Published December 26, 2025 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

There’s a phrase I’ve heard my entire life: If you have an idea, go for it. If you have a passion, follow it. If you feel called to help, contribute, or give back—lean into it.

And yet, for most of my life, I didn’t.

I always procrastinated. I would wait for the right time. I would tell myself next year. I would tell myself after things settle down. I would tell myself January 1st. I would tell myself tomorrow. And every single time, tomorrow quietly became never.

Until one day, something shifted.

Collectors MD didn’t come from a business plan or a perfectly timed launch. It wasn’t something that had been sitting in the works for months or years. It came from a singular moment of clarity—one I couldn’t ignore any longer. It came from a dark place. A place of burnout, struggle, addiction, confusion, and a growing realization that I couldn’t keep living on autopilot. I had spent years wrestling with patterns I didn’t fully understand yet—chasing, coping, numbing, distracting—and one day it hit me with absolute clarity: this is what I’m supposed to do.

Not someday. Not when things feel safer. Not when I have it all figured out. Now.

There’s a moment when everything gets quiet—and clear. Not because the road ahead is easy, but because you finally understand why you’re on it. This was that moment for me. The realization that Collectors MD wasn’t just an idea—it was a responsibility. A way to turn struggle into purpose, and lived experience into something that could help others find their footing again. Clarity doesn’t come with certainty. It comes with a choice. And once you make it, you don’t turn back.

Starting Collectors MD didn’t magically fix everything. The road has been painfully hard. Some days it’s unbearably overwhelming. Some days it feels impossibly big. And if I’m being honest—in the last nine months, I’ve probably accomplished only a fraction of one percent of what I ultimately want this to become.

But that’s the point.

There is no finish line. There’s no moment where you arrive and suddenly feel “done”. The goal isn’t completion—it’s continuation. It’s showing up a little more honestly each day. Learning. Adjusting. Getting better. Helping one person. Then another. Then another.

Real change doesn’t come from grand resolutions. It comes from small, consistent decisions made when no one is watching.

As the new year approaches, I keep coming back to this: if you feel the pull to do something meaningful—don’t wait for permission. Don’t wait for perfect timing. Don’t wait for January 1st.

Start now. Start imperfectly. Start scared if you have to. Don’t wait for anything. Zero excuses. Just start.

Sometimes the most important step isn’t the bold one—it’s the quiet decision to show up anyway. To sit down, take a breath, and begin building something before you feel ready. Progress doesn’t announce itself. It starts the moment you choose action over hesitation.

And just to be clear, that pull isn’t just reserved for big moments, either. It doesn’t only show up when you’re starting a company or building a movement. Sometimes it shows up as the quiet thought to take better care of yourself. To finally start that diet you’ve been talking about. To step into recovery. To join a support meeting you’ve been circling for months. To walk away from habits that no longer serve you. To pick up a hobby that brings you peace instead of pressure. To make one small choice that aligns you more closely with the life you want to live.

Most meaningful change doesn’t arrive with fireworks. It shows up as discomfort. As hesitation. As a nudge you keep ignoring because it feels inconvenient, scary, or premature. And sometimes, the hard truth is this: growth requires getting comfortable being uncomfortable. Because real change rarely waits for a clean slate or a calendar reset. It begins the moment you decide that staying the same is harder than trying something new.

If you’re feeling that pull right now, listen to it. Not next week. Not next year. Today. Right now. Even the smallest step counts—because that’s how real momentum starts: one intentional choice at a time.

Intention only matters when it’s honored through action.

#CollectorsMD
You don’t need to have it all figured out to begin. You just need the courage to take the first honest step.

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After ripping and breaking pretty heavily for six months, the stacks really started to pile up. At the beginning of September I decided it was time to unload anything that didn’t make it into the PC, so I jumped into posting and selling on eBay. Three months later, things are rolling, the sales have been solid, and I’m ready to scale things up… because trust me, there are still way too many cards.

Funny how this hobby turns into a side hustle without you even trying — but hey, it’s a pretty fun way to fund the hobby without breaking the bank.

What’s your go-to method for keeping the hobby funded without overspending?

Published August 07, 2025 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

When you’ve seen the worst of what the world has to offer—people exploiting others under the guise of helping—it’s hard to trust anyone again. Especially when you’ve worked in systems that were supposed to heal but were, in reality, built on manipulation, greed, and even abuse. That kind of experience changes you. It makes you skeptical, cautious, sharp-eyed. And rightfully so.

But here’s the challenge: how do we stay vigilant without becoming jaded? How do we ask hard questions without tearing down what might actually be sincere? How do we protect the vulnerable without assuming everyone else is a predator?

These are real questions I’ve been sitting with. There’s no perfect answer.

It’s easy to assume someone has an angle—or an agenda—especially when you’ve seen so many who did. And in this hobby, where influence and money often overshadow integrity, skepticism is a survival skill. But not everyone is here to take. Some of us are here because we were taken—and we want to stop the cycle.

You can be critical and still compassionate. You can question someone’s structure while also honoring their intentions. You can point out problems without immediately assuming the worst.

And yes, you can help people without exploiting them—while still needing to feed yourself, protect your family, and build something sustainable.

True support is built on honesty, transparency, and mutual respect. So let’s keep asking hard questions—but let’s also stay open to the possibility that someone out there might actually be genuinely trying to do things a bit differently—and even perhaps a bit better.

#CollectorsMD
Suspicion keeps us safe. But connection moves us forward.

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