Porter - Make your own lunch: how to live an epically epic life through work, travel, wonder, and (maybe) college

Copyright 2014 by Ryan Porter

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For Seiko

My life with you is the most epic life I could imagine.

Thank you.

When I yell, Paddle! look straight ahead and paddle as hard as those pale, skinny arms can paddle!

It was week two of my four-week trip to Hawaii and Japan. I was hanging out on the north shore of Oahu (the surfing capital of the world), taking surf lessons from a fifty-five-year-old surfing veteran.

My surfing instructor was yelling at me as I waited, lying on my surfboard, in ridiculous anticipation of my first wave. The sun was beating down on my neck, waves were crashing all around me, and I was beginning to get nervous.

Remember, be patient. Whatever you do, watch out for the pearl!

Before I had the time to remember that the pearl was surfer slang for a face-plant, my instructor was yelling, Now! Paddle!

And with that, I began paddling as hard as my pale, skinny arms could paddle. My adrenaline was pumping as hard as the water under my board, and as the wave began to break, it picked me up and carried me toward the shore. I waited, even though I felt the urge to stand up. My surfing instructor had specifically told me that when you feel the urge to stand up, paddle three more times and then get up.

Onetwothree

I quickly slid my hands to the sides of the board, planted my feet, and stood up. I threw my arms out to my sides for balance, and miraculously, I was surfing. Im sure I looked ridiculous, and maybe a little out of place, but I couldnt have cared less. It felt awesome. I looked down at the wave then up at the beach. I couldnt believe itI was actually surfing.

In high school, I couldnt have imagined that I would be doing what I do now. Traveling across North America talking to teens about how they too can do the things they want. I never thought I would write a book. I never pictured myself traveling around the world, camping on volcanoes in Guatemala, wearing samurai armor in Japan, surfing in Hawaii, or scuba diving in Honduras. My teachers and counselors never talked about other options.

They never guided with phrases like be patient or said anything about taking the time to figure things out. I was told there were three options: go to a four-year college, go to community college, or get a job. I wasnt confident that any of those options was right for me at the time, so I took another route. I decided to make my own lunch .

Ill explain what it means to make your own lunch in just a bit. In fact, the whole book is about exactly that. But what I mean in a nutshell is, we spend a ton of our young-adult lives being told what we need to survive and thrive. Were told what our success should look like (and what we should look like) and how we should go get it. And a lot of us end up eating it up and swallowing it even if it doesnt taste good going down.

Make Your Own Lunch is for you if any of the following apply:

You are not sure if college is right for you.

You know exactly what you want, but it doesnt include college and your next steps arent clear.

You have questions about school or what to do when you graduate.

You dont know where to start your next adventure.

You want to meet people who took career paths your counselors and teachers didnt talk about.

You dream about traveling the world and exploring far-off places.

You want to have fun and excitement in your life.

You have trouble making decisions.

You want to make changes to your school, your community, or the world.

You want to start your own business.

Youre sick of staying at home talking to stuffed animals on weekends.

You want to learn another language.

You want a better relationship with your friends, family, or boyfriend or girlfriend.

You hear that you can do anything, but you dont know what that means.

You dream about living the life you want.

You want freedom.

You keep hearing people tell you that your dreams arent realistic.

You want success.

You know theres a way to have what you want but dont know how to get it.

You want a job or career you love.

You want to study things you are passionate about.

You dont know how to find your passion.

You dont know what you want.

You dont know where to go or what to do.

You dont want to live like most of the people you know.

You dont know who you are or who you could be.

Make Your Own Lunch is for you .

What do you want to be when you grow up?

That question haunted me for the first twenty-three years of my life. It started in kindergarten as a fun game of imagination, and by the end of high school, it had evolved into a giant monster breathing fire down my neck. High school finished and I still had no idea what I was going to be, so I took some time off to search for an answer. The quest to answer that question brought me to Japan, Hawaii, Slovakia, France, Honduras, Guatemala, Austria, Las Vegas, and more.

Id love to act like my journey was all part of some master plan that I had carefully and meticulously crafted, mapping it out years in advance, but honestly, I had no idea what I was doing half of the time. The other half of the time, I was just doing what I was drawn to and what I thought would be best for me (and the most fun).

Somehow, while looking for the answer to the question, What do you want to be when you grow up? I realized the question was wrong. Wrong because there isnt only one thing you can do with your life. Wrong because it makes it sound like theres a direct path from A to B, when really there are a bunch of paths, side adventures, and detours. Wrong because it puts so much pressure on young people to figure it out immediately.