What People Want.

Most people don’t know what they want because they already have it.

That’s a problem, because if you’re not aware you’ve already got what you want, then you’re likely to lose it. And we wonder why so many people stay stuck… Down is up. Chaos is calm. Friends feel like foes, but we welcome woes.

That’s more than staying stuck. That’s self-sabotage.

I ought to know, for two reasons:

1. I spent more than twenty years not knowing what I wanted because I already had it: two businesses, more money than I knew what to do with, and a woman whose greatest crime was loving me. I pushed it all away and, less than a year later, it left me moments away from eating a bullet before admitting myself into therapy in the spring of 2020.
2. I still sabotage myself all the time. The only difference between now and the last two decades is: I catch myself slipping before I fall.

This begs the question: what do you want? I think, after having coached hundreds of athletes, being a consultant for the NFL and Special Forces, a life insurance salesman, a business partner with a gentleman known as The Trillion Dollar Man, a professional athlete, and most recently: a leader in the Quick Service Restaurant, (QSR) industry, most people want something that empowers them to be:

1. The best in the world.
2. Financially secure.
3. Deeply passionate about what they do.

Ironically, this concept already exists, and it’s called the Hedgehog Concept by world-renowned author, Jim Collins.

Image One: The Hedgehog Concept, source: elevate2grow.com

I’m biased, because the industry saved my life, but I don’t think there's a better example of a real-life Hedgehog Concept than QSR. Someone can come in as a crew member today and be a regional manager a year-and-a-half from now.

I know, because I did exactly that.

Image Two: Sandwich Artist at Subway, Oct. 14, 2023 on the left, Regional Manager at Subway February 22, 2025 on the right.

But I’m not here to talk about me.

I’m here to help more people realize they don’t know what they want because they already have and, more importantly, not to sabotage it.

Regardless of how unglamorous it may seem to everyone else, you can be:

• The best drive-thru order taker on the planet.
• The fastest starter on the line the world has ever seen.
• The greatest Fryologist in company history.

I’m not being facetious when I say that. I’m being as serious as a heart attack. You don't need to "get a real job" because you have one; and you can be the best in the world at it.

Speaking of heart, if you approach your job with a being the best in the world attitude, (because the job is 90% attitude) something strange happens.

Suddenly, like Dr. Suess’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, your heart grows three times its size, and you become deeply passionate about what you do.

• You see people’s potential instead of their problems.
• You greet customers instead of grunting at them.
• You work with your team instead of wishing a mutha f***a would, you know what I mean?

And when you become deeply passionate about what you do, instead of you chasing money, it starts chasing you. What boss wouldn’t throw money at someone who’s doing the best job they can and bringing others along with them? Now, compound that over the next year or so, and see where you end up.

I’m willing to bet you’d be the best in the world, be financially secure, (or at least well on your way) and be deeply passionate about what you do.

So, whether you're a Service Champion at Taco Bell or a Sandwich Artist at Subway, next time you think about "getting a real job" I encourage you to stop and think about where you are right now, because if you don’t know what you want, it might be because you already have it.

It's your Hedgehog.

Don’t sabotage it.