No B.S Friday: I had no idea how much fun this would actually be.
You know what the best thing about being rich is?
You know, after the cars and the holidays the gold chains with diamond encrusted dollar signs?
It’s having time. Time to do what you want. It never gets old.
But you know what the second best thing is?
You get to be yourself.
You don’t have to pretend to be somebody you’re not.
For most people on the planet right now, this is a luxury that they just can’t afford.
Living in a complex social world generally involves making concessions. It’s not my preference to put my bins out on Sunday night. But that’s what’s going to make the whole show run a bit easier, so I go with it.
Sometimes these concessions are minor – driving on the left-hand side of the road, putting the bins out on a Sunday.
But sometimes they’re major.
Like working 9 to 5 in a role that doesn’t excite you, for a company that does uninspiring things, for someone whose breath smells like coffee and kitty litter.
Nobody wants that. That’s nobody’s truth.
But we have to pretend that we’re into it.
And when I was younger, I pretended to be excited about a whole bunch of things.
“Yes sir, I’m very passionate about customer service. I’m going to make a McExcellent cashier.”
Or I pretended to be excited about sales. Or passionate about brick-laying or whatever.
I had to pretend that I was actually happy that my valuable life energies were flowing into these endeavours.
(I wasn’t. It felt like an insult to my soul.)
But I couldn’t tell the truth. (I’m hoping to spend as little time as possible in this stupid role before breaking into professional soccer.) That kind of truth sets you free… from your job and a reliable income.
So you have to pretend. We all do.
I mean what is a neck-tie, if not a public statement that you’re willing to put your interests to one side in the name of a greater corporate good?
But once I had made my money – doing something I love mind you – then I just didn’t have to pretend anymore. I wasn’t reliant on anyone for anything, so I could just let it all go.
It was massively relieving.
And the thing that surprised me most?
Just how fun it is to be me.
And that’s not about me in particular. I don’t think I’m unique.
But I think everyone will find that once they give themselves permission to be whatever they want to be, they’ll find that what they want to be is actually a whole lot of fun to be.
It’s just fun to show up in your own quirky authenticity. Like, it still puts a smile on my face.
I just never expected that.
You know, its cliché to say “be true to yourself”, but I always heard that like life-advice. “Floss regularly and be yourself.”
But it’s more than that.
It’s an end in itself.
It’s just a fun way to be.
So stick at it. Stay with the journey.
I promise it’s worth it.
JG.
V says
This reminds me of the ads that I have recently been constantly shown on YouTube – for a new online “$2 shop” Temu. It goes, “I shop like a billionaire”.