If you've been watching television for the past decade, chances are, you have stumbled upon Buddy Valastro, the Cake Boss, a fourth-generation Italian-American baker from Hoboken who has built his financial empire almost literally from cake and icing. During his visit to the Philippines for the TLC Festival 2017, Buddy shared some tidbits about his phenomenal success. “I’m a visionary and I dream things up,” laughs Buddy, “I’m almost like this cartoon character that has a vision or a dream about a cake and I have to turn it into reality by really thinking hard and pushing myself to the limits to make it happen.”

Buddy shares that this particular skillset was honed by experience and history, where an individual's response to catastrophes is a clear indicator of their inner grit. “Everybody’s got their inner switch that turns on,” shares Buddy, “When my dad died, the circumstances pushed me into a certain role. It was hard because my mind was in too many different places. Some people would go off the far end. But, I knew that I needed to focus. I learned how to harness it and use it into my advantage.”