We’re looking forward to introducing you to Carlos Manuel Cadena. Check out our conversation below.
Carlos Manuel, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
When it comes to intelligence, energy, and integrity, to me integrity is probably the most important aspect out of the three. Not to say that the other two aren’t important, since without energy there is no passion and without intelligence we can’t be informed. However, I feel like integrity is what focus both of these other principles, thus making it more important.
Integrity is what allows us to aim our energy towards something productive, and it also allows us to use the intelligence we have gathered towards something benevolent to those around you. Without it, we would just have all this energy with no real target to spend it on and we would have all this intelligence and no real goal of where to use it.
Integrity is what allows us to use our gifts and abilities towards something good, as well as keeping us true to who we are whilst using said gifts and abilities to help those around us. At least, that’s what I believe.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Of course! My name is Carlos Manuel Cadena. I’m probably what you’d call a jack-of-all-trades, to be honest. I hold 3 degrees which are an associate of arts, a bachelor degree in marketing, and a bachelor degree in acting for both film and theater and I am currently working to acquire my bachelor degree in nursing. In terms of the titles I currently have, I am an actor for both film and theater, a model, a photographer, a self-proclaimed gamer, a sensei (martial arts instructor), and a nursing student with the aim to work in an ICU setting and one day go from being a RN (Registered Nurse) to a CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthesiologist). My main goals right now though are to help people in my day job as a nurse and continue my work as an actor in all other days I have free. That way I can both help others the best way I can and also help myself by scratching that creative itch that never seems to go away.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
I feel like a moment that really helped me shape my view on the world was when I first came to the United States. I’m an immigrant from Mexico and my family and I first arrived to the United States back in 2008. When we did, my dad gathered my siblings and I and said this: “You guys are going to meet people who see the world differently than you do. And that’s great! You should always be open to new ideas, because different ideas are what makes the world go round. Always keep an open mind and keep a hold of your values. Make your own worldview, and always hear people out… And if their values differ from yours, don’t try to shove yours down their throat and kindly ask them to do the same to you.”
I feel like that moment was what really kicked off how I viewed the world, because it allowed me to listen to people’s words instead of just tossing them aside because I disagreed with them. As an actor, you want to listen to criticism because otherwise you can’t really improve your craft if you believe you’re always right, cause sometimes you’re not. As a nurse, you can’t really help your patient if you don’t listen to them. As a person, you can’t really grow if you don’t take the best aspects of your surroundings and use them to become the best version of yourself.
Now, sometimes you’re probably gonna hear stuff that’s just outright bonkers. Things that are more meant to hurt you rather than actually help you. But here’s the thing, everything that you hear other people say is an opinion. You can listen to all the outside criticism and choose which one of them will actually help you. Because, ultimately, it’s what you tell yourself that becomes a fact. What you decide to be a fact is what will shape your worldview.
I feel like that piece of advice really set me up to have a sort of unique view on the world. One based on kindness, respect, love, and the will to move forward. I don’t think I’d be the man I am today without those words in mind.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
If there’s one thing that suffering taught me that success never really could his resilience. Don’t get me wrong, though it is not a lesson I wish upon anyone it is still one that I am grateful to have learned. I wouldn’t really wanna go through it again, but I like to think that having that silver lining makes all my struggles worth it.
I’ve had my own fair share of disappointments. Dreams that had to be reworked, people that I loved very dearly that are no longer a part of my path, and times where every day felt like an uphill battle. But the fact that I made it through every single one of those bad days through sheer force of will long enough to see a brighter tomorrow is a testament to how strong I’ve become. Even today is a victory in and of itself… it is a gift.
Though the struggles I’ve been through are not exactly things I would be excited to relive, I cannot deny that it is through them that I’m proud to have gathered the strength of will I hold today. That’s not really something success can teach you.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What do you believe is true but cannot prove?
I have a strong belief that everybody has the capacity for good. That even the most despicable people that know nothing other than to become a menace to society can have the inability to be good.
No, I can’t really prove this because how do you measure what is “good”? Being good is subjective. What can be good for one can be bad for another. To me, being good is being someone that helps those around you. Doing things that lead towards a better tomorrow, both for yourself and for your fellow neighbors alike.
I don’t know if this feeling is naïve or if it has any real basis to stand on… but I still believe people can be good. If we have the ability to choose, and we have the capacity to change, I wholeheartedly believe that we can all choose to be good and/or change into the best version of ourselves.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
One hundred percent! If you’re passionate about what you do, there’s really no reason for you to seek the praise of other people as a reward. You feeling happy for what you’re doing is a reward in and of itself.
Though receiving praise from others does feel good in the short term, in the end, it is your opinion that matters the most. It’s that self fulfillment that really determines whether or not what you’re doing is worth it in the first place. If you’re not giving it your all, then there’s no passion. If there’s no passion, then what are we doing this for?
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecarlosmanuelcadena/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlosmanuelcadena?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
- Twitter: https://x.com/CadenaCarlosM
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialCarlosManuelCadena/
- Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/c/CarlosManuelCadena
- Other: IMDB: https://m.imdb.com/name/nm13565749/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@carlosmanuelcadena?_t=8UhVF4KQy8U&_r=1
Image Credits
CMC Headshots, Ty Harper, ALB Productions, Hannah Lee.
