I wish the story I am getting ready to tell you weren't true, but it is!
It was a beautiful, sunny day in South Carolina. Fresh off my 20-minute stint in the sauna, trying to keep my cardiovascular health in check, I decided to run to Sam's Club about a mile away and grab what I needed.
My Sam's Club trip started out like any other. I stared at the samples, deciding which ones to eat and which to pass on. I was having a wonderful time until I looked up out of the corner of my eye and saw a familiar face.
Instantly, I turned like I didn't see him and bolted behind the freezer section, out of sight. I peeked around the corner, and once his back was turned, I bolted down the aisle toward the onions. It hit me that this was silly, dodging another grown man. The way I was hiding, you would think I owed him money, but I didn't. It was deeper than that.
Let's go back in time, right before I decided to leave my last job and bet on myself. I went to a mixer, and at this mixer, I went in with confidence. When people asked what I did, I told them I was an explorer, which was true. By that time, since I had been in South Carolina, I had worked at UPS, a trucking company, and a fire department. I was exploring a fit in the South, and I hadn't found one, which made me feel distraught.
When I told him about my book for short men and wanting to encourage short men, he thought it was cool. As I was leaving, he said we should have lunch sometime, as I seemed interesting. I said okay. I went home and told Shay all about it. By this time, we had been here almost a year and a half, and that was my first time putting myself out there.
I could tell he was successful; he was a motivational speaker and a realtor. We decided to have coffee one day, a few days before I was getting ready to leave my job. I went to meet him at the Starbucks in my work uniform. He was driving a newer Mercedes, and I pulled up in a bright red fire department vehicle and hopped out in my uniform.
Things got awkward after I told him I was leaving my job and that I was going to figure it out. I didn't have any network here, and I didn't know exactly how it was going to work, but I knew it would. His demeanor switched, and so did mine. It was almost as if after I told him that, he sized me up and said, "This guy is delusional. I'll give him some advice, and I'm out of here."
He ended up giving me some advice. He then told me he would send me the name of a book to help me on my path, and we parted ways. I have yet to hear from him again. I still wonder what the book might have been.
I had come to the South to make money, take care of my family, and experience life outside of my hometown of Seattle. But financially, I was struggling. All the jobs I could find paid me half what I made in Seattle.
I was questioning my path and whether what I was doing was right, and then to have my first time trying to mingle with people go like that—it hurt, to say the least.
When I ended up seeing him at the store, everything came rushing back: the insecurities around how I felt that day, all of it. So, I dodged him for the next 15 minutes in that store while I finished my shopping.
The interesting part was that he was wrong. Things worked out when I took the leap of faith, and I am now in a better situation than even I thought I would be.
Being in that situation reminded me how important it is not to worry about someone else's opinion of you. Worrying about the opinion of someone you don't even know will have you thinking low of yourself. He couldn't see it, and truthfully, at that time, neither could I. But I believed and walked anyway.
Next time I see him, I won't hide from him. I will walk up to him, say hello, and keep it moving. I don't have anything to prove to him.
Looking back, I realize that the encounter at Sam's Club was a pivotal moment in my journey. It reminded me that not everyone will understand or support my decisions, but that shouldn't deter me from pursuing my goals. I've learned to trust my instincts, believe in myself, and keep pushing forward, even in the face of doubt or adversity. Today, I'm in a better place than I ever imagined, and I'm grateful for the lessons I've learned along the way. To anyone facing a similar situation, remember that your path is your own, and you don't need anyone else's approval to follow your dreams.
"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment." - Ralph Waldo Emerson