Hustle + Opportunity + Optimism = Luck
Hustle: Hard work – Knowing something is going to be hard, makes it easier. Setting realistic expectations will better prepare you to exceed them. Many people think getting lucky involves no hard work, but that’s a big misconception.
Opportunity: Hustle creates opportunity – if you hustle hard enough, people will notice you. They will want to associate with you, do deals with you, invest in you, partner with you, buy from you, or hire you
Optimism: Faith – The Bible defines faith as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” By this definition, faith is an essential element of the desires of our heart. It is part and parcel of having a dream because dreams rely on faith as it is a part of their very “substance” So if you haven’t reached your goal yet, it is paramount that you have complete confidence that you will. It will make all the difference in whether you do or not
Luck: When you hustle hard to create opportunities while always expecting to win, you generate luck. It doesn’t get any more technical than that. Luck is not about laziness, it’s not about sitting on the sidelines and expecting a handout. Luck is a hustler’s secret weapon. It’s the fruit of his labor. Uncross your fingers, and get to work.
Being Friends vs. Being Cool
We will look at the difference between the personal relationships you have with “friends” and the professional relationships you have with those you are “cool” with. As you matriculate through life and business it will serve you well to recognize the difference between the two.
“Be nice to people on your way up because you’ll meet them on your way down.” – Wilson Mizner
Being cool is being a person of value. Being resourceful and able to hook people up, make connections, give advice, and help bring increase to many lives. Yet, unlike being a friend, being cool involves expecting nothing in return. You do it because you care about being an asset, not because you’re interested in reciprocation.
Now, you may be getting confused because some aspects of being cool sound a lot like being friends with people. It’s true that some of the actions of cool people mimic the actions of friends, yet there is one key line of division: friends put their hearts on the line by being vulnerable and expecting each other to value, nurture and love to the same standard. Being cool, however, involves protecting yourself from potentially devastating disappointment by having no personal expectations of your business relationships. You will notice opportunities open up to you more when you embody this philosophy.
If someone didn’t return the favor you did for them, don’t take it personally. When you don’t get that speaking gig you’ve been emailing for even though you vouched for someone involved in the planning of the event, don’t take it personally. When you don’t get that investment in your company from a VC, don’t take it personally. That opportunity will return, or a better one will take place.
The Hater in Your Head
“They don’t want you to win” – DJ Khaled.
Even though DJ Khaled speaks of a THEY that exists in the world around him, THEY can be in our own head sometimes. That’s right, we can be our own hater.
People often create this false group of haters in their head, envisioning bad outcomes. We call this self-doubt. Doubting yourself is dream cancer. Especially since the biggest secret in the world is: Nobody knows what they are doing! But most of us think that there is always someone out there who has it “more” together than we do, so we count ourselves out before anyone else has a chance to
5 Ways to Clam Your Inner Hater
#1 Realize that you are not an impostor.
You really are as good as you think you are. When an entrepreneur reaches some level of success sometimes it’s hard for them to believe it. Even
It’s called Impostor Syndrome. This is an actual condition discovered by clinical psychologists in the 80’s. It’s used to describe individuals who aren’t able to accept their accomplishments. These individuals are always in fear they will get exposed at any moment for being a fraud. Sound familiar? Practice doing small celebrations when you do something. Accept your wins!
#2 Don’t compare yourself.
Everybody has the same color blood. Stop thinking you aren’t as smart as someone else you see being successful. The
Marcus Aurelius taught his students to take the swag away from people or expensive items in your mind. So fried chicken is simply a dead animal. Soda was just water with flavored syrup. See things and people as they are
#3 Develop the art of not giving a damn.
Some of us spend a lot of time stressing over things and circumstances that we have very little power over. For example, the opinions of others that we have no control over. The only thing you have control over is how much effort you will put into what you want to create. Do your best to deliver the best value in your hustle. After releasing to the public, take the constructive feedback and improve your product, and don’t sweat the small stuff
#4 Set Small Goals.
Small goals are smart goals. Many experts are now advising people to focus on the process goals (see chapter “Process Makes Perfect”) over large goals. Small goals help you to develop confidence early. Basketball coaches teach players to shoot near the hoop, to build up confidence before they take a long shot. Embody that same philosophy with goals, and you’ll be happier
#5 Keep a Positive Circle.
Positive attracts positive. Who you hang around has everything to do with your thinking. If you stay around negative people you’ll become a negative person. Your circle influences your inner thoughts. Not just your friends, but even your family. If you live in a toxic environment, consume as many positive experiences as possible. Also, don’t gossip. Gossip only feeds negative thoughts, or worse, it plants them in your head unnecessarily.
You Can’t Microwave Success
“Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.” – Aristotle
We see success stories online and think that it’s easy to become an entrepreneur. The people you see online are only showing the glamorous side of life. They don’t show the 100 hours of work, just the 40 hours of play. But it’s not just social media that makes millennials impatient, it’s traditional media too.
Deep down, many of us want to become unicorns. “Unicorns” is a buzz word used in the business world to showcase a wildly unusual success story. For example, the kid who gets one million users of his app overnight is a unicorn. The Flappy Bird creator who earned fifty thousand dollars a day off a mobile game is a unicorn. If you see these unicorns in the media so much, it’s natural for you to feel you can have the same level of success. And you can, but there’s a slim chance that it will share the same timing.
4 Ways to Build Your Patience
#1 Love What You Do
you’re going to stay on for the long game, you have to have passion. Steve Jobs famously said, “any rational person would give up.”
Passion will keep you patient.
#2 Think Bigger Than Money
Looking at nice cars, houses and women are great for daydreams, but in reality, success is more than material and status gains. Think about the legacy you want to leave behind, and that will fuel you to hold on longer
#3 Embrace Pain
You will struggle. Things will get rough. Change your perception of those moments to help motivate you. You might have heard the story of why golf balls have dimples. The dimples help create lift and allow the balls to travel 3 times farther than a smooth ball would. The dimples represent our struggle. If we don’t have them, we wouldn’t have the strength go anywhere.
#4 Learn What To Ignore
You know what triggers negative emotions for you better than anyone else. So when you are encountering experiences that spark feelings of jealousy, impatience, and anxiety, make a conscious effort to block them out. This action alone will give you the power to stay in the game.
#5 Build Great Habits: When you get into the rhythm of doing something, it can become second nature. In this case, get in the rhythm of doing small activities that lead toward your success. You’ll be more patient seeing yourself get closer each day, even if only by 1%.