The Handyman Philosopher

Why Trying New Things is the Opposite of Failure

The mess you’re ashamed of is proof you’re on the right path.

What may look like a disjointed ball of experience, when examined more closely, is actually a continuous thread, weaving itself into a tapestry unlike anyone else’s. That tapestry gives you a unique perspective, a story only you can tell.

What society might call failure is actually the thread of your becoming

My own story has taught me this, and many other lessons I would never trade in for a life of certainty or ease. From the outside, it’s looked like one long zigzag: construction, solar, natural building, permaculture, landscaping, mapping, self development, spirituality, marketing, handyman work, coaching, writing. But from the inside, it’s been a steady pull toward truth, and a refusal to settle for a life that felt false.

Sometimes your calling shows itself in how you do things, not just in what you’re doing.

And that was true for me. I worked in restaurants, then construction and solar installations, learning how to talk to people, how things fit together, how to solve problems on the fly. Perhaps most of all- I learned how to pay attention to details that others might miss. At the time, I didn’t think of it as a calling- it was just work. But looking back, I can see that even then – I was drawn to the process itself: the learning, the fixing, the searching for patterns that made sense.

The human spirit longs for expansion

“The path that one person follows is not the correct path for any other person. Each of us must walk his own path to enlightenment — that is the way.” — Wu Wei, I Ching Wisdom Vol. Two

What I learned in my early adult years is this: We can only do work that boxes us into somebody else’s paradigm for so long before something inside us begins to reach for more. Society and even family often tell us to be consistent, to stick with one thing for the long haul. But my spirit wouldn’t accept that. I wanted more.

Life unfolds not all at once, but pedal by pedal, like the morning lotus

My early years in the service industry and trades gave me grit and practical skills, but they couldn’t satisfy the deeper pull I felt. I needed to expand, to understand, to find out how things really worked.

That longing carried me into college, where I studied sustainable technology, renewable energy, and environmental science. I was sure I would save the world. And while it didn’t unfold the way I imagined, that season taught me this: purpose isn’t a final destination—it’s a path, one that reveals itself step by step as you keep walking.

When you finish one chapter, it is unclear what the next will hold, but that is the mystery of life

You have knowledge, skills, and experiences you’ve gathered, but the question becomes: how will you apply them?

When I finished college, I had learned so much about the environment, sustainability, and energy systems, but I didn’t yet know how to live that knowledge. That uncertainty carried me into natural building, permaculture studies, and eventually landscaping. I wanted to work with the Earth, not against it, and to create something that felt honest and good. And while those pursuits gave me meaning, they lso reminded me of a harder truth: passion doesn’t always pay the bills.

Sometimes life brings you to a crossroads, and you must make a choice

I was working in landscaping: backbreaking, monotonous work that left me restless and tired. I wanted something of my own, something that used my mind and let me create. I even told a colleague I was going to start a business.

But sometimes the door that opens isn’t the one you expected.

My colleague told me, “Why start from scratch? Our mapping startup needs investors.” It was my intuition to be self-employed, but the form it took surprised me. That’s how I stepped into landscape mapping—first as an employee, then as a partner, and eventually as full owner.

Maybe you’ve had a crossroads moment too, where the path you imagined shifted into something unexpected. Or maybe you find yourself at another crossroads right now?

For seven years, I mastered that craft, creating precision maps for designers who needed to see every elevation and detail before bringing their visions to life. It was the closest thing I’ve ever had to a traditional career, and it taught me what it means to stick with something long enough to master it

What I didn’t know at the time was that later in life, I would use this skill in an unexpected way.

Looking back, I see it wasn’t just a job, it was training. And maybe that’s true for you too.

The chapter you’re in right now, even if it feels small or temporary, might be sharpening tools you’ll carry into the next stage.

I built that business into something real. I quadrupled revenue, hired employees, and picked up new skills in marketing, systems, websites, CRM, and design. On paper, I should have been happy, but still, I felt unsettled. Around that time, I had read The Four-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss, and one line lodged itself in my mind:

$1,000,000 in the bank isn’t the real fantasy. The real fantasy is the lifestyle of complete freedom it supposedly allows.”

That hit me hard. While the business was growing, my freedom was shrinking. I had built something that looked successful, but I was chained to it. That book helped me name what I was really after. Not just achievement, but alignment. Not just revenue, but freedom.

Success without alignment will always feel hollow.

If you have ever achieved what you thought you wanted and still felt an ache inside, that is not failure. That is your compass pointing you back to your truth.

To find your way back to the path, you must be brave. Follow your curiosity, intuition, and inner truth. They will lead you back to yourself.

Along my path, while the mapping business was moving along nice and steady, I got curious about what else is possible. I read Dr. Aziz Gazipura’s work on confidence which sparked the courage to stop holding back and try things even if they might fail. I tried this and that. I experimented with online ventures: dropshipping, digital products, even launching my own crypto and a line of NFTs. I was trying to find a way to make passive income, but what I didn’t know was that I was not just chasing money. I was learning what was not for me.

Learning what is not for you helps you understand what is

I do not regret any of it. Each attempt proved I was willing to explore until I found what was true. I learned about life, not just business.

“I have not failed 10,000 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 10,000 ways will not work. When I have eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work.” -Thomas Edison

After seven years of dedication through many obstacles, I knew it was time to make a real change. The mapping business felt like an anchor, so I sold it. I freed myself. I did not leave wealthy, but I had enough to take a break, travel, and ask what comes next. I wanted freedom, remote work, and leverage. Or so I thought.

At that point I thought freedom was the goal, and I was listening more to my mind than my heart. I told myself I did not need to love my work if it bought freedom. I considered all of the ways to achieve this and settled on a digital marketing agency because it seemed the most practical: low overhead, high leverage, flexible, scalable. Made total sense. I took a course, launched my llc, traveled like a digital nomad, and signed my first clients. It looked promising. Then a few projects went south, and I realized the level of commitment required. It was hard, and my heart was not in it. Some might think I should have persevered. My inner critic told me I should push on like i had with the mapping business, but I couldn’t do it. I hit a wall.

Sometimes when you hit a wall, its time to stop, as hard as that may feel

That wall hit hard. Without knowing what to do next, and after returning home from my travels, I fell into a pretty deep depression. I had gone too far down a path that was not aligned. Not knowing what to do, I did nothing. I watched my savings shrink and the worry grow. I learned the hard way that not working is not the answer. When the money got very low, I had to get a job.

The job market was rough for someone like me, and the job I found was soul-crushing. After years of self-employment, I tasted the stagnation so many people live with, dragging themselves through another week. That season taught me something I will never forget.

Misalignment is painful, but it is clarifying

Sometimes you need to feel the weight of what you do not want in order to commit to what you do. That is when the real lesson landed: a fulfilled life is not only about freedom. The purpose we get from work that aligns with the soul is what brings real freedom and fulfillment. As my mentor Dan Koe puts it, success requires sacrifice, but if the price is your health, energy, or mental clarity, it is not worth it.

“Let the beauty of what you love be what you do. “ - Rumi

What got me through was writing. I began writing seriously then, and it kept me alive inside. Struggle can force your deeper calling to come forward because you need it to survive.

“Everyone has a purpose in life and a unique talent to give to others. And when we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy and exultation of our spirit.” - Kallam Anji Reddy

I started to dream about building a personal brand: writing, creating content, coaching, the kind of work I had seen from people like Dan Koe. I knew that would take time to grow, and I needed a way out of that job. I needed a boat to carry me from where I was to where I wanted to go.

Sometimes your purpose is not an ideal job or business

Sometimes it is learning the skills you need to build a boat and cross the water.

The handyman business became that boat for me. It used the talents I had gathered, it kept me engaged, and it paid the bills while I continued forward. Around the same time, I relaunched my digital work with a more authentic flavor. The combination is not perfect, but it keeps me afloat and gives me variety: working with my hands, solving problems, designing systems, and helping people. It has bought me time to zero in on what I am really building.

The pieces of the puzzle reveal themselves one at a time

Which brings us to the present. I am now discovering that writing is the quiet current under all of it. I do not know exactly what form a writing career will take, but I know it is part of my path. I can feel it the way you feel gravity. Quiet, constant, undeniable.

Sometimes the work you do to survive shows you who you are. As I have grown the handyman business, I realized it is not only a way across the water. It reflects something essential in me. A good handyman does not know everything. He figures out what needs doing, learns quickly, and shows up with grit and tools to get it done. That is me. Maybe that is you too.

If you do not have a single specialty, if you adapt, learn, and find a way through, you might be a deep generalist. That is a rare skill.

With the marketing skills I had already built, I grew the handyman business into something sustainable. For the first time in a while, my work is starting to match the life I want. I enjoy helping people and leaving spaces better than I found them. I also know it is not my final destination. The direction is toward writing, expressing, perhaps coaching.

At the core, a writer is a thinker who lets his thoughts spill onto the page. That has always been me. I am a mapper. I build tools and systems in my mind. Writing makes those maps visible so they can help someone else. Not just thoughts for their own sake, but thoughts with heart and purpose.

We are all creators at heart, that is being human

Human beings have the unique ability to create, and this has been true for me. I have always needed outlets. I have released more than twenty songs and created digital paintings. Now writing feels most natural because what wants to be expressed comes as practical wisdom and clear concepts. Words are the tools that can carry those ideas to others. What is your creative outlet? Everybody has them.

It’s about discovering which outlet allows you to express yourself most authentically

Which brings me here. I am building a personal brand rooted in writing, coaching, and content. I am committed to it fully. I still carry forward my skills in marketing and business consulting, not as a traditional agency, but as a kind of digital handyman. Another tool in the kit, available whenever it serves the larger purpose of helping people build aligned lives and businesses.

And maybe that’s the deeper truth:

Nothing you’ve learned is wasted

Every skill, every chapter, every experiment is part of the kit you carry forward. Even if you leave the job behind, the lessons come with you. And one day, the very thing you thought was a detour might be the tool that helps someone else.

Life is a work in progress, and maybe it always will be. Five years from now you’ll probably look back and be amazed at how much has changed.

I know that I will continue to change, but some part of me will always be a handyman and a philosopher—someone who collects tools to solve problems, and searches for the meaning behind them. In a way, I’m still mapping. Only now, the maps aren’t for designing landscapes or planting pretty flowers. They’re for helping map truth, what is hear, as a backdrop you can use for designing the landscape of your life.

And that brings me back to you.

If your life feels scattered, it doesn’t mean you’re failing, it means you’re gathering

Gathering lessons, gathering courage, gathering the spirit of the adventurer and the entrepreneur. Every so-called wrong turn is giving you tools you’ll need later. Every detour is adding depth to the story you’ll eventually tell. And maybe, like me, you’ll realize the path was never broken at all. It was winding, alive, and leading you exactly where you needed to go.

So here I am: The Handyman Philosopher, and I hope you will take this path with me. I will continue sharing maps and tools from the trail, not the mountaintop. And I’d love to hear your story too. What’s the mess you’ve been ashamed of? What tools have you picked up along the way? Because maybe, just maybe, those pieces are already forming the only path that is truly yours.