Back when I was 18, trying to sell shit I didn’t understand to people I didn’t know, nobody thought I’d make it in business.
Fair enough, really. I didn’t have any formal education. I wasn’t confident. I was awkward as hell.

People looked at me and saw… well, not much.
And that was the greatest gift they could’ve given me.

When no one expects anything of you, you’re free.
You can learn in the shadows.
You can fail quietly.
You can sharpen your tools without the pressure of everyone watching.

I’ve been underestimated a lot—still am.
I’ve walked into boardrooms where I was assumed to be the assistant.
Had clients assume I was the junior, not the guy who built the agency.
Had people treat my coffee business like a hobby.

That’s fine.
Let them think what they want.
Let them underestimate you.

Because here’s what they don’t see:
They don’t see the late nights.
The lessons learned the hard way.
The consistency.
The time spent growing when no one was watching.

That’s where the power lives.

Even Marcus Aurelius said:
​"Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one."​
You don’t need to tell them who you are. Just show up and do the work.

Let them doubt you.
Then quietly prove them wrong.

​
​P.S. I still get underestimated. I still mess things up. Just last week I called someone by the wrong name for a whole meeting. Power move? Nope. Human move. We’re all figuring it out.
But every time you get underestimated, that’s your invitation to rise—without ego, without noise. Just quietly. Steadily.

P.P.S. Forward this to someone who’s been underestimated lately.

​
​Broden Johnson​
​Thoughts From a Failed Beekeeper