QUESNEY21 (Day 1): Strangers On A Train

I have been commuting on the MRT to work on most days these recent two months and I have grown to appreciate the quiet and peace of the early mornings when I have time to myself not to mention the apparent lack of stress battling rush hour traffic driving to work!

The outdoor area of our awesome Malaysian MRT stations!

Just a couple of days ago I boarded the train and chose a two-seater section for a little more privacy and put my laptop bag on the seat next to me as the train was relatively empty at my boarding station. As the train continued on to town it started to get more and more crowded. At one particular station, I noticed a young man from the corner of my eye approaching my seat and I quickly moved my bag to make space for him. To my surprise, he smiled to acknowledge me and quite vocally thanked me. Loudly...even...I smiled cordially and then picked up an incoming call from my office. Right after I completed my call, that young man who was seated next to me very suddenly handed me his business card and introduced himself as a photographer albeit a little awkwardly too. He explained that he provides services like emcees for events, sound systems and other entertainment supplies.

Let me describe him. He was young...really young...maybe 20 or 21 years old max! He was nervous that much I could see...he was not articulate, in fact throughout our conversion he struggled to explain his trade. Ok maybe I wasn't exactly the most receptive audience...(hey it's my quiet time of the day!) But he was smiling happily and pleasantly stumbling through our conversion without a care in the world...(most importantly without caring what I thought about him) He even pulled out his phone to show me pictures of how he started as a lighting assistant and progressed to become a photographer. He then showed me some of his portfolio of pictures as well. Finally he kind of ended the conversation by saying that if I were to overhear any of my clients say that they were looking for photographers, or they are redoing their corporate portfolio etc. I could if I wanted to, refer him to them.

The first thought that flew through my mind was "I don't know you, I don't know your work, why should I recommend you?" It was ironic how the entire train ride was just long enough for him to get through his entire self-promotion and it ended slightly after he asked me to recommend him to my clients.

I politely told him that it was my stop to get off and wished him all the best. I couldn't stop thinking about my encounter on the train with this young man and realised a few things:-

1) This young person really didn't care about what I would think of him when he decided to approach me

I used to think a lot about how a person would perceive me or even think about me. Thankfully as I grow older and wiser I care much less now but I do still need a reminder every once in a while.This made me a "want to please" person all the time and I had the fear of getting out there and doing great stuff differently. The old adage is quite true that with age comes a little more wisdom. I also realised that God slowly changed me to know that what God thinks about me is infinitely more important than what others think about me.

Generally, I feel that too many people worry too much, I know I was one of them. I like what Eleanor Roosevelt said "You wouldn't worry so much about what others think of you if you realised how seldom they do" Hahahaha! So true!

2) He saw an opportunity and decided to take it (He went ahead to talk to me and ask for business)

Always be alert and on the lookout for good opportunities. Sometimes they are right in front of us and we can't even recognise them for the great opportunities they are. I personally know that for many years earlier in my younger days, I felt just too tired and that I really didn't have enough hours in the day! I was too busy working, too busy with everything!

Since becoming a Mum, I have to go back to what is important to me, the goals that I want to achieve and the kind of future that I want for myself and my family. I have realised that Steemit is one awesome opportunity that I am going to get serious about and run with it!

3) He was enthusiastic and optimistic during our entire conversation giving me his 100%

He really gave it his all. He was polite and kept smiling throughout our conversation. I am sure that he felt uncomfortable and uncertain. Maybe even a tad bit intimidated...but he didn't let that stop him one bit. He continued to talk and share with me the work that he has done. I am so sure that if he does continue with this awesome attitude and practice, practice, practice plying his craft...he is going to get really good at it really soon.

When I started on Steemit in January this year, I started on my own without a community or friends. I started because I have a passion for crypto and blockchain. This is my 3rd month and I am now part of a wonderful community called Team Malaysia, made many great connections and a whole new world has really opened up for me. My take away is that I am going to continue to practice, practice practice and continuously learn here on Steemit! I am going to work at contributing towards the people around me.

4) He asked for referrals and an opportunity to work together - citing that if by any chance I know anyone who needs photography services to refer to him.

The gall of this young man... But in hindsight he was audacious!
My learning here is to be brave and ask for help. Take risks and collaborate with others. Many a time I think I miss great opportunities because of my insecurities, maybe a little much ego, too many assumptions... From now on, I am just going to ask for the help I need. I am going to ask for the opportunities I see I want to be involved in and then go all out and prove to them that they were right in trusting me to deliver.

So what is QUESNEY21? @joannewong and I are challenging each other to create great content for the next 21 days. Starting 26th of March and ending on the 15th of April. We needed the discipline and motivation that comes from being accountable to each other. Tell us if this is interesting to you, do you think you could benefit from your own QUESNEY 21?

I am so grateful to @elizacheng for suggesting this albeit it was some time ago, encouragement and support from @zord189 and @aaronleang and finally Team Malaysia's very own writing guru @maverickfoo for agreeing to mentor us personally on his new online project of idea generation.

So here's to Day 1 of QUESNEY21, my personal learning and reflection to STEEM on!