When I first started my messenger company years back, I was on the road a lot and interacted with the many customers of my company.
That was one of the enjoyable parts of my job - lot’s of conversation with people that I saw every day.
Conversations
One of my clients, I'll call him Victor for this article, owned a small printing company and gave me a fair amount of business. I saw Victor almost every business day.
Victor’s printing company was working under the protection of “chapter 7” laws, “Debtor in possession”, as also written on his payment checks. Chapter 7 laws permit a financially strapped business to continue operating while putting any financial obligations on hold while you re-organize.
He had a misfortunate situation with an old business partner, and lost most of his previous business, profits, and equipment, and has had challenges ever since. He was bitter to say the least.
Bitter Advice
Knowing I was new to running a business, Victor was alway warning me in conversation to “watch out” and be cautious of people and the companies they run. “everyone is out to get you” was his business advice.
I heard this frequently from Victor, and he kind of got me shaken up, especially since I was a new entrepreneur and had quite a few accounts that I trusted with 30 - 60 days to pay their invoices.
I’m a pretty easy going person, and generally embraced the belief of thinking positive, but that saying “everyone is out to get you” kind of got imprinted in a section of my belief system for a bit.
Something’s missing
There was something to that statement that kind of intrigued me separate from the negative connotation, and I strongly felt there was more to it, but in a unique way.
The completion
Years later, it finally hit me - the completion of what Victor would say to me, and it made
so much sense.
Victor never realized that there was more to that saying, “everyone is out to get you”, and not seeing the whole picture may have made his life extra challenging.
In my adventures and discoveries in life, I have finally realized the rest of that advice.
“Everyone is out to get you…...what you want.”
Thanks Victor, hope you found the rest of that saying too.
