A Life-Changing Conversation with an Uber Driver

A man sits in the driver seat with a cell phone propped up on the dashboard and his back towards the camera.

Sometimes I wonder…

Am I only one who has the most life-changing conversations with strangers who pick me up from the airport? I love a good heart to heart and am always ready and willing to skip the small talk and go straight to the deep stuff so whenever anyone wants to chat, I’m all in.  

I’m traveling this week for an in person coaching opportunity and upon arriving, scheduled an Uber to bring me to my hotel. As soon as I sat down in the car, I knew: I’m going to have a heart to heart with this guy. He was friendly and warm and the conversation didn’t start with talks of the weather. 

He began to talk to me about his work and shared that he’s had many different jobs and is currently pursuing new opportunities. He was previously a car mechanic, then became a personal trainer and now is a nutrition coach who also drives for Uber. But there’s more! He’s also in the process of getting his real estate license. “Why not?” He asked me. “Why not?” I replied. 

I shared with him a bit about my journey to becoming a Coach and the power of chasing your dreams. I loveeeee talking about hopes and dreams, something my brother and husband know all too well. Throughout the summer of 2020, when we were home nearly every weekend, we would sit around a fire in our backyard, sipping homemade spicy margaritas and both of them would dodge the question every time I asked: “Who wants to talk about our biggest hopes and dreams?”

The driver started to open up more about how he loves changing lives through his nutrition coaching. He shared his client work is never really just about food and that it’s the deeper mindset shift that he loves guiding his clients through. As a Coach myself, I understood. The breakthrough happens on the other side of the mindset shift.

I also love nutrition and often think that if I could go back in time, that’s what I would have studied. We got to talking and I shared that I’m in the process of making some changes to my diet (as recommended by my doctor) to start feeling my best. I told him I was excited about the opportunity to begin feeling better but was also sad about the need for restriction and eliminating certain foods in this season of life.

He told me that restricting food is never fun, but that he agreed it’s necessary at certain points in our journey to figure out what’s best for our health. He shared that he’s been following a new food plan for the past 3 months (he fasts 20 hours per day!) and has never felt better and more energized. “Can’t you sense it? Can’t you see how much energy I have?” I could feel it. His infectious energy alone was enough to keep me motivated.

But it was what he said next that was the exact message I needed to hear. Something simple yet important…

He said whenever you’re moving through something hard, like a new diet or new job or scary world, you’ve got to make room to enjoy it. Let the sadness in, but then, you’ve got to find ways to enjoy the season you’re in. He asked me, “How can you make this new diet fun? Life is meant to be enjoyed. Spin it that way. Find the joy.”

And then I looked up, tears in my eyes, and we had reached my hotel.

The whole ride lasted 8 minutes. 

He thanked me for the talk and I thanked him for the inspiration.

Once again, I had an epic heart to heart with an Uber driver. 

I think this simple concept was so powerful to me in the moment because I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what kind of impact I want to leave on this world. What do I want to be known for and how do I incorporate that into the work that I do? I don’t know the answer fully, but I do know there’s one thing on my heart right now and it’s this:

I believe there are women all over the world who, like I once was, are on a never-ending quest to achieve because they’re trying to prove something. To prove that they’re worthy. To prove that they’re loveable. To prove that they’re smart and capable. This was my story for many many years and my relationship to my work is one thing I have been working tirelessly to heal.

I want to be part of creating a world where more women seek to achieve great things in their life, not simply to prove something, but rather to impact something. And to enjoy every second of it along the way. 

That’s where we find fulfillment. At the intersection of our life and career.

I also often think about the pressure we, as a society, put on ourselves. To do more, be more and accomplish it all. But what about the joy we leave behind on this never ending pursuit for more? 

Life is meant to be enjoyed. A statement so simple and important that we actually practice this on a daily basis. That we don’t simply talk about finding moments of joy but intentionally seek them out.

To Antonio the Uber driver, thanks for the reminder that we can focus less on the struggle and focus more on the joy that’s right there in front of us.

And if anyone else has had a heart to heart conversation with an Uber driver, I’d love to hear about it! I know I’m not alone in seeking out the deeper talks and connections.

On the left: Text reads “Personal Growth for Modern Corporate Women, Commit to yourself & growing into the next version of you.” Below is a radio button that says “Tell me more!” and by clicking the photo, you are directed to a page where you can learn more about coaching with Lauren.

On the right: There is a picture of Lauren, smiling, sitting on a park bench with her laptop.