Gents Journey
Helping Men become the Gentleman they deserve to be. This Podcast is part inspiration part motivation. We discuss what it takes to be a Gentleman in the 21st Century. We also talk about how to deal with the internal and external battles that life throws at us. So come be apart of the Gents Journey!
Gents Journey
The Confidence Protocols:Trial V: The Crimson Market
Have you ever wondered why achievement feels hollow, why validation never satisfies, or why you remain haunted by moments of compromise? The answer lies not in what you've gained, but in what you've refused to release.
Welcome to Trial Number Five: The Crimson Market. This transformative journey reveals that authentic confidence isn't built by stacking accomplishments but by sacrificing what no longer serves your evolution. The Market doesn't find you by chance—it appears when you finally confront what's weighing you down.
Here, beneath crimson canopies and before faceless merchants, you'll face every version of yourself that betrayed your becoming for acceptance. The small version that dimmed your light for others' comfort. The silent one who didn't speak when everything inside screamed. The performer who apologized for passion. Each stands as evidence of trades already made, and each demands resolution.
What makes this journey profound is the revelation that the coin you must surrender isn't merely symbolic—it's the last version of yourself you're protecting: the one that could still be universally liked, the one that doesn't ruffle feathers, the identity that allows success without fundamental change.
The ritual that follows happens not in mystical circumstances but in your everyday life. Identify what you're still keeping that the man you're becoming no longer needs. A relationship maintained from habit? A digital space where you perform rather than exist authentically? A possession representing who you were rather than who you're becoming? Make an irreversible move—delete, remove, cancel, donate, speak—something visible, final, and uncomfortable.
True sovereignty emerges when you can honestly say: "I don't need this anymore, and I'm willing to prove it." The trade has been made. Now walk without what you gave away, and discover who you've always been beneath your last excuse.
Ready to enter the Market? Join me on this journey of transformation. Reach out through the Let's Chat function, email Anthony@GentsJourney.com, or find me on Instagram @myGentsJourney with questions about this episode or any of our 200+ others. Remember—you create your reality.
"True mastery is found in the details. The way you handle the little things defines the way you handle everything."
Hello and welcome to the Gentleman's Journey podcast. My name is Anthony, your host, and today we are in the confidence protocols. And this is trial number five. It's the Chrisman Market. So let's go ahead and let's get into it.
Speaker 1:So you never find the Charisma Market. It finds you the moment you start asking the question. No one wants to answer. What part of me is weighing everything down, not in guilt, but in ownership? The trial that led you to this moment is gone. There is no force now.
Speaker 1:No chapel, no tower, no wind, just a stone path carved by heat, dustless, lifeless, warm, to the touch like skin. You walk not because you want to, but because something inside you demands it. Not hunger, not thirst, but cost. There's something inside you that knows you can't become more until you decide what you'll never be again. As you walk, your hands they start to itch, then burn. Lines form on your palms, glowing like ink pulled from the fire. Old decisions, half-made vows, things you said you would never do again. The path narrows, the air thickens, you are sweating, but it isn't heat. It's value being pulled from you, drop by drop, before the deal even begins up ahead by drop, before the deal Even begins Up ahead.
Speaker 1:A gate Twice your height, made of molted metal, bone, char and stamped sigils. It pulses, not with magic but with memory. Everything you've hoarded emotionally shows up here your fear of letting go, your attachment to be seen a certain way, your private fantasies of control. It's all written across the gate, like contracts you didn't know you signed. Then the voice comes low inside your head the market doesn't open unless you already know what you're here to lose. You pause Not because you're here to lose. You pause Not because you're unsure, but because you are finally aware of the weight of pretending. The gate doesn't creak, it doesn't grind. It simply recognizes when you're telling the truth and when you are.
Speaker 1:It opens Inside a world of muted red, no sun, no torches, only a glow that comes from the deals themselves. Crimson canopies float above the stalls of forgotten selves, tables made of charred wood and cracked ivory, scales that twitch when you get too close. Merchants that are faceless, hooded fingers, long and stained with ink and ash. They say nothing, but they know who you are, what you've hidden and what you want and what it will take to get it. Because in this place nothing is free, not even the truth. This is not a market of trade, it's a market of transmutation Once a thing is given here, it cannot be taken back.
Speaker 1:So you step fully inside the stalls, breathe, the scales blink and you realize this is where men come to become gods or lose their names forever. So you take one more step and it happens the market shifts, not physically, but existentially. The air bends, the stalls rearrange, not with sound but with intention, as if the market itself is adjusting to what you're hiding. You feel your boots sink slightly into the floor. Not dirt, not stone, something softer Ash, but not from fire, but from men who made the wrong deal.
Speaker 1:The stalls begin to call, not with voices but with memories. Each one now holds a version of you the one who stayed for too long in a place he outgrew. The one who said yes because he feared being seen as difficult. The one who kept peace and lost power. The one who never said what he truly wanted. The one who became acceptable and forgot how to be unforgettable.
Speaker 1:Each version stands behind a stall. Each one whispers, not out loud but from the marrow of your spine we made this trade already. They said what will you do different? And suddenly a table forms in front of you no merchant, no stall, just a scale and a burning coin suspended above it. It flickers, but not like fire, like identity liquefying. Beneath the scale is a parchment blank, but when your eyes linger long enough, something begins to write itself across it A contract written in a language that is not spoken, but remembered. It writes your past, but only the parts you avoid, the moments where you betrayed your becoming for acceptance. It lists them one by one. That time you made yourself small so they would feel comfortable. That time you didn't speak when everything in you screamed. To. That time you apologized for being passionate. That time you held back your excellence so you wouldn't threaten the room.
Speaker 1:Each one costs you something, and now the market wants payment. You reach for the coin, but your hand burns, not from heat, from hesitation, because the coin isn't metal. It's made of something you haven't let go of yet. Maybe it's pride, maybe it's a name, maybe it's an attachment to how they see you, but whatever it is, it hurts to hold and still you lift it. The scale trembles, the contract glows, the market pauses. The market pauses because this is the moment it's been waiting for. You're about to give something away that you will never get back, not for applause, not for validation, but for becoming.
Speaker 1:And then a voice behind you, quiet, almost unsure. What if we just pretend? What if we give them a piece we don't need? You turn it's you, a younger version, the part of you that always found a way to survive without changing. He's holding a fake coin shiny, clean, untouched. He wants to bargain, but the market doesn't accept performance, only permanence. So you say nothing.
Speaker 1:You place the real coin on the scale, the fake one dissolves, the younger you vanishes. The parchment sears itself shut. Smoke rises from the center like incense and a sound cuts the air. Not a chime, not a bell, a syllable, the next piece of your name, but not yet spoken. Not until you prove you're ready to carry it.
Speaker 1:So the coin lands on the scale with a dull thud, no ring, no echo. Just wait. It sizzles the surface instantly and the scale doesn't tip forward, it sinks straight down, like it just absorbs something too heavy to balance. The parchment shudders. The chrisman glow above you deepens. Shadows twitch Tents, ripple with no wind. You are no longer just in the market, you are in judgment. The ground beneath you becomes translucent and you see yourself Every version of you through time the boy who didn't speak up, the teenager who betrayed himself to fit in.
Speaker 1:The young man who dimmed his light for someone else's comfort. The adult who kept building but never claimed it. The man who knew who he was becoming but still feared what it would cost. Each version looks up beneath the floor. None of them cry, none of them scream. They just wait, because this moment decides if their suffering had a purpose, if their suffering had a purpose.
Speaker 1:Now the scale pulses and from it a ripple of a memory explodes outward, a burning wave of your past choices hitting every corner of the market, and the market responds. The stalls begin to burn, not with fire, but with realization. Old trades catch flame. The time you gave your authority to a woman who couldn't hold it. The time you let your dreams expire for a job that applauded your obedience. The time you let your fire die because they said you were too intense, the years you spent performing instead of becoming. Each memory erupts like a fire, sending red ambers into the air.
Speaker 1:You fall to your knees, not from pain but from release, because now every false identity is being incinerated, every mask, every compromise, every slow erosion of your sovereignty gone, and in the space it leaves behind, something begins to form A sound. No, not a sound, it's a vibration in your chest. Not like music, like naming, not like music, like naming. Your true name, the one that was buried underneath every version of you that begged for acceptance, begins to carve itself into your ribs from the inside out. It hurts itself into your ribs from the inside out. It hurts, but it's a good pain, a sacred pain.
Speaker 1:You clutch your chest, not because it burns, but because something ancient is being rewritten from within a new syllable. You hear it before it ever escapes your lips, not spoken aloud, impressed into your nervous system. Scythe, it does not mean anything in language. It is you in phonetic form, not what they called you, but what the market now calls you. The one who traded. The syllable becomes a seal on your hand, branded not into your skin, into decision. You collapse forward. Your head rests on the market floor. Ash coats your face. You're sobbing, but not from grief, from completion. The market begins to recede. The crimson glow fades. The scale crumbles, the parchment folds itself onto your chest and everything turns dark. Not because you're blind, but because you shed everything that needed light to survive In the darkness. A final whisper emerges. Now you know what you cost and what you're worth. You stand unsteady, but born again, you are no longer just a man. You are a man who gave something real and earned a piece of his irrevocable name.
Speaker 1:You awaken lying face down in red ash. There's no fire, no smoke, no merchants, no sound at all, just the weight of something gone. You sit up slowly. Your hands are empty, but your chest feels full, not with air, with something branded. You reach for the satchel, but remember, you never had one. You've only had two things since the very beginning your boots and the map. It's still in your hand, but it's changed again.
Speaker 1:The parchment now shimmers, as though it remembers something. Before you do so, you unfold it. The terrain is no longer abstract, no longer a suggestion, it's specific. Now it's real, marked in five places, each one labeled by a name you don't recognize but feel like you should Voi Viyan, ash Thar, sol Inan, senth Rahan. They sound like places, but they feel like versions. You don't know what they mean, but your body reacts to each one. Your chest tightens at Sol Anan, your jaw locks at Ashtar, your throat stings at Vorvian, your eyes water at Kaemian and your hands still burn. From Sithrion, you whisper one aloud, it echoes, and your hands still burn from Scythian, you whisper one aloud. It echoes, but not across the landscape.
Speaker 1:Inside a view, the map shifts again. Now each name has a symbol etched beside it A black mirror fracture at its center, a swirling gust around an altar stone, a cracked tower reaching skyward, a hollow chapel sealed in stillness, a burning scale with a vanishing coin. They're not landmarks, they're memories, but they don't belong to you, do they? You pause. The question rises like a tremor coming from your stomach through your throat. Why am I here? You whisper it like a curse, like saying it too loud would break something sacred.
Speaker 1:Then another question surfaces Did I choose the island or did it choose me? It's for the first time you've truly wondered, because nothing here feels random. And yet nothing here has told you the truth. All you've done is wake, walk, survive and trade. But for what? To become something or to remember something?
Speaker 1:You look again at the center. Five names now orbit a black circle. It has no label, no symbol, but the map begins to pull you toward it, not like a compass, but like a summons. And that's when it hits you. This is not a path through geography, it's a spiral. Each trade, each trial, each name, it pulls you inward, towards something final, something buried, something waiting to be awakened.
Speaker 1:You fold the map. It hums softly, not like paper, like breath. You press it against your chest, you hold it. It disappears, but not into your pocket, into you. You staggered forward and for a moment you wonder am I walking toward a destination or back to something I was? And why did the map disappear inside of me? No answer comes Only the wind. And it no longer resists. It guides you, follow it Uneasy, uncertain, but somehow willing.
Speaker 1:So here you are. Your hands are burned and your name has been partially revealed. And something you used to cling to, with everything in you, is gone. You traded, you didn't gesture, you didn't rehearse, you gave up something real in this trial. And whether you understand it or not, that was the point.
Speaker 1:See, most men think confidence is something you can build by stacking bricks. You know you get stronger, you speak louder, you make more, you buy bigger right. They think confidence is loudness, accomplishment or strategy. But you're beginning to realize now, aren't you? It's not about adding, it's about what you're willing to let go of. See, confidence begins the moment a man says I no longer need to protect the version of me that they'll accept. And that's exactly what the Crimson market exists to test, because the market doesn't care about your ambition, it doesn't care about how much potential you have, it doesn't care if you've been trying your best. The market asks one thing what part of yourself are you finally ready to sacrifice permanently so that you can become something you've never been before? And if you hesitate, if you try to trick it, if you offer something that looks shiny but costs nothing, the market will burn it in your hands, because confidence built on pretending will always collapse at the moment it's most needed. So let me say this clearly to you Most men never enter the market.
Speaker 1:They live their entire lives making partial trades, swapping effort for praise, swapping silence for comfort, swapping their edge for acceptance. And then they wonder why they still feel hollow. They wonder why their wins feel temporary, why they can't sit in a room without worrying what everyone else thinks, why they keep replaying that one moment in their head where they backed down and called it wisdom, why they sabotage what they say they want, why their own power feels borrowed. It's because they never made a real trade. They never gave anything permanent. They've been renting their confidence from approval systems that could vanish tomorrow.
Speaker 1:But you, you gave up the coin. And here's what no one tells you that coin wasn't a token, it wasn't an object, it was the last story you were still trying to protect. That coin was the version of you that could still be forgiven, the one that could still be liked by everyone, the one that didn't ruffle feathers, the one that could be more successful without changing too much. It's now gone. That's why your hands are burned, because that version died when you placed it on the scale. And now you're here, not lighter, not clear, but emptier On the scale. And now you're here, not lighter, not clear, but emptier, in a necessary way. And for the first time, you understand. The weight you were carrying all these years Wasn't from what they did to you, it was from everything you refused to let go of. Now look at your hand. That burn isn't just pain, it's a mark. You have joined the few, not the elite, not the chosen, but the willing. Willing to lose something final so they could honestly remember something eternal.
Speaker 1:And now the map. It's no longer a guide because it was never pointing to places. It was revealing the names you were earning. Each trial was a syllable, each syllable, a key. Each key a territory to your internal kingdom. Look at them now. The moment you saw you know calm, her in. The moment you saw you know Kamarin, the moment you saw yourself clearly and didn't look away.
Speaker 1:Vorveyan, the sound you've never spoken and finally said out loud. Ashtar, the rejection you climbed through without asking for permission. Sol-enan, the silence you survived without filling it with noise. And Cynthreon, the trade you made. That cannot be undone. See, these are not locations, they're Domains of your transformation. Each one is now sealed inside of you and the map, it disappeared in your chest. You want to know why? Because you are the map now. The terrain is not being explored, it's being revealed, because every trial isn't showing you where to go, it's pulling you back to what you forgot you already were. That's why this is so important.
Speaker 1:You're halfway through now. You've bled, you've burned, you've broken old structures, but the question remains Did you find the island or did the island find you? Or worse, were you always here and only now beginning to wake up inside yourself? Because that blank circle at the center of the map, you know the one with no name, that is you waiting. This is where boys break, this is where men turn back and this is where boys break, this is where men turn back and this is where performers panic. But this is also where the sovereigns rise, because once the trade has been made, there is no going back, and that's the point. So let me leave you with this Confidence is not the result of becoming everything.
Speaker 1:It's the reward of letting go of the one thing you were still pretending you needed. The market didn't steal from you. It showed you who you were without your last excuse, and what remains is real. What comes next will demand even more, but now you know how to pay. So let's go ahead and get into the ritual. Now, guys, you got to burn the crotch. See, this ritual doesn't happen in a cave, it doesn't happen on an altar. It happens in your phone, your calendar, your closet, your day. Because now we ask one question what are you still keeping in your life that the man you're becoming no longer needs? Not what makes you weak. Now, what makes you weak, what makes you comfortable? And here's how to prove the trade was real Name the crutch.
Speaker 1:Pick one of the following to identify A person. Maybe you tolerate out of habit, but no longer respect. Maybe it's a digital space, social media, an app, a group chat where you play small or perform, maybe a one day goal you keep talking about but never act on. Maybe it's an item you wear or own or display that represents who you were, not who you are. Maybe it's a task you do every week that keeps you busy, but not better. You know what it is already. You already know what it is. It's the thing that keeps you from walking forward, because it reminds you of the version of you that would have never survived the market.
Speaker 1:Now, number two make the irreversible move. Once you've named it, act it. Delete the app, remove the contact, cancel the subscription, donate the item, say the sentence, resign from the room, stop giving energy to the ghost. It must be visible, final and slightly uncomfortable. If it's easy, it's not the real coin. You must do this within 24 hours. No journaling. No, I'll think about it. Just do it Now.
Speaker 1:Three witness the void the next morning. Wake up, sit in the absence of the thing, feel what tries to rise in its place. Is it guilt, is it doubt, is it relief, silence, freedom. Let it come. Let it remind you that you didn't lose something. You buried it, because men don't become sovereign by keeping everything. They become sovereign by learning to say I don't need this anymore and I'm willing to prove it. See, that's the real ritual no incense, no symbols, just a clean break from the version of you who needed approval to breathe. You now made the trade, now walk without what you gave, gave.
Speaker 1:You know, when I was doing the Charisma Market right, it's one of those things in life that I always envisioned, like you would see, kind of at the end. You know, like these, these past versions of yourself, these, these half-truths, these I hate to say it, but like these half-assed things you never really gave 100% to, you know, maybe it was a relationship, a job, a goal, whatever. We all have a lot of those, I know, I do. The mark is a reflection of that, you know. And real growth, real freedom, real sovereignty comes from willing to not only accept what you've done right, but also willing to give the one last thing that's going to, because it gets you over the hump, or to really burn that last version of you so you can really see the true you, and that's what the market represents. See the true you and that's what the market represents.
Speaker 1:It's saying that you can't go through life anymore and be these versions of yourself and also try to be this true version of yourself. They can't exist at the same time, so you have to choose. You have the coin. You can give all this up and be your true self and walk that path, which is not going to be easy, but you can still be these other versions of yourself, still hold on to all this guilt, all this anger, all this depression, all this anxiety, all these things, and never be who you were meant to be. That's why the coin gave a thud. There was no ring, because it was you. It was those things that you're holding on to, and when you finally gave it away and you burned all those versions of yourself and you let go, that's where real growth comes from.
Speaker 1:So I just want to thank you guys for listening. I know we ran a little long today, but I think all these things need to be said because it's just what it is. But again, I want to thank you guys so much for listening today. And again we want to thank you guys so much for listening today and again, we are doing great. I just want to thank you guys for always listening and I can really tell that you are really pushing this because we are doing amazing. We are getting so many more downloads and so much. I can see we are growing as a group. I can see it. This movement is starting to happen and I couldn't do it without you guys. So I want to thank you again for always listening and your support and, if this is your first time listening, thank you for taking the time to listen and I hope you enjoyed it.
Speaker 1:So, as we're talking about enjoyment, I obviously enjoy what I'm doing here, but I know you guys have questions, so, if you do, there's three ways you can get a hold of me and ask questions. First way is going to be through my I almost said my email. Nope, we go. What do we do first? We always do the text first. So, on the description of the podcast, there'll be a let's chat function. You click on that and you'll get me. It won't be chat GPT, and you and I can have a conversation about this episode, this series, other 200 plus other episodes that are out on Jen's journey. Okay, second way is going to be through my email. My email is Anthony at Jen's journeycom, so please feel free to reach out to me there too. And last but not least, you can go to my Instagram. My Instagram handle is mygentsjourney, and you reach out to me there as well too. So again, guys, I wanna thank you so, so, so, very much for listening today. And remember this you create your reality, take care.