Your True Direction
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My passion is to enable people to achieve new levels of success. Dynamic and full of potential. Eleven years ago, my plan in life changed. Yes, it is hard!
Because of medical conditions, my 13-year career in the Army ended, with no plan for the future. It suddenly faced me with finding a new direction that I wanted to take myself. Faced with finding a new purpose and a new career, I basically had to redefine myself. I was scared; not only was I dealing with PTSD and other issues from serving in combat. I faced many challenges that I never encountered before. I planned on an Army career, serving 20 or more years and retiring, but life had a different direction for me. The scary part is, I didn’t have any clue what that direction was. I now realize that I made several mistakes I could have avoided and wished I had, but such is life. We all make mistakes, but what if I didn’t have to? Would I be in a better position today if I hadn’t? Would I be more successful? Would I feel more fulfilled? We know these would haves could go on and on and possibly fill several pages. So, you probably are wondering what did I do wrong? Here are a few that I feel were the major issues that affected my progress along the way.
1. The end of my military career and challenge of finding comparable employment left me feeling broken.
2. The fear of failing left me scared of trying new things.
3. I believed in the limitations others set for me.
4. I let other’s opinions of me control myself-worth
5. I failed to set proper goals before and even after exiting the Army
6. Overall, I struggled to find the right path. But the other question is, what did I learn from my experience and wished I knew beforehand? In hindsight, I feel the most significant thing one can ever do for themselves is merely listening to what you want from life. Drown out the guidelines, the advice, the should haves. Forget the opinions and all how others tell you to live and live in this world as you want to. All this wasn’t easy and took time to realize, but change isn’t easy. I didn’t understand that finding my true direction and version of myself and even happiness would not be comfortable. It is tough to find a new way of doing things differently, to walk away from life, love, or the hope that I once wanted. It’s never easy to change. But another great gift you can allow yourself is to push towards finding out what your version of happiness looks like, growing on your own terms, determining what matters most to you, what sparks the fire in your own heart, what drives you to love yourself even more and finally find your true direction to live life on your own terms. To me, finding my true direction means becoming the person I want to be, rather than the person others tell you to be. In the end, life is all about finding the joy in life that works for one person alone, you! But this doesn’t mean you need to do it alone. If I could do it again, I wish there was someone to assist me in developing a blueprint along my journey and coach me through some, if not most, of that time. Looking back, I feel that with the right “Blueprint”, I could have been more successful in finding my true direction. I wish to be that person. Someone to help guide others in developing reasonable goals, to value themselves, and understand that it’s not your fault just because something in life doesn’t work out. On December 13, 2021, I accepted a position with Goodwill Manasota’s Veteran Service team. Where now, I have the privilege of assisting veterans who are facing similar barriers, find meaningful employment and regain a sense of purpose, pride, dignity; thus, believing in themselves, reaching their goals and achieving their true direction. Letting them know things I wished I would have had as my road map setting off in my true direction.
1. You’re Not Broken
2. It’s Alright to Fail
3. You Can Bust the Myths
4. The Power of Self Worth
5. The Power of Goal Setting
6. Live Your Life with Intention
I wish to empower others to set goals and establish accountability for their personal success. I will guide them in their aspirations, clarifying the choices in front of them and creating that action plan to achieve their goals and true direction. Keeping in mind; this is their direction; I serve as an objective sounding board, allowing them to stay focused and on track. Working together, we will break through old barriers and develop new practices to reach set goals. I once saw a meme and to this day it resonates with me. It states, “I want to inspire people. I want someone to look at me and say because of you, I didn’t give up.”
I want to make sure that others are not part of the 22. The bottom line is to never stop fighting!
10/12/2026
Being a parent doesn’t give you ownership of your adult child.
At some point, “I’m your mother” stops being an explanation and starts becoming an excuse for control.
For years, I was told to grow up, show respect, and remember my place. But what happens when the people demanding maturity are the very ones refusing to demonstrate it?
What happens when love comes with conditions, boundaries are treated as disrespect, and independence is mistaken for rebellion?
In my latest Conversations on My Drive Home, you’re riding sh***un as I revisit the little moments that turned out not to be so little after all.
This isn’t about blaming parents for everything. It’s about recognizing that being someone’s child doesn’t mean surrendering your adulthood, your dignity, or your right to be treated as an equal human being.
You can love your parents and still refuse to be controlled by them. And sometimes, the healthiest boundary is the one they never expected you to have the courage to set.
Read the full story:
https://youtruedirection.medium.com/driving-home-why-family-boundaries-and-toxic-control-matter-in-adulthood-0d4344d15ac0?sk=adff9db6d402fb4a240b00161d48c6d6
Driving Home: Why Family Boundaries and Toxic Control Matter in Adulthood Family boundaries help adult children break toxic control, reclaim independence, and build healthier relationships without guilt or fear.
10/10/2026
Some days, the hardest part of living with fibromyalgia isn’t the pain. It’s accepting that the body you have today doesn’t always cooperate with the life you want to live.
I’ve spent much of my life learning to push through obstacles. But fibromyalgia doesn’t care how determined you are, what you’ve accomplished, or how badly you want to keep going.
Sometimes, strength isn’t about pushing harder. Sometimes, it’s about knowing when to shift gears.
In my latest Conversation on My Drive Home, a little Matchbox Twenty, some country radio, and the road ahead bring me to a conversation about chronic pain, invisible illness, and learning that slowing down doesn’t mean giving up.
And as always, there’s a seat waiting for you in the passenger seat.
Read “Shifting Gears” here:
https://youtruedirection.medium.com/shifting-gears-how-matchbox-twenty-and-country-radio-taught-me-to-live-with-fibromyalgia-7bb072661522?sk=20513f035da9dd5e043181104ff81353
Shifting Gears: How Matchbox Twenty and Country Radio Taught Me to Live with Fibromyalgia Living with fibromyalgia means balancing chronic pain, energy, work, and life, learning when to push through and when to simply let go.
10/07/2026
🎶 You’ve got to know when to hold ’em… know when to fold ’em.
Some lessons take years to understand.
We’re taught that strength means hanging on. Fighting harder. Giving another chance. Staying at the table until somehow the hand changes.
But sometimes strength is realizing the game has already taught you everything it came to teach.
In my latest Conversation on My Drive Home, you’re back in the passenger seat, Sully’s in the back, Kenny Rogers is coming through the speakers, and somewhere down the road, “The Gambler” stops being just a song.
It becomes a lesson about boundaries, resilience, letting go—and recognizing the aces you’ve earned along the way.
Some hands you win.
Some you lose.
And some teach you when it’s finally time to get up from the table.
♠️♥️♣️♦️
Read “Know When to Fold ’Em: Life Lessons from the Passenger Seat” on Medium:
https://youtruedirection.medium.com/know-when-to-fold-em-life-lessons-from-the-passenger-seat-17497a948189?sk=4c0bb69dbc09e20f3418b95398ba42e7
True DirectionSupport AI 98@topfans
Know When to Fold ’Em: Life Lessons from the Passenger Seat Discover life lessons on resilience, boundaries, and letting go through an unexpected lens. Join a reflective drive home where Kenny…
10/06/2026
Sometimes hiding is survival.
I know that better than I wish I did.
I served during “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” when honesty about who you loved could cost you the career you had worked for. So you learned to edit. To calculate. To decide which parts of yourself were safe enough for other people to see.
But there’s a difference between privacy and hiding.
I don’t walk into a room announcing that I’m gay. I don’t believe I owe strangers an explanation of my life.
But I also refuse to lie about it.
And I refuse to shrink, edit, or rename the people I love simply because the truth might make someone else comfortable.
This Conversation on My Drive Home started with one sentence I couldn’t shake:
“Hiding never helped anyone.”
So climb into the passenger seat. Sully’s already claimed the back.
This drive is about survival, authenticity, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” family, and finally reaching the point where you realize:
You don’t have to announce who you are.
But you should never have to pretend you’re someone else.
Read “Hiding Never Helped Anyone: A Conversation on My Drive Home”:
https://youtruedirection.medium.com/hiding-never-helped-anyone-b81f6e3bd96f?sk=6396d628927798f9c75636a5bbe4c57a
Hiding Never Helped Anyone A Conversation on My Drive Home
09/28/2026
Sometimes the hardest part of walking away isn’t leaving.
It’s admitting that you still miss what was behind the door.
You can miss someone and still know the relationship needed to end.
You can remember the laughter without forgetting the pain.
You can take responsibility for the things you did wrong without carrying responsibility for everything that went wrong.
And you can forgive someone without reopening the door.
That’s the part of grief nobody really prepares us for.
Sometimes we aren’t only grieving a person. We’re grieving the routines. The familiar voice. The empty side of the bed. The plans that never happened. The version of ourselves who still believed there would always be a we.
But an empty space isn’t always an invitation to put the same thing back.
Sometimes it’s simply where grief lives while we learn how to build something new.
My newest Conversation on My Drive Home is probably one of the most personal rides I’ve written.
Get in.
Sully’s in the back seat.
And maybe bring tissues.
📖 A Conversation on My Drive Home: Don’t Leave Me in the Doorway
A Conversation on My Drive Home: Don’t Leave Me in the Doorway A Conversation on My Drive Home: Don’t Leave Me in the Doorway Navigating the visceral, suffocating grief of a dying marriage, the agonizing limbo of holding on, and the brutal clarity needed to …
09/22/2026
Sometimes a song you’ve known your entire life waits until the exact right moment to tell you what it means.
For me, it was “Purple Rain.”
A Friday night. A singer at the White Elephant. A drive home. Sully in the back seat. And a marriage ending.
Divorce can feel like the end of the world because, in a way, it is.
The world you built with another person ends. The routines. The plans. The version of the future you thought you knew.
But maybe that’s the part I’ve been getting wrong.
The end of a world doesn’t have to be the end of mine.
Come ride with me.
🚗 The End of a World: A Conversation on My Drive Home
https://youtruedirection.medium.com/the-end-of-a-world-a-conversation-on-my-drive-home-8c1bc474a690?sk=da7ccdf357cccf1fc7fe148ce64dfdc4
The End of a World: A Conversation on My Drive Home Explore the emotional reality of divorce, grief, and moving forward. Discover how a familiar song like Prince’s “Purple Rain” can reframe…
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