stakes scene to screen, that is invigorating!
What speaks to me so much is that my spirit feels alive when being my expressive self with other creative people. It’s a wonderful mix of playing make believe like a kid but bringing seriousness to it like an adult. I am story teller, I get to experience life through the lenses of many perspectives as an actor and that is exciting to me.
It also brings much fulfillment when not acting on set because I am learning new skills in my personal life. Things like learning piano, broadsword training, and speaking other languages and accents. Meeting many talented individuals while creating something meaningful has been a huge inspiration to me.
It is a challenge filmmaking. Overcoming that challenge to make something that people can enjoy is an exhilarating undertaking. Honestly, I love the challenge.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/qblanche/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quinton.blanche/
Image Credits
A.j. Bennett
Simone Severo
