Welcome to Working Towards Our Purpose, a podcast that
offers a different perspective on what a job can be. For everyone
out there that's heard that voice in the back of their head asking for something
more, it's time to listen to it. I'm your host, Gino,
and join me as I interview people who have decided to work in their own
purpose. Together, we will learn, become inspired,
and hopefully find our own path towards working in our purpose.
Welcome back to Working Towards Our Purpose. Today, I got a special episode for
you. I interviewed my brother, who was a photographer and owner
and founder of MC3 Photo. He just got back from a trip to
Nepal that we really dive into and talk about all the lessons and things
that he learned. And, this episode is a little bit longer than normal. It's just
over an hour, but we just had so much to talk to and,
really enjoyed the conversation, and I'm really excited to get to share it with you
all. Again, as a reminder, I am going on a short break in the month
of April to line up some more amazing interviews with guests,
and I'm working on a website and some other things behind the scenes to
make the podcast even better. So I'll see you in about a
month when the podcast returns, and I hope you enjoy this episode.
So I don't know if you know, but almost a year
ago today was when we recorded the first episode. It came
out March 30th last year, and it's almost a
year since the last time we recorded. It was episode 8, came out March
30th last year. And at that time, you had just quit
your job. And Mhmm. Why don't you fill us in a little bit on,
like, what you've done in the year since then? Wow. Yeah. That's crazy to think
that was a year ago. It feels like forever ago. So
so, yeah, I've been working on the photography business as we talked about in the
in the last episode. Basically, it was it was a year of learning,
a year of, you know, experiencing so many different
kinds of photography, meeting new people, just realizing that I
knew so much less than I thought I did. Right? I think that's kinda what
I touched on last time was wanting to learn and to try
everything. Right? Kind of like an exploratory year of taking
on any photography job and just seeing if I liked it, seeing
if I made money at it, seeing, you know, the process. And I think at
this point now, a year into it, I'm starting to narrow down what I'm
focusing on and and kind of starting to market myself in certain
areas. Right? Instead of just kind of putting myself out there as a
photographer that will shoot anything. Like, that's not somewhere where you wanna stay for too
long, you know. You have to niche down and get to some
sort of, you know, specialty area, and it doesn't have to stay that
forever. You know? You can kinda move around or whatever. But you
have to kind of market yourself at, you know, I am an engagement photographer. I
am a headshot photographer. So that people know who you are. They can look at
your portfolio of work, and that's how you can get
clients. So I've been working on the portfolios of different categories. I've
been shooting a bunch of my friends, you know, just doing all kinds of random
jobs. So, yeah, that's that's kinda been the last the last year.
Did it go the way that you thought it would, or did it go
differently? Like, in what ways did it feel,
different or unexpected? Because I know for me, it was definitely, like, I
had a very naive, thought process of, like, oh, I could put
more time to this. Therefore, I'll make more money, and I'll make this much money
because I could put this much time to it. And that, like, didn't happen at
all. So for my 1st year, it was like a huge wake up call of,
like, oh, you it's not just gonna happen because you put time to it. Like,
you have to figure out how to make things work. Exactly that.
Where I thought that, you know, like, oh, I could take decent pictures. You know?
I will just work will come to me and I'll find it, and that's not
really the case. Like, sure. There's, you know, there's friends and there's family who will
refer you, and you'll get some work through that. But it's not gonna be enough
work to keep you going. You know, you do have to market yourself. You do
have to go out there and meet people. And and learning that, I think,
was, like you said, a big wake up call that it's not gonna be that
easy. It's gonna be really difficult. And and a lot of times, I'll explain to
people, like, there's higher highs and there's lower lows. You know? And and getting
through that is is challenging. There's not just, like, your daily routine of
going to the office and doing your normal thing. It's like you really have
to kind of focus on yourself a lot and make sure that you're doing
alright mentally. Because if you're not, you can't really focus on the business. You know?
It's like Mhmm. Yeah. I just came across a quote recently, and it said
from some random guy on the Internet. So, I mean, take it for what it's
worth, but it said something it said something about, like, it's the people
that work on themselves are the people that are gonna become
I don't like this word, but successful. And it's the people that work on their
jobs that, like, won't be. Mhmm. And that was definitely a huge lesson that I've
learned since I've left. It's just, like, working on yourself, whether
it's, you know, mental health or, like, new skills or, like,
you know, figuring out what it is that you enjoy or not enjoy. That's
definitely, like, the biggest benefit of it. And then also to touch on, like, the
high highs and lower lows, I also feel the exact same way. And I
would still always take that versus just, like, even guilt because it's like Yeah. Yeah.
You can't experience the highs without the lows. So instead of just having,
like, you know, the flat line of just
boringness for Mhmm. All of your existence, I'd rather, like, have
really shitty days and then really awesome days. Yeah. Exactly. Like, a lot of
people will tell you and I I think even, like, it's it's like a Buddhist
thing that you you're supposed to just keep even. Right? Don't get too high or
too low. And so many people have told me that, and and I just I
kinda struggle to believe that. You know what I mean? It's like you said, like,
I would rather experience something really awesome and then have something really
bad, you know, come after that. And it's like the seasons. Right? It's
like you don't want to live in 70 degrees all day long. You want the
season so that you can appreciate the highs and the lows, you know? Yeah. I
mean, maybe that's personal preference. Some people definitely do like living
in sun for all the time, but I I don't know. Yeah. Sure. For me,
I found out that that's what's important to me. So I think, like, that's the
biggest thing is figuring out what's important to you and and what makes you,
you know, enjoy the days that you have. Mhmm.
So, yeah, just, to to keep going on, like, the last year and
stuff, can you tell me, like, one, like, really good thing and then maybe, like,
one really bad thing that comes to mind? I think, like, there was a
point in I think it was, like, October last year where I had a
bunch of inquiries come through, and I was, like, starting to feel good about,
you know, getting work from outside of that network of
friends and family that I described. And I wrote a couple of
proposals, and and then a couple of people just, like, turned me down. They're like,
no. That's too much money or or whatever. And I remember, like, being really excited
in the beginning of the month with, like, a bunch of leads, and then towards
the end of the month, like, none of them came through. And it was kinda
defeating. And I think, you know,
looking back, it was it was an ex a learning experience. Right? Like, you can't
get emotionally tied to a client, like, when they reach out to you and, like,
expect that that's gonna go through. Because some people just don't value it or they
don't, you know, wanna spend that much money on it or it is what it
is. You know? It's like some people don't know until they ask you. And,
you know, I think I learned through that process that I need to better
describe what I'm providing to people. Right? I'm not just taking pictures. You know? I
have to show them my process, and I have to explain to them in
detail what I'm doing, not because and the
reason of doing that is so that they can see what you're doing. And they're
not gonna know that because they they're not a photographer. And I know that because
that's what I do. So I have to show them, like, this is this is
what I'm doing to you. This is the value I'm providing. And it's more than
just taking pictures for you. Right? Like, you could do that with a phone. So
I think that was the important lesson from that from that time. Yeah.
Totally. I had the exact same experience with what I was doing because at
first, I was just doing podcast editing. So I would just tell people, like, yeah,
I'm just doing podcast editing. I remember the story of a client that,
I had. She's, like, my kind of my first I think she was my second,
like, real client. And we used to talk a lot about, like, our businesses because
she was an entrepreneur also. And she said to me one time when
I was explaining to her what I do, she was, like, oh, I had no
idea that you, like, did that. I, like, I just thought you edited. I didn't
know, like, you went through every single minute and listened to it and did this
and mixed the music in and stuff like that. And it's like nobody knows what
you're doing because they're not they don't have the same view that you do. Some
of the stuff they won't care about, but, like, the parts that value or benefit
them, that's what they care about. So you have to, like, use your words in
a way that, like, describes to them the value that they're getting. And I guess
that's kinda kinda marketing one on one, but it's one of the most sound like
you never really learned not going to school for marketing or whatever. Exactly.
So yeah. No. That that's cool. That's a good perspective of, like, the ups and
the downs. But yeah. So the reason that I wanted to
have you back again, was a little bit for that recap,
but then also because you just went on a really big trip. You spent almost
a month in Nepal, and I kinda just wanted to talk to you about that,
how that experience was, the things you took from it, and things you learned from
it. So give us, like, a brief description of the trip that you just came
back from. Yeah. Sure. So I guess that would be the the high of that
trip. So I came back about a month ago. So I was
on a a service trip with the Sierra Club, which is the,
the country's oldest nature preservation
organization. And they do these trips all over the world. And most of them are
tourism based, you know, just to get people in and kind of show them, you
know, maybe these areas that aren't as accessible to the normal person. And our
trip was, like I said, it was service based. So we we went to a
remote area of Nepal, and we helped rebuild some homes for
people that lived in the village that were destroyed back in the earthquakes they had
in 2015 that were really bad, and they're still recovering from it. So, yeah,
we spent a little bit of time in Kathmandu doing tourist stuff, and then we
kinda took this long, like, 2 day jeep ride, one day
trek out to the village. And then we stayed in the village for about a
week, came back, did a little more sightseeing in Kathmandu, and then we
came home. So it was 3 weeks total. So how did you, like, even
get involved with the trip to begin with? Or, like, what allows you to think
that, like, it was something that was obtainable? Yeah.
I guess I've always so I think back in high school is when it started
when when I read Into Thin Air, which was about, the 1996
Mount Everest trip that went poorly. Another Jon Krakauer book, which is
highly recommend if you haven't read it. But that got me interested in the mountain.
And the mountain, you know, is just its own
thing where people obsess over, and it's, you know, the tallest mountain in the world.
And and I think it got me really interested in the people and
and why people do this, and and they have, you know, Sherpa from the
area. If they didn't have these people and Paul helping them, they wouldn't be able
to climb the mountain. And through that,
I think, that sparked the interest in in the area and
my, you know, figuring out what Nepal even was as a country.
And fast forward to when I moved to New York City, I moved
to Jackson Heights, which is one of the biggest neighborhoods for,
Nepali and Tibetan people outside of Nepal. It's the
in a small concentration. So there's the food, there's the
people, the culture, and I kinda got immersed into that.
And that was kinda the next step. And I think I just
the next step was me just kinda wanting to go there for some reason. I
don't know why. I just felt, like, kinda drawn to it. And I remember
I think I watched some photographer I follow on YouTube, and he
did the trek to Everest Base Camp. And I was like, wow, I didn't realize
you could do that. That's really cool. Maybe that's something I could do. And kind
of just bookshelf that, you know, fast forward a couple years. And I think I
was just doing some research and I found this trip through the Sierra Club's
website. And it wasn't the Everest track, the base camp
track, but it was the service based track, and that was
kind of interest me a little bit more. I was like, okay. Well, if I
can go to this country and kinda give back to the community and
go in a more sustainable way, that kinda sits a little bit better with me
instead of just going on, you know, kind of a selfish trip or whatever. None
that there's anything wrong with that, but it sparked my interest even more. And
at the time that I saw it, I was still working, you know, my corporate
job. So, obviously, I didn't have 4 weeks to take off and, you know, go
to Nepal by myself. So I think I told myself
if I leave that job and if they post it again next year, I'm gonna
go. So then fast forward again to that year, and I saw them post
it. And I'm like, oh, shit. Now I gotta now I gotta go. And I,
you know, I contemplated for 6 months and was like, nah. You know,
coming up with all these excuses of why I shouldn't have gone, why I didn't
need to go. And I I don't know. You know,
this is just, like, kind of a strange thing to do. Like, there's not a
lot of people who understand it or support it. But I think,
like, my wife and, like, a couple of close friends were really supportive of
me and kinda gave me the push that I needed to to do it
and signed signed up, and I did it. Yeah. Yeah. I was gonna say if
you could maybe talk a little bit more about the decision making process because I
do remember, like, you going back and forth with it and, like, thinking about, like,
you know, should I be doing this or should I not be doing this? Thinking
about, like, your business and and that sort of thing. What was, like, the thought
process like? Yeah. I mean, I think I
it felt kind of, I don't know, self
indulgent to do a trip like that, you know, as I'm trying to
make my business take off and and get successful and,
you know, I would just look at all the the failures not the failures, but
the down parts of the past year. I'm like, well, I need to focus on
that and and get better. And I think
I don't know. I think I talked with another photographer who had been to
Nepal and kind of shared similar interests with it. And I remember he was,
like, laughing at me. And he's like, why why don't you just go? And And
I was like, well and I give him all these reasons, and he's just, like,
shaking his head, and he's like, it's 3 weeks. He's like, is that really gonna
make a big difference in your business? 3 weeks? You know? And I was like,
yeah. I guess he's right. You know? And just I think hearing that from
him who was kind of an outsider a little bit, but
had some perspective on it. And hearing him kind of think like, why
are you even, like, contemplating that? Like, just do it. And then hearing
from, you know, like, close friends, family, them also supporting me
with it. It's like, okay. Well, the people I care about the most are telling
me to do this. You know, I wanna do this. So let me just let
me just do it. Yeah. Yeah. I think part of it too, I think you
kinda alluded to, is the, like, almost
the the idea of, like, deserving of it. Right? Like, did did you
Mhmm. Did your business do well enough that you could deserve a trip like this?
And I don't know. It's interesting to think about it in that
way, and I don't I don't know if it holds as much
value as, like, it does as as it feels personally. Like, because I think a
lot of decisions are kinda made like that. Like, do you think you deserve this?
Oh, I shouldn't do this because I don't deserve it. Mhmm. And that's just kind
of an interesting thought process to think about. Because I think
from your perspective, it could be like, well, I don't really deserve this. But from
that other photographer's perspective, it's like, yeah, of course. Like, go on it. You're gonna
learn a bunch of stuff. You're gonna have new experiences. Like, yeah. You should definitely
go on it. Like, he doesn't think of it in that way, but you do.
Yeah. Which makes you question, like, the validity of that thought. Yeah.
A 100%. You know, I think that's a huge part of it,
right, is telling yourself you you can go
on this trip and and do that. And and I think part of it was
just fear too. You know, just being scared to do something like that. I'm I've
never gone a trip that big by myself that far away. That was that
was a factor of it too. You know? Mhmm. Yeah. Definitely.
Yeah. And then even just to think about, like, the selfishness part
of it too, like, because I'm sure that's a thought. I don't know if you
specifically said that, but I'm sure that was a thought that went through your head,
like, am I being selfish going on? For sure. I think over the past year
or so and into this year, my idea of, like, what
selfish is has changed, and I think I used to think of that as, like,
a negative thing. But now more so than ever, I don't think of it as
a negative thing to be selfish. I think it's a positive thing to be selfish
because if you can do the things that you won't hold resentment and you
do the things that you wanna be doing, then you could be better at purpose
that are around you. So I think that for me is, like, something that I've
noticed, and I tried to make decisions based off of, like, what I truly want
to do. Because even in the short term, if it seems selfish or you tell
somebody no, I think in the long term, you're better to the people that you
are closest to. Yeah. Absolutely. And I think that I
had a specific conversation with my wife about it saying that I felt
selfish about doing this. And she, like, laughed. And she's like, you're going to help
people in another part of the world. Like, how is that selfish? You know? Yeah.
That's a good point. And and definitely, like, that that's another piece of it too
is, like, having support of people around you. I think that's definitely, you know, a
big piece of kinda showing you, like, that you are allowed to do certain things,
and kinda gets rid of that negative talk. Yeah. Like you said, it
takes that judgment of yourself and the voice in your own head, and it kinda
removes that because they don't have that. Right? Right. Exactly. So, yeah,
I guess, let's talk about, like, what the beginnings
of the trip were like because, I mean, it's a huge flight. Right? Like, it
takes forever to get there. What what was it like getting there? And, like, what
is Nepal even like to somebody who never been there? And I don't know what
it's like. I think a lot of people have, like, stereotypes of maybe what it
would be like, but what is it actually like? Yeah. Yeah. For sure. It was,
well, first, it was a 25 hour commute, which actually
wasn't as bad as I was expecting. I had a layover in in Doha,
Qatar for, like, 8 hours or so. And then I
arrived in Kathmandu at 9 AM, their time. I don't
even know what the local time in New York was at that point. But I
felt good. I was ready to go. I got some sleep on the plane. And
I had gotten there a day before everyone else did. Not everybody, but the day
before the the group trip started. So I met a few the guys were already
there. I met a few purpose, and I kinda had some time to myself.
And I remember, like, being very excited and ready to go getting there.
And then as the day went on, like, I was trying to do this sound
bath thing that was supposed to be there, and I, like, couldn't find it. I
was getting kinda aggravated at that. And then my my throat started to bother me
a little bit. And I thought it was just, like, the dust and the pollution
and whatnot, but I ended up actually getting sick on the 1st night. So it
actually started off kinda rough, but it didn't it didn't really affect
my trip in at all. Like, I feel like it was kind of almost nice
in a way because I ended up having to miss the first day
of the sightseeing in Kathmandu. But I think,
like, starting at such a low, like, it only went up from there. You know?
It was like, it didn't even bother me really at all now, like,
looking back. But at the time, I was thinking, like, what am I doing? I'm
halfway across the world. I'm sick now sitting in my hotel room by myself.
Like, just contemplating, like, this was the a dumb decision. You know, everyone was right.
He was telling me, like, not to do this. Right? Mhmm. So the the fear
creeping back up again. So, yeah, that that was getting there and the start of
the trip. I was able to do the 2nd day of sightseeing in Kathmandu, and
and Kathmandu is just, chaos is the first word that comes to
mind. It is, it's very polluted,
unfortunately, from industry and the surrounding area.
It's it's a valley, so all the haze and pollution kinda sits there.
And I think I was told at the time of year we were there, they're
also burning all the crop fields in India. So all that pollution is kinda wafting
over. So it's very hazy. We landed, and it's just
haze. Just every you know, you can't see very far. It's sun's out.
It's not cloudy, but it's just hazy. And we got
picked up from the airport, drove to the hotel. And I just remember sitting in
the the jeep thing that we were in and just watching out the
window at this chaos. And I was like, this is so cool, you know. Just
people, animals, cars, all in the street. There's no sidewalks. There's
no lines. There's no street signs. It's just like, you know, this
chaos, you know, happening. It's very dusty. I have an
appreciation now for the street sweepers in New York that I always used to make
fun of. But I guess they make a difference because it's so dusty there. It's
like a lot of people are wearing masks just to not breathe in the dust.
Not for COVID, but just not to breathe in the dust. You know? The wires
are just hanging everywhere. There's communication wires and poles. And, I mean, you still
see damage from the earthquakes in 2015. Buildings are collapsed still and never been
rebuilt. Yeah. It was kind of shocking, I think, culturally
from I was expecting I guess I didn't have too much
expectations, but I knew it was gonna be different from anything I'd ever seen. But
it was it was very different. And it was kind of overwhelming at
first. Once I got out of the Jeep and I was immersed in that, I
was definitely, you know, scared I was gonna get hit by a car or a
moped or whatever. But you get used to it, and
you learn that it's you know, the although it
seems like it's crazy and people are gonna run you over, it's like everybody's paying
attention. Everybody's kind of, you know, you can walk in front of a car and
the car's gonna see you and it's gonna stop even though it seems like it
might not because that's not how we operate here. It's just different. Yeah.
I mean, I imagine it's kind of a similar experience for somebody who's never been
to New York City before, and then they go to New York City and they're
like, holy crap. There's cars everywhere. I'm gonna get killed. Yeah. Yeah. That's true.
So that perspective coming from somebody who lives in the city to Kathmandu,
imagine, like, if you come from a rural, you know, Idaho, and then you go
to Kathmandu, it's probably, like, insane. Yeah. Yeah. For sure. And it's,
I mean, it's super crowded too. It's a big city and but there's, like, there's
parts of it that are pretty westernized. Like, you go to coffee shop,
and it's like, this coffee shop could be in America, Europe. It's, you know, there's
parts of that, but then there's also parts of it that are nothing like that.
You know, it's all kind of mixed together. And it's it's a country that's developing
very quickly and they're trying to, you know, get on par with some of the
other countries in the world. And so you do see, like, the younger people who
want that influence, and they're trying to kind of build these kinds of
things that are, you know, like you see in the west. So
what was the difference between, like, Kathmandu and then the village that you went to?
Because you spent a couple days in Kathmandu and then went out to this remote
village. Yeah. So we hopped in the jeeps and we drove all
day. And the first, I don't know, 2, 3 hours
of it was sitting in traffic and camping to trying to get out of the
city. But once you get out of the city, it's just I don't know. It
was it was so cool to just kinda stare out the window at the landscape.
It was kind of similar. I mean, you're familiar with the trip my wife and
I did for our honeymoon. We took the train cross country and just
staring out of the window, and it's just so entertaining. You know? It's like,
you think that sounds boring, but it's it's really not. And it was kind of
a similar feel that I had of just staring at the landscapes of
everything we drove by. And and it's just these you know,
after you get out of Kathmandu, it's very very hilly, but
it's not what you would think. You know, people probably think of the Himalayas, and
they think of snow capped mountains and and, you know,
sharp granite, you know, rocks everywhere. And and that that
is there, but where we were, we were kinda driving south,
east, and it's just rolling not rolling hills
because they're tall. You know? We probably went up to 8, 9000
feet and down to rivers kind of going up and down up and down
crossing these these mountains, which are, you know, the foothills of the Himalayas,
basically. But it was very subtropical, almost. Like, there's banana
trees. There's lots of birds. There's you know, it's it was warm. It was,
like, 70 degrees. You know? It was it was beautiful. It was these
rivers we would cross, draining from Mount Everest, and it was
just unbelievably beautiful. It was so amazing to
just stare at. You know? It was it was really, really cool. So we did
that for 2 days, and then we got out and we trekked for 8 or
9 hours on the 3rd day, which was really, really fun.
We stayed we camped in a in tents in a village where
the jeeps dropped us off and the next day we hiked. And quickly into the
hike we kind of came around a mountain. And when I say mountains, I'm talking
about the green mountains. Those are the ones that we were hiking through. There was
no snow. It wasn't really that cold. But we came around the mountain and then
all of a sudden there was like 4 or 5 peaks from the Himalayas, the
high peaks in front of us. And I just remember, like, it was very surreal.
I was like, wow. Like, that's the Himalayas, you know?
And it's hard to even translate on pictures or talking about it. It was just
really, really cool. I just, like, was overcome with emotion and was like, this is
so amazing. Like, that's the mountains that I read about in high school.
You know, like, that was it right in front of me. And it wasn't Mount
Everest, but it was I think Mira was one of the mountains. But it was
just seeing that, like, still covered in snow while we're standing in, like, 70 degree
weather. Like, it was pretty crazy. Mhmm. Yeah. For
sure. Yeah. There's definitely a certain energy about different, like,
areas, and I definitely have some sort of, like,
maybe similar connection to, like, being out in Death Valley and just, like, seeing the
mountains and just feeling like a certain energy that's, like,
coming or radiating from the earth or Mhmm. Whatever it is. And I think people
are drawn to, like, specific areas, and it's it's almost
interesting, like, knowing that, like, you read about it in high school and, like, you've
had this, like, affection for it for so long and then being able to see
it. Like, because with that valley, I'd had I knew nothing about it, but then
I got there, and I was like, woah. This place has, like Mhmm. Something special
about it. So it's cool to, like, almost have all that anticipation
and then to see it in real life. But, yeah, certainly understand, like,
the frustration of not being able to, like, translate that to anybody. Yeah. It's
hard. You know? Mhmm. But Especially as a photographer. Like, you take a picture and
you're like, well, that doesn't really describe it very well. Yeah. It's a two
dimensional representation of it. Right? So it's, yeah, it's one
of those things you have to experience. And like you said, the energy you feel
from it, it's not something you can translate either. Mhmm. You know? I remember I
remember, like, getting in the jeeps. I was still recovering from this cold I had.
Right? And I was, like, timid of it and kind of, like, a little bit
nervous and still questioning, like, what the hell I was doing. And
that very quickly turned around when we started driving out to the landscapes, and I
just started to get immersed into it. And I was like Mhmm. You know, it
it very quickly went from that feeling to just feeling
like this is really cool. This is amazing. Yeah. It makes you
almost think, like I mean, I'm somebody who thinks that, like, things happen for a
reason, and there's not really, you know, a bad thing that happens, I
think. Because in the moment, that seems like a bad thing. You got sick. Right?
But Mhmm. It almost kinda shows you, like, the dichotomy of, like, the
fear versus, like, the reward, and then maybe they're just blowing past that
being, like, yeah, that was just an irrelevant thing that I was thinking about. Like,
there was totally a reason why I came here and, like, why this whole thing
happened the way that it is. That's exactly the feeling I had, in the
jeep the first day. And even on the truck we were walking out there, I
was just thinking, like, just laughing at myself. Like, what was I scared
of? Like, why like, even pre getting sick and all that and, like, being at
home and, like, having reservations about doing it, I just remember laughing being
like, what was I scared of? This is amazing. There's nothing to be scared of
here. Like Mhmm. I think that was, like, one of the lessons I learned was,
like, you can either, in anything, you can either choose
to listen to the fear and and limit yourself
and or you can just choose to push ahead and see what happens. Right? Like,
at the end of the day, it's I know it's easier said than done. Right?
But if you can choose to just push through that, so many amazing
things can happen. Mhmm. Yeah. Totally. And, I mean, I think that's just a
representation of kinda, like, the also the paths that we've chosen. Like, it
was certainly very scared to leave corporate and to leave a steady paycheck
and to, you know, that's something that's not, like, comfortable to do. But
then after doing it, it's, like, well, I could've done that a long time ago.
Like, I'll figure it out. Like, maybe it's not all figured out yet, but, like,
the rewards are so much more past, like Yeah. You
know? Anything else that, like, it almost seems silly at that point.
But but, yeah, I think that's, like, a kind of a common theme with with
these certain things for sure. So then yes. Then you took
this track and you, you know, took the Jeep tour to the
village, and then you hiked for 8 hours to the village that you're supposed to
be helping. What was that like when you, like, got there? What was the reception
of the people in the community? Yeah. So just to give a
description of the village, it was basically this hillside on one of these
mountains, these green mountains I was describing. River at the bottom.
At the top, there's a natural spring providing water to the to the neighborhood.
And it's just, you know, you can't take 2 steps without being on a hill.
Nothing is flat. Nothing at all was flat. I mean, this was the story from
Kathmandu all the way out to this village. And there's just homes
kind of built throughout this hillside all the way from the bottom, all the way
up to the top. Terrace landscapes everywhere, growing crops,
cattle, you know, goats, chickens, all kinds kinds of stuff.
And we walked in and, you know, for us, it was such a journey to
get out there. So it was to us, it was like, wow. We finally made
it here, you know, and get to see what it looks like. But the reception
from them was kind of overwhelming. Like, we we walked in and people kinda,
like, knew who we were a bit. So this was the 4th year they have
done this exact trip. And they kinda knew who we were. They were
expecting us. So when we showed up, they were very, like, happy. They
kinda came out of their homes. I remember the kids came out of the school
and, like, we're clapping and stuff. It was, like, too much almost. It
was like, you know, they were making a big deal about it, but it was
kinda nice to see that they were happy that we were there. Because,
I mean, we didn't really know what to expect. I mean, I had some
conversations with people in the group, and we kind of you know, the you
could look at it as, you know, where these, you know, Westerners coming
in and helping out and for a week and, you know, making ourselves
look good. And and maybe it's not really about helping them, but it's just
about, you know, this, like, white savior kinda stuff. You know? So we didn't know
if they were gonna take to us well or if they were going to,
you know, maybe not care for us so much. Just so we I was kind
of treading lightly. You know what I mean? But I think that
that thought was coming from, like, us coming
from the west and thinking that we're better off than they
are. Right? And they were gonna maybe be, you know, feel a certain
way towards us. But I think as we went on, I realized that that was
a weird way to think about it. Right? Like, why would why would we
be better than them? You know, they're living their lives. They have everything they need.
They're they're happy. You know? Some could say better than us. Right? Like,
they they're living a different way, but they're still living their lives, and they still
have everything they need just like us. So we we're not living
better than them. Right? They're they're just living their lives in a different way. So
I think once I thought about it in that way, I was able
to more kinda see how maybe they thought about
us. And and the whole time we were there, I felt nothing
but just this, you know, overwhelming, just
welcoming of us and and just they shared everything with us. You
know? We're as you're walking, you know, we had a campsite where where all the
tents were set up, and then the 2 homes were maybe a 15, 20 minute
walk away from there. So you'd have to walk through people's homes. You'd have to
walk through people's gardens to get there. There's no real roads or anything. It's just
walking paths. And no one cared. You know, they invited us
into their homes. They gave us tea. You'd walk by them. Everybody would, namaste. They
would say hi to you. And everybody was so sweet and just so
kind, and they didn't judge us at all, it felt like. You know? They were
just, oh, you're here in our village. Now you're part of us. That's kinda how
it felt. Mhmm. Yeah. I think that's a really good point to think of it
in a way that's, like, I guess something that you can maybe only
think about, like, after experiencing it. But, like, yeah, if you are thinking of it,
like, oh, I'm coming to, like, help you do something because I'm better
off than you. Like, that sort of thought process is flawed in and of
itself because Right. There's a hierarchy in that thinking, right, that you
you're better than these people because they don't have the next
iPhone or whatever card. Right. And that's, like, a interesting,
thing to, I guess, probably experience going on. Like
because it's almost like you have to change your thought process once you're there. You're
like, oh, I was being naive by thinking that. Mhmm. And that and learning that
lesson, I think, also takes a little bit of, you know, ego
degradation, if you will. Absolutely. Yeah. I
think and and I know, like, one of your big words is curiosity, and then
that's kinda what I felt from them too is they were just curious. Mhmm. They
were just like, oh, these people are different. I wanna see what's going on. You
know, these little kids would come over, and they would, like, come into our tent
not in well, into our tents, but they would come over to where we were
sitting around our tents, and they would just be looking at us. They'd be looking
in the tents. They were just curious. You know? That's all it was. And I
remember, so we we worked for 4 days. We had a day off. There was
a day off in the middle. And the guides went on another
hike for the day. But I decided to sit back in the village because I
wanted to have some more time to spend in the village because we were, you
know, we were working most of the day doing manual labor and stuff. So I
didn't have time to explore, take pictures, and meet the people. So I
didn't go on that hike and I spent that day in the village. And I
hiked all the way down to the river, and I was eating my lunch on
a rock. And and I see this guy coming over to me, and he's got
this huge machete. Right? And I think of myself here,
and I would have been scared. Right? But I wasn't scared at all. Like, I
knew he wasn't gonna do it. Like, he was curious. Right? So he comes over
and he's looking at me, and he walks over and he comes over and he
sits next to me. And we spent, like, a half an hour together. And all
we can actually say to each other was our names, but we kinda just
shared this moment and it was amazing. Like, I've never
experienced that before. We kinda just sat there and he we tried to talk
to each other and you know, as much we could, but we kinda just sat
in silence and just enjoyed each other's company. And it was really cool.
Yeah. That's really cool. Yeah. That's awesome. That's
that's kinda like any situation where, like, you can't communicate with somebody
verbally. It's like that's only a kind of small piece of it. Like Mhmm.
Like, body language and energy fields are, like, such a bigger part of it. And
it's like Mhmm. It's cool to be able to, like, receive that from who you
don't know and can't communicate with, but still can
positively interact with. Like Mhmm. And especially just, like, sitting in silence too, I think
is, I don't know, it's it's easy to be, like, that's awkward. I
don't wanna I'm gonna remove myself from the situation. Mhmm. But just to, like, accept
it and accept whatever he can send to you energy wise and you
can send back and forth. And that's kind of a, interesting thing. Because I was
gonna ask about, like, the language barrier and, like Mhmm. Did anybody speak English or,
like, what was the were you able to communicate at all?
So yes. In Kathmandu, most everybody speaks English.
Like, even signs and stuff for in English. It's it's pretty prevalent.
So they had a they had a civil war in, I think, 2001, and they
kind of overthrew the parliament and kings or whoever were ruling
the country. And for a long time, they discouraged literacy, and they didn't teach
people how to read. And after that revolution happened, they've
really I think the literacy rate went from some dismal number, and now it's at,
like, 95%. Like, it's it's really good right now. And they teach every every
student English and the Pali. So all the young people know how to speak
English very well. The older people, not so much. In the village, not so
much. But they are teaching all the kids now in that village English.
So most times, it was not an issue. But there were,
like for instance, he didn't speak. He was probably it's tough to tell. They
all look so young. It's tough to tell people's age. But he was probably in
his thirties, maybe forties. He knew how to say my name is, and that was
about it. So yeah. What was the,
like, getting back to photography and stuff? You said you stayed back that one day
to kinda, like, take pictures. I saw some of the pictures that you posted on
Instagram and, like, some of the best ones were pictures of purpose, and I imagine
the people that were in the village. What was the reception to, like, their picture
being taken? Because I know, like, even in America, like, people hate getting their picture
taken. They think it's, like, a privacy violation or whatever. What was their reception,
especially to the people that you couldn't even really communicate with? Yeah. That's a great
question. It is it's difficult. It's difficult to, you you
you have to ask a lot of times. So that like, the way I of
taking pictures of people I see is there's 2 2 ways you can do it.
You can either take their picture without them knowing, which is more of like a
street photography kind of thing where you you don't want them to know you're taking
the picture because then it kinda ruins the moment a little bit. Or there's,
you know, kinda portraiture type stuff where they know you're taking the picture and you're
kind of making them feel good. You're having a conversation with them beforehand. And then
you take their picture once you build a little rapport with them. And that's kinda
what I was doing. I wasn't really taking their pictures without
them knowing. I mean, maybe I could have, but it it didn't really feel right.
So I would go up to somebody, and I would try and talk to them
a little bit. And I would kind of point to my camera and be like,
is it okay? Thumbs up, is it okay if I take a picture? And and
some of them said no. Some of them didn't want them. Like, I remember there
was this older lady and she had this, like, really beautiful dress on and and
just this nice jewelry and stuff. And, she looked really cool. I wanna take a
picture of her. And and she said, no. She don't wanna take her picture. So
I respect that. I wish her well, and I move on. You know? The kids
were easier because they were more just curious about what the camera was. And
I and and showing them the pictures too is really, really helpful.
So you take a picture of them and then you show the back of the
camera to them. And and they see it and they start laughing and talking to
their friends and stuff. And kids were much easier than adults. Mhmm. But there were
some adults that let me take their picture. Yeah. It was you you kinda
have to that's the way I did it. You just have a conversation with them
first. Mhmm. I'm also curious to, like,
understand their sort of way of living as much as you can, like,
describe or what how much you even, like, you know, took in in that short
period of time that you were there. But, like, I'm curious as to, like, how
community is there. I I imagine it would be, like, more tight
knit and and that sort of thing, but what did, like, community look like or,
like, what was your sense of it? In the village, it was everything.
Everybody knew each other. Everybody, like I said, they they, I mean, they had
their own house and, I guess, private property in a sense, but it wasn't. Like,
they all shared the land. They were just such a tight knit community.
Like, you'd see groups of people talking or, you know, walking by each other
and talking to each other. And and and I think the coolest part of it
was seeing how you know,
community was a huge part, but seeing how self reliant that community
was. They didn't need anything from anywhere. They made their own
food. They made their own houses. They grew their own crops, and they
did everything on their own. The you know, they fixed things that the water system
everything they had was built by them. They were just totally self sufficient as
a community. And I remember seeing that and being like, wow.
You know, everybody in the west is so reliant on other people.
Right? You can't, you know, you get your food delivered to you. You have your
car fixed by somebody. Like, everything is just you need so
many other people to just get through your normal day. Right? And
they don't. Like, they're just totally disconnected from it, and
they and they run everything on their own. And I thought that was really cool
that they knew how to do everything. Yeah. Was there any sort of,
like, indications of, like, these
people were in charge of farming, these people were in charge of, like, more
manual labor sort like, maintenance or house building or something like that? Was there, like,
like, subsections of, like, parts of the community? And and, also, like, how big
was the commune the village in general? Like, how many people? Sure. It was
about, I'd say between, like, 15200 people.
The school had I'm trying to remember now. I think it was, like, 200 and
something people, but there were people from other villages too that went to that school.
I think there was, like, maybe a 100, a 120
homes. I'm sure there was some sort of I didn't really get an
insight into that as much. You know, you would walk by and you would
see some farmland, and then you walk by and you'd see some water buffalo or
whatever and chickens and where the farming was. But it was kind of all
mixed in really well. And I don't know if some people would provide
certain things for other people or if everyone kinda had their own animals. I'm not
exactly sure on the details of that. What about, like,
money? Like, what was there any sort of, like, money exchange or conversion? Was there
stores that people bought stuff in, or was it all kinda just, like, where the
farmers hears all the food? Yeah. No. There there
were stores, I mean, in the sense where you could go and
buy something. There's maybe 1 or 2 of them. And they had,
like, snack foods and sodas and and beer and stuff like that. You know,
it wasn't things that you needed. It was more like things that were
nice to have. Because I remember one day we after
work, we were wondering if there was a place to get a beer, you know,
and and we one of our guides asked one of the local people and they're
like, oh, go in there. And it looked like a home. We walk in and
there's the bed in the back behind the and there's a TV and some kids
playing video games on the TV. And and there was, like, a little bench out
front. And we just bought, like, these dusty beers and drank them. And it was
it was, like, essentially a bar, but it was a convenience store as well. And,
you know, they do take they use in a polygroupie, and they take money, but
I don't think that a lot of the people
need that. I'm not entirely sure how it works. I mean, a lot of the
people in the village would get jobs elsewhere. A lot of them were into trekking
because it's huge. People come from all over the world to go trekking, and they
all have guides. And those people get those are good jobs to
get. You know? Carrying things through the through the mountains is another job that
people had. You know? But so a lot of times, maybe they would go outside,
get a job, make some money, come back to the village. But I don't think
that you needed tons of money to really live a life there.
Mhmm. Yeah. That's interesting, especially coming from, like, a place
like America where everything revolves around money, and that's, like, the first
conversation of anything. It's like, well, how much money are you getting paid? How much
money is it? How much does it cost? Like To to kinda like remove that
from the hierarchy of needs almost Mhmm. Is, like,
kind of interesting to think about. Like, I don't know. It's it's definitely
a completely new way of living that I don't think I could completely wrap my
head around, but since leaving corporate, I've definitely
devalued money way more than I did back then.
So it's interesting to almost kinda, like, keep following it even more so to the
fact of, like, you know, not even really needing it as much
or they're, you know, maybe in a in in a completely different way than we
see it here. Absolutely. Yeah. It's not like a
capitalistic society whatsoever. You know, it's it's more of just kinda how
things used to be where Mhmm. You know, 100 of years ago, and it was
trade and and barter. And there was money to an extent, but it was
just not heavily used like it is now. Yeah. I think it was more similar
to that. Yeah. And I and I think that especially, like, for me
being a part of farmer's markets and kinda seeing that, moneyless economy where,
like, at Canada farmers market, you trade stuff, and, like, I trade my
bagels for some vegetables Yeah. Or, like, it's or some mushrooms. It's, like, it's a
interesting way to live, and it definitely feels a lot nicer than, like, going and,
like, buying something at the store. Like, when I know that, like, my friends who
own the farm grew the food that I'm gonna eat Yeah. Like, that to me
is, like, way more meaningful and impactful than, like, going to Stop and
Shop and buying carrots. Like, it's it's something there's definitely something
to and I always reference this book, The Cellist and Prophecy, but they talk about
it in there. But, like, the care that you put into the things that you're
eating can significantly change, like, how it affects you.
So Mhmm. It it just makes you think, like, if there's a whole community of
that, all all the food they eat is grown by the people that they love.
Mhmm. Like, how does that affect your health long term? A 100%. Yeah.
I mean, one of the guys' houses we were working on, Manju is his name.
He's a really, really sweet guy. And he was he was kinda telling us
about it a little bit. He's like, everything here is all organically grown. We don't
have chemicals. We don't have pesticides. He's like, that's what we eat. You know, we
eat the food that we grow. And and, actually, one of the one of the
days we were there, someone in the village had passed away, and they were
95. So it gives you a little sense of they do live pretty long.
And it's it's almost like they they I think it was a conch shell they
blew in the morning to kind of indicate the death of somebody in the village,
and it's kinda it affects everybody. Like, everybody knew,
what it was and kinda pay their respects for that.
And then another night, a a house caught on fire in the middle of the
night. And the same thing, like, one of our guys, our head guy actually went
over and, like, helped them. You know? He walked over to it in the middle
of the night and helped them. I guess get I guess everybody's okay.
I didn't really get filled in on any of the details, but, you know, it's
just that he didn't even think about it. He just woke up and he saw
it, and he went over and helped out. Right. Yeah. No, like, fire
department to call. It's just like everybody kinda sees that there's a problem and then
exactly. It was intense to it. That's that's really cool. So can you,
tell us a little bit too more about, like, the specific work that you were
doing there? You said that you were going to help rebuild houses. What did that
look like? Were you able to, like, build the whole house in a week? Like,
what what was that like? Yeah. So I I didn't know showing up what
was what it was gonna look like. All I knew was we were going to
rebuild these homes in a way that would have some
reinforced steel and concrete so that if there was another well, not if, but when
there's another earthquake, they're not gonna come crumbling down. And we got there
and the 2 sites we were working on were already started. The foundations were kinda
dug out. All the stones from the previous house were kinda sitting on the side,
ready to be used again. Some of the rebar was already in place. And for
the 1st couple of days, we broke rocks, actually. We just smashed rocks into
smaller pieces to use for the concrete. Right? Because they need you need rocks to
make concrete, and you can buy them or you can make them. Right?
So, it was actually a good group activity because it, you know,
there's 5 of us at each site at once, and we actually got a
bunch of rocks broken up, which saved them from having to buy them. Right?
And, when the head guide, Steve is
his name, he was pretty funny. He he used to work in a
jail. I remember one day he was like, man, if my inmates could see me
now. But it was fun
because we got to talk to each other and have good conversation while we're doing
this. And, yeah, that that part was nice. We also moved the
rocks too, which felt a little more useful because we would
form a line and we would carry these heavy rocks distances. So that felt
like we were being of use a little bit more. And then we also helped
pour the concrete. So they would mix the concrete up on the ground. They would
put it in these kind of tray things. And, again, we would form a line
and kind of, you know, bring it over and and pour it into place. And
I think that was my favorite day because I could see the progress we made.
Like, we poured a whole slab concrete in one day, and it felt
like we, you know, we actually did help here. Right? And it wasn't just us
working there. They had the local people who were doing the job as well, who
were working, and we were just kind of working in addition to them. So we're
kind of giving them a kick start to this home building process. Right?
When we left, the homes were not done, not not even close to being done,
But we helped kick start it and get it off on, you know, a stronger
foot. And they told us another 5, 6 weeks worth of
work would complete the homes. So whose homes were they
and and where were the people that used to live in there? Yeah.
So Manju, the guy I referenced earlier, one of them was was his
home. The other thing, you know, people may ask like, well, the earthquakes
were in 2015. Why are you still rebuilding? And it didn't necessarily
level all the homes. So Manju's home had damage to it. There's a big crack
on the wall. And over time, crack got worse and worse. And eventually, it was
unstable. He couldn't live in it anymore. So he was living in some friend's
house temporarily, you know, while his home was gonna get built. And
he actually worked for the trekking company that we were with, and he was the
main guide last year on the trip. And he
actually got in a motorcycle accident in Kathmandu and hurt his knee, so he couldn't
do it this year. So we had a different guy. But he he was one
of the recipients. Another guy, we didn't really meet as much. He
didn't know English as well. He was just the guy in the village
that they deemed needed. You know, they just kinda look at
everybody's homes, and the 2 people that need it the most are the ones that
get the homes. So is this, like, an ongoing thing that, like,
the Sierra Club will be back next year and and keep doing it? So they
think next year is going to be the last trip.
And the the reason, I guess, I should explain the reason we're connected with this
village was because of the trekking company, Crystal Mountain Trekking.
They started in that village, and a lot of the people lived in that
village who worked there. And the assistant guide,
Cheryl, has been doing treks in in Nepal, guiding them since
1992. And she, you know, got to get really close to all these people because
every year she would come and do a trek and and she would meet them
and come back and see them again. And she had just this deep connection with
with these people. And and after the earthquakes, they kinda just posed
the question, said, hey. Would you guys be interested in doing a trip like this
in the village? And they were like, yeah. Definitely. So from
then, they they started planning it and and doing all the things.
And and, yeah, that's that's how it got started.
That's pretty cool. So basically, like, one person wanting to do
help some people that she felt connected to. Yeah. Yeah. That was
that was another one of the coolest things, which is seeing how seeing
her connection to this country, to these people, and how much they
respected her. They called her Didi, which is like older sister. And they were just
so kind and and grateful for her. You know? Like, she
has made such a change and, you you know, such a positive influence on all
these purpose. And and same to her. Like, they've made such a positive influence on
her and changed her life in such a beneficial way. It was just this reciprocity.
This sense of witness was amazing. Mhmm. Yeah. That's really
cool. Yeah. So, I mean, there's
probably many more questions I can ask, but kinda come to the
end of our time, but there's still some more things I wanna ask. So I
kinda prepared these, quote unquote rapid fire questions.
Uh-oh. That maybe you could try to, like, answer as succinctly as possible.
Sure. But just some other things that, like, I'm curious about that don't really have
any, like, order or anything like that. First one would be, did you bring any
cool music back? Did you get, like, any music? Because usually, like, when I travel,
I like to, like, find the music of the area. Absolutely. Nice.
The first night in the village, we went to sleep in our
tents. Right? And I just I don't know how much of this was real life
and how much of this was a dream, but I remember I remember just falling
asleep to this droning music of drums and just this rhythm
and not so much lyrically or vocally, but it was just this
amazing music that was just you know, it was like 10, 12, 15
minute songs that you thought transitioned to another song, but then it would come back.
And it was this really, really cool music. And I
don't necessarily I couldn't I didn't really grab any of that stuff.
It's just traditional Nepali music. Like playing it or were they? Yeah. Like, someone's home
is just playing the music, and you can softly hear it throughout the whole valley.
But we actually did grab a a song One of the days we were working,
I mean, it was a day we're pouring the concrete, and this song was playing
while we were taking a break. And then we passed out all the
concrete, the whole pile of concrete. We came back and was still playing. And then
someone in the group did the Shazam or whatever and and got the song. So
we were able to find it on Spotify afterwards. And Oh, wow. That's awesome. And
it's such a good song. Yeah. Maybe link it if you want, but it's Yeah.
Yeah. Pretty good. Do you have, like, a playlist or something you started? I should.
Yeah. I I kinda did, but there's only a couple songs on it. But,
also, one of the guys in the in the tracking company with us,
he one of our guides, he wrote a song about
about all the village. And they tried to explain it to us and
what it meant, but it was it was basically, like, how the village meant so
much to all of them and the ups and downs of life and and that
kind of thing. And and he has it on YouTube. There's, like, a 150
1,000 views of that or something like that. So, yeah, we have that as well.
That's interesting. Which is pretty cool. And he I guess he wrote the lyrics to
it, and he it's the only song he ever wrote, and he he wants to
write another one. And, yeah, it's cool that music is such a big piece of
the culture as well. Like, you know, a lot of people played music or or
sang. They danced. Dance is a really big part of it too. They have this
really unique dance that all of them know, and it's yeah. It was
really cool. That's really interesting. Alright. Next
question. Give me a food memory.
Food memory. Well, so I it's
funny because when I lived in Jackson Heights, I was exposed to Nepali food
pretty pretty well. So I I had a lot of the traditional dishes, The
momos, obviously, are the Tibetan dumplings. And having it
over there and kind of seeing that it was pretty similar to what it was
in Jackson Heights, it was like, oh, okay. There's some authenticity to the food in
Jackson Heights. Like, you know, it was it was it wasn't like I was
experiencing it the first time, but I was experiencing it, and it tasted very similar
to how it was in New York. So that was kinda cool. What
about, thoughts on, like, long term travel
now? As far as just taking trips, like, wanting to
do it more or, like yeah. Well, I definitely removed
the any fear barrier from it. It's like, you
know, I think a lot of times you may have these perceptions of of
places or things that you've never done before, and I think that's totally
removed. Like, I wanna experience I wanna go to different places and and experience this
again. And and I think just going to smaller
cultures and and villages like that, I think you just learn so much
just by being there. And it's it's just really, really a privilege to
to be immersed in that. And I I absolutely would love to do it again
if I had the opportunity. So you would go back? Absolutely.
Yeah. Yeah. It's it's it's funny. I was asking Sheryl
about the first time she went to Nepal, and I think it was, like,
86 or something like that, she said. And she said it was a bad trip.
Like, she had a horrible time. Everything went that went wrong, coulda went wrong. And
she went home, and, like, 6 months later or a year later, she kept thinking
about it. And she's like, man, I need to go back and do it right.
And now to see how, you know, immersed she is with this country, it's
like it's it's kinda funny. It's almost she she even said in her own words,
like, it kinda drew me back, you know. And I kinda wonder how that's gonna
be for me. Right? Mhmm. Yeah. Yeah. Like, we're saying earlier about, like,
certain places, like, when I first went to Death Valley, I saw, like, a couple
of the national parks too, like, this road trip. But Death Valley is the only
place that I've been back to multiple times now, and I keep, like, thinking, like,
when's the next time I'm gonna go back there? Yeah. For sure. And then, like,
we went on that trip that back there. So Mhmm. Yeah. It's it's interesting how,
like, different places kind of affect you and pull you in. Mhmm. And
then, so another rapid fire question.
What what does your focus feel like now coming back, like, thinking about how the
trip affected business and, like, thinking of, like, levels of
importance? Like, has that changed from the trip?
Yeah. I mean, I think it definitely added some
perspective. It gave me some room to breathe and kinda look back on it,
and it gave me a break from it as well. I mean, you
know, like, working for yourself, it's like it it never shuts off. And I
think that was, like, a nice time to shut off and just not think about
it as much. So coming back to it with fresh eyes and and clear
head, it's it's it's definitely been beneficial. It's kind of like, you know, when you
walk away from a problem, you come back to it and you're like, oh, that
was simple. Why I struggling with that? It's almost a little bit of that in
a sense. Mhmm. Yeah. Definitely. Were there any
things that you took, like, culturally away from it? Because, like, everybody's culture is
different, but were there any, like, certain pieces of their culture that you'll take
back? Yeah. That's a good question.
I just think that so many people here are just kind
of racing around trying to get as much done, trying to be productive, trying to
do their side hustles and all these things at once. And I just
think that that doesn't really exist over there. It's it's everyone's more focused on themselves
and not themselves, but, like, the well-being of themselves. Right?
And that it's it's just like it's commerce, and it's making money
over here, and it's it's trying to just be successful or whatever that means.
And over there, it's just that doesn't exist. It's it's just, you know, people
are more concerned with their well-being. And and I touched on it earlier that
they all look so youthful too. And and and it they just look wise too.
Right? Like, no one's looks jumpy or I don't know. Like,
anxiety probably doesn't exist as much over there. Right? Like,
it's they're just that is an important thing
in their culture that is not really well represented in our culture. Yeah.
That's that's a good thing to touch on. I literally just had a
similar thought that I've had my subset last week talk about.
Because I I kept, like, running into these Mondays where I was just, like, overwhelmed
with how many things that I wanna do, being productive, being mad at myself for
not being productive, and basically just being, like, frozen all day long and not getting
anything done. Mhmm. And that was happening again, and then I decided to,
like, ask myself, like like, keep asking why, like, I
felt like this. Then I got to the point where I was, like, why am
I putting so much value on being productive? Yeah. Like, what why is that important?
Why is it important that I'm productive right now? What if I'm not productive? Is
that okay? Like Mhmm. Maybe it is. Yeah. Yeah. For sure. And it
was, like, such an interesting conversation that I have with myself almost.
But, yeah, that that's just, like, something that your brain's
always telling you that you need to be productive or you need to be successful
or whatever that means. Mhmm. So that's that's kinda interesting that you bring that up.
And then last question would be one memory that you didn't or, you know,
story or memory that you didn't get a chance to talk about. Yeah. Yeah. Sure.
So this one definitely comes to mind first. That night that I was I was
sick, they all went out to dinner to some restaurant, and I sat back at
the hotel because I didn't wanna be around them and spread anything. And I also
wasn't feeling good. So I just went to the hotel kitchen, and there was really
nobody there. I just got some soup, and I was sitting there. And one of
the guys from the hotel who worked at the front desk came over to have
his dinner at the same time, and and he sat at the table with me
and he started talking to me. And he was he was really
cool. He he must have seen he knew I was sick and the
deal I was on the trip and all that. And he started talking to me,
and he's like, yeah. He's like he's like, do you meditate?
And I was like, well, I've been struggling to get make it a habit and
get into it, but I'm you know, I like to do it, and I
wanna get better at it. And he's like, meditation is very important. And he
says, you know, if you don't if you can control your mind, you can do
anything. And if you don't control your mind, it'll control you. And he tells me
how he gets up at 3 o'clock every morning and he meditates for hours and
hours. He goes home after work and he meditates again. And just how
big of a part of his life it is and in the whole culture, really.
I mean, it's just a big part of of of, you know, Buddhism
as well. I mean, there's there's a lot of Buddhists over there, but it's just
such a big part. It's almost like a normal part of everybody's
life. Like, everybody kinda puts some importance to that, And I think
that it shows how important it is. Right? Like, he he he's probably saw
me and saw me, like, worrying about everything. And he kinda came over and was
like, you know, relax. Like, don't worry about anything. Like, he saw
the the energy coming off me. He was, like Yeah. Worried about the trip going
wrong and stuff. And he was yeah. It was kind of kind of reassuring and
nice to have a conversation with him. Mhmm. Yeah. Yeah. That is interesting. It
makes me think of, the podcast I did a little bit ago about,
the person I was interviewing. He has a mushroom farm and, like, he was talking
about how meditation basically, like, changed his life and changed the way that he
thinks about things or, like, what he finds important. And, like Mhmm. I think it
is important. And even go back to, like, the selfishness of it, like, spending enough
time with yourself to figure out what you need to do. Because I think we
all have the answers inside of us. Like, we all know what we need to
do. It's just a matter of, like, getting rid of all the bullshit and, like,
figuring out, like, this next actual step and, like, actually
listening to yourself and listening to your intuition and, like, that sort of thing. The
more that you can do that, I think, I don't know, at least for me,
the more happiness or joy that I've found. So I think that
meditation is a part of that. And even just, like, time with yourself, like, it
doesn't have to look like, you know, sitting with your legs
crossed. It could just be, like, spending time with yourself with no distractions
and seeing what comes up. And, Yeah. That's kind of a cool
synchronicity of something like him seeing you struggling and then being like,
relax, bro. You'll be fine. Yeah. That's basically what I got out of the afterwards.
Yeah. So that's really cool. So that
was the end of the rapid fire questions. Also wanna give
you a chance, to, like, talk about, like, the prints that you
have because I know you have a print shop that people can buy prints of,
and you added some from this past trip. So, yeah, like, how can people
support you or, talk about the things that you want to be doing in maybe
this next year as as a photographer? Yeah. I'm, I
think yeah. I do have print shop up on my website. It's mc3,
number 3, photography.com. There's a link there. That. Yeah.
To my print shop. And I did add 5 or 6 photos from Nepal on
there. Some film photos too. Anyone's interested in that? I
took the film camera with me, and that was, really cool experience
too, getting into that. So for for this year, I guess, personal
project wise, for me, it's I wanna get more into the art side of it
and figure out how to get my work displayed and and seeing my others and
the whole gallery scene. How do I start to begin to
understand that and to get into that? And that's one of my goals for this
year. So and then I also have a newsletter on
Substack that I started using recently. I know you have one as well. So,
it's a nice way to kinda have a newsletter and also have a home for
it to live and not just kinda die in the inbox. You know?
So I've been focusing on showing more of my personal projects to
clients as well to just keep people interested. You know, if you come and get
a headshot done, you may not need one for a while. Right? But I can
still kind of have a relationship with somebody or a past client or a prospective
client and show them what I'm working on on my personal projects to
just, you know, keep the conversation going. Mhmm. Yeah.
Subset's been a great platform, I think, because I I've got it
because you showed it to me. And I've kinda almost leaned into just using it
to, like, just explore thoughts or, like, different things that, like, I'm thinking of
or going through, like, kinda just, like, putting some attention to certain thoughts that come
up or something that I read in the book and, like, not necessarily relating it
back to, like, business or anything like that, but it's cool to just, like, think
of I don't know. For me, it's more like the lifestyle
conversations or something. You know? So, yeah, that's that's a cool thing. I'll I'll definitely
link your subtext here. Yeah. Yeah. And then just having, you know, other things to
relate to people with. You know? Mhmm. You know, maybe one of my clients is
interested in in Nepal or interested in, you know, film photography
or something else that I'm working on, and it kinda just builds more of a
community than just having, like, a exchange service of paying you for this service
and then never seeing you again. I think that's just, like, a weird way to
do business. Yeah. It certainly doesn't feel good. Yeah.
So that's cool. That's awesome. So, I think we gotta end this episode
at some point. So, thanks for sharing all of
your experience with travel because I think travel is so, like, such an important thing
that you can do to learn from, and everybody doesn't have the access
or ability to do that. So I think it is a cool way to, like,
be able to share the lessons that you've learned with other people who can listen
to a free podcast. So thanks for being vulnerable and honest with
your experiences and taking your time to come on and talk to
us. And, I guess we'll have to have you on another year, and
see where you're at. Yeah. Thanks for having me back on the podcast. I I
really appreciate it. It's been great having a conversation and sharing stories. And and
like you said, just being able to kinda share these experiences with other people
or the photos with other people or just, you know, try and just relate,
you know, human to human in another culture. It's like that's kind of the whole
point of things. Right? It's like it's easy to kind of judge another culture
or look down on somebody, but when you get to know them on a personal
level, it you're like, oh, they're just people just like us. You know? Like, that's
that's the whole point of everything. Right? Yeah.
Yep. Thank you for listening to Working Towards Our Purpose. If you liked
today's episode and are interested in more, you can sign up for my Substack
newsletter with the link in the show notes, where I share thoughts, tips,
and ideas that I'm learning along my journey to help inspire
you. The show was produced by Pleasant Podcast at pleasantpodcast.com.