When’s the last time you made yourself uncomfortable?
This question isn't rhetorical and it's definitely worth answering (at least to yourself).
Why?
Because your answer is indicative of the life you’re currently living – for better or worse.
So many of us instinctively stick to what we know.
We grow up playing certain sports and we stick with them through high school, college and (if we have just the right amount of luck) into our adult years.
The same goes for musical instruments, languages, hobbies and just about everything else in life.
It’s almost as if after we graduate school and get a job, new experiences vanish.
We become adults and we stick to what we know – to what’s comfortable.
It’s a shame, because sticking to what’s comfortable limits the adventures we’ll have in life.
And adventure is what we need now more than ever in a world where sedentary connectivity is the norm.
The following are 3 life-improving reasons you should go on more adventures.
In an experiment conducted by German researches, 40 mice were put in a large, enriched environment (5 levels of glass chutes, toys, scaffolds, nesting places and more) and monitored over the course of 3 months.
It turns out that the mice who explored more built more new neurons than those who explored less:
“Researchers found that the brains of the most explorative mice were building more new neurons -- a process known as neurogenesis -- in the hippocampus, the center for learning and memory, than the animals that were more passive.” [Article]
Neurons are fundamental for the functioning of the brain and body as a whole.
The more neurons we build, the greater our capacity for motor and sensory development. If we actively build and engage more neurons we can become better at things like reading comprehension, scientific reasoning and mathematics.
Of course, we’re not rats in a cage, so how can we implement this advice?
Simple:
Don’t have the time or means to travel?
The list could go on for days, literally only limited by your creativity (and if you consider yourself lacking creativity, check out my pay-what-you-want guide: Putting On Your Brain Goggles – it will help you invent, design and develop creative ideas)
In any way you can, expose yourself to new experiences.
The more you explore, the smarter you’ll become.
The brain naturally lumps together consistent, similar memories.
This is effective from a storage and functioning standpoint – our brains don’t need superfluous details to function – but it also has drawbacks.
Think about your last year of work or school. What stands out?
How about from middle school or high school? What do you remember?
Chances are the majority of your memories are blurred and dull. The day to day grind fades away over time. What’s left is a general impression of what life was like at the time…an impression that will continue to shift, distort and change over time as you grow older.
So what happened to the details?
The truth is they’re nowhere to be found because most of our days are monotonous, familiar and ordinary.
Under conditions like that, details fade.
Which means if you want to improve your memory – if you want to actually remember the details - you need to change things up.
According to psychology writer Claudia Hammod, you are most likely to remember an event if it is “distinctive, vivid, personally involved and is a tale you have recounted many times since.” [Time Warped: Unlocking the Mysteries of Time Perception]
To create long lasting, detailed memories, focus on these 4 elements of creating a memorable event:
1) Distinctive – how does it differentiate from your day to day grind? Changing up coffee shops is a good start. Taking a day trip to the Bahamas is better. There’s probably a happy medium in there somewhere. Experiment and explore and figure out what’s right for you (but different than you’re used to).
2) Vivid – how many senses are you stimulating? The more senses we can stimulate at one time – and the better we can focus on this stimulation – the more vivid our memories will be. Plus, there’s an added benefit to stimulating things like your sense of smell because it’s directly linked to your memory. And you can make an event vivid without artificial sense stimulants (beer, cigarettes, etc.) – all it takes is awareness and focus. When in doubt, do things that are intense (and pay attention to the details).
3) Personal Involvement– you need to be the protagonist of your story. Watching a rugby game? Cool. Playing fly-half and leading your team to a state championship victory? The latter memory will stay with you longer – much longer. So as much (and as often) as you can – be the person doing stuff: Run from the bulls. Take the wheel. Make the introduction. Get out of the bleachers and get into the arena.
4) Recountable – memories relived are memories remembered (redundant, sure – but still true) . If you had a remarkable time doing something, make sure to actually remark to someone about it. Or at least to yourself. Preferably several times a year. Memories will stay clear and detailed the more you recollect and recount.
Want to create distinctive, vivid, personally involved, recountable events?
You guessed it – go on more adventures.
Exploring, traveling, learning, creating…all these things automatically hit all 4 elements, and what you’re left with is something you can actually remember in detail.
Photographic memory?
Okay, that’s hyperbole, but it’s pretty darn close.
Or at least the perception of it.
Extraordinary things stick in our minds longer and more clearly than merely ordinary things (see above).
The memory of mundane, comfortable, ordinary routine lumps together and fades away in time.
Novelty, on the other hand, is a jolt to the brain system – we not only remember new experiences more vividly, they also seem longer to us when we reflect on them. This is called the “Holiday Paradox” by Hammod: “the contradictory feeling that a good holiday whizzes by, yet feels long when you look back.”
It follows then that the more often we experience change (and the more dramatic the change), the longer our lives will seem.
As a personal anecdote, I remember moving a lot as I grew up. It seemed like every few years my family would move to a new location. Sure, I never had the chance to establish roots anywhere, but I think I got the better end of the bargain: a brain constantly exposed to new people, locations and things.
And because it happened every few years, I remember each location uniquely and vividly.
This is in stark contrast to many people I’ve met who’ve spent their whole lives in the same neighborhood or working the same job. Ask them about the last 5, 10, or 20 years and it’s a blur of sameness.
The question isn’t one of right or wrong, or living a good life or a bad one, or anything like that – the question here is: would you rather have vivid, positive memories throughout your life (and continue to create new, remarkable memories, or would you rather be the person who brings up his high school football highlight reel 20 years later?
So if you want to lengthen your life (or at least the perception of your life), go on more adventures.
If you want to take it one step further and not just lengthen the perception of life, but actually add years to your life, then go on physically strenuous adventures (consistently).
Not only will your life seem longer, you’ll have more years to create new, meaningful memories.
Will going on adventures make you smarter, improve your memory, and increase your lifespan?
The research suggests it will.
But it comes at a price.
There’s something I didn’t mention earlier but would be remiss not to mention at all: going on adventures, traveling, exploring, creating, learning - these things are fun, exhilarating and enlightening in their own right, but they do come at a price.
Discomfort.
Everything new is uncomfortable. It has to be by its nature.
And that’s the rub – if you want to live a life of adventure, you need to get used to discomfort.
Sounds easy enough to deal with, but how many people do you know who’ve avoided taking action, avoided trying something new, avoided starting something that might not work because the prospect of doing any of those things is, well, uncomfortable?
Probably more than you or I’d care to admit…
The silver lining: it’s never too late to start.
It’s never too late to try something new.
It’s never too late to change.
In the end, the choice – and the responsibility – is entirely yours.
Whatever you decide, I hope you make the right choice for you.
Be bold and keep creating.
(p.s. and go on more adventures)
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In fact, I must be.
Right now, as I write this blog post, I'm sitting outside a Starbucks in Boise, Idaho...
I'm thousands of miles away from most of my friends and family...
And I'm Homeless and unemployed.
That's right - no job, no predictable income, no home...
And I have no intention of trying to get any of those things back.
Crazy?
Maybe not as crazy as you'd think.
Let me explain...
You might be thinking that being homeless and unemployed is terrible.
After all, that's the scenario presented to us - no job, no home; it means you've lost everything, right? Pretty soon, you're running amok inside a fast food joint demanding breakfast for lunch, even after they stopped serving breakfast...
For some reason, I feel like that's Hollywood's (embellished) take on it. The reality is often much less dramatic.
And in my case, it's actually a little boring.
You see, I didn't lose everything. I made a conscious decision to give up certain things that weren't important to me. To simplify and streamline my life in a way that's congruent with what I want to do and who I want to be. To get rid of excess. To trim the fat, so to speak.
I didn't lose everything.
I have exactly what I need.
And now I have the opportunity to build whatever life I want.
It's a choice most wouldn't be willing to make.
But what good are talents if we keep them buried?
About 6 months ago I put my 2 weeks notice into my employer.
Two weeks ago I sold my car and most of my belongings.
Last week I packed up what remained and shipped it to the West Coast for storage.
This past weekend, I signed out of my unit for the last time and started driving across the country with my fiancee (we get married next month).
I have no conventional job prospects lined up. No massive savings account or trust fund to rely on while I 'get back on my feet.' No escape route if things go south.
I've burned the boat - there's no going back.
No more job. No more house. No more semi-monthly paycheck. No more job title. No more certainty...
In exchange, I get the opportunity to fail.
And that's all I've ever wanted.
Why does the opportunity to fail matter so much?
Because without the possibility of failure, there is no possibility of real success.
And real success is the only thing that matters.
Success means triumph. It means achieving what we set out to achieve. It means growing, expanding and advancing as an individual (and helping others do the same).
But if there's nothing challenging us, no roadblocks on our way to the top, no obstacles along the path, then success is hollow.
I'm sure just about any adult reading this could be the best 1st grade soccer player in the world. But what does that even mean? More importantly, why would it even matter?
The answer, of course, is that it really wouldn't mean anything (and it most certainly wouldn't matter)....
And so we need the prospect of real failure if we want the prospect of real success.
If we want to do something that matters - contrary to the classic expression - failure must be an option.
There's a very simple litmus test to determine if what you're going after has the possibility of real success (and thus real failure).
Does it scare you?
If yes, you're probably doing something that could fail.
Fear is a guidepost.
It let's us know we're headed in the right direction; it means we're doing something outside our comfort zone; it means we're challenging the conventional, safe and certain approach.
If you're fearless, you're probably playing 1st graders in soccer.
And that should be a signal for you to move in a different direction
So here I am in Boise, Idaho, enjoying an iced Americano and thinking about what's next.
Right now, we're on our way to the World Domination Summit 2013 (#wds2013) in Portland, Oregon. We started in Nashville, TN and after several days of cross country travel, we're almost here.
If you're not familiar, WDS is essentially a massive, 3-day conference on entrepreneurship, creativity and creating impact. Obviously, I'm a fan and supporter.
If you're there, shoot me an email and let's connect.
After the conference, my fiancee and I will be traveling up to Seattle to get married. Then we're taking a year long trip around the world. For about 12 months we'll be traveling the southern hemisphere (New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Chile, Peru, etc.).
While this sounds like a year long honeymoon / vacation, it's really not. We're traveling for a year but we'll both be working. We're just not working conventional 9-5 jobs that keep us tied down in a particular geographic location.
Instead, through conscious and calculated decisions (which I mentioned in the beginning of this article), we've created a lifestyle that is sustainable from anywhere in the world.
Believe it or not, this is possible.
Not only is it possible, I think it's necessary for any person hoping to survive in today's economy (a topic for another time).
So how can I sustain myself from anywhere in the world?
Through a number of projects:
Well, I’ve mentioned it before, but I’m going full steam ahead with my publishing company: Insurgent Publishing.
Insurgent Publishing is a boutique, creative publishing platform. That’s a clever way of me saying it’s a very small operation right now that focuses on bringing a specific type of content to a specific group of people, via non-standard methods (beyond simply publishing on Amazon, for example).
So what kind of content are we publishing and who is it for?
Well, if you’re a reader of my blog, you’re already savvy with the style of content I want to publish. Insurgent Publishing focuses on unconventional non-fiction. Like its namesake, it’s all about bringing insurgent ideas (i.e. the types of ideas that don’t fit the one-size-fits-all mainstream status-quo) to the attention of readers.
Some of my favorite books of all time include The War of Art by Steven Pressfield, Poke the Box by Seth Godin and Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon. I love these books. I read them several times a year. I’ve probably read each over a dozen times.
But there’s a problem – there aren’t enough mind-blowing books like this in the world.
What makes them unique is their brevity and power; they’re urgent, critical, and they demand action after you read them.
And they don’t fit a specific, conventional mold.
My goal is to find powerful authors (unknowns and well-knowns), creatively collaborate with them in order to break, build and design disruptive ideas, and publish them in beautiful ways for the happy few who want to read them.
Conceptually, I like to think of it like TED talks in book form (and with more depth).
It’s a company that won’t produce content for everyone. But I’m hoping it produces the right content for the right people.
The website isn’t complete yet. It’s taken me about 6 times longer than I expected (which, ironically, I DID expect). I’m hoping to have it up and running this August.
If you enter your email on the home page of the under-construction Insurgent Publishing website right now, you’ll get lifetime discounts on everything we ever publish…(everything - forever).
My way of saying thank you for taking a chance.
*NOTE: if you're a writer, designer or artist and would like to collaborate on a project and get your work published, shoot me an email (tom @ tommorkes.com)
I’m also in the exploration, research and note taking phase of my next book.
I’m hoping to take the same easy to read, urgent style from my book “The Art of Instigating” (get it free by joining the Resistance) and apply it to the topic of “Courage” – what it is, how it works, and how we can cultivate, learn and teach it.
In the book Decisive, by Chip and Dan Heath, we’re given a framework for how decisions work, and how, ultimately, to make better decisions in life. It’s a fascinating and useful book as it helps the reader gain clarity before making a decision. I highly recommend it for those curious about the brain, psychology, and/or marketing – or for people who simply want to make better choices in life.
But it left me wondering: what about the choices in life that are already crystal clear, but the right choice leads you down a path of uncertainty, pain or even death? Or the wrong choice leads you down a path of safety, security or fortune?
How do we make those choices?
While not the entirety of the subject, I consider this an important microcosm of courage as a whole – the ability to make the right choices in life, even if it means sacrificing our comfort, happiness or even our lives.
I hope this gives you a little insight into my thoughts on (one aspect of) the matter.
Would love to hear what you think – and what you’d like me to explore in the book: courage in business, perhaps?
Or possibly courage in writing, art or entrepreneurship? Anything goes – just email me – I’d love to start a conversation.
My podcast In the Trenches may be put on hiatus once I start my international travel.
That’s not to say it’s dead – it would just have to be put on pause. I’m hoping that’s a worst case scenario and the places I travel will allow me the internet access I need to upload and create this type of content. I’m also hoping traveling will expose me to even more awesome people around the world doing great things so I can interview them for the show.
So I’m not sure what will happen with In the Trenches…but if you want it to continue, you should write a review and rate the podcast on iTunes.
The only way this podcast or blog spreads is through word of mouth. Thanks to all those who have spread the word already – and thanks in advance to those who help spread the word in the future.
So, again, please leave a review on iTunes if you want In the Trenches to continue!
I also have a few other (super secret) projects I’m working on with several different people in various fields.
I was just brought on as a project manager for a small, potentially disruptive, startup. Excited to see just how quickly this company can grow and dominate its niche. I hope to share more details after we launch.
I’m in the works with a partner to develop a new online sales platform (apologies for the purposefully vague description). It has the potential to be huge, and I have no doubt we’ll be able to develop it into a successful platform – but it’s going to take some hustle. We’ll be bootstrapping the project using the lean startup approach (i.e. iterative testing until we find a product/market fit). Again, as soon as we have a working product you’ll be the first to hear about it.
I’m also expanding my business consulting services. It’s not for everyone, but if you’re a bootstrapper or a solopreneur looking to make sales (or start making MORE sales), or an author who wants to make money from his or her writing, you should definitely connect with me.
This is limited and I can’t accept everyone.
So shoot me an email and we’ll see if it’s a good fit for both of us (a caveat: I only work with hustlers who are totally committed – fence sitters need not apply).
Along with all this, I’ll continue to write for the Resistance.
Expect the same great writing as always sent directly to your inbox (plus behind the scenes stuff exclusive for subscribers).
While difficult to keep up the pace of multiple quality articles a week, I intend to do it for as long as I’m capable.
And I'll continue to create free and pay what you want content.
If you enjoy my work and want to contribute, the best way is to grab my pay what you want products and treat me to a cup of coffee or something.
Here are a few of my products you might enjoy:
The Gunslinger's Guide to Starting and The Gunslinger's Workbook - Start, finish and ship your project in 30 days or less
Putting on Your Brain Goggles - become more creative instantly
2 Days With Seth Godin - I went to a 2 day seminar/conference w/ Seth Godin. Here's everything we talked about (consider this material gold for entrepreneurs and writers)
Thank you so much for contributing to my creative work.
Well, that’s it for today.
Hope it was enjoyable to read a bit more about me and what I’m up too. More personal than I usually get (and, thus, slightly uncomfortable for me to write), but I hope you enjoyed it.
Leave a comment below to let me know what you think.
And of course...
This is Tom Morkes. If you’re reading this, you ARE the Resistance.
In my previous post, I wrote about great work.
Great work is impactful work – the kind that resonates with a person (or a million people) for years to follow.
The sole criteria for determining great work is impact, and that’s specifically and uniquely determined by the person or people experiencing the work.
If you impact just one person, you’ve created great work.
So how do we impact just one person?
In my article on bootstrapping a business, my #2 tip was this: know your why.
But this isn’t a tip just for bootstrappers, it’s for everyone in life who wants to make an impact.
Why do you do what you do?
Why do you create?
Why do you sweat, bleed and suffer everyday over your work?
These are the questions we, the audience, the readers, the experiencers of your work care about. We don’t care what your product or service does until we know why you’re doing it.
“People don’t buy what you do – they buy why you do it.” [Simon Sinek]
Think about it: no one wants to be swindled.
As the consumer, the first thought we have when we encounter another person is if he or she is the real deal, if what they’re offering is legitimate and authentic.
The only way to assuage our fears is by telling us your why.
When we know your why, we’re on board.
If your why is nonexistent or superficial or doesn’t resonate with us, we move on to the next project.
And in a noisy world full of projects, moving onto something other than what’s being offered is very, very easy.
This next step is simple:
Once you know your why, live your why.
If you create art to make people happy, make your happy art every day.
If you take care of those who can’t take care of themselves, take care of them every day.
If you build products that change people’s lives, build life changing products every day.
You might be thinking this is so simple it’s not even worth mentioning.
But living your why cuts both ways...
When you live your why, you can’t cut corners anymore:
You can’t cut ingredients to increase margins.
You can’t cut out the personal interaction to scale your company.
You can’t cut effort to take on more projects at one time.
In the movie Watchmen, the upstanding, idealistic Rorschach is offered a chance to save himself but compromise his integrity in the process.
Rorschach’s response:
“Never compromise. Not even in the fact of Armageddon.” [Watchmen]
Maybe we're not superheroes and life's not a movie, but the principle applies:
If you want to do great work, if you want to make an impact, then you need to know and live your why.
And that means never compromising – not even in the face of Armageddon.
Simple…not easy.
Do you really need more money in your bank account before you can create something worthwhile?
Do you really need to develop a routine before you can start making something great?
Do you really need more time in the day before you can dare boldly?
Or is it possible that you can create something worthwhile regardless of the number of zeros in your checking account; or that by making something great you create the routine you need; or that just maybe ‘no time’ is precisely the right time to dare boldly…
Writing a book, building a business, creating something without permission – these things are hard to do and they’re plagued with setbacks and failure.
Of course, the enemy knows this and uses it against us. Excuses are just another tactic used by the enemy to stop us from creating our life’s work.
But like anything the enemy throws at us, we can overcome it.
We can prepare ourselves by recognizing these universal truths of creation:
I promise you this – there are a million reasons you shouldn’t start today, why tomorrow works/feels/seems better – but none of these reasons matter. They don’t keep you from doing the work: you do.
With a simple choice, right now, you delay building your worthwhile project.
Or, with the same simple choice, right now, you begin building your empire.
The choice is yours every day.
There will never be a perfect time, place, or set of companions for you to begin your journey.
There will always be mountains to climb, swamps to traverse and dragons to slay.
This isn’t a reason not to start, it’s the reason you MUST start - otherwise there is no journey, no hero, and no story worth telling.
The crazy reality of life is this: it isn’t training. This isn’t a sparring competition getting you ready for the actual fight.
This is it.
This is the real thing. This is the main event. You were born into it. You have one life to live - no do overs, no second chances.
So you have a choice: fight like hell or throw the match.
Either way, you’re going to take a hit (many hits, actually).
While it might seem like throwing the match, which requires less of your energy and strength up front, is the easier choice, the fact is this: you’re going to take way more hits throwing the match than if you stand your ground, keep your gloves up, and hit back.
And I’m sorry to say but opting out to spectate or referee isn’t an option. You might not like it, but that’s the reality.
So how will you fight?
Is by starting.
Start right now. Not tomorrow, not next week - right now.
Now is the best time for you to start; now is the best place for you to begin your journey; now is the best way for you to climb the mountain and slay your dragon.
It’s not easy, but let’s be honest: would you have it any other way?
Good luck and keep fighting.
We all have them.
Not just the kind when we sleep, but the more important ones – the ones we have when we’re awake.
They come to us when we’re driving home from work, when we go for a long run, when we reminisce over war stories with an old friend.
These dreams usually spark something deep within us. They excite something dormant; something we didn’t know existed…at least for a moment.
In most cases, as quickly as they come, they go; they pass through us unscathingly, with us no worse (or better) for wear.
But sometimes…
Sometimes they come and hit us like a ton of bricks.
That feint twinge of excitement in our gut becomes a blinding vision of what could be…
The image is crystalline; the emotion is palpable; we see everything as if for the first time, with brilliant clarity and gratitude.
The dream isn’t a dream any longer – it becomes something tangible, something that physically moves us.
It scathes us and leaves a mark, for better (or worse).
But even the exhilaration, the rush of an epiphany fades.
And we’re left stuck in traffic, or struggling with an incline, or realizing our stories are mostly embellishment now…
All people experience something like this at some point in their lives. It might not happen with quite the same intensity, but every person experiences moments of understanding, appreciation, and possibility followed by a fall back into reality.
And the majority will go back to work the same way as they did before the dream. They will lay bricks for a day’s wage.
It’s the reasonable thing to do.
It’s the realistic thing to do.
Dreams are silly anyway - real life matters more...
The majority will, but not everyone.
A few will go back to work differently.
Their actions will take on the power of purpose, their goals the strength of intention. They won’t lay bricks for a day’s wage, but to build their own castle.
It’s the unreasonable thing to do.
It’s the unrealistic thing to do.
But dreams matter – sometimes more than real life…
“Then all I can say is that, in that case, the made-up things seem a good deal more important than the real ones.” [The Silver Chair]
What will you do with your dreams?
p.s. let us know in the comments what you're working on - and more importantly, why you're working on it. We want to hear!
p.p.s. Subscribe to The Resistance Broadcast and get the help you need to complete your worthwhile project, build your empire, and create your life's work.
It’s simple enough to understand that you must instigate to be successful.
It’s much more difficult to put this understanding to use.
And if our logical conclusions aren’t actionable, what’s the point?
Here are a few quick tips I’ve compiled from some extremely clever, creative and successful people on how they created great works (everything from successful blogs, to best-selling books and cashflowing startups).
Note: I took the liberty to elaborate on their original ideas. If you discovered a different but noteworthy lesson that I didn’t cover, let me know in the comments below!
I hope this helps (I know it’s helping me as I start on my next major book project and an even more epic business project - more updates on that later).
Enjoy
Credit: Al Pittampalli (successful entrepreneur and author of Read This Before Our Next Meeting)
In a compelling and insightful interview I did with Al Pittampalli (compelling and insightful because of Al, not my interviewing skills), Al explained the first draft of his book came off a little stiff and lacked personality.
Al knew he needed to find his own voice, so he looked for inspiration and found it, of all places, in the movie Jerry McGuire. There is a scene in the movie where Jerry, the protagonist, has an epiphany and stays up all night to write a manifesto on his business.
Al did a quick search online and found the actual manifesto (a bit of trivia: the writer of the script, Cameron Crowe, actually wrote out a full length manifesto to help Tom Cruise get into character on the movie set). After reading the manuscript, he knew it was the perfect style for his book.
“Why don’t I try, instead of using my own voice, to use Jerry McGuire’s voice.” [Al Pittampalli]
For the next several weeks, Al woke up early in the morning (3am) and pretended to be Jerry McGuire as he rewrote his book.
Instead of losing his voice, he was able to refine and develop his own.
Thanks to just a bit of inspiration-seeking, we now have an incredibly powerful book that is uniquely Al.
Credit: Hugh MacLeod (artist and author of Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity)
The most creative, ambitious, and daring ideas are, by their nature, personal. So friends, family, and peers can’t help you.
Nobody can understand your art or your project better than you. You know your art deeply and personally; others only see the surface.
The more mad or bold the art, the less likely someone can give you good advice on what to do, how to do it, or if you should even attempt it in the first place.
“The more original your idea is, the less good advice other people will be able to give you.” [How to Be Creative]
Instead of asking for advice, go make your project or art the way you want it made.
Credit: Tom Morkes (yea, I'm crediting myself - that’s how I roll).
I’ve listened to hundreds of podcasts, read hundreds of books, absorbed a lot of information from a lot of different people, and put it all to work in various ways throughout my life, including during active duty military service. You might expect there’s a unifying technique on how things ought to be done if you want to be successful.
The truth is – there isn’t.
Some writers wake up early– others work better midnight to dawn; some leaders yell a lot, others are quiet and contemplative; some entrepreneurs develop multiple businesses simultaneously, others only one and focus their entire energy behind it.
Every single writer, designer, artist, entrepreneur, leader and warrior has his own rituals, schedule, and techniques; no two share the same.
So the point is this: If you’re stuck, don’t worry about figuring out whether Twitter is better than Facebook is better than Pinterest is better than whatever for conversion.
Focus on what matters: the work only you can do, in the way only you can do it.
There’s no one right answer; only a bunch of imperfect solutions.
You won’t know which is best for you until you start (finish, and ship).
Go instigate.
p.s. what are your best creative hacks to get unstuck and kick start your project? Let us know in the comments below!
When my thoughts beckon my tired body homeward I will resist the temptation to depart. I will try again. I will make one more attempt to close with victory, and if that fails I will make another. Never will I allow any day to end with a failure...I will persist until I succeed. [The Greatest Secret in the World]
If you could create one habit this new year, what would it be?
How powerful would it be if you created the habit of ending your day with a victory?
How many pages would you write this year?
How many sales would you close?
How much weight would you lose?
Whether in business, family, spiritual, or creative life, ending the day in victory has great power.
Forgot to write today? Finish one sentence before you go to sleep.
Was your day unusually busy and you missed your workout? Do a 3 minute workout of the day before you head to bed.
Were you unable to close a sale? Send off one more email or make one more call before you call it a day.
It's as simple as that:
Don't end the day in failure. End in victory.
Don't go to sleep until you have succeeded in completing the thing you promised yourself you would finish.
Keep your promises: especially the ones made to yourself.
And if you think one sentence, a simple 3 minute workout, or a single call won’t make a difference - it does.
Remember, it’s the small, tiny actions we take every day that create our empires.
Nothing is trivial when it comes to creating your life’s work – the greatest novel is composed of thousands of single words; the greatest athlete is the product of individual repetitions; the greatest salesman is nothing more than the accumulation of thousands of calls.
Never end the day with failure.
End the day in victory.
Persist until you succeed.
Never fight alone: Join the Resistance.
It takes guts to create something from scratch.
It takes guts because you’re in uncharted territory.
If you’re inventing, designing and building something from the ground up – from idea to physical, tangible product – there is no template to follow.
It takes guts because your project might fail.
Your product (or service, or initiative, or speech) might not live up to your expectations, or receive the type of praise you hoped for. The marketing campaign might not drive sales like you planned. Your startup - regardless of the time spent planning and preparing - may lose money from day one and never turn around.
(*This is a graph of the statistics from Small Business Trends. The graph includes self-employed persons, so actual startup company failure, as most entrepreneurs understand the concept, may be more severe)
It takes guts because you’re exposed.
As soon as you put pen to paper, you’re opening yourself to others. When you finally push the publish button – on your first self-published novel, or that terrifying first blog post – anyone in the entire world can see it. When you push the publish button, you can't hide behind anything anymore; that's scary.
But most of all, it takes guts because making something and taking ownership of it opens you up to criticism.
It is fear of criticism – from peers, or family, or “others” – that we fear the most; that keeps us from doing our meaningful work.
Sadly, since birth, we’ve been programmed to avoid criticism at all costs (is it any wonder the most common fear is speaking in front of an audience?). To avoid criticism, all you have to do is make nothing and take ownership of nothing. To avoid criticism: hide.
And that is exactly what most people do.
Instead of starting something new, they stay with the pack and uphold the status quo.
Instead of trying something bold, they ignore the impulse and quietly go back to work.
Instead of speaking up, they stay quiet.
And months and years later, these same people will complain about the same inequalities, and hardships, and daily tribulations that they’ve always complained about (but more bitter).
They had the chance to instigate.
They chose not to.
And then there are the few who do start something new, or try something bold, or speak up when the rest are silent. These people are the movers and shakers – the people we remember and the companies, products, and services we talk about.
Drew Houston, CEO and founder of Dropbox, designed the digital storage platform because he wanted to solve a problem that others hadn’t yet been able to solve. He built Dropbox into one of the fastest growing companies in Silicon Valley and turned down a multi-million dollar acquisition offer from Apple.
Phil Libin, CEO of Evernote, spent years building the company to the (ridiculously enormous) size it is today, all without an exit plan. He has no plans to sell out to another company. Or, as he puts it, there is no exit plan for your life’s work. Incredible.
Jonathan Fields (author of Uncertainty) created a whole new platform to bring entrepreneurs, instigators, artists, and change makers to the rest of the world. The content is brilliant.
Scott Dinsmore created Live Your Legend (referencing the transformative book The Alchemist) to inspire others to live a life of purpose ON purpose. His writing inspired me – it might just inspire you.
These people all have one thing in common – they all draw their own map.
They didn’t wait for permission from someone else – they developed their own ideas into successful, tangible products and services. They each created their own reality around the things they care about. Whether it’s solving the problem of digital storage or figuring out a way to inspire people to find and live their passion, each person here has done something important, bold, and unique.
So the question is this: how do you plan to draw your own map? What is holding you back? In what ways can you instigate change in your own life (or work or play)? Share your thoughts below.
When the choice is to lose an hour of sleep or finish that proposal for a new client, what do you choose?
We all understand crunch time - refocusing and re-energizing our work to meet a deadline.
But let's say there is no deadline - that the only deadline is your life expectancy. Could be tomorrow, could be 70 years from now. When will you start on what matters most?
"You might well remember that nothing can bring you success but yourself."
Napolean Hill
Can you sacrifice an extra hour of sleep in the morning to wake up early to create?
Can you wake up before a full day of work at the robot factory and spend 5 minutes on your most important task of the day? What about 60 minutes?
I've heard one idea repeated over and over by renowned businessmen and women, writers, artists, entrepreneurs, leaders, and all around instigators. The idea is so simple it’s almost underwhelming, but, when implemented, it has the power to build empires.
The idea is this: wake up early and focus on your most important work first.
Earl Nightingale encouraged waking up early to reflect - it's the only time of the day to achieve true quiet.
Brian Tracy explains that all successful people wake up just a little bit earlier than other people to start the important work for the day.
Seth Godin, before he does anything else, writes (and has thousands of blog posts and 13+ award winning books to show for it).
Ford woke up early and invented the model-T.
Edison woke up early and invented the light bulb.
Steven Pressfield wrote three books on the topic of doing the work, day in and day out, no matter what.
The list of examples could go on for pages.
So how much is that extra hour of sleep worth to you? You're tired, so why not sleep to the last possible minute before you MUST get up and go to work...
After all, we've trained ourselves to procrastinate, haven't we? To not act until right before the deadline?
Here's the thing: the deadline you’re waiting for before you take action – it will never come.
Nobody will ever tell you when your important work is due. Nobody will set a deadline for you.
So when you eventually reach your final deadline, will you be left with something to show for it, or will you be one of those people who always wanted to travel around the world, or always wanted to write that novel, or always wanted to start that project that would change everything?
Life is short. You don't know how short. Don’t be an always wanted to person. Act as if the deadline is tonight.
Instigate before it’s too late.
Too many options...
That's the problem we have now.
Too many options.
20+ years ago, that wasn't the problem. There was a bottleneck of information, production, and distribution. That bottleneck created scarcity. Those who controlled the land, factories, or people decided what would be created and what shipped.
Not now.
You don't have to wait for the producer to give you the go-ahead.
You don't need to get the publisher's approval.
For virtually no cost, you can create your own ebook and sell it online. If you want to create a hardcover copy, you can do that too - again, for no up-front fee (Amazon's affiliate Createspace does just that). Want someone to fabricate a product for you, produce it in bulk, and ship it to a warehouse where another group of people can manage the fulfillment and distribution? A completely hands-off, automated business is completely possible with the click of a mouse (and some hard work, of course).
All this leads to more access. Not only access BY the consumer, but access TO the consumer.
We now have access to become the producer. All of us, at least potentially, are producers in this new economy.
This is unprecedented.
Our problem now isn’t distance, or cost, or other seemingly insurmountable issues of the past.
Our problem now is one of choice.
It's not who will let me, it's who can stop me?
This is the new economy (covered at length in Chris Anderson's incredible book The Long Tail). The choice is in our hands to produce what we want. We can't complain any longer about something not being right or not being good enough. The burden is on the end user - because the end user is now the producer.
If you don't like it, fix it. If it's not good enough, create something better.
Want to reach your clients from across the country? Build a website and post daily workouts for them virtually. Wish your cutting board had a place to hold your knife or a way to channel the food into the bowl? Why not invent and produce an entire product line from scratch? The options are infinite.
This doesn't apply to neurosurgery, but the truth is it applies to a lot more than you might imagine.
We have the responsibility to be producers (now more than ever).
What will you create?