It Doesn't Happen All At Once... Until It Does.
10 thoughts, ideas & creative finds on finding your zone of genius, learning finance and wealth outside the system & running your creativity like a business.
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The Rundown 9: Do the Opposite of Everyone Else… You Gain the Most Advantage, Creativity & Wealth
The Rundown 10: Not Waiting For Permission is the Fastest Way to Sovereign Wealth
The Rundown 11: The World Will Reward You For Standing Out Far More Than For Fitting In
Hey Everyone,
The Rundown — Here’s what I found over the course of this week that has helped me, inspired me or gave me some creative pushes…
On finding your zone of genius — According to Gay Hendricks in "The Big Leap," finding your Zone of Genius involves a few key steps and exercises designed to help you identify your unique talents and passions… one of them is working through 4 key questions.
— What do I most love to do?: Identify activities that you love so much that you can do them for long stretches without getting tired or bored.
— What work do I do that doesn’t feel like work?: Consider tasks that feel effortless and enjoyable, where time seems to fly by.
— What produces the highest ratio of abundance and satisfaction to time spent?: Determine which activities bring you the most satisfaction and reward for the time invested.
— What is my unique ability?: Recognize the unique skill or talent that sets you apart from others, something that you are exceptionally good at and love to do.
**If you need, I have a set of templates to help you with this in a FREE micro-workshop called, Get Paid For Your Genius (CLICK HERE)On patience and building the foundation correctly — “If you watch a house under construction, for the longest time, it doesn’t look like anything’s happening… The framing goes up quickly, but only because all the time and energy went into the foundation correctly. That applies to life. Nothing is happening until suddenly it is.” (—Rich Roll) — I think it’s so important to allow yourself the gift of time… we all go through it… especially if you really take time to make the foundation strong. So many people want the results fast, but that’s not life… if we want something we’re truly passionate about to last, we must build a strong foundation for it to do so… and we must remember that for years it may feel like nothing is happening but the truth is, something always is… 1% more everyday compounds until one day EVERYTHING happens… and we must be patient for that. The best part… with a strong foundation, everything that suddenly happens will be sustained.
On commitment to craft, greatness & God — “We need the creators, the thinkers and the doers. We need the people who don’t subscribe to the status quo but make everything around them better.” (—Matt Gottesman) — I did an Instagram post on this and I thought it would be a great reminder to all of you. Never let society try to box you in and categorize you by your titles or the type of work you do. We’re more than that… much. more. In fact, we need to spend a lot of time experimenting and creating new things because that’s where we realize our fullest potential. We’re here to leave behind our contributions.
On learning finances, wealth, crypto & money outside the “system” — “The problem with the system (schools, traditional institutions, etc) is that they want to teach you finance in a way that supports their own initiatives while making you their employee. In the age of the Internet, more information and education is available to do your own due diligence making you savvier than traditional institutions ever imagined possible… we’re all our own boss now.” (—Matt Gottesman) — I’m not saying you can’t learn anything from previous institutions, but I am saying that we were not told everything we should’ve been told regarding managing our finances, investing and earning wealth. I had to learn from a mentor, online communities, access to freely offered information… basically everything the Internet had to offer. Like everything, there can be good and bad information, but at least I have the ability to have access to ALL of it. Here are a few great accounts that you might find helpful: (*this is not financial advice, but it sure helps me).
—
— Rachael Camp, CFP
— Morgan Housel
— Michael Saylor
— InvestAnswersOn treating your creativity like a business — “Business savvy doesn’t diminish creativity, it amplifies it’s impact and sustainability” (—Matt Gottesman) — On a recent podcast, I talked about the false dichotomy of the “starving artist” and that anything creative we go into doesn’t mean we have to be broke. We actually have an obligation to treat our work with respect and value. It’s our responsibility to be more resourceful, figure out how to systemize our work to repeat great results, create more cashflow to reinvest into our art/creativity, and more — My latest podcast on this can be found here (APPLE, SPOTIFY)
On real “retirement” — “My goal is not to retire. My goal is to own my days and choose the projects I want to work on. My goal is to work from a mindset of impact, not money.” (—Rachael Camp, CFP) — You have options previous generations did not have so you’ll have to reimagine what your possibilities are. We have the ability to… make new ways to cashflow, work on projects that matter, find talented available resources anywhere in the world, learn about finance and wealth preservation, create our own distribution of goods and services in a fraction of the cost using the Internet and build a world of new ideas and communities. If you were to ever pursue your purpose, now would be your most opportune time.
On the “creatives” being in control — “A single TikTok, one, that one lady did, not them, not the agency, not an influencer they paid, a human made one video about some triple cheese thing they (Chili’s) got… made up 40% of their Q3 revenue… For the first time in the history of marketing, the creative, if it’s good, gets seen a lot, with no media dollars.” (— GaryVee) — I’ve been saying it for a long time… the future belongs to the creatives. Your organic posts, your authentic expression, your unique value… is what the people want, not the out of touch agencies, not the overly perfected impersonal VP’s of brand… the human is who the public wants… Buckle up, the next few years we’re going to see billion dollar 1-person brands.
On hitting the “publish” button — “If you don’t hit publish at some point, your entire potential will remain in drafts.” (—Cara Alwill) — There’s a unique balance between quality and quantity. Here’s how I approach it. I want to publish as much stuff as possible launching my best work at that moment. Does it mean it won’t get better? No, of course not. I want quantity to be the reason I reach better and better quality, and then my quality to be the reason I publish even more work. This amount is different for each person but ultimately, you don’t want to sideline yourself. Just publish your work and let it continue to grow. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a lot of drafts and no real feedback, community or impact.
On content consistency and not needing it to be perfect — “Do you want to learn how to do video and just be you? Do you have your phone on you?” (—Dan Martell) — When I write or do video, I never think of it as “content…” and that’s the key. I think of it as sharing my thoughts, ideas and perspectives… sharing my purpose with the world. When you put that into consideration, you’ll stop looking at it as social media and something you “have” to do and you’ll start looking at it as platforms you “get” to express your purpose to impact the world. Two very different perspectives.
Playlist — Coffee Break DJ Set - Chillout Jazzy Deep House Music Mix — A great playlist from @greataandru on YouTube of Chill House to work to… great for creating, designing, writing, computer work.
It Doesn't Happen All At Once... Until It Does.
Consistency, foundation, and iteration are everything.
You need to show up regularly — daily, if possible — as part of a dedicated practice.
You need to build with intention and patience to create something sustainable for the long run.
And you need to refine and evolve your ideas as part of mastering your craft and creativity.
This combination wins every time.
How long it takes may be uncertain, but the outcome won’t be.
Take the time to build something that can grow, scale, and make an impact.
Take the time to learn how to manage your health and finances so you can thrive in every area of your life.
Take the time to publish your work and share it with the world — it might just be the message someone else needs.
Take the time to master value creation and manage your creative business effectively.
The paradox of our time is this: we have more opportunities than ever, but also more responsibility and accountability for our own path and outcomes.
Your greatest ally in this information age is the compound effect.
Previous generations worked without guarantees. Our generation has the tools to make our work eventually work for us — but only if we commit to publishing and sharing as often as possible.
So, go create. Your future self will thank you.
– Matt
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