Meet Christopher Castillo

We were lucky to catch up with Christopher Castillo recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Christopher , we’re so appreciative of you taking the time to share your nuggets of wisdom with our community. One of the topics we think is most important for folks looking to level up their lives is building up their self-confidence and self-esteem. Can you share how you developed your confidence?

This question reminds me of the quote by Eleanor Roosevelt: “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent”. This rings true in my lifetime. From a very young age, I struggled with self-esteem issues. Two events changed my paradigm and outlook on self-esteem, giving me confidence (many would say overconfidence at times).

The first event happened when I was in fourth grade. My father saw that I was struggling with many things: I was being bullied, my grades were low, and my proficiency in English was below that of an average fourth grader. During the summer, my father had an intervention and began working on my self-esteem. He applied a plethora of the principles of confessing and manifesting to change my paradigm. I also started to work on everything I lacked scholastically. Once I came from my summer break, I came with an air of supreme confidence. The school principal called my parents in because they had noticed my significant improvement. I went from being at the bottom of the fourth-grade class to being on top of the fifth-grade class within months. I have taken those steps to defeat impostor syndrome in my professional life.

From the age of nine to the age of nineteen, I helped my parents sell shirts at the Redondo Beach Swapmeet. Every weekend, I was there pitching, talking, and making sales in both English and Spanish. This helped me not to take “no’s” personally, it gave me the ability to know how to build rapport with the customer, and to go for the sell at the right time. That is where I learned the valuable lesson that we are always pitching, we are always selling the biggest/best product: “Ourselves”. If you don’t believe in yourself, it will be evident to your potential clients and the competition.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

My name is Christopher Castillo, and I am a 35-year-old political consultant based out of Los Angeles, CA. I founded Black Castle & Associates in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our firm specializes in Political Consulting, Government Affairs, and Opposition Research. We are one of the fastest-growing political consulting firms and have represented various candidates, elected officials, special interests, and issues throughout California and Mexico.

I was born in Torrance and raised in Inglewood, CA, to two Mexican Immigrants. Growing up in California in the early 1990s to immigrant parents was a difficult situation, based on the passage of Proposition 187 during the 1994 election. This hunger to improve things for our immigrant community sparked my interest during my teenage years. I developed a passion for politics, history, and the social sciences during my high school years. Right after high school, I started working regular fast-food jobs. Eventually, I landed a job as a union carpenter. At 21, I began to dream about getting involved in politics. Within months, I landed a part-time internship with a congresswoman while I worked full-time. This led me to acquire experience without a college degree and eventually to secure mentorships from a political consultant. This led me to start working on political campaigns, eventually landing a position in a non-profit organization that champions career-pathways programs. During this time, I learned the value of giving back and helping students find internships in their declared field of major. All this had been accomplished without a college degree or formal education. After starting Black Castle & Associates, I saw how my lack of formal education had the potential to hamper my business and my clients. I signed up to attend Saddleback College and, after two years, earned my AA degree. Eventually transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles with a full-ride tuition-free scholarship. I have completed my first year at UCLA while keeping my business afloat.

My role as the principal consultant and owner of Black Castle & Associates is to make sure the company is growing while meeting and exceeding expectations for clients. What makes Black Castle & Associates different from other consulting firms is the emphasis on thinking outside the box and breaking the mold of traditional political consulting. Our firm specializes in opposition research, negative campaign advertisements, and PAC management. What makes me proud is that our firm can give our clients a competitive edge through outside-the-box thinking, regardless of the client’s background or years in politics. My mission is to expand the company to other states, Mexico, and other parts of Latin America after 2026.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Many skills and qualities have contributed to my success in politics and as a business owner. The biggest one has been networking intelligently, by not being shy and being friendly, while listening more than speaking. The second advice is to seek mentorship from someone who has the career you want. They can guide you to success and avoid pitfalls that can delay your growth. The third quality is to seek to compromise and not take things personally. An open dialogue can accomplish many breakthroughs, even if the goal is not fully solidified. Do not let perfection be the enemy of advancement.

These skills come with time, but the core principle is always operating with humility and being yourself. Being yourself goes a long way, and having the open-mindedness of learning from people who are involved in the business.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

My parents encouraged me to believe in myself from a very early age. This has led me to combat Imposter Syndrome in my adult life. Another impactful thing my parents did was show me how to conduct business and have that person-to-person sales experience. This has helped me market myself and not have a shortage of clients. Another impactful habit my parents instilled in me was having a growth/winning mentality. This has led me to believe that we have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable in engaging in something new or learning a new skill.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.blackcastleassociates.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackcastleassociates/?hl=en
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-castillo-b0802b200