Texas Heisman Winner Ricky Williams is using his past struggles to find success in the cannabis industry. Williams is a Heisman Trophy winner and the number one pick in the 1999 NFL Draft. The former Longhorn hit hard times as he dealt with social anxiety disorder and a year-long suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. It was the third time Williams had tested positive for cannabis use, but he now feels he needed those experiences.
“To me, all of the struggles are what define our journey, like in all the movies and the myths, when the hero overcomes the struggle, they learn something about themselves, and they use that piece of knowledge to see where to next and keep moving forward,” Williams said. “When I left the NFL and the struggles really hit, I just kept overcoming them and seeing where they led me next, and they led me here, starting my own brand in Southern California.”
'Highsman' is a cannabis company started by Williams. He’s enlisted the help of longtime friend Chris Ball, founder of Ball Family Farms. Ball met Williams through a mutual friend over a decade ago. Now, they are using their experiences to grow their businesses and a new culture centered on cannabis.
“When I left the NFL, and the stigma was all over me, I had a question I had to answer. I said, ‘do I wrestle this stigma? Or do I live the life I know I can live and change?’ And so where the story was cannabis ruined my life, I said, ‘I’m going to live in a way to say cannabis saved my life,’” Williams proclaimed. “As I’m walking around here, I see on Chris’ packaging ‘Cultivating the Culture,’ and this is what I’m saying, it’s about building, growing a culture, and not defending against the old regime. But it’s about greatness and caring for each other and high quality, pun intended.”
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