Two years ago, about three months shy of my 30th birthday, I started to experience intense anxiety. While I later learned mycotoxins were the root cause of my issues, my perception of time exacerbated it.
Too many of my friends, family, and colleagues experience similar feelings when the milestone birthday approaches.
Note: if you or someone you know is experiencing anxiety or depression, please seek professional help and guidance.
My anxiety was primarily driven by the fact that I was approaching 30 and had not yet figured out what I was supposed to be doing.
To provide more context – I had a well-paid job as a Product Manager at one of the most popular technology companies in Burlington, Vermont, I lived in an affordable apartment with my best friend, and had plenty to do on weekends with a core group of friends who all lived in the area.
By any outside view, I had nothing to be anxious about.
However, my internal view, and how I put pressure on myself to be an entrepreneur and make millions like seemingly every LinkedIn and Twitter use my age was doing, caused a lot of this.
Ever since I was younger, I always wanted to do more. I wanted to create. I wanted to invent. I started blogs. I took things apart and put them back together. I sold items on eBay.
I learned early on that you can learn anything on the internet, but I felt so stuck in a job I hated despite deploying this skill-set.
Something was in my way and I couldn’t figure it out.
Enter Gary Vaynerchuk.
I had actually started following Gary V back in 2010 while working at a social media start-up (later acquired by Dealer.com). My career was on an amazing run then took a halt after two acquisitions.
Randomly, while driving to my girlfriend about 4 hours away, I put on an episode of The Gary V Audio Experience.
He happened to be talking about garage saleing (going to garage sales, buying items, and flipping them for more on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Mercari) as a practical way to build business skills.
Something clicked.
In my twenties, I worked at a start-up, we sold it, I tried to start another business, and I craved a side hustle. I just couldn’t figure out what. There was so much up-front overhead for so many of my ideas.
With garage saleing, I literally could start that day.
Over the course of that summer, I went to over 100 garage sales and earned $5,000. My anxiety started to wane and so did the nagging feeling in my gut that I was missing opportunities.
I loved every second of it and couldn’t believe what it turned into for me. I learned how to sell online. I learned how to negotiate. I found niches of collectibles with high price tags that I never knew existed. I met people. I got outside.
All I had to do was get in motion. I reduced overhead. I just did it.
There was no overcomplication – I showed up, bought some stuff, and listed it online. I figured the rest out later.
I didn’t judge myself and didn’t let anybody else judge me. Frankly, those close to me were impressed that I did this part-time and made over $1,000 per month. I started to get my confidence back and this momentum started to snowball into something bigger (more on that for a different post).
2 years removed from that birthday and I realized how quickly things can change. My roommate moved to Oregon. I moved out of Vermont. My opportunities have exploded. Suddenly, I feel like I have more time.
Life doesn’t end when you turn 30.
You haven’t missed anything and you can’t judge yourself. Not many people have it figured out by 30.
Get as practical as you can. Once I figured out that I could get started and worry less, doors opened for me and they can open for you, too.