Build These 2 Things To Do Anything In Life

Let’s debunk the misconceptions around attaining many things in life, including building your own side project and growing your career.

I’m often asked how I come up with and execute all the ideas I have for my blog, newsletter, podcast and basically the brand I’ve built over the last half a decade-ish.

To my surprise, many people seem to believe that I’m some kind of well-educated and connected person with some sort of secret advantage that allows me to do these things.

Yet in reality, the truth is not quite so sexy.

If you think you can’t create your own side project or can’t make that career change because you need some kind of formal education or access to secret networks, then I have some home truths for you.

There is nothing extraordinary about me.

🧠 I’m not the smartest – academia has never been my strong point.

📣 I’m not the loudest – I’m a natural introvert so networking can be an odd experience for me.

👤 I don’t have bulletproof confidence, I’m just like everyone else.

💨 I’m not the fastest to capitalise on opportunities.

But, I do have two things and these two things are what I believe are the most important traits we all need to do anything in life.

Will and Discipline 

I may not always have the skills but I have the will to learn and grow.

I have built the discipline to keep doing what needs to be done to achieve my aspirations, no matter what they are. I know that everyone else can do this if they’re clear on the rules of the Game Of Life.

The Navy Seal commander Jocko Willink said the now famous phrase “Discipline equals freedom” and I wholeheartedly believe that.

You don’t have to be the smartest or the loudest but you can always be the hardest worker in the room. Like you, I’m just another human doing the best I can.

But, relying on qualifications, connections or any other advantages (whether fair or unfair) is not enough to operate through the world we navigate for the rest of our existence.

No matter where you are now, you can build something of your own. It doesn’t need to make you rich, build a massive network or allow you to ditch the 9-5.

So, from one complex human to another – believe in the enormity of the possible.

Will and discipline could take you further than you imagine, and these are the things that have personally allowed me to build the multiple careers I have today and that of many other people I know too.

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