A blast of hot air rolled out of the rental car as I opened the passenger door.  Texas heat clung to my skin until the air conditioning cooled the car.

Sean and I were giving a ride to our class instructor. We were driving from the Red Roof Inn on i-35 in South Austin to the Wizard Academy. We stayed at the hotel closest to the school, which was fifteen miles away. This was back when the academy was hosted at Williams Marketing in the tiny town of Buda.

Before campus property was purchased. Before Chapel Dulcinea was stately perched on the cliff side. Before students slept wrapped in Egyptian cotton sheets in private mansion rooms in the hill country. Before the Wizard’s tower reached into the clouds and library shelves were packed with books. Before bronze plaques carried names of the donors that made the dream a reality.  Before the wine cellar was stocked with exquisite bottles from far away vineyards and Don Quixote hung from every wall. Before Daniel Whittington was vice-chancellor, giving tours of Scotland. Before thousands of wisards began travelling from around the world to study at the most progressive, out of the box thinking, 21st century business school. Heck, this was even before Sean Taylor graduated from high school.

Classes met in the upper room with no windows. Tables arranged in rows that could seat no more than ten people in the room that would get overheated quickly. The walls were off white and the carpet was gray. It was the beginning of a dream, and we were excited to be part of it. Sean and I were eager students, anxious to learn whatever we could from Roy Williams, aka “the Wizard of Ads”, Dr. Nick Grant and Dean Rotbart, the man in the back seat of our car.

I had read about him through Roy’s writings, although I had not met him in person until now. I already knew that Dean was a Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist and he had been a regular columnist for the Wall Street Journal.

I was extremely shy and didn’t talk much back then. I had been working on pushing myself to engage with people, but I still had a long way to go. In an effort to get to know our new friend better, I asked him a few questions about his life and interests. Conjuring up small talk was painful for this extreme introvert. Masterfully he dodged my questions and within a flash, he had spun the conversation on its heels. Before I knew it, I found myself breathlessly talking to him about my passion for portrait photography and a rattling on about business ideas that had been bouncing around in my brain.

Fifteen miles later, we arrived to our destination, a tiny speck on the map, and my life had changed.  All of the sudden, I  had a clearer vision for what I wanted to do with my life. Dean ended our conversation by clarifying back to me my true passion for photographing people and I needed to be doing that.

At the time, I had been teaching a few scrapbooking classes at a local store as a personal exercise to overcome my fear of speaking in front of people. I was at a place in my life to make a decision. Contemplating going back to school, having another child, and starting a business. Up until then, I only had  one camera and a couple banged up lenses. I would take pictures of my children and my friend’s babies. But, I was never for hire.

After returning home from Austin that week, I possessed the confidence to start my portrait business. Within a year, my basement became a studio and office and I started booking sessions every week. That was twelve years ago and I am still pursuing my passion of photography as well as other business ventures.

A frequent saying at the Wizard Academy is the most precious gift we are given is the gift of each other. Truer words were never spoken. I believe, when you operate in your gifting, living out your life’s purpose, lives around you will be touched and changed for the better. That’s what my friend Dean did for me over a decade ago. I’m sure he still has no idea the impact that our thirty minute conversation had on my life. He was just doing we what he does best, interviewing people and uncovering their story in their own words and presenting it back to them.

What is that thing that causes your heart to skip a beat when you talk about it. Are you on the edge of making a big decision? Wanting to take the plunge? It might be time for you to go for a little ride and have a conversation with a friend. It just might change your life.