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Lessons from Nipsey: Being self-made means never making any excuses

In the week’s edition of our Victory Lap series, we dissect the lead single from Nipsey’s latest masterpiece.

The third track off the album for “Last Time That I Checc’d” is more than just an anthem dedicated to the West Coast.

Within it is a way deeper message. A coded language is hidden for entrepreneurs and hustlers to decipher.

Throughout the track, Nipsey Hussle preaches that the grind will be worth it in the end.

A vision & a plan

Having a vision is the first step to being successful. But don’t sleep, because, without a game plan, that vision is blind.

Nip gives us so many free gems off this record, reminding us to have our plan of attack mapped out before we jump into future endeavors.

Especially if we want to bring our vision to the life in our physical realities. Having a plan means your prepared for success. During an interview with NPR Nip said,

“I look at it like a blueprint. I understand art reflecting life, but we grew up on art instructing life, with love and from a position of: ‘I been there young bro and I know it’s hard on you but I did it like this; here’s the bread crumbs’. After a while, I felt like it was almost a responsibility for me to give the game up [on record]”


Importance of being self-made

During an interview with Forbes, Tha Great said,

“Being self-made means never making an excuse as to why you can’t take steps toward whatever your goal is.”

Nip starts out the first verse of “Last Time That I Checc’d” by telling us that he’s been self-made from the dribble.

This is important…

During our own personal marathons, we must continue to make sure we are always aligned with our goals. In return, this teaches the discipline needed to be a boss. In the chorus, Hussle also put the world on notice that his self-made progress is legendary.

Self-progression is vital in every aspect of our marathon. If we’re not progressing, we will end up washed out of the scene, and forgotten. We’ll lose touch with ourselves and the world around us because we aren’t growing.

Successful habits are formed by your work ethic. Therefore, if you want to be self-made, the change starts inside of you. Nip said:

“It sounds simple telling people to work hard and never quit, but to really execute and demonstrate those principles takes discipline and faith.”


Victory Lap

In this life, you have to make your own way. If you’re waiting for a handout, you’ll more than likely be waiting for a lifetime. It’s essential to your success to continue carving your own lane.

Coming from the trenches to now being a staple in the rap game, Nip’s progress is nothing short of legendary.

His heartfelt music, gives us a glimpse of Nip’s pain, triumph, happiness, anger, and more. It makes us reflect on our own lives.

It motivates us to grind harder, making it impossible for our dreams slip away.

Slowing life down: 3 tips to help keep moments from passing you by

Life has a tendency of slipping by, doesn’t it?

We’ve all experienced it to some extent either by making comment on how fast the year has gone or reflecting on how long it’s been since talking to an old friend. But have you ever wondered how that happens?

If we’re going through life and the things we want, places we want to go, and relationships we want to enrich are out of reach, what are we doing?

We have one life to live, why can’t we live it capturing the moments that mean the most to us? There has to be a way to slow it all down, to somehow be present in the areas that are most important to us, right?

Our non-negotiable responsibilities, time restrictions, lack of resources or whatever it may be that we feel is getting in the way of us and the things we’ve always wanted to do, are actually more controllable than we realize.

With intent, a little planning, and discipline, we can grab ahold of our life and lead it, instead of watching it pass us by. Life is too short for us to react and reflect on it. Don’t just dwell. Live, and take the reigns and determine how your life plays out.

Live decisively

A lot of times we’re reactionary to life because we don’t make a decision on what we actually want. We may have a desire or thought to follow through but we never concretely determine what we want for ourselves until after the moment has passed us by.

Write down what you want for yourself and live decisively. If you want a stronger relationship with a family member, make it an objective to strengthen that relationship and give yourself a quota of outgoing calls to make a week. If you want to be closer to your friends from college, set up a group chat, set up chill dates, and try not to flake.

The time we spend won’t be as elusive if we track it. Take control of your life by taking time to stop and plot out the life you want, then follow through.


Schedule everything

I remember being given a planner at the beginning of each term in high school and feeling like was nothing more than a waste of trees.

Now that I’m adult with more moving pieces than ever, a planner is literally the only thing that helps me stay on top of what I want and need to accomplish.

There’s something about having everything out in front of you that makes execution a lot easier. Proper preparation prevents poor performance, so when we pencil down our thoughts, desires and loose streams of consciousness, we’re breaking down big-picture ambitions down to daily, digestible task.

Maybe the reason you’ve never vacationed in the countryside of Spain is that you never started to plan it. Maybe the reason you never got that body you’ve wanted is because you never set a game plan.

When we decide we want to get something done, and we make a plan on how to get it done, the chances of us accomplishing it heightens exponentially.


Sacrifice

To receive, we must give. It’s a rudimentary and universal concept to living that’s long been proven, yet it’s something we fail to acknowledge whenever we feel defeated about what we fail to achieve.

Along with living decisively and planning, if we want life to slow down and if we want to do what we’ve always wanted, we must learn to give something up; to sacrifice. It can be junk food, a life of partying or maybe a relationship. If we want life to fall into place the way we’d like, it may take us giving something up.

Life zooms past us when we’re unprepared, but it also flies by when we have too much luggage. Living the life we’ve always dreamt of calls for us to periodically take a step back in order to evaluate what we don’t need, then making the necessary adjustments to get there.

LeBron didn’t have everything fall into his lap without sacrifice. Neither does anyone you see who lives the life they want, it all comes with a price. The point is that it’s in our control; it’s just a matter of figuring out what you need to drop completely.

We don’t have to react to life. We don’t have to live a life of what-if’s and always be in wonderment of how fast time flies. We can slow life down and live it in the way we desire.

It’s just up to us to do so.

Put some respect on Dan Novaes’ name, the new age entrepreneur behind Current

The cryptocurrency craze has taken the world by storm, but what does the future hold for the volatile digital dollar?

Entrepreneur, speaker and life hacker, Daniel Novaes has the answer.

Through his blockchain enabled multimedia ecosystem called Current, Novaes and his team hopes to reward people with a digital token called CRNC for their time, data, and attention.

How does Current work?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dV_ydsmnh7Y

Can you stand it? There is finally an awesome multimedia platform that cares about the consumers, creators, curators, and corporations all at the same time. Plus, there is no risk as Current requires no credit card at sign up.

All there is for each Current community member is the certainty of an advantageous experience. “You choose how to stream and pay for your media.”

Sounds too good to be true? To prove that Current is the next multimedia phenomenon, Kulture Hub hit Novaes’ line. Over the phone, we discussed his roots, Current’s glow up within the crypto community, and his day-to-day grind.

From youth, Novaes always saw the business world through two lenses. He grew up in a small town in Indiana by way of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Going between both locations allowed him to see the perceived value of products from two polar opposite cultural viewpoints.

Dan explained to us how his environments had a direct effect on his current success as an entrepreneur. He said,

“Within the two polar opposite environments, you kind of saw the differences in how people see the world – what things cost, and how people act and buy. A lot of the businesses I started when I was younger, focused around that. In the sense of,  ‘How much does this cost here and what is the perceived value of it there?'”

At the age of 15, Novaes started a little eBay venture with $1000 and by his freshman year of college, he turned that one grand into $2 million.

He was able to take his multicultural acumen and apply it to this tiny business giving it somewhat of a global presence. The eBay company grew faster than ever and he would soon start buying goods straight from an American source and export them to Brazil, Europe, and Australia.

Novaes was flipping so many goods that he had to set up his own warehouse in the UK through the EU. At that young age, most would throw that bread in the shredder, but wise Novaes thought differently.

He recycled the revenue and invested into the media and digital industries. While still in college, Novaes started a successful fratboy-esque website called FratStars.com where he would gain an understanding of web traffic.

From there, Novaes would tinker around with the latest technologies, sell a couple of apps, and personally invest into cryptocurrencies. All the experienced gained would eventually lead to Current’s creation. Now 29, Novaes spoke about how he got to where he is today. He said,

“This idea behind rewarding people for the data and attention when they are consuming media is a concoction of everything that I’ve done. We did high traffic websites where we learned the advertisement business very well. We did a lot of consumer-facing applications that focused on the media industry. We worked with a lot with celebrities and influencers to monetize their digital strategy.”

Novaes continued,

“I had personally been investing in cryptocurrency and following blockchain technology ever since I graduated college. Then there was a culmination between all of those different businesses that I’ve ever done over the past decade of my life or more into one thing. And that’s where I’m at today.”

By combining all of his experiences Novaes now sits on top of the world

This is just the beginning.

A post shared by Dan Novaes 🌐 (@novaes.ai) on

Current is ingenious, right with the times, and has set a precedent for how we are to consume media. In fact, it rewards you for actions that you do every day. Novaes even thinks that Current’s tokenized model will be intercepted by the next Facebooks and Netflixes of the world.

Since its conceptualization two years ago, Current has managed to cultivate 200,000 community members and counting, seed investments from sharks like Mark Cuban, and successfully raised a $36 million token sale in early 2018.

Novaes spoke on what it feels like to be apart of one the first consumer-facing blockchain technologies in the world. He said,

“It’s crazy, to be honest. It’s almost hard to believe how much interest that we got and generated. In the sense that we had over 250,000 people sign up to be apart of our token sale within three or four weeks. Then we had $150 million in private scale interests and that’s insane. I was getting 600 emails a day where people were trying to give me anything between $100,000 and  $10 million. It’s just fucking crazy… At the same time, the real work starts now because now we have to execute on everything that we promised.”

The grind starts now

Fall seven times, stand up eight. – Japanese Proverb #happysaturday

A post shared by Dan Novaes 🌐 (@novaes.ai) on

Novaes applies a calculative mindset to his hustle and he uses “time as a metric.” Time is where he directs his attention and purpose. Every breath counts to him and his 10K80 is worth emulating.

He spends his weeks nowadays trying to stay focused. He thinks individuals should focus their energy on things that have the most promise, and that if it doesn’t have promise then fail quickly and move on. Over the phone, Novaes explained,

“The biggest mistake that I’ve made in my whole life, that I corrected last year, is not being focused enough. Not that I’m lazy, but when you’re not focused on one specific task you become scatterbrained, you spread yourself thin, and then you’re not able to do anything great… I’ve never done something truly exceptional where it impacted one billion people or it created a billion dollars worth a value…”

Novaes is using his 10k80 to “plant a tree so others can enjoy the shade”

This man is not only grinding for himself but for the global community. With that said, Novaes ended our phone conversation with a little piece of advice for all the young entrepreneurs out there.

“If you’re afraid to fail you’re fucked… If you fail you don’t die, no one dies. If you act in that manner, care about what you’re doing, and know that every failure is a learning opportunity then you’ll operate in a much better fashion because you’ll take risks. Too many people have analysis paralysis.”

Get out there, hustle, and don’t be ailed by analysis paralysis, homie. If you’re interested in joining the Current community you can download the app here.

It’s all about perspective: The myth about having your shit together

Let social media tell it: you’re the most broke, least accomplished and least traveled of all your friends. Just turn on your phone and without fail, there will be someone who’s doing what they love and living their best life at a level you can only dream of.

I’m talking trips out the country, perfect GPAs, dream job — the whole gamut. Even on a more fundamental level, if you look too much into it, it will feel as if everyone has a grasp on life that you just can’t get ahold of.

For example, the other day I saw someone broadcast how they paid off their student loans in full, and not too long after I saw this couple, who couldn’t be any older than 25, boast about putting a down payment on a home. Both feats that made me question my entire existence.

https://giphy.com/gifs/7E62mWCHpBV5wX2cFn

In the spirit of showing our best selves, social media has made all of us appear a lot better than we actually are. In result, it feels like others have got their shit together far more than us, regardless of how true that actually may be.

Because we’re habitual consumers of this hyperbole, these projections, to some degree, make us insecure. We find ourselves wondering what they’re doing right and what we’re doing wrong; why they’re succeeding and why you’re not.

Fact is, we all want to do well in life. Despite how much we procrastinate, and how reckless we behave at times, we want to live abundantly, prolifically and efficiently — not just scraping by.

The Office Jim GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

Since getting bitten by that independence bug in high school it’s been a nonstop journey of proving we’re responsible enough and that we’re good stewards of our lives. So when we see others who have it together, quite naturally, it causes us to question ourselves.

This is why we get down on ourselves when it looks like everyone else gets it: because we want to master this adulting thing, too.

Well, I’m here to tell you that what you see is rarely the case. No one person has it all together, nor is one person on top of everything. Even if someone has accomplished something you’re working towards, there are areas in their life that they wish to improve that, in their minds, is just in as much disarray as you believe yourself to be in.

Heart Attack Close Call GIF by reactionseditor - Find & Share on GIPHY

Having your “shit together” is relative. It’s relative to who you are, where you’re going, and where you’re from. We all have a different set of responsibilities that are unique to our specific lives, so making these responsibilities equivalent across the board is an inaccurate assessment.

J.Cole’s track off of 2014 Forest Hill’s Drive, “Love Yourz”, is the perfect remedy for this phenomenon. In the chorus, he sings, “there’s no such thing as a life that’s better than yours,” and it’s true.

What you go through and the tasks that lie ahead of your life will just take different form through another’s lens. The angst we feel from what we’ve yet accomplished is the same angst Bill Gates, that 4.0 student or whoever else’s life looks appealing faces. It just looks different.

You’re always going to want more for yourself. Instead of looking at the next person and envying what they’ve accomplished and how they’re living, what we should do is focus on whats in front of us and improving upon it little by little.

You have your shit together far more than you think you do.

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Even having the present mindstate to acknowledge your desire for better is lightyears ahead of most. It’s only when we’re engaged in what we don’t have and what we haven’t accomplished that this depressive outlook becomes overbearing.

No matter what level you reach, you’re always going to see that there’s a high level ahead. Our job is to conquer where we are, not where we want to go; only then will we see that our shit has been together all along.

How Netflix plans to soon body the entire entertainment industry

Netflix this and Netflix that. On Monday, the American entertainment company priced a $1.9 billion junk-bond offering so you know where the takeover is at.

For those of you who don’t know what a junk-bond offering is, let me explain. What Netflix has done is acquire more debt in order to fund more original content in hopes of a massive takeover in the near future.

This is not the first time Netflix has turned to debt financing. In fact, the massive content streaming platform prefers junk bond offerings over selling equity through stocks. This will mark the fifth time Netflix is raising more than $1 billion in debt offerings according to Variety.

In a statement to shareholders on April 16 regarding why the company decided to take on more debt, Netflix said,

“We believe the debt is a lower cost of capital compared to equity…”

True, but to average joes, isn’t taking on more debt a bad thing? Not when you’re Netflix and as a company has already raked in $3.1 billion in Q1 of 2018. Plus with the company’s subscribers increasing every quarter who needs to worry about credit.

Imagine Biggie dubbing Netflix because they wanted more credit. He for sure wouldn’t dead it.

Besides debt investors on Wall Street drooling over Netflix, Hollywood is also predicting that Netflix will take over the land of show business. Which is actually not a far-fetched idea. According to the LA Times, Netflix was exploring the idea of purchasing Mark Cuban’s LA Landmark Theatres.

The only reason why Netflix theatres aren’t being built yet is that the Los Gatos, CA company backed out of the deals because the asking price was too high.

But trust when they do find the right numbers, Netflix will drop the guap and invest. This is so they can have more of a competitive edge when it comes to eligibility for prestigious awards like the Oscars.

Not to mention Netflix is on track to be worth more than Disney. Yes, Disney the master of all things entertainment. On Monday, Netflix’s value was estimated to be at $138.3 billion versus Disney’s $150.6 billion.

Damn Walt is turning in his cryonic chamber over a company that only fell $12.3 billion short, of his massive entertainment company’s worth.  That’s probably why Disney is getting into streaming.

Lest not forget Netflix is the same company that killed BlockBuster and Hollywood Video. Plus the prediction Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings, made back in 2009 whilst being interviewed by the NYT proves that what the company devotes their time to accomplishing reaps massive rewards. Hastings said,

“There is a revolution happening, and within two years I think that Wi-Fi and Netflix will be built into all the televisions.”

In other words, you better up your game up Disney. Mickey Mouse ain’t shit anymore.

Sad Mickey Mouse GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

If you’re just now trying to make bread on YouTube, it could be a wrap

YouTube is a great way to gain exposure, especially if you’re part of a younger generation and would like to build a following.

For many years, YouTube influencers did just that, following the footsteps of famous (and controversial) OGs like PewDiePie who displayed anti-semitism by posting a video with picture that said, “Death to all Jews,” costing him his Youtube Red show that, according to TNW, cut him off from “$15m in 2016 alone” of advertising opportunities. At the time, PewDiePie claimed “it was just a joke.” Yeah, hilarious.

Go Away Reaction GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

And it doesn’t stop with PewDiePie. Fellow YouTube fuckboy Logan Paul is still facing backlash and controversy over his video of a dead body in Japan. Paul also lost his YT Red show, but shortly thereafter, YouTube announced their new monetization rules; and the community isn’t happy about it.

If a channel does not have more than 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time in a 12-month period, they do not qualify for monetization, while previously, all that was needed was 10,000 views.

From beauty YouTuber Glam&Gore:

At least the community is standing by one another.

https://twitter.com/DesireeUribe_/status/953703038841057280

https://twitter.com/TrevorDmusic/status/953704078898548736

The most ironic part of it all is that YouTube, along with Twitter and Facebook, says they are working on “taking down terror-related content.”

Taken from TNW, YouTuber Anurag Shanker shares their thought on the policy and how harmful it is for new YouTubers.

“Previously, it was possible to earn at least enough to cover the cost of your own DIY video projects over time. The gap between YouTube’s earlier requirements and the new ones is massive. Garnering 4,000 hours of watch time is a whole different ball game than trying to build an audience organically without specializing in video production and publishing. For myself and my colleagues, that means shelving some upcoming projects, because we’ll now need to find other ways to fund them.”

Like many people, I grew up on YouTube and I love the platform. It’s very sad to see a community that was once filled with positivity and light become toxic. YouTube is right to try and wipe its platform of derogatory content, but they may be making the situation worse.

Is this the beginning of the end? Or will YouTube catch their mistakes and set things right?

Lessons from Nipsey: How to stay in your own lane while bossing up

When Nipsey Hussle released “Rap N****s,” it set the streets on fire.

Nip channeled his aggression to make a statement –– letting the industry know he is a rare breed of emcee.

While applying pressure to the rap game, Nip is letting the narrative be known that he is 100% his authentic self. There is no fakery, fabricating or games being played when it comes to his lifestyle.

Throughout this West Coast banger, Tha Great preaches individuality. At the same time, Nip gives us a glimpse of his challenging upbringing while still preaching ownership.

Stay in your own lane

One of the key takeaways to remember while getting hype to this hard-hitting slapper is to stay in your own lane. There is nothing better in this world than your own life. You are the director of your movie.

We gravitate toward Nip because from a rap point of view he is in a league of his own. From a business standpoint, there isn’t another artist comparable to Hussle man besides Jay-Z –– hence the “Jigga with the rollie and the vest” line. Hussle’s message is unlike any artist we’ve heard before.

Originality lasts a lifetime and trends die out quickly. Just because someone else is successful in their craft does not mean you have to hop on their wave. Keep creating the dope content and products that are true to you and someone will eventually notice.

You are always one creation closer to a breakthrough. Having tunnel vision will allow you to focus on staying in your own lane.


Don’t pigeonhole yourself

What do you want to be known for? Nipsey Hussle is not just a dope ass rapper, he is a limitless visionary. Often during our lifetime, people try to place limitations on us.

Our parents may tell us to strive to follow in their path because it worked for them. Coaches may advise athletes to stick with one sport because that is what they will become the best at.

When your options are limited, you are now subjected to being labeled. It really boils down to the narrative are you willing to create for yourself. It starts with believing in yourself. Protect your mindset.

Don’t feed into other people’s fear that they are trying to cast on you. Channel those fears into aggression. Use that aggression to become the self-made boss that you know are.


Victory Lap

Once you’ve had some successes, it’s okay to share your journey with the world. You are great. It’d be remiss of you if you didn’t let the universe know.

It’s not flexing, it’s inspiring. Everything we do in life has a direct impact on whoever is consuming what we put out.

Continue to shift the culture while living your best life.

Hate what you’re doing? How to use frustration to fuel your success

What do you do when it feels like you’re out of options? How do you handle not having a handle? What happens to you when frustration sets in?

While it’s our responsibility to lead a life of intention — a life where we’re proactive, not reactive — there will most certainly be aspects of life that are absolutely out of our control.

A family member passing, resources dwindling, receiving multiple “no’s”, you name it — life goes left all the time. And while we’re allowed to process the emotions that come as a result, how we handle ourselves during these times will often make or break us.

The answer isn’t cursing out your manager and walking out of your dead-end job. Neither is it abusing substances nor even allowing yourself to fall into depression. Frustration is not a precursor to defeat; if anything, it’s a test of fortitude and a sign that you may have to do something different.

It’s important we recognize, identify, and handle frustration when it arises. We should not run, mask, or destructively channel it. Frustration is enraging — but somehow energizing. We win when we use this energy to our advantage.

Switch it up

If you don’t like where you’re going, you should probably change what you’re doing. It’s as simple as that. You’d be surprised at how refreshing and how much of a reset a switch up could be. It can be a detox.

Picking up a new hobby, going dark on social media, or even ridding toxic people from your life are all things that can help you get out of a funk. Switching up your routine instantly changes the direction of your life, which can alleviate the frustrations you’re facing.

Sometimes we think it takes something drastic and life-altering, but really solving the feeling of being stuck is in the little details. Breaking down our lives to rebuild it in a refreshing way opens new realities and allows us to assess where we are through a different lens.

When you’re frustrated, don’t get down or beat yourself up. Try and shake your life up.


Draw out a real plan

One of the easiest and fastest ways to dissipate feelings of frustration is to etch out a gameplan. Sometimes direction is all we need for reassurance.

There’s peace in knowing that although you may not be doing what you want, you’re doing something in the meanwhile to change that.

Making a plan allows you to sit down and look at your life as a whole, which when we’re in the midst of living, is hard to do. We hardly ever slow down to take a step back, and that is why we often feel overwhelmed.

Assess where you are, have an idea of where you want to go, then find comfort in knowing that you’re working towards that. Successful people get frustrated, then get better, and never allow it to limit them.


Pace yourself

A lot of times the frustrations we face in life are a result of impatience. We hate where we are, so we want a quick fix. We find a solution in a gameplan and we expect it to work immediately, but life doesn’t work that way.

We must pace ourselves in everything we do.

Much like our dreams and aspirations, our gameplan to combat frustration is a process. We only stress ourselves more when we rush to get better. This is why it’s imperative the thought of pacing ourselves is at the forefront of our minds when frustration strikes.

We must keep in mind that these emotions won’t necessarily fade overnight and we must build the mental toughness to understand that. At times, it is a high climb to get out of a rut.

Your situation is not going to change overnight and wanting it to won’t help. When we breathe, trust in the plan we’ve laid forth, and take it a day at a time, we’ll find that we’ll be a lot less overwhelmed.

Frustrating times have no time limit. They can be as quick as a term in college to as long as the big break of an aspiring artist. Pacing ourselves and trusting that we’re doing what we can with what we have limits how frustrating it can actually be.

Frustration does not have to be crippling. It can be motivating and inspiring — it’s all about how we use it.

Don’t get lost in the sauce! Why having tunnel vision is vital to success

Life is a movie. Our thoughts are a continuous output of our beliefs which shapes the world around us. To make matters even better, we are the director of our thoughts. If we truly aspire to be great, we must have the right vision.

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines tunnel vision as, “constriction of the visual field resulting in a loss of peripheral vision.”

Some believe the phrase means to simply have a one-track mind. Others will say it’s the lack of peripheral vision, hindering you from seeing the surroundings.

https://giphy.com/gifs/cooper-bradley-limitless-SzK2j7OVp5ZYY

While the standard definition of tunnel vision is widely accepted throughout the world, it still does not give the term justice. Tunnel vision is more than having an obscure outlook on the world around us. It’s a mindset.

Tunnel vision is the mental law of the mind. Our thoughts create our reality.

Our thought process is a direct reflection of how we perceive the world and how others perceive us. If we feel beautiful, then our world becomes beautiful. If we feel like trash, then we will subconsciously see the trash in everything.

Kyle Mooney Trash GIF by Saturday Night Live - Find & Share on GIPHY

On “Do Not Disturb” Drake said ‘distractions will do you the truest sense’. It is a fight against distractions every day when you wake up. You must decide which distractions are important to you which ones go by the wayside.

On most occasions, we are distracted by our own thoughts and it’s not our fault. We are conditioned to be distracted. 

Tunnel vision is being aligned with your dreams and having the determination to see it through, disregarding all distractions. If your dream is to own a business, it probably isn’t in your best interest to go to the club every weekend. It should be finding ways to start your business. The club will always be there.

https://giphy.com/gifs/drake-drizzy-dancing-mWzQYZcAimyJy

If you need to hurry home to let your dog out and you wreck due to texting and driving, it only hurts you. That text will be there when you get home. Distractions hinder your dreams. Don’t get lost in the sauce.

We have to change within to change our exterior surroundings. Possessing tunnel vision allows nothing to stop us on our mission knowing that we are destined for greatness. It allows us to separate the real from the fake.

It empowers us to stay away from all negativity that ruins our zen. Believing is seeing. Once you see your vision come to life, so will others. Your vision is primary.

Everything else is secondary.

Maximize your potential: 3 things you need to do to get the most out of life

You don’t need a degree in the study of human behavior to see that there are two types of people in the world: the motivated and the unmotivated.

They’re pretty easy to point out, too. The motivated live with a purpose while the unmotivated go through life as if they have nothing to lose.

Now, if you’re of the former, you know the hustle for greatness can be taxing.

Owning the responsibility of achieving more organically gives life a heavier load. Unlike the latter, the life you want is continually at odds with the life you have and the struggle to make those worlds one weeds out weak.

It really doesn’t matter what you do, either. It can be a career in the medical field, entrepreneurial aspirations, or dreams of becoming the next music icon. If you want to be at the top, difficulties will always arise. They take the form of bills, family, illness, fatigue, and a host of other unforeseeable uncertainties.

The kicker is: life doesn’t stop because of them.

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What separates the people that want it and the people that don’t, and the people who go places in life and the people who remain stuck, are the adopted techniques to navigate life’s curve balls.

Eliminating excuses of nepotism, handouts, and simply getting done what needs to get done are what all successful people have accomplished. They do whatever it takes to cultivate every ounce of their talent, no matter the circumstance, and it’s because of this fortitude that they are able to win. Luckily, you can too.

In some shape or fashion, the three components of time management, self-discipline and focus have been used by any and everyone who’s achieved greatness. If mastered, these three attributes can take you from wherever you are to where you want to be.

There may be a million and one things you can point out that the next guy has more than you but you still have the same 24 hours.  The only gatekeeper to your next level is you, and it’s through mastering these three traits, you can unlock it.

Time management

The most common excuse to not getting something done is the lack of time to do it. What people don’t understand about this excuse, however, is that it automatically exposes them as terrible keepers of time in the first place.

We’re all allotted the same number of minutes every week. If someone is able to accomplish multiple feats, why can’t you? It’s all a matter of management.

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The easiest way to get ahead of the competition is to put in more time than them. You can look at any billionaire businessman or read about the regimen of Gucci Mane and you’ll find that the common thread is the time they’ve put in. It comes down to how bad you want it and what you’re willing to sacrifice — and sleep has to be on that list.

You’ll be amazed what you can accomplish when you give yourself a schedule, prioritize your hours, then actually stick to it. With intention and a plan, you can fit in whatever it is you want to accomplish.


Self-discipline

“Master the body and the mind will follow,” is the motto behind NBA Champion and league MVP Stephen Curry’s new campaign with Kaiser Permanente which tackles mental health issues.

The spot broke April 8th during the Golden State Warriors’ game against the New Orleans Pelicans and shows how Curry drowns out all the criticism thrown his way.

The premise of the ad is that when you master your mind — which, in Curry’s case is the outside noise — you can perform at a much higher level. Much is the same with us in our perspective endeavors.

https://youtu.be/kGaE5kBpDE0

With Curry, it’s controlling how outside options affect him; for you, it might be controlling what your diet; and for the next person, it may be controlling their sleeping schedule. Either way, there are things we can do every day to enhance our performance that is completely in our control. It just takes a mastery of self.

We have to lead with our minds, not our bodies. Our bodies will tell us we’re tired, not to go the extra mile, to do what’s easy.  But “easy” never got anyone anywhere far. Easy is what the mediocre do. Easy is for the unmotivated.

When you make your mind up to do what you don’t feel like doing and when you discipline your flesh to do what your thoughts want, you’ll find yourself making ground that you’ve never made before.


Focus

Two years ago, Drake hopped on Fetty Wap’s “My Way” and famously opened up his verse by singing: “All I got to do is put my mind to this shit,” and honestly, that resonated with me forever.

While the song is jovial, the concept couldn’t have rung truer: focus is the most fundamental component of success. A lot of us just aren’t putting out minds to… well, anything.

High school taught us to scrape by and college didn’t help much breaking those habits. When you think about it, not trying is an encouraged lifestyle. It’s almost as if we’ve been conditioned to see how we can get the most done with the least amount of effort.

This is a habit that must be broken. Going far in life takes going all in; complete focus; tunnel vision.

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LeBron famously goes dark doing playoff time, peeling himself off all social media platforms to zero in on the prize (he’s gone to seven straight NBA finals).

And Kobe has branded #MambaMentality: a mindset of hellbent determination and will; something that’s earned him five rings as well as the reputation as one of the most mentally tough NBA players of all-time. Trust me, it works.

Most of the time people are afraid to try because they are afraid to fail.

They don’t want to feel the disappointment of not achieving at something they’ve put their all in to, and in result, end up never trying hard at anything at all. The secret is, the harder you try, the better you become. Once you find out that you can master one thing, then you’ll have the confidence to master multiple things.

The moment you begin investing time in what matters, weaning yourself off the unnecessary, and zeroing in focus, is the moment everything will begin happening.

If you want the unordinary, then you must live like it. The majority of people don’t commit to these traits, which is why the majority isn’t great.

Get these traits under your belt and you’ll go as far as you see yourself going.