Today we’d like to introduce you to Miguel Global.
Hi Miguel, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
Growing up we were very limited in material things and certain experiences, but we made it work in whatever way we could. When you have very little and that is your normal, you tend to find creative ways to enjoy what you have at least a little more than you did yesterday. Food, in particular, was an important aspect of my upbringing. No matter what we didn’t have, or how bad things became, my grandmother would always make sure we had a hot meal on the table. There was a lot we didn’t have, but thank God we were never starving.
As I grew older and my own life evolved into better circumstances and improved experiences, I began to take on more appreciation for cooking and connecting it to how I showed love. Remembering my grandmother with so little, she gave all that she had through her love and through our time at the dinner table. It didn’t’ matter if the meal who large or small, it was always prepared with love. As I matured and understood things better in hindsight, those memories strengthened and I also found myself showing love through food and service to my own friends and family. Though my financial circumstances as an adult were polar opposites from my childhood, I could now appreciate the time and commitment that goes into the kitchen and preparing food.
Fast forward ahead, long after college and taking a break from corporate America, I decided to write a cookbook to share just a few of my favorite recipes with friends, family, and whoever would be inspired to cook. My writing a cookbook was never really a goal or dream, it just kind of happened. During the beginning of the pandemic when things began to lock down, I found myself wanting to do something to lift the energy in the house. Years before this, I traveled at least half of the year, consulting and helping businesses grow and further develop their marketing efforts. Now with a pandemic in play, travel came to a complete stop. My wife was irritable as she missed her family in Australia, my daughter was tired of being inside so I had an idea and I thought, why not pretend like we are going out to a restaurant every day and theme the dishes. Brunch can be outside on the patio, dinner can be with candlelight and music in the dining room and we change up the dishes and the locations to where we eat a few days a week, you know,.. make it fun. This completely transformed the mood and energy in the house. I decided to share my plates of food on Instagram and people were asking where are you getting this food during a pandemic? No one believed I was cooking this as it was a hidden talent lol. After a few requests to share the recipes I thought, why not create a cookbook and share it with everyone. While I had never written or published a book before, I did understand business and marketing so I thought why not give it a shot?
Released on June 7, which was my birthday, He’s Got Flavor became an Amazon bestseller in less than 5 hours. All I can hear in my mind was my grandmother saying, Food is love, and I will never forget that moment.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
In anything we do there will always be roadblocks. My entire upbringing was a struggle, but often times that’s what shapes and molds us to become who we are. After the first two months, things slowed down, and not much happened with my book. I was happy to have released it and to have shared it with others. One book sold or one thousand I was happy. It was a passion project that did what was intended, or at least I thought. A few months later, I started to receive emails and messages from a few people who purchased my cookbook asking if could I share videos and other dishes.
You have to first understand, being a “chef” wasn’t my intention and my real focus was on this pandemic ending so I could get back to business. Nonetheless, I decided to create a food IG page and share daily meals there in hopes of satisfying the supporters and creating a photo and video diary for myself to quick reference when needed. After a lot of trial and error and more encouragement from supporters, I eventually found my way, and not only did my followers start to grow but it translated to my book sales which took me straight to the top as a #1 Best Seller! Amazing what happens when you focus and listen to the universe.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My lifelong passion for creating music and using my hands to create things definitely has helped to elevate me as a cook. In the kitchen, it’s all about passion, vibes, and a blank canvas. I enjoy not knowing what the plate will look like but knowing it will be delicious because of how much I put into it. My father has a similar passion for cooking as well. I don’t refer to myself as a Chef but many people do. I enjoy cooking and teaching others a few tips as well. As for my professional career, I run a business development, marketing and strategic consulting company called M Group Consulting. I have helped businesses all over the world from startups to established companies, to grow their businesses and to problem solve. Being known as a chef and cookbook author was a bi-product of covid but it has been amazing. I receive just as much if not more fulfillment from seeing people happy, excited, and inspired by my dishes than I do from board rooms and executive meetings. I also can’t believe collectively between TikTok and Instagram I have over 1 million followers in such a short time and well over 50 million views. It’s unbelievable!
I believe what sets me a part is that people can genuinely see the passion in my recipes and presentations. My sauces activate the senses, my understanding of music allows me to create captivating videos, and embracing a philosophy that food is love gives me comfort knowing someone out there was just inspired to feed their own family or loved one and sit at the table and have the needed discussions. That is what drives me more than anything. As a result, this has inspired a new passion and I am happy to share that I recently launched in January 2022, my Nonprofit, Flavors of Change Foundation. Hunger is real and life skills are diminishing. Dinner use to unite us at home and much of that has changed. I want to do my part in this and use my passion for cooking and people to achieve a lasting impact. This foundation will be a bridge and community connector to cultivate skills for children and adults, and use cooking and food to foster deeper communication and to strengthen closer connections with families and the community. Cooking offers so much more than just eating, and I’m looking forward to exploring and sharing this greater purpose in hopes of making a real impact.
Alright, so before we go, can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
I am always looking to collaborate and work with others and definitely appreciate the support. My cookbook, He’s Got Flavor, is available on www.Amazon.com. I also have a food blog which you can subscribe to at www.hesgotflavor.com, which has free recipes, a store, as well as some other products. Most importantly, I will be laser focused on the Flavors of Change Foundation. All of the proceeds of my next book will be donated and I can’t wait to create cooking class opportunities for kids, couples and anyone who enjoys or wants to help this cause and to get involved. You can also make a donation at www.FlavorsOfChange.org.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Food Blog/Website: www.hesgotflavor.com
- Nonprofit Website: www.flavorsofchange.org
- cooking Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hesgotflavor/
- Nonprofit Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flavorsofchange/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FlavorsofChange/
- Tik-Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drflavor
Image Credits
Micaela Martinez
