“I try to take care of priorities first. Then, when you do go surfing or whatever, you’re happy. One thing I’ve noticed about the guys that hang at the beach all the time, the beach rats that are there all day, every day – they’re not stoked.” Image: Holtz
You always need to do something that you really like. So many people are unhappy in the job they are in and are not doing what they really like. I think as far as a vocation or something, you’ve got to get something that you really like to do, no matter what it is. It doesn’t have to make you a million dollars or anything, but it’s worth a million to just to do something that you really like, and that you can get involved in.
It just worked out for me. I was just lucky. I found surfing, and my parents weren’t happy about it. All my energy went into it, and they didn’t see a future in it. I am just lucky that it happened the way it did for me. That I could make a lifestyle and make a living out of it. But the passion I had was something I really loved, and I just pursued it every which way. Not always surfing itself but learning about the building of boards, and it just turned out to be a really rewarding lifestyle and adventure.
So it sounds like you got started in the surfing industry pretty early career-wise.
Kinda. I didn’t start really surfing until I was like 16 or 17. I hung around the surf shops, did odd jobs. I cut grass for a living, and worked at supermarkets – a couple of different supermarkets as a bag boy. Surfing was my priority back then, which was probably half the reason my first marriage ended, because I didn’t pay the bills like I should’ve. There were a lot of holes there. My priorities weren’t right. But God showed me that through time, and as I came back to Him, if I took care of the priorities, he’d bless my surfing no matter when I got to do it. I don’t get to hit it every day and every swell. But, I try to take care of priorities first. Then, when you do go surfing or whatever, you’re happy. One thing I’ve noticed about the guys that hang at the beach all the time, the beach rats that are there all day, every day – they’re not stoked. It has to be like the epic day of the year, and then they get a little buzz. Whereas the guy that works real hard, he doesn’t even care if it’s blown out or whatever.
But God has really blessed my going and my coming with that situation. And I ask for His help in it. There’s nothing too big or too small He doesn’t want to be a part of, and I pray for His help everyday. I pray about the day: who I’m going to meet, what I’m going to do, whose board I’m shaping, the family. There’s a list of stuff. Having God in the process. In Proverbs, there’s a verse that says, “We flip the coin but the decision is the Lord’s.” So once in awhile, I’ll use that. If I’m like, “Should I go here? Should I go there?” And whatever He says, I’ll do.
There was one night I was getting ready to go home and I lost a set of keys. I have three sets of keys, and the main keys were on this key ring. I looked all around, looked in the car, called home, asked my wife to look by my bed, and she couldn’t find them. And I’m freaking out, you know? So I start praying about it. I go, ‘Okay, I’m just going to use the coin. Lord, I gotta break it down, I gotta know what’s happening. So I went, ‘Okay, heads is yes, tails is no. Are the keys at the shop?’ And I flipped the coin: no. So I’m going, ‘Well, I was down at the beach earlier today.’ So, I go, ‘Lord, are the keys down at the beach?’ And I flipped the coin: yes. So, I jumped in my car, went down to Tourmaline, and I pulled in a slot, and I walked over to the curb and there they were. I took God into the equation.
There’s nothing too big or too small He doesn’t want to be a part of. He wants to be a part of every part of our life. Everything and anything. And the Bible says we’re supposed to be concentrating on Him all the time – praying without ceasing. It’s hard to do, we all get sidetracked. Surfing… family… you know? That’s why I have books here that I used to have at home. I start every day with prayer and I have a couple of books I read. The Bible is one of them. I’ve got a book here that goes through the Bible in a year. I’ll just sit back in quiet time and thank God. That book there, ‘Jesus Calling is unbelievable. It’s like Jesus talking to ya. In fact, I’ll just read you today to give you an idea:
“Don’t be so hard on yourself. I can bring even good out of your mistakes. Your finite mind tends to look backward longing to make decisions you have come to regret. This is a waste of time and energy, leading only to frustration. Instead of floundering in the past, release your mistakes to me. Look to me and trust, anticipating that my infinite creativity can weave both good choices and bad into a lovely design. Because you are human, you will continue to make mistakes. (SF: Yep) Thinking that you should live an error-free life is symptomatic of pride. Your failures can be a source of blessing, humbling you and giving you empathy for other people in their weaknesses. Best of all, failure highlights your dependence on me. I am able to bring beauty out of the morass of your mistakes. Trust me and watch to see what I will do.”
