EP 8: Trey’s Motivation to Speak
By Halogen TV | December 27, 2011 at 10:19 am
What drew you to appear on “Jump Shipp”?
By the time I appeared on the show, I had already quit my risk free corporate job and knew I wanted to do something more but had no idea where to start. It was tempting to fall right back into what I was doing before. As I came across this rare opportunity I experienced the support from my family and friends, Josh, the Jump Shipp Crew plus the special guests I’d meet on the show and I knew there was nothing left to do but trust my gut and jump.
Tell us about your experience on the show.
My experience on the show was like a thrilling roller-coaster ride. To work with some of the top public speakers and authors in the world was a rush. It was up and down because I had these mountain top moments, and then reality hit when I realized it’s a lot of work, internal and external, to get to the top where these other men have climbed. Of course, the reason for my desire to speak and impact others’ lives for good stems from a lot of painful experiences in my past. Dealing with these issues on the show was not enjoyable.
What was the hardest challenge on the show?
Leo Tolstoy wrote in Pamphlets, “…everybody thinks of changing humanity, and nobody thinks of changing himself.” The most difficult challenge for me was to focus on myself rather than thinking about how many lives I could impact through my self proclaimed “amazing” and “life changing” speeches. Within the opening up of true self I am able to connect to 1 person or 1 billion people with authenticity and passion. Lao-tzu wrote in Tao Te Ching, “Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.”
What made you want to want to pursue your dream?
Everyone has a dream in their soul they want to pursue. Each of us says at some point, “If only I had this amount of money…or time…or resources, then I would be able to pursue my dreams.” Some of us may say that everyday and it drives us crazy. I know I did. The turning point from day dreaming to actual pursuit is taking responsibility. For me it was to stop blaming the circumstances from the past and start living as if my dreams were coming true in the present. A mentor once told me, “Trey, you can choose to get bitter or get better.” Once I stopped playing the victim and stopped using excuses for not chasing my dreams then the decision was easy.
Did you have any apprehension about making the jump?
Not at all. I knew it was time. Emerson wrote, “Trust the instinct to the end, though you can render no reason.” In my junior year at Texas A&M, I heard a speaker at a leadership retreat say, “Leaders take risks.” I know jumping was a risk yet I know, with all of my instinct, I am born to lead.
What has life been like after the show?
It’s been a roller-coaster ride much like the show. After the experience was over then the work began. It takes a lot of hustle and staying power to make a decent living from public speaking. With no published material (books, CDs, etc.) and no one knowing who I am it was damn near impossible. Instead of continually living in financial hardship and near eviction, as I did for 5 months after my jump, I looked at my strengths and what I enjoyed most about every company I had worked for in the past. The loving support from my family and friends allowed for very honest and open discussions about my future.
Slowly I opened up to having a full time job and, as synchronicity would have it, an amazing opportunity came along which utilizes my strengths, has a positive impact on the earth, and offers me the freedom to keep up my writing and speaking. I do not see myself publicly speaking until I finish my first book. Once I have finished one of my books and it turns into a bestseller I expect myself to start speaking at the national, and hopefully international, level.
What advice would you give others who are considering a jump?
None of my own advice rather some quotes which encouraged me to make the jump. Elbert Hubbard wrote, “The greatest mistake you can make in life is to continually be fearing you will make one.”
I’ll follow that with a quote from Nelson Mandela’s 1994 Inaugural Speech, originally stated by Marianne Williamson, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure…You’re playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do.”
Watch Trey featured in episode 8 of “Jump Shipp.”
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