The Importance of Bullet-proof Systems
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Many make this mistake today's blog post is about. Don't be one of these.
Before getting into the topic - why do many make this certain mistake?
Most want success now. At this moment. And don't want to wait for 50 years.
Sure, some don't have 50 years left to live - so in that case it's understandable.
But many of you have at least 10 years left. Most of you, have 20-70 years left. At least.
Human longevity is a thing I'm interested in - and how fast the healthcare industry is developing.
It could be that you live for another 100 years. Or more. Some believe that the first human has been born who will "never die".
Some experts believe we already have the ability to not die - as we can reverse the age of our cells with oxygen therapy.
Plus many other things have emerged in the last few years: Stem-cell therapy and so on.
I find this fascinating. And I believe many of us will live longer than we think.
BUT - it's, of course, not guaranteed.
You still have some time here. Nobody knows how long. But probably still quite long.
Probably longer than you estimate.
Today, I wanted to write to you about a part of success that many don't talk about:
Planning and designing systems for a lifetime.
Today I'll guide you through how you can make sure your systems are bullet-proof. And why it's important they are.
I'll go through 3 steps:
1) Why this can be the thing that brings you success?
2) Importance of bullet-proof systems
3) Evergreen skills - what are they and why get them?
Let's start:
1) Why this can be the thing that brings you success?
Harrison Ford is one of my favourite actors. (He starred in Star Wars and Indiana Jones to name a couple) - but how he became successful is a beautiful story. And most don't know of it.
Many think people like him, Samuel Jackson and Charles Darwin got success fast. But that was not the case.
Samuel Jackson was successful when he was 46. When he starred in Pulp Fiction.
Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species at 50.
Ford had to wait until his mid-30s. But how he persevered - is so cool.
Overnight success
Ford wanted to be an actor. But becoming an actor - or achieving any other dream for that matter - isn't easy.
We all see those "overnight successes", don't we?
Some of us, are intelligent enough to know those didn't happen overnight.
Actions stack up little by little. By compounding.
But some reach a level of success in their 20s. And heck... some in their 10s.
But this is not the case for most people.
And those who get it early might even be at a disadvantage. Why?
They got used to success fast and didn't need to persist for as long as most. This makes them more fragile.
When storms come - it's more likely they're the ones to sink.
Most people need to wait until their 30s, 40s and 50s to get success. Some even longer. But the only way to keep going is to persist. And not give up.
But this sometimes is hard. What makes it harder?
If you haven't designed your plan and systems for a lifetime.
Ford noticed he couldn't support his family, his then-wife and 2 kids, by acting. But he knew, maybe one day he could.
He saw a ton of other youngsters in their 20s hopping to Hollywood hoping to make it. But he knew something that most didn't...
To play it long-term.
When he noticed he couldn't support his family, he became a carpenter.
Then he didn't need to take crappy gigs anymore. He could choose.
“Through carpentry, I fed my family and began to pick and choose from among the roles offered.”
“I could afford to hold out until something better came along. But I never gave up my ambition to be an actor. I was frustrated but never felt defeated by my frustration.” - Harrison Ford
While working for Universal Pictures, he met his biggest cheerleader; Fred Roos. He got fascinated by Ford's talent and started to recommend him everywhere.
Despite this, Ford only got 3-4 films in 8 years while working as a carpenter.
But Ford wasn't just any carpenter. He worked with famous celebrities from jazz stars and authors to people working at the films. Roos being one of them.
This was his biggest advantage in my eyes:
1) He got to sustain his dream by being a carpenter - and
2) He got to know people in the film industry better - as they were his clients.
1973 came around. Ford's breakthrough. He landed American Graffiti by George Lucas.
Who was the film's casting director? Yep, Roos.
The film was a major success. But didn't actually improve Ford's position much. He continued as a carpenter.
BUT - he had impressed Lucas - and Francis Ford Coppola who produced American Graffiti.
Then his real breakthrough came. He won an audition for Star Wars.
He was offered a job. Ford was happy. But Roos kept rooting for him to get the role of Han Solo.
And he got it. How did he land it? With his humour. Not his acting skills exactly - although he was talented.
Lucas had asked Ford during the audition: "You know this is about spaceships, flying, things like that – you know how to fly?
Ford fast replied: “Fly? Yeah. Land? No."
Lucas said this was the moment he landed the role.
In 1977 Star Wars was released. And there was no turning back.
He still didn't pocket much money. Only $10,000 for the entire role. But he went on to make Indiana Jones with Lucas which made him insanely popular.
Today when I'm writing this, Ford is 81 years old. And he still is in big roles in movies. He starred in his last Indiana Jones this past summer.
Now, you know Ford's story. But how can you take and implement lessons from this in your own life?
2) Importance of bullet-proof systems
Make your systems last a lifetime.
Ask yourself: "How can I sustain chasing my dreams for 50+ years?"
That's how you get your first important answer.
Most won't stay in the game for that long.
I'm gonna take NFT space as an example.
In 2021 there was a gold rush. After Beeple's famous $69 Million sale at Christie's.
Every artist got interested in NFTs and Web3.
Some decided to hop to the gold - some did not.
Those who did - most likely made some sales. Maybe not a ton - but still some sales.
I saw lots of people making sales in 2021 autumn. Especially August and September were massive for collections.
The hype of collections was through the roof. Many collections sold out - and if not sold out - then many pieces got sold.
Many thought now they could "drop everything" and focus on Web3. But this wasn't the case, of course.
Sure, August and September were full-on hype. Every artist loves seeing their work sell, of course.
I released my own collection - The Unexpected Journey in October. I took a little longer to finish everything the way I wanted.
It sold out in 3 weeks.
I was one of the ones who thought I could do this full-time now. But then... actually on the exact day I sold out the collection, Ethereum started dropping.
And it kept dropping. And in January 2022, it crashed even more.
Many dreams got shattered. Many lost money. Many thought their dream career was now gone.
Sure, the hype was gone. Not as many sales happening anymore compared to the previous year.
2022 was more of a difficult year. But some sales were still happening. And some even reached their all-time-high sale prices, like I did.
Then... 2023 came around.
This year's been... tough. To be honest, that word doesn't describe how difficult it's been for many.
I can say from my end - I've not sold a single 1/1 artwork. The entire year.
I have hopes that it'll happen and am working on it. But the sales volumes are back at.... 2020 level. So very minimal. So it's harder. But doable.
I have sold some editions like many other artists have too. That's how many have tried to sustain their practice better.
But... when I go back and watch the replies to my tweets in 2021 - only a few remain from those times.
Most have left.
Why?
Well... I guess some got their money - and didn't believe it there was a future.
Some realized NFTs aren't the thing they want to invest their time into.
Then others, couldn't sustain themselves by being in Web3 trying to make sales.
Some had expected they could make more with NFTs. But they weren't able to. And now they had financial pressure.
Their plan wasn't made for 50+ years. They thought they could hit major success in months.
Now looking at the artists still at it, most:
1) are at a 9-5 job. It helps them to stay in the game for long enough - or
2) make some edition sales - helping them to sustain themselves a bit better.
Most aren't making crazy good 1/1 sales.
There have been some breakthrough artists this year. This has been because they've been able to stay in the game for long enough.
Think about all the scenarios.
What if you make 0 sales in 3 months?
What if you accidentally break your camera - and can't afford a new one?
What if... a partner or a kid of yours gets ill for a long time - and you need to look after them?
How can you sustain yourself to stay in the game long enough? And stay consistent?
You must have a bullet-proof system.
That's how you have a chance at reaching your dreams.
You never know how long it'll take you to reach your dreams. What are some skills that are evergreen that will last you a lifetime? And help you in many areas of life - that you can learn while chasing your dreams?
3) Evergreen skills
What are some evergreen skills you can develop? And never regret learning?
- Writing
- Marketing
- Sales
- Video
- Design
- Content Creation
- Public Speaking
- People Skills
You can't go wrong with any of these skills.
In the best-case scenario, you'd learn many of them. Because many of these, are required for you to get successful.
For example, if you want to be a successful artist, you need to:
- Be able to write about your art
- Be able to market your art
- Be able to sell your art
- Be able to design your art - or marketing content
- Be able to communicate with people about your art - and make them convinced it's worth investing in.
You need to stack skills to get where you want. You can't just master 1 skill and call it a day.
Those who combine many skills - are the ones who most likely see success.
For example, photographers Cath Simard and Reuben Wu:
Simard has mastered:
- Art
- Marketing
- Sales
- Editing softwares
And knows a ton about Hiking and outdoors to get the shots she wants.
Wu has mastered:
- Art
- Marketing
- Sales
- Editing Softwares
- Sound design
And knows a ton about outdoors - as he must - because he shoots outdoors.
These are just 2 examples. But can you see the patterns?
I'm learning new skills all the time. I have a big vision for my art project Tales of The North. But the reality is - I don't yet have the skills or resources to make everything I want happen.
The only way is to improve myself. And then be able to make more money.
The more valuable skills you have for society - the more the society will reward you for them.
(Many don't value owning art much - and that's why - many artists live poor.)
It's said it takes 10 years to master a skill. Think how good you can become at different things.
And waiting for your dreams to come true - might take long. Why not learn whilst on this journey - and also speed up the journey to your dreams that way?
If you had to choose one to master next, what should it be?
People skills.
People Skills are the most important evergreen skill. Why? Because everything is communication.
Marketing - you communicate with others.
Sales - you communicate with others.
Video - you communicate with others
People skills give you opportunities most don't get.
Think back to Ford. He got his breakthrough because of his People Skills - not just because of his talent.
People skills made the difference. And 99.9% haven't mastered them.
(Being extroverted isn't the same thing as being good at them.)
I want you to be able to get the best opportunities by having amazing People Skills. And that's why...
I'm hosting a live training this month on this subject - if you haven't already heard about it.
The enrollments aren't open forever. So if you haven't signed up yet - and want to reach the next level of your life - do so now that you won't be late.
Conclusion
Patience + skills = success
If you quit along the way, you have a 0% of chance being successful.
If you suck and aren't good enough, you have a 0% chance to be successful.
You need a combination of both.
Design your plan so that you can stay in the game for a lifetime. This is how you reach places most fail to.
Thank you for reading today's issue. It was much fun taking Harrison Ford as a case study as I love his work.
I hope you enjoyed reading this. :)
Here's the link once more to Social Mastery - the live training on People Skills.
(I'll also teach you how to be funnier - like Ford haha. Yes, I have studied how to be funnier, as cringe as that sounds. But it's important to be funny.)
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Till next time,
Hugo
