Lost In The Journey?

For me, success isn’t about having the most money or taking the most vacations.

A lot of us feel anxiety when we hit our 20s. It is tougher when you see your friends doing well and on the surface, it can seem like they “made it.”

It’s easy to look at them and start auditing where you’re at in life, wondering why you haven’t made it yet.

It’s a tricky stage.

But the truth is, if you’re under 30, you’re just barely getting started.

A lot of people don’t understand how long life is. Many young people today will end up living beyond 100 years old — with most of those years being good, healthy years. That means if you’re 30, you’ve got about 60-70 more years of execution left.

You could start from zero now and do nothing right for the next two decades, you’d still have an entire lifetime worth of execution in front of you.

If you think about life like a football game, you haven’t even started the first quarter yet. You’re still playing the national anthem.

Even I feel like I’m just getting started, which is true.

Here’s some advice I have on how you can get to that same mindset:

Photo by Harrison Hargrave on Unsplash

1. Redefine What It Means To Win

People get anxious and envious because they define the “game” in the same way the world tells them to define the game.

The reason I don’t get caught in “keeping up with the Joneses” is that I don’t think buying more stuff is the indicator of success. When people ask me which people I look up to, my answer usually surprises them. I don’t answer with the cliche “Steve Jobs”, “Ben Carson”, or other successful people.

I’m inspired by people in the dirt. Normal people in average jobs who decide that they want to build something for themselves. People who don’t “get” Facebook or Instagram, but are determined to figure it out. People who have the humility to put in work in the face of judgement.

I don’t care if you have a big stuff. I don’t care if you’ve got a fancy gadget. I don’t care if you’re putting on big wear. That’s why it’s easy for me to not get jealous of people.

The reason it’s easy for me to stay in my head is because I’m able to contextualize. For me, success isn’t about having the most money or taking the most vacations. I’m playing a different game. You don’t have to play by the rules that other people set. And when you create the game in your own head, you can rig it in your favour every time.

2. Develop Patience By Setting Bigger Goals

Too many people are trying to become millionaires by arbitrary ages like 25 or 30.

Goals like that lead to short-term behaviour. If you’re in a rush trying to become a millionaire by 30, you’ll take shortcuts and chase fast money — which means you won’t be doing the right foundational work for your future. Or worse, you’ll hurt your reputation with the things you try to sell.

And when you don’t hit your financial goals “by 30” (or whatever age you set), you’ll have to “reset” at 30 all over again.

Your self-esteem would start messing with your head.

Instead, my advice is to go bigger.

My goal is to become the most impactful entrepreneur of this generation. That’s going to take me my whole life. That means I have to be patient. I have to go slower. I have to be more thoughtful and careful with my reputation.

And most of all, I have to work hard and enjoy the process — whether or not the results come.

3. Cut Out Negative People

One of the most painful things for people to do is cut out negative people.

That might mean cutting off your friend you’ve been hanging out with since first grade. It might mean breaking up with a partner. It might mean talking to your mom less often.

A lot of people understand this logically, but they don’t really “get” it.

It’s a difficult thing to do.

But one of the fastest ways that I’ve seen for people to build confidence is by hanging out with winners who fire each other up and cut out people who are dragging them down.

I am rooting for you. Don’t forget to share with others.