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Sometimes shortcuts turn into detours.
And then those detours turn into a path.
A path we just keep walking on.
Because as long as we're walking, it feels like we're making progress.
Unfortunately, that progress usually doesn't have anything to do anymore with our original path.
Those detours won't get us anywhere.
Other than maybe a place we never really wanted to go be.
Just because you keep walking doesn't mean you're getting closer to your destination...
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It's pretty much impossible to put yourself in someone else's shoes if you've spent your whole life in the same kind of shoes, being surrounded by people with the same kind of shoes, always doing the things that people in these kinds of shoes are doing...
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The moment when the rubber meets the road is often the moment you realize that you're sitting in the wrong car.
And sometimes you realize that you're not even sitting in a car at all.
But just because you decided to sit in it doesn't mean that you have to keep driving it all the way to the end...
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The really hard part isn't coming up with ideas.
The really hard part is to get your ideas out there.
To get them to spread.
And it doesn't really matter whether your ideas are good or bad.
Because no one really knows anymore what's a good idea and what's not.
Only the people, only the market knows...
But of course it's a lot easier to just blame our lack of ideas.
Because that's something we obviously (think we) cannot control.
"I don't have any good ideas. So of course I won't put myself, my ideas and my work out there. I will only do it once I have a good idea. Only a good idea is worth giving up all of this."
Needless to say that there aren't any good ideas.
Or bad ideas.
Because every idea consists of thousands of micro ideas.
And the only way to come up with those micro ideas is to put your big idea out there.
To see what happens.
Because those micro ideas are the things that will push your big idea forward.
Micro ideas are the ideas you come up with when your grand vision fails.
When everything you thought about the world turns out to be wrong.
When nothing seems to be working out.
That's when micro ideas start to happen.
Micro ideas can turn a seemingly bad idea into a good idea (and vice versa)...
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Whenever you talk to someone, disagree with someone, argue with someone or get into a fight with someone, it's very likely that the other person has experienced things you've never experienced.
Things you've never been through.
Things you've never felt.
Things you've never seen.
Things you've never heard.
Just like you've experienced, felt, seen and heard things that no one else ever has.
Which is precisely why it's so hard to really understand each other.
But just because it's so hard doesn't mean that we shouldn't try...
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There's the kind of lazy where you just lay on the couch, hang out and watch TV all day.
And then there's another kind of lazy.
A kind of lazy that's a lot more dangerous.
Because it doesn't feel like being lazy.
It's the kind of lazy where you're constantly doing things.
The busy kind of lazy.
Where you're doing things all day long, but at the end of the day you didn't really do a whole lot.
The kind of lazy where you're constantly busy checking notifications and messages.
And responding to requests.
The kind of lazy that pushes you away from the hard work.
From the important work.
The work that you know you should be doing.
But end up not doing because you're too busy.
And afraid...
And instead this kind of lazy pushes you towards the easy work.
The repetitive work.
The work you've already done a million times.
The familiar stuff.
The stuff where nothing can go wrong.
The kind of lazy that protects you from doing the things that might not work out.
The kind of lazy that helps you to hide from everything you're afraid of.
The kind of lazy that ultimately holds you back from doing all the important things that you know you should be doing.
This kind of lazy is a lot more dangerous than the laying on the couch kind of lazy.
Because it doesn't really feel like being lazy.
It feels like being busy...
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You can win on your own.
No doubt about it.
Or you can win by helping others to win.
One generates more winners than the other.
Which one do you choose?
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"I ran out of ideas."
"I ran out of breath."
"I ran out of time."
"I ran out of motivation."
That's when most people give up.
And that's where the real work starts.
When you ran out of pretty much everything...
An amateur shows up whenever he or she feels like it.
When it feels comfortable.
When it's the right time.
When everything is plentiful.
Unfortunately, this isn't the case so often...
A professional on the other hand shows up all the time.
Even, no especially when they don't feel like it.
When it feels uncomfortable.
When it's not the right time.
When nothing is plentiful.
And that's what makes the difference.
Between an amateur and a professional.
Unfortunately, doing all of the above doesn't automatically turn you into a professional.
But it's a good start...
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In your town there might be just a few really good designers.
Just a few really good writers.
Just a few shops.
Just a few people who know how to run a business.
On the other hand, if you go online there are millions of good designers.
Millions of good writers.
Millions of shops.
Millions of people who know how to run a business...
Everybody can go online.
That's why everybody is online.
And that's why the only chance you have online is to either be among the best at what you do or be the cheapest.
There really is no other choice.
The online world is brutal.
If you provide a generic service or product that millions of others are able to offer, if you don't stand out, then you'd inevitably race to the bottom.
A race you'll never be able to win.
As depressing as this may sound, there's also some good news...
If you do something unique, something that no one else is doing and if you consistently show up, then you'll automatically become the best at what you do and people will find out about you.
The only problem is that it takes a lot of guts.
And time.
And patience.
And persistence.
Something that we're constantly running out of...
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You can jump from one town, city, region or country to the next always offering the same thing, without ever really having to offer anything new.
Or you can try to dig a little bit deeper and figure out what else your customer might be interested in.
After all, once you've given your customer what she wants, it's basically over.
Here's the thing...
A customer that is willing to buy books online is likely to also buy other stuff online.
Just like a customer who is willing to subscribe to your gym might also be interested in nutrition related products or services.
Just like a customer who wants a logo designed from you might be interested in an entire re-branding offer for their entire company.
Just like a customer who is subscribing to a dating platform is likely to also subscribe to or buy other dating/marriage/child related services or products.
It sounds simple.
But of course, it isn't.
Because trying out something new takes guts.
It's challenging.
And it might not work out.
Whereas doing the same thing over and over again is the safest thing to do.
But it's just like they say...
Finding a new customer is a lot more difficult than finding something new for an already existing customer.
So once you have your foot in the door, don't close it.
And instead try to open it a tiny bit more.
Then more.
And then some more...
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About what we think that someone else should believe in.
About what we think that someone else should think.
About what we think that someone else should feel.
Because we're not someone else.
We're ourselves.
With our own thoughts, ideas, feelings, emotions, beliefs and experiences.
Just like everybody else.
And just like everybody else, we're someone else, too...
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Create something that's worth talking about.
Something that's more generous than most of the things out there.
Something that adds more value than it takes.
Do something that most people will never be able to do.
Something that's too much work for most people.
Something that might not work out.
Say something that most people are afraid of saying.
Something that challenges the status quo.
Something that might not resonate with most people.
Standing out isn't difficult.
You just have to get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable...
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Unless you care enough about it to put in the work, the hours, the days, the months and the years it takes to become really good at it.
And if you don't want to do that, don't have the time, the energy or the resources, then just keep doing what you're already really good at.
Because there's probably nothing in between.
Unless you find ways to somehow combine the two in ways that have never been done before...
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The hardest part is the one we usually tend to skip or postpone as long as we possibly can.
Unfortunately, the hardest part is almost always the most important part...
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The best marketing is to create something.
But not just to create it.
But to also put it out there.
It's as simple as this:
The more stuff you put out there, the more people will start to notice.
There really is no better way to promote your art, your work, your service or yourself.
Put out stuff as much and as often as you can.
Maybe even daily.
No matter how big or small it is.
No matter what industry or field you're in.
As long as it shows people what you do and what you stand for...
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You have a choice:
You can either try to sell to almost everyone and make around a dollar or so per customer and barely survive or you can try to sell to almost no one and make around a thousand dollar per customer and thrive.
The problem when you're selling to almost everyone for a dollar is that you'd automatically also be selling for a dollar to the very few people who'd be willing to pay up to a thousand dollar for what you have on offer.
Here's the thing...
A low price might be a good way to find as many buyers as possible, but it's a pretty bad idea if you want to survive.
So instead of focusing on making a dollar per customer, try to find the very few customers who are willing to pay a thousand dollar for what you have on offer.
Here's a hint on how you could do that...
Don't try to find customers that match your offer and instead try to find something that's worth more than a thousand dollar to very few people and then create it.
Sure, it sounds like it might not scale.
But at the end of the day, the only thing that scales is a profitable business that generates more value for its customers than it captures...
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It's very tempting to try to swim with all those big fish in the same tank.
After all, the big fish get to eat the most.
But the probability that you're going to survive as a baby fish in a tank full of big fish is close to zero.
So instead of trying to learn how to swim with all those big fish in the same tank, try to find a better tank.
Try to find a tank where you can grow into a big and strong enough fish first.
So that once you've learned what being a fish is all about and you're big and strong enough, then you can go and swim with all those big fish in the sea (if by then you still care about it)...
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The problem with opportunities is that they never present themselves as opportunities.
And instead they usually come disguised as inconveniences, threats, risks, uncertainties and improbabilities.
That's what makes it so easy to miss them.
To skip them.
To skip them and to just keep waiting for that once in a lifetime opportunity that will present itself to you.
That one big meeting.
That one big date.
That one big shot.
That one big race.
Those 15 minutes of fame.
Unfortunately, all of those things don't exist.
Because they're the result of dozens (if not hundreds) of inconveniences, threats, risks, uncertainties and improbabilities...
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Are easy to get, safe, predictable and give you instant gratification.
But make no mistake...
At one point everybody will be competing for them.
Until there are no more left.
Because everybody wants the safe thing.
The predictable thing.
The thing that gives you instant gratification.
Better to get an edge and learn how to climb those trees before everybody else will be busy climbing and learning how to climb those trees....
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Diversity is the past.
The present.
And the future.
Diversity creates new things.
It destroys and preserves the old at the same time.
It creates the unprecedented.
Diversity is the past.
The present.
And the future.
Don't fight it.
Live it...
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That's what they say.
But what about this?
Life's too short to be focusing on drinking (or doing) things just because other people tell you they're good.
Of course, the same applies to drinking (or doing) things just because you think that other people might approve of you just because of it...
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There are only people who have the courage to put themselves, their work and their art out there and then there are the people criticizing, the people who don't and probably never will put themselves, their work and their art out there. Which one do you want to be?
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You can sell the exact same product (or service) and some people are willing to pay $1000 for it while others aren't even willing to pay more than $10 for it.
For the exact same thing!
And the reason is very simple...
Because the value for the people who are willing to pay up to $1000 obviously exceeds the price of $1000.
Whereas the value for the people who aren't even willing to pay more than $10 obviously doesn't exceed the price of $10.
So at the end of the day the challenge isn't really to build a product/service that people are willing to buy.
The challenge is to find the people who get the most out of what you have on offer.
And that's a whole different story than to just find a group of people who are willing to buy.
It takes a lot more time, energy and resources.
Which is why the race to the bottom is so tempting.
And brutal...
P.S. Not surprisingly, the people who get the most out of your offer also get the most out of your offer. And the people who don't get any value out of your offer also don't get any value out of your offer. No matter how cheap you make it...
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What you do on a regular basis is who you become.
That's what they say.
The problem is that the negative things become a habit quite easily.
The things you skip but shouldn't be skipping.
All the things you shouldn't be doing...
They become the regular thing to do.
Unfortunately, the good things you do on a regular basis don't become a habit that easily.
Because the things that are good for you are usually the hardest things to do.
Like doing the things you know you should be doing.
Having those difficult conversations.
Eating healthy food.
Exercising.
Showing up.
Keeping promises.
This is all hard stuff.
And hard stuff never becomes the regular thing to do.
But it's the only thing worth doing...
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One year seems like a lot of time.
So it doesn't seem like that big of a deal to just skip one day.
Unfortunately, skipping just that one day often leads to skipping even more days.
Until there are not enough days left anymore.
One year is made up of 365 days.
Use them.
And don't lose them...
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If you never start, you'll never fail.
And if you never fail, you'll be able to be in love with your ideas longer.
Maybe forever...
That idea for a book.
For a company.
For a movie.
For a song
For a project...
If you never start, you'll never fail.
But of course this isn't true.
Because if you never start, you'll always fail.
You might not experience the pain of failure.
But you might experience the pain of regret some time later down the road for not even having tried.
The only possible way to avoid failure is to try...
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Safety.
Certainty.
Stability.
Predictability.
Security.
Is what we all crave...
Impact.
Creativity.
Innovation.
Flexibility.
Is what we wish we had more of...
Unfortunately, both at the same time are almost impossible.
As a matter of fact, one usually comes at the expense of the other.
Which one do you choose?
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Is what we usually tell ourselves when we're about to go to the next stage.
So don't try to fight it.
Don't tell yourself that you don't want to change.
That this is not you...
And instead, celebrate your old self.
Because your old self is the one that achieved everything you've ever achieved.
All of these great things.
Celebrate it, the things you've achieved, the things you've done and then say goodbye to it.
And welcome your new self.
The one that will help you to go to the next level.
Because if you don't, if you keep holding onto your old self, then you might end up holding onto your past.
Onto the things you've already achieved.
But then you'll rob yourself of the things you're still capable of achieving.
The things you're still capable of doing....
All of this has nothing to do with change.
And everything to do with going to the next step.
Don't fight it.
Embrace it...
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