"You Don’t Do That!"
Living Intentionally in a World That Loves Guardrails
3-Minute Story time
So... there I was last week... looking up at the menu board at a Mountain Mike's Pizza in Atascadero, California.
Not my home turf, by any means.
Still, even in the heart of central California, at dinner rush hour, at a pizza franchise...
I had to just go rogue.
(I didn't think what I was about to do would cause a commotion, but, well, here we go...)
Nichole was in the car, on a phone call. I know, like me, sometimes she just likes Veggie Pizzas.
So, I ordered a Large Vegetarian Spicy Himalayan Pizza.
Then, just at the last minute, I said, Oh wait... hold that thought. Let's add chicken to that!
The guy behind the counter, who was clearly from India (don't know if that mattered), looked incredulous.
"You don't do that," he quipped.
(Me, with a bear-stare from the depths of my hellish Den)
Eh, yeah, yeaaaah I do!
"But... nobody orders meat on a veggie pizza!"
I ain't just nobody, my man. I'm different. Make sense?
You see, we're at a cultural place in life now where I truly think younger generations just can't see past black 'n white ways of thinking about things.
For me, I realized at the last minute (thinking to myself), Hey, we haven't had protein all day. We dig the veggies on this particular pizza. Let me just add in some Chicken.
But for the 20-something Indian fart taking my order, well, it just wasn't part of his brain's programming.
The truth is this:
When you step outside the box, you're going to get stares. You're going to get pushback. You're going to get people who can’t help but tell you, “You don’t do that.”
It’s an almost reflexive reaction. Humans love rules. They love norms. They love guardrails that tell them, “This is how things are done.”
But what they’re really saying is, “This is how I think things are done.”
And you want to know the truth?
Those rules? They’re made up.
All of them.
Sure, some are based on logic, but a whole lot of them are just societal autopilots. They're the scripts we’re handed without ever asking, “Does this even make sense for me?”
You add chicken to a veggie pizza.
You quit the “safe” job to chase your dream.
You start your own robotic crypto trader (Opportunity Alert)
You start the weird side hustle that makes people raise their eyebrows.
And the world gasps, “You don’t do that!”
Here’s where it gets interesting.
As Mark Manson said recently, It’s impossible to be a life-changing presence to some without being a total joke to others. Criticism is proportional to impact.
If you’re doing something different—if you’re stepping off the well-worn path—you’ll catch flak. It’s inevitable.
People will criticize you for your successes.
They will criticize you for your failures.
They will criticize you for acting.
They will criticize you for not acting.
And often, the loudest critics?
They’re the ones too afraid to try something different themselves.
They’re not mad at you.
They’re mad at the mirror you just held up to their own lives.
So what do you do?
You own it. You take the leap.
You break the rule.
You live intentionally.
Forget the noise.
Because when you’re dead and gone, nobody’s going to remember you for how well you followed the script.
They’ll remember you for how completely, unapologetically, you… you were.
Here’s the thing: the world doesn’t need more carbon copies. It doesn’t need more people living by default, blending into the background, or muting their uniqueness to avoid rocking the boat.
What the world does need is people who are bold enough to be who they are, unfiltered and unafraid. People who are so true to themselves that their presence inspires others to do the same.
So next time someone tells you, “You don’t do that,” just smile and say, “Eh, yeah I do.”
And then?
Bet on yourself!
This bulletin is part of my “Pep-Talk” Series, which can be found here:
https://bearsbulletins.substack.com/t/pep-talks
Until I write again…
Your Partner in the Quest for
Living a Life Without Limits,
Barry “Bear” Goss
Go to Tim Horton's in Canada and order an English Bacon Muffin and a Turkey Bacon Club but ask them to put the bacon from the Turkey Bacon Club on the English Bacon Muffin, We can't do that!. Of course you can. But you have to explain several times and often a supervisor has to figure it out and OK it, Same staff as your Pizza staff. East Indian and young.