Nobody is standing in the way of your ability to generate value.

December 02, 2016 12:31 PM

I’m nostalgic for a time when my ideas were considered interesting enough to make headlines.

Back when I first started my career, my story went viral before viral was viral. And I barely even had to do anything. On multiple occasions, my book would steal the spotlight and capture the media cycle for a few days at a time, simply by telling the press about some guy who wore a nametag everyday.

And that was with a war going on.

But now, it feels like everyone is wearing a nametag. Everyone is interesting. Everyone has their own little personal brand that’s unique and memorable.

And that infuriates me. Because I was ahead of the game for fifteen years, and now it feels like the world has finally caught up.

Of course, that’s the structure of evolution. All organisms must keep changing just to stay competitive. And if we fail to adapt, nobody is going to catch us when we fall.

We’re just going to keep running faster, only to remain in the same place.

But the upside to evolution is, nobody is standing in the way of our ability to generate value. As humans, our greatest tool for survival is our ability to think and to adapt.

And so, if we want to create new value in the world, we have to surrender our case history and bow to the door of next.

To coin a phrase, we have to live larger than our labels.

Pardon the pun, but that’s literally true for me. Because in my world, the nametag isn’t enough. Not anymore. But that’s fine.

I accept that what got me here won’t get me there.

I accept that what identifies me doesn’t define me.

I accept that the work I’ve already done matters little beyond the fact that it brought me here.

I accept that the past I am used to may not be my best future.

Onward.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…

Are you still down on yourself for not standing out and being special in your work?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…

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