Answers
In New York, “Hey, how’s it going?” sounds a bit more like this:
Whatdoyoudowhereareyoufromhowlonghaveyoubeenhere?
All strung together like an ammunition belt.
Some people find it easy to answer those questions. Other people, like myself, don’t.
There’s one question in particular that I’ve struggled with for about the last six months.
Why did you come here?
For someone who has trouble applying logic to what I eat for breakfast, or what music I listen to, this is a blow to the back of the head. It’s deeply personal. Not that it needs to be.
Ideally, a question about your mission, triggers something awesome. An answer that affirms your thoughts and actions. Your place in the world has been defined.
Worst-case it’s confusing. This is problem especial to New York City. “Selling yourself short is bad enough, but it’s even more criminal to give a confusing account of yourself.”
So, Why did you come here?
Can I answer that question now?
I can. Other than practice, I can offer these four ways that have helped me solve this.
Prepare for it. The world is random, but there’s a lot of things which we can expect to face. Death, Taxes. If you prepare for things, overly prepare, you’ll find it funny how often certain things repeat themselves. It’s allowed cheating that hardly anyone bothers to do.
Listen to others. When people I like and respect answer the same question that I’m struggling with, I listen.
Experiment. Answer something different each time you’re questioned. Rinse and repeat.
Relax. You have to listen to, and like your thoughts. More than likely they are a bit deranged, and out of whack with reality. That’s normal. Once you have a clearer picture of who you are (and you like it), you won’t have any trouble answering.