Wilson Stanton is another of Prachi's colleagues from her Schaeffler USA days. One day at work, when she heard the news that he was resigning to do "a long trek", she was surprised and went to talk to him. He was apparently going for a 4200 miles long trek starting with the famous Appalechian Trail in USA. He has had an offbeat and out of the box life. His story would be a shot in the arm for those of us who seek more from life.
Before COVID-19
Q: We would love to know you and your journey so far.
W: I grew up in the small town of Cheraw, SC. I graduated from Clemson University and then moved back home. I worked a professional job for about 4 years and then quit to chase my dreams. I hiked 4200 miles in 2 years along the east and west coasts of the United States.
Q: What is your profession? What do you do for feeding your kitchen and your soul? These two may be different as well. You can give us how you spend your typical day if that’s more suitable to your profession.
W: Right now I am a server at a craft taco place in Florence, SC. I have worked many different positions in the food service industry throughout my life. It is an easy way for me to save money to do what I really want.. that is to hike and explore wilderness. My favorite places are those with very few people. Places you cannot get to my car, bus, or any other way than hiking or paddling. Places where the air is clean. Where there is no light pollution and you can see every single star at night.
Q: We would love to know how you came to be who you are now. What were the most important turning points in your childhood that made you YOU?
W: One of my most important turning points in my childhood was my grandmother instilling in me the love of reading. As a child I would get lost in great stories about adventure and exploration. This planted a seed in me that sprouted into curiosity and wonderment about what all is “out there” as I grew older. I was also given a lot of freedom as a child. Freedom to roam, explore and make my own mistakes. Probably a little too much of all of that, but nonetheless it allowed me to become comfortable living boldly and without any half-measures.
Q: Before COVID lockdown what was the first thing on your mind to do in your business/life? What move you wanted to make to grow? This includes short term goals.
W: I had recently returned from living in a tent for 12 of the previous 18 months. My plan was to settle down for a little while. I was beginning to crave stability. I felt a need to nourish some important relationships that I had grown away from. In a way, the lockdown honestly helped me kickstart this because I had no other option but to sit still for the time being.
Q: What was your 3-5 year plan before COVID? We would like to know your long term goals before this unexpected phenomenon.
W: I did not really have a long term plan. I had an immediate plan to settle down (as I mentioned above). I needed this time to develop a long term plan.
Q: Among the people you have worked with who do you admire and why? Past and present people included.
W: It is hard for me to pick a specific person whom I have worked with that I admire. Every person I have interacted with professionally are all so different. I admire the uniqueness in all people, even if I don’t like them as a person haha!
Q: Any experience with best and the worst bosses/employees? Any story? Don't worry! We'll change the names of those individuals! ;)
W: I am big on personal ownership and responsibility. Some bosses have been major micro-managers and don’t allow any freedom. Some bosses seemed to not care and were terribly slow to get anything done. I can’t really think of any specific stories.
Q: What new culture you wanted to bring to the profession you are working in? (before COVID-19 of course!)
W: The restaurant business is a very high stress environment. I like to bring a culture of patience and a sense of team or family. When the place is swamped, the kitchen is backed up, and customers are angry that is not a time to get stressed and start working as a lone wolf. That is a time to control your heart, take a breath and only focus on the next task, then the next etc etc. One cool head can rub off on everyone else the same way that one rotten apple can spoil the bunch.
Q: You must be having a list of fun things/soul feeding things you wanted to do before this pandemic changed the world. Your top 5 things on bucketlist? (before COVID-19)
W: Tons of stuff!! I want to hike the highest peak in all 50 states. I want to thru hike the Continental Divide Trail. I want to canoe the boundary waters between Canada and USA. I want to learn to scuba dive. I want to hike internationally. I want to jump out of an airplane.
After COVID-19
Q: How are you holding up the fort of your home and your profession in these trying times? How are you entertaining yourself if you have more free time on your hand now?
W: I understand that I am very fortunate, but time as actually been a much needed reset in my life. I am much more centered than I was before. I have been doing manual labor, which I enjoy, and spending more time with my dogs.
Q: What changes are you experiencing in your job? What changes you had to make in your working style?
W: I have been unemployed from my main job since the beginning of the quarantine.
Q: Everyone is talking about how this virus is going to permanently change the way we live now. What do you think will be the biggest change after this Pandemic situation is over?
W: I believe that there will be a major positive and a major negative. The positive is that it woke a lot of people up to how suddenly you could lose everything. I think many people will be able to appreciate simple things more and not take human connection for granted. I also think that there is a large amount of distrust brewing. People are beginning to turn against the government and becoming unsettled. I am scared that an opportunist with bad intentions could take advantage of this situation and stretch it into something terrible and dangerous.
Q: Do you think this will affect area/industry you are working in? If yes, why and on what scale? If no, why not?
W: It might help the food service places that survive it. People can’t wait to get out of their own kitchen and let someone else cook and clean for them. Also, most people that never cook have realized why they never cook; it’s because they are terrible cooks!!
Q: Some of us are optimistic that this is just a small bump in our progress story and won't majorly affect how we lived. Do you agree? Do you think we can get back to where we left before this pandemic?
W: I absolute think we can get back to where we were. It may be different but not “less than” or worse I do not believe.
Q: If a kid walked up to asking for your advice for starting his/her venture and you only had a few minutes to give them your best tip, what would it be? Considering the pandemic.
W: Walk confidently in the direction of your dreams. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best and always examine each scenario with a well rounded perspective.
Q: Which direction you think that we all - as a world - responsibly need to act and think? You can say in whichever sense you feel is most important.
W: I think we need more personal responsibility first. There is way too much finger pointing. People saying that “this happened” (whatever this is, not just the pandemic) because someone else did it to me. I think we need to look in the mirror first and start thinking about how we react to the scenarios we meet in life. After that we need a much greater sense of service. I think too many people believe that if they are not affected then it doesn’t concern them. We can still consider passing along some of our good fortune to our fellow man/woman who did not have the same fortune.
Q: Do you think you need to re-modify the bucketlist? Why and how?
W: It is always changing. Things get added or deleted every day.
Q: We should not ignore the silver linings that you noticed in this scare. After all, hope is what makes the world go round. What positive thing you experienced during this pandemic?
W: Being forced to sit still made me take inventory of my life.
Q: Do you think you and the world need to set new milestones? Will sustainability and earth-friendly business practices be an important factor now? How will you ensure you fit in this new picture in your respective profession?
W: I absolutely believe we need to set new milestones. I think a lot of what I said in question 8 will fit this. I also think we need to take much greater care of our human footprint. That has a lot of do with personal responsibility. Our bubble is so small that it keeps us from seeing how huge the world is. How many different perspectives there are. We should all try to be better servants of the earth and to leave less of a trace.
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