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In honor of Veteran’s Day, we interviewed Humble Root’s COO Colin Schmidt. Humble Root is a delivery cannabis dispensary located in the heart of Sacramento, Ca. In this interview we talk about his background, transition to the cannabis industry, and what advice he has for other veterans.
First of all, thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?
Hello Readers! My name is Colin Schmidt and I am a co-owner and the Chief Operations Officer here at Humble Root.
What is your military background?
I am a retired soldier of the United States Army. Most of my background was as an analyst in the intelligence department. Unfortunately, most of what I did was push papers behind the scenes and requires the proper clearance levels to discuss.
It must have been quite a contrast moving from active duty to a career in cannabis. What was the transition like for you?
Different for sure! Transitions are always difficult without having a decent support system. I was lucky in that arena because I actually fell into this career path when a friend of mine asked me at a community kickball game if I wanted to be a part of this company when they were starting to build it out after I was discharged. I had actually never even tried cannabis at that point in my life. The military was my career for longer than I can remember, I knew it was going to be since I was roughly 13. Now that my military life was ending I thought to myself why not jump into a new adventure.
What tools or concepts have you learned from the military that have helped you be successful?
I just try to live those army values each day, those of respect and selfless service. I guess it doesn’t hurt being able to analyze large amounts of data very easily but that can also be attributed to my programming schooling.
You’ve now been working at Humble Root for over 5 years. Please tell us about your current role.
My job as Operations is mostly divided between two focuses. The primary being around building procedures and policies that help us stay compliant while still trying to keep the original culture that this company was founded on. The secondary focus and more fun in my opinion is forecasting the trends of the industry and developing new systems to bring even more of an experience to our members.
Is running a successful department different from what you thought it would be?
Not really no. It’s just like running my old platoon. I just make sure I am there for them and help provide a foundation while managing these uncharted waters in this new industry.
Humble Root honors Veterans with a Discount
What’s your favorite thing about your position at Humble Root?
This position allows me to be innovative in this industry especially training and working with the best talent within our pineapple community and still grants me the opportunity to go home safely to my wife and spend quality time with her.
Looking back, what’s one thing you wish you understood about the cannabis industry before you ever got started?
The depth of healing power that cannabis can provide. Before I was medically discharged from the army, the VA had me loaded with different pharmaceutical pills that just left me feeling like a hollowed-out zombie. I was taking 14 different medications a day. After trying cannabis for a year, I was able to stop taking those pills completely. Now I have one type of medicine for my needs.
On to a more serious topic, would you rather fight 1 horse-sized nug or 100 nug-sized horses?
100 horses, because then I can have 100 tiny horses and build them a tiny ranch.
Thanks for sitting down with us. Before we leave, do you have any advice for veterans who are trying to get into the cannabis industry?
We’re hiring lol. Seriously though, email me at colin@humbleroot.com if you’re looking into jumping into this sandbox. I will always try to help out a fellow brother or sister when I can. More importantly, if any soldier is struggling with a mountain of medication and curious how cannabis can help them be rid of those pills forever or what strain to look for to ensure a decent night’s rest, please reach out to me. I’ve been there and I’ll jump right back into that foxhole just so we can make it out together.