I talked my wife out of going to work today

friend!

I talked my wife out of going to work today.

And before you think I'm some controlling husband... let me paint you the picture of what happened yesterday.

4 AM - My wife's alarm goes off. She's been away for a few weeks. 5 AM - She's in a car driving an hour to catch her flight. Sitting in the airport for 4 hours. Flight gets delayed another hour. Finally boards a 4-hour flight back to Jamaica.

I pick her up, and she looks like she got hit by a truck. We've got a 3-hour drive home through mountain roads. She's barely keeping her eyes open. Her boss expects her back at work this morning.

That's when I asked her the question that changed everything: "How much longer do you want to do this?"

She went quiet for about 20 minutes.

Then started talking about her real dreams.

Opening her own gym. Starting a brick-and-mortar business. Right now she helps busy moms/women with home workouts using broomsticks and water bottles on the side.

She's building something. Just not fast enough to escape the grind.

Here's what hit me during that drive friend:

Most people are living someone else's timeline instead of writing their own story.

The Story Timeline Audit that changes everything:

1. Ask the uncomfortable question "How much longer?" forces you to put a number on your suffering. My wife said "maybe two more years." Now we have a deadline, not just dreams.

2. Document what you're already building She's been helping moms/women for months but never saw it as her "real business." Your side thing IS your story. Stop treating it like a hobby.

3. Set story milestones, not just business goals Instead of "make $10K," try "help 50 moms/women feel confident in their bodies." The story sells itself when you measure what matters to people.

The truth that changes everything: Your current chapter doesn't have to be your final chapter. But only if you start writing the next one.

What timeline are you living on - yours or someone else's?

Hit reply. Tell me what you're building in the shadows. I guarantee it's bigger than you think.

From my beautifully impatient journey,

Stephen

Btw, I used the Three-Act Structure to share that story at beginning

P.S. Stop waiting for permission to write your own story. Get "Love, Learn, and Live Storytelling" for $7 and learn the exact frameworks that turn your side hustle into your main character arc.

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