Techniques and Angles

Life lessons from a Carny

Not a group of carnies, but close.

I recently had the opportunity to appear on The Collective Podcast with a group of heavy hitters from US and Canadian premier special operations units.

(The episode hasn’t been posted yet, but you will be able to check it out here).

I told the story of a Marine I served with and looked up to at 1st Force Recon. We called him Biker.

Biker would tell the story of the summer before he joined the Marines when he worked at a carnival assisting the carnies in setting up and tearing down rides.

Since I’ve never had the pleasure, I had to take his word for it, but it does stand to reason that it is hard work that has to be accomplished quickly to keep the carnival moving.

When he had difficulty with a task, an old carny would show him how the job was done and remind him that it was all about techniques and angles.

From backing up an 18-wheeler to a ride to setting up the big top to dismantling the Ferris wheel, there were techniques that the carnies who had been around had learned over time, and they realized that when their technique didn’t work, they needed to come at the task from another angle.

Techniques are the tools that we fill our toolbox with. One technique won’t work in every situation, but every situation has a technique that will work.

The bigger your toolbox, the more problems you can solve effectively and efficiently and get your carnival back on the road.

And, when the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem gets treated like a nail.

Every time a new angle works, you’ve added a new tool to your box.

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On my other, saltier substack, Ruck The F*ck Up I’m getting back into the best shape of my life. If you are interested, come on over.

Thanks for reading. Until next time, keep Walking Point.