Finding the Key To Success in a McDonalds Drive-Thru

It's about realisation rather than alteration

Some guy behind me was blasting his horn and throwing his arms up in the air. I just laughed. It’s not like I could go anywhere.

I’ve always hated airport traffic, but this day was particularly eye burning and patience testing. I’d just picked up 2 of my best friends from my London days, who had come to spend some time here in Portugal for my 30th birthday. The airport was at the point where it seemed like Elvis had resurrected and was performing a one-off special on Runway 2.

After about an hour, things finally subsided and we hit the road back to my house. With us being stuck in the prior proverbial swamp, our stomachs were acting like Elvis’ backing singers.

I just threw it out there…

“Guys, anyone just fancy grabbing a McDonalds?”

My suggestion was met as if we’d greeted another friend into the car with us. I don’t grab fast food often, but there’s certain moments where needs must.

We swung into the drive-thru on the route home and I rounded up everyone’s order. I pulled up to the kiosk and rattled off the round, before we ended up waiting in yet another queue for the pay window.

I closed my window and turned to the guys. One was smiling with a grin, one was with his mouth open.

“Are… um.. are you guys alright?”

“Dude, that was seriously impressive.”

“You mean ordering at McDonalds? Wouldn’t call it my proudest achievement…”

“No, dude… your Portuguese!”

I had thought nothing of it. Just a routine conversation, like I have every day here.

But this was my friends’ first time visiting me since I had set sail from the coasts of England 4 years ago to start a new life here in Portugal. I’d been back to the UK, but that was just business as usual.

It was this moment I had one of those infamous, profound realisations that I hear everyone keeps having on Instagram…

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All of us possess talents and abilities that we think are just in our nature.

Often, these things seem remedial and even boring to us. But, to others, these talents are incredible, awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping.

My mates were shocked at how I was having a conversation in a foreign language, given I couldn’t speak a word before I moved. But my living here made me forget that it will seem incredible to those who aren’t around it daily. It just became part of who I am and part of my routine.

Back when I was a session musician, I’d get called in occasionally to do some filler guitar lines over an already completed track. A few times, the producers would turn to me and start waving their arms around and puffing their cheeks. “How do you make that guitar sound like that, man?!” All while I’m stood there thinking I’ve used the same amount of energy it takes me to read BBC News in the morning.

So, a question for you might be…

What talents do you have that you think are ordinary while others think is incredible?

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Really take a second to think about that.

Because doing this brings 2 major benefits to you and your life.

The first is self-awareness. We often get into discussions about self-awareness nowadays based on negative qualities. The expectation is for you to get to the root causes of your bad habits or misaligned qualities.

But why do we never take the time to do the same for our good qualities?

There is nothing wrong with being proud of yourself. While having an overly-inflated ego is detrimental, being confident in your own abilities is the only way you can truly move forward in life. And, to do that, you have to have that self-awareness to realise where your talents lie.

The second is that you can hone and channel these talents.

If you spent some time in a foreign country and learned the language, why not teach it to others who are desperate to learn?

If you have an uncanny ability to do impressions, why not start a YouTube channel where you share these impressions?

Or, how could you tie these into your work?

If you’re a great storyteller, why not help your colleagues to use a story to start their next presentation?

The biggest problem we’re experiencing right now in the social media realm is congestion and saturation. Thanks to AI, so many corners of the Internet have just become bot-generated sanctuaries for generic garbage.

These unique traits you possess are the key to unlocking a unique corner for yourself in this digital oasis.

When you lean into these talents that you recognise through self-reflection, you find that not only are you passionate and driven by these talents, but you can improve the lives of others as a wonderful byproduct.

So, ask yourself today…

What is something that I consider ordinary that others deem extraordinary?

When you tap into these elements of yourself, you become that diner on the highway that people can’t help but pass through, no matter where they’re heading on the highway.

It’s most often in the mundane that we find the magical.

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Thanks for reading, gang.

I’ve got a couple of exciting new projects in the work for Turning the Page, so be sure to subscribe to a tier to keep up to date with everything.

If you want to support this post, a like, comment or restack would mean the world.

Until we ride again,

WM

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