"You must give up the way it is... to have it the way you want it."
In digging through inspirational quotes for a special promo project, I came across this quote, which really resonated with the way I see life, and have seen it over the years. I touched on this idea in my Transitions, Passions and Sacrifices blog post, but I wanted to expand a little and make it a bit more generic across whatever you may want to do or apply it to.
What does that mean? We all know it takes money to live, but how much? I've always seen the end goal of "Success" being achieved by putting the right puzzle pieces together. Some people have greater responsibilities than others at the time of their decision of pursuing their passion, so the puzzle pieces are different for everyone. Some people live in bigger, more expensive cities than others. Some have relationships and families. Some have full time jobs where the salary is great with consistent/stable pay and they're used that standard of living. Obviously there are more, but if you have an ultimate goal of doing what you love, it's about moving the puzzle pieces around and cutting things/overhead that needs to be cut in order to create more time and/or money that can be invested back into your business of creativity.
To me it has always meant making those small decisions to save money, and the sacrifices of taking the jobs that aren't that creative for a higher pay/less time ratio. Success for me is defined by working a job I love, enjoying life(the biggest idea I took home with me from my living stint in Paris), having great people around me, and making enough money for a decent living. To get to point means to design your lifestyle to get there. What have I sacrificed along the way? Money, stability, relationships, eating out, loads of possessions, etc. What have I received? Much more free time to enjoy life, and pursue my passion of a career, travel, etc.
I recently read a book called the 4-hour work week which, in my opinion some of the ideas in the book are a bit extreme, but the basic idea is great. I recommend it: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/ As much as I talk about branding and design, this book is about applying those concepts to your life. Designing a lifestyle that in the end brings you happiness and fulfillment.
It ultimately comes down to how bad do you WANT this version of success? How bad you WANT it will dictate how much you will sacrifice to get there. How much will you give up? If you're working a full time job with great steady pay but you hate it, are you willing to give that up along with the financial stability that goes with it to give you the free time to create a business of your passion? The amount of work it takes to get to that position is a hefty amount and you got to WANT it enough to be motivated to hustle for it.
Food for thought.
Great post Nick. I'm a College Senior Graduating in May 2010 and am trying to make my mind up about trying to pursue a career in professional photography or going out and getting a steady corporate job. I don't know what lies ahead in the next few months, but I enjoy anything that allows me to look at my position from a different angle.
What is success to me?
Posted by: Austin Cabot | October 08, 2009 at 04:47 PM
Thanks for the post...today is my last day at my 9-5...this is very encouraging...thank you...and thanks for the heads up on Amanda Sosa Stone...she's awesome!!!
Posted by: ezra | October 09, 2009 at 10:54 AM
Love all your posts. Are you still writing your book, any word when that will come out?
Posted by: therese | October 11, 2009 at 08:31 AM
Just wanted to let you know you are brilliant and always tell me exactly what I need to hear at the moment. I am currently deciding whether to leave my wedding photography business I have in the Caribbean and move to California to pursue Commercial photography to shoot for the kind of clients you shoot for or not. Like you said you do have to WANT it and I truly do.. just wondering if I might go out there and fail... then what?
Posted by: Greer Rivera | October 14, 2009 at 06:53 PM
Really loved this post buddy, have not logged on in a while and happy I did today. You are an inspiration as always!
Posted by: Melinda | October 15, 2009 at 09:38 PM
Familiarity versions contempt.
First issues first.
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