Customer Service First

No shit, Sherlock.

But so many businesses out there don’t realize that you are a customer service company that also provides goods/services.

If you don’t view yourself like that, you will not be in business very long.

The customer is the most important aspect to your business. With no customers, you don’t have a business.

Make sense?

First Hand

At MediaMedia (www.mediamedia.biz) we handle everything: web site building, content, blogs, vlogs, photos, videos, etc. We do it all, except speak to our clients customers. Don’t get me wrong, we interact with them in the voice of the business on The Socials. “Cute pic!” “Love that!” “Can’t wait to see you!” Stuff like that? Of course, that drives customers to the business. But when YOUR customer is seeking out direct feedback, or has a personal question, we feel that is up to the business owner to handle. What we do drives the person to interact with the business, but the actual interaction needs to be done by the expert involved (the business owner).

I can’t tell you how many businesses we work with neglect the customer. It is disturbing.

Here are people reaching out to YOU, to YOUR business, YOUR livelihood, and YOU don’t respond? It amazes me.

We have high standards when it comes to our clients. If we see gross negligence in any aspect of their business, we address it with them. I mean, in the end, their success is our success, right? So what does that mean? We don’t exactly stay in our lane.

Does it have consequences? Absolutely.

Have we had to go through some “conscious uncoupling”? Absolutely.

But all of those “break-ups” were with the companies that treated their customers like shit, and couldn’t handle any constructive feedback. Surprise, surprise.

No hard feelings, at least on our part.

Mindset

Like anything in life, your mindset determines your outcome.

Things don’t happen to you, they happen because of you.

Good and bad, you got yourself there.

Good and bad, you can get yourself out.

Hip hip hooray!

That wasn’t supposed to be so rah rah, but it ended up there.

Moving on.

The owner that stresses out because they did not make as much money as last year on Valentine’s Day, is usually the one that didn’t listen to certain advertising strategies, that repeatedly gets messages on their Facebook page because a customer was irritated that an email wasn’t responded to.

It is always the same type complaints and type of stresses from the same type of business owners: the neglectful ones.

When you neglect your business, it will neglect you right back.

It starts at the top.

The owner/leader sets the tone, determines the expectations, and holds themselves and their employees accountable.

It seems so straightforward, but so many owners do it poorly.

Go Go Go

Get your business out there. Create something every day. Let the public see you. Let your customers see you. Create something that people will share. Hire people like us (www.mediamedia.biz) to do it for you, so you can focus on what you do best. And when you get responses, when you get “likes,” when you get interactions, you HAVE TO INTERACT.

That’s what it’s all about: you and your customers.

The customers are your business. They are your employees. They are your kids’ college fund. They are your house, your car, and your clothes. They are everything. You MUST treat them that way. Give them your best, show that you care, and it will come back to you.

Joey

MediaMedia

The Most Efficient Marketing For A Bar Or Pub (or any other place that sells alcohol)

When I mean efficient, I mean, you need to make one purchase a year for incredible results.

To be more exact, it’s a few purchases, but only once.

I am making the assumption that if you run a pub, bar, or restaurant, you already have mirrors in your bathroom.

This article may have you purchasing more.

The Big Questions

How many people look at themselves more when they are slightly buzzed?

How many people take more selfies when they are out having a good time?

Do the levels of selfies increase or decrease with the amount of alcohol being consumed?

Exactly.

Why not take advantage of that?

Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. They are all being used constantly on Friday and Saturday nights.

Why not take it to another level?

How?

With mirrors and Fatheads. (this is not an ad for Fatheads by the way).

A quick explanation: Buy a bunch of Fatheads, cut off the heads and arms (so your patrons have their arms and faces in the picture), and stick them on the bathroom mirrors. Make sure you have the name of your place on the opposite wall so it shows up in the photos, and just watch it explode.

The advertising will take care of itself.

Why? How?

Because you will be creating your own stand in!

What the hell is a stand in?

I actually had to look up what the name was. Seen them my whole life, no idea what they were called.

You know those things at carnivals where they give you the body, and you stand behind it and it’s your face? Then you take an adorable picture?

That’s a stand in!

What if you had those at a bar? With drunk people? Already taking selfies?

Holy crap is right!

Options

Women: Disney characters, famous singers, characters from movies, etc. You could have: The Little Mermaid, Beyonce, and Kim Kardashian. You could have a good looking dude (me, just kidding), with a slot cut out on his arm where the girl could be in her selfie.

Can you see it?

The possibilities are endless!

Men: John Cena, The Rock, Terminator, Trump (with the hair), etc. Maybe get a fat guy for something funny.

Can you see it now?

Obviously you would have to pick a person that represents your bar, but other than that, the sky is the limit.

Still need to be sold on this idea?

Ok, just imagine, you are in a bar, a couple drinks deep, and you go to the bathroom. You see an opportunity to take a funny picture and share it with everyone right then. Are you going to take the opportunity? Of course!

Because it is awesome you are going to show everyone.

Because you are showing everyone the place where you took the picture will be getting free advertising.

Because you can take unique pictures (with you in them) at your bar that everyone thinks is cool, when people are deciding where to go out tonight, it will inevitably be your place.

Why?

Because you have something awesome that no one else has.

Yet.

Be the first to market on this one.

Be a game changer.

Be a pioneer.

Joey

MediaMedia

30 Days Of Genius Blog: Brandon Stanton (Humans Of New York)

Quite possibly one of the best “follow your dream stories” I have ever heard. Humans Of New York creator Brandon Stanton lays out the framework for dreaming wide awake. He may be one of the most selfless artists I have ever come across. He is nothing, the art, and its connection to the audience, is everything. How refreshing is that?

I have taken his interview on 30 Days of Genius with Chase Jarvis, extracted the information, and used it to answer common questions by readers just like you, who are looking to take their lives to the next level, or at least a different level than the one they are on.

Please enjoy.

Following My Passion Should Be Easy, Right? Because I Love It?

Absolutely not!

In fact, that is the most common misconception I hear. If you are truly passionate about what you are doing it should be extremely hard. Why? Because whatever that “thing” is, you should be doing it all the time. Do not use following your dreams as an excuse to not work. Please. There are so many people out there that do just enough to be able to tell themselves and the people they are close with that they are following their dream, living their passion. Generally, those people are doing a little here, a little there, and getting very little to nothing done.

When I moved to New York, all I did was take pictures. All day, every day. I lived and breathed photography. Why? Because when you follow your passion, you need to completely immerse yourself in to it. It is a sacrifice you need to make in order to make something of your passion. I lived in an apartment with three strangers, in a room that barely fit a mattress, and I loved it. I was never there, so it didn’t matter. I was out and about, taking photos, refining my craft, and making sure I was better when I got home than when I left in the morning.

I never planned on having art that connected with tens of millions of people. If I did, I would never have been able to create Humans Of New York. I wanted to take photographs, and make enough money to be able to take photographs. That’s it. Get better every single day. Produce 4 pieces of content every single day. That’s it.

Forcing myself to create so much, 365 days a year, put me in a situation where I had to bust my ass. Those four pieces of content were not going to create themselves. If I didn’t work, I wasn’t producing, or getting better, or really following my passion.

If you are not working with passion, then you are not likely working on your passion.

In the world of art, that passion, or lack thereof, comes through in the work. It amazes me that on Facebook, basically a medium of stories from millions and millions of people, HONY stands out. I think that is because it is real. There is no bs, no ulterior motive. I tell stories of real people, their real lives, with a caring and attention to detail that they deserve, and people are drawn to it. Without that passion, both for putting in the work and caring about it, I truly believe it wouldn’t connect in the same way.

What Should My Goals Be?

I am assuming that you want to follow your passion because you think it will bring you happiness. I agree that it will make you happy, as long as it truly is your passion, but what that happiness is, is different for everyone. There is no one version of happiness.

My goal was to make enough money to keep doing what I loved.

I, personally, think that is a healthy way to start. That way, you are focused on the craft, the process, and the work. Pressure yourself to work hard, and keep growing. Like I said, come home better than when you left. Each day has the goal of being better than the day before.

Do not pin your values on external measures. I understand that there has to be a certain level of paying attention to money, but if you are not making enough, use that as a challenge to get better at your craft. Be so good they can’t ignore you. Keep pushing. Be competitive with yourself. Not hard on yourself, competitive. Make yourself work every day, all day, in order to get better. It is the one thing you can control. Put in the time, value your work, and constantly get better.

Working with passion, every day, pushing yourself to be better and better every day, will allow you to experiment, and take some risks. When you try something new and different, look back and see if it worked or not. If it did, keep it, if it didn’t, either refine it or trash it. That is the benefit of working with the intensity you are going to work, it is a constant evolution.

Think of it this way: if you get 1% better every day you work, and you only work once a week, that’s only a 52% increase a year. If you work every day, you are able to condense a year’s worth of growth in to a little over a month and a half.

50% better every month and a half?!?! Think about that!!!

What If I’m Scared?

You should be.

It’s a scary thing to do.

How many people truly follow their passion? They talk about it, but rarely do it.

We are paralyzed by the need to make something great, which keeps us from doing anything at all. Having the daily goals made my “goals” small, attainable, but difficult. Don’t think about the final product, the end game. Think about today, tomorrow, and maybe next week. That’s it. It is a growth process. Have you seen the movie Big, with Tom Hanks? What happens when you jump from 13 to 30? You skip all the growth, all the lessons, the skills, then you are just some 30 year old goofball. That’s what happens when you try to go to big too fast. Focus on the craft, the day to day, and bust your ass. Things come from that. Always.

Be better when you go to sleep than when you woke up. Goal accomplished.

Quotes

“It is such a blessing to be the first one bored with your own work.”

“Work without a motive.”

 

“The more I disappear, the more my work becomes.”

Brandon Stanton Links

Humans Of New York

Chase Jarvis Links

Website

Creative Live

iTunes Podcast Page

Joey Links

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How Bad Is It, Really?

Big day today!! Election day!!! Woohooo!!!

Everything that Trump says is wrong with America will be fixed starting today!!!

All of the things that Hillary says need to change will be better starting today!!

Yiiippee!!!

We can finally fix this horrible country we are living in and make it what it was intended to be: amazing!!

“Hallelujah!! Holy s***!! Where’s the Tylenol?” — Clark W. Griswald, III

A Time For Honesty

A horrible country?

Fallen from grace?

A shadow of its former self?

Is that us?

Is that America?

My Challenge To You

Take everything the news has been telling you. Everything the candidates have been telling you. This 

horrible country we are in. This awful time in America. The failed economy. The failed borders. Our safety. Our jobs.

Take all of those things and leave them on the TV. Leave them on The Socials. Put the phone down for a minute.

I want you to look at your life. Just yours.

Not the people you hear about. Just you, and your family.

How bad is it?

How is your health? Your job? Your home?

Is it as bad as they say it is?

Are you voting today because of what you feel and see? Voting for your life as you know it? Or are you voting because of what they tell you? Voting because of what Fox tells you, or CNN, or MSNBC?

If you take away everything you have heard the last 12 months and just looked at your life, your day to day, how bad is it?

It’s Up To You

Don’t let them tell you what you think.

Don’t let them tell you how it is.

Democrats, Republicans, media, any of them.

F*** them all. They don’t know you.

They want to scare you. They want you to think that you need them. That you can’t do it on your 

own. Both major parties tout small government, or big government. It’s all bulls***.

All they have said the last 12 months is you need them.

You need the government.

Your life sucks.

Your life has sucked the last 8 years, and it’s only going to get worse.

They Are Wrong

I know your life doesn’t suck. Why? Because you are alive and able to even read this. You woke up this morning. You are alive and can vote today. You are alive and will either be furious or ecstatic tonight. You can feel. You have emotions. That’s a beautiful thing. Things are pretty good. Life is pretty damn wonderful if you take the time to look. If you take the time to block out all the noise, the hate, the fear, the news, and especially the candidates.

Take some time and settle in to the peace and quiet.

Be grateful for the peace.

Be grateful for the quiet.

Be grateful for the breath that just entered your lungs.

The eyes you are using to read this.

The heart that is pulsing life through your veins.

The friends and family that love you with all their heart.

The friends and family that you love with all your heart.

Life is beautiful.

Take a moment to feel that today.

It’s going to be a hell of a day.

Just remember to ask yourself:

How bad is it really?

I’m guessing it’s pretty damn good.

Joey

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Prop 60

In case you don’t live in California, or aren’t paying attention to the upcoming election (besides the dumpster fire presidential race), this is Prop 60:

Requires adult film performers to use condoms during filming of sexual intercourse. Requires producers to pay for performer vaccinations, testing, and medical examinations. Requires producers to post condom requirement at film sites.

The Democrats oppose it.

The Republicans oppose it.

See! They can agree on something! They want their porn raw and dirty.

Finally. Working together for the common good.

Way to go everyone! Congratulations!

Condoms? Really?

I can only think of two reasons why this would be a big enough deal to have on the ballot: 1. Someone, somewhere actually thinks that porn stars are role models or 2. There are so many people in the porn industry that this is affecting a lot more people than we realize, or want to realize.

Number 2 is interesting, but I don’t have much to add. There are either a lot of porn stars or there aren’t. Who knows? More importantly, who cares? Unless you are one, or are looking for one.

Number 1 is where my money is. Porn star role models?

Just to be clear on my position (no pun intended), if your role model is a porn star, you need to worry about a lot more than a condom. Well, actually, wear a condom so you don’t reproduce. Please. For all of our sakes.

No matter how I look at it, I don’t understand how someone who has sex for a living is a role model. 

I know most of you reading this have seen some porn in your life, so let’s go to the extreme to make my point. Let’s just say, hypothetically, that a woman is in a scene where she needs protection from multiple “co-stars.” That’s your role model? Really? Do you really think you are going to take someone home, and when you are ready to “make sweet love,” you will reflect on the chick putting everyone’s everything “everywhere” and go, welp, if she did it, I should too! Yay protection!! Yay porn star role models!!

Is that the scenario being played out in their heads?

Jenna Jameson, my hero?

If she is a hero, why aren’t prostitutes heroes?

They do the same thing, but one is in private, and the other one WAY public.

I don’t get it.

What the hell is the difference between porn and prostitution?

Distribution

That’s it.

Weird, huh?

The only difference between porn and prostitution is distribution.

If don’t let anyone see you hump it’s a crime.

If you let everyone see you hump, it’s legitimate.

Does that sound crazy to you too?

If I were a pimp, I would hand out masks, film it, and put it on the ol’ interwebs. Then it’s legal. Then it’s legitimate.

Customers worried about other people finding out? Guess what? That means they are watching some low production value, dirty, prostitute porn. That puts them in no position to question what you are doing because they have to explain what in the hell they are doing.

If it is really any issue, wear a body suit, or something to cover everything except your twig and berries.

I don’t know why I am giving suggestions. I am sure you will figure it out.

They may need to wear condoms starting in a few weeks, but other than that, they will be legitimate.

Pimps and ho’s.

Ho’s and pimps.

You are welcome.

Yes on Prop 60?

Why not.

Joey

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How You Will Most Likely F*** Yourself

I see this all the time.

If I am going to create a blog/vlog/podcast about helping people, the more the better, right?

Being in my late 30s, I am starting to see patterns of people around me in my age bracket. One of those patterns is how they are completely f***ing themselves.

I thought I should share it with you.

Stuff

That’s it.

People f*** themselves with stuff.

Houses, cars, clothes, etc.

Stuff.

None of these things are inherently bad.

Then how do they f*** you?

If you are not careful, each “stuff” you purchase is a handcuff, a link in a chain wrapped around your wrists, then your ankles, and then your throat. Then you are f***ed.

The more you buy, the more you are committed to, the more you have to maintain, the more weight on your shoulders, the more pressure to perform, the more pressure to focus on money over happiness, the more you are f***ed.

What I Hear Too Often

“I am not happy.”

“I hate my job.”

“I am never home with my kids.”

But…..

“If I change jobs, I won’t be making as much, I can’t afford the house, the day care, the car, etc.”

Trapped.

Stuck.

F***ed.

You know what happens when you are unhappy? You make everyone unhappy around you. That house becomes your enemy. The bills are your enemy, then the people you are paying the bills for are your enemy. Your family, the thing you are maintaining all this “stuff” for, becomes your enemy.

Is that really where you want to be?

I hope not.

From what I see and hear, it is an awful place to be.

No one wants to be stuck.

No one wants to be trapped.

I hear the same thing every single time, “How in the f*** did I get here?”

We have the best intentions, we are thinking positively, it is what we are supposed to do: get the good job, buy the nice car, and buy the nice house.

The next thing we know, all that “stuff” is a brick in a wall that we have built up around us.

We would never want to be there.

But we do it ALL the time.

How To Avoid All Of This

Purchase as if you made less.

You may have $250,000 household income, but purchase as if you only had $150,000, or even better, $125,000.

Save the rest, but more importantly, don’t lock up the rest in “stuff.”

“Stuff” won’t make you happy.

As soon as you feel trapped, all that “stuff” makes you unhappy. After all, it is the stuff that is trapping you in the first place.

Use your credit cards to build credit, but pay it off each month. Spend what you have, not what you wish you had.

Buy the car that gets you from A to B comfortably, but there is no reason to go overboard. You work hard, you deserve a nice car, but you don’t want to have to work for the car. The car should work for you.

You don’t need to get the biggest house you can afford. Sure you qualify for a $1,000,000 loan, but why not buy a house for $600,000? Maybe it is a foreclosure, so you will make money right after you sign the paper? Or you wait to buy when there is a dip in the market and it will be easier for the property to appreciate in value?

You need to learn how to make money, but you also need to learn how to save money, and how to make money work for you.

Mindset

Look at your job as if you HAD to do it. Would you marry your job? This sounds stupid, but if you had to marry it, would you? And I don’t mean 50% divorce rate marry, I mean old skool, Catholic, you are married until you die, kind of marriage.

Would you do it then?

No flexibility. No new career. No “I’ve always wanted to try this.” Nothing. Just you and that job. 

Till death do you part.

Will that work for you?

It wouldn’t work for me.

It doesn’t seem to be working for a large percentage of my age bracket.

It’s time to stop and think before we spend. Before we put those handcuffs on. Before we have to in order to maintain.

Give yourself a buffer, a little bit of breathing room.

So you can exhale.

Joey

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The Top Of Your Game

What does success mean?

What does it look like?

How do you know when you are on the top of your game?

Ironically, I have the perfect example of individuals being on top of their game.

In fact, they are on the top of the top of their game.

And not ironically that I have an example, ironically because of who the two people are.

Gary Vaynerchuk & Bill Belichick

Uh, me squeeze me?

Uhhh, a baking powder?

Gary Vee and Billy Bee?

Oh yeah.

Gary Vaynerchuk (@garyvee) and Bill Belichick are one and the same.

One does football.

One does business.

(I don’t need to explain which is which do I?)

Both are extremely successful.

Both are machine-like in their work ethic and study.

Both focus on getting better and stronger.

Both leave failures or shortcomings in the past where they belong, focusing on the future.

How Did This Even Cross My Mind?

Good question.

I am a huge fan of Gary Vaynerchuk (who, ironically is a Jets fan. Sorry bud). I read his books, listen to his keynotes, and study his social media strategies. His knowledge of business and consumer behavior is so on point, he can take situations at random, and be able to pull out a comprehensive plan for success on the spot.

He loves Q&A at his keynotes. Why? Because he doesn’t need to plan out an entire speech to bring immense value to a room full of people. He studies the group he is going to be speaking to, uses his foundational knowledge, and is able to change lives one question at a time, one person at a time, at random, in every room he walks in to.

Total flexibility.

He takes what you have, and can use it.

He takes what you don’t have, and uses that too.

His ability to maneuver is not unlike a football coach, without his Hall Of Fame QB, or his backup QB, or his Hall Of Fame tight end, and still going 3–1. A situation where other teams implode, he continues to thrive.

Total flexibility.

He takes what you have, and he manipulates it with what he has.

He takes what you don’t have, and exploits it.

The only difference between these two is Gary Vee uses his powers for good. Billy Bee uses his powers to dominate the NFL for the last 15 years. I’m not saying he is using his powers for evil, but there are a lot of people he makes unhappy every season, Gary Vee included.

Both show you how to do it.

Both have been doing it for years.

But no one can do it like them.

Belichick does the same thing on the field that GaryVee does in meetings, during Q&As, and with his clients at VaynerMedia. When you know something inside and out the way these guys do you are able to adjust and adapt it to various situations and scenarios, never being out of the game. It doesn’t have to be pretty, it doesn’t have to be perfect. Like the John Lennon quote in The Departed, “I’m an artist, give me a fuckin’ tuba and I’ll get you something out of it.”

Bill Belichick and Gary Vaynerchuk are artists.

All you have to do is give them a fucking tuba.

Joey

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The Downfall Of The NFL

I love football.

The start of the new season feels like Christmas morning to me.

I love everything about it. It’s the smartest, most physically taxing sport out there. Execution is everything, just like life. You need to outsmart your opponents. You need to out-work your opponents. It’s a complex and beautiful thing.

For the record, I am a die-hard 49ers fan. I can’t wait to see what Chip does. Anything would be better than last year, so my expectations are pretty low.

As much as I love it, I realize it has weaknesses. It could be the next baseball. Using TV contracts to fool itself into thinking it is still as relevant as ever. Live sports are the only thing television stations can hold on to (nice work on that one NBC with your Olympic coverage, #poop). Of course baseball will get huge contracts, it’s all TV has right now. But the numbers don’t lie. Less kids are playing. Less people are attending (even with a million games during your season). They don’t get it. Maybe they never will.

Will the NFL be the same?

They are certainly more proactive than MLB. They know how to create stars, excitement, and own the media throughout the year.

But do they have an Achilles heel?

Concussions, health, and safety, right?

Less kids will play because of the inherently violent nature of the sport.

That’s the downfall of the NFL, right?

I say no.

To me, it will all come down to money.

The average career of an NFL player is 3 years.

During those 36 months, at any point, their contracts can be nullified, and they are out of a job. Based on what? Whatever the team wants.

With the new NBA CBA, NFLers are looking like a bunch of suckers. Basketball players are making more than ever. MLB has guaranteed contracts. Hell, Bobby Bonilla is still getting paid by the Mets and he hasn’t hit a baseball in almost 20 years. In the NFL? Your favorite player could get cut tomorrow. Bye bye.

Why would world class athletes put up with that? They are world class. Football is not all they can do.

Why not play baseball? Why not play basketball, soccer, anything else?

It will be easier on your body, and your career could be twice as long.

It’s not healthy being as big as these guys are, pro football sized. They are too big for their bodies and then play a game where they are slamming in to someone else every Sunday that is too big.

People are not supposed to be 300 pounds. I don’t care if you are big boned or not.

Linemen in the 80’s are the size of linebackers in the 90’s are the size of running backs in the 00s. It’s crazy, and it’s unnatural. That is not easy on your body. That is not good for long term health.

So why play for relative peanuts? In an unhealthy environment? With the stress of being let go at any point?

I think the next CBA is going to be huge for the NFL.

Ramon Foster has it right, “Save your money for the 2021 lockout.”

It’s going to happen. And if the players don’t save their money, and get desperate, they will be right back in the situation they are in now.

Owners make a TON of money. A TON.

And in case you are wondering, I don’t think college players should get paid anything.

People are too caught up in money, and not enough in value. College players don’t make the schools, or make the programs, coaches do. Get your degree, or not. Play for a nationally relevant school, or not, and then go pro, or don’t. Getting paid to be put on a national stage, with a chance to get an education, is payment enough. Look to value, not dollar signs. Don’t be so short sided.

On the flip side, there is a whole lot of money being collected by the NFL, and the players do make the league. You can pick one or two players that change the whole dynamic of any team. Put all those guys together, and the league changes without them. What if Brady played baseball? What if Tony Gonzales played basketball? What if Terrell Suggs was in the WWE? Where is the NFL? These are intelligent, world class athletes we are talking about. Football is not all they can do.

What happens when they decide to do something else?

It won’t be because of concussions.

They slam their heads all day. They know it’s dangerous. It’s like smokers. You can’t really sit there and tell me you thought it was good for you. Seriously? They know. We know. And they choose to do it. More power to them. Which is why injuries will not hurt this league. But money will.

If the NFL is smart, they will start to remedy this sooner rather than later. And by later, I mean 2021.

The money is there. The NBA is making you look bad. MLB is making you look bad. Pro soccer (outside the U.S.) is making you look bad.

In America, football is king, and the players are the peasants.

Do what is right.

Joey

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Overcome You Fears & Live Your Dream

Everyone has dreams, but not everyone recognizes the fear that is holding them back.

We make excuses why we aren’t doing what we really want to: time, access, money, reality, etc.

If we were to apply The 5 Whys, number 4 or 5 would inevitably be fear.

Obviously I am not talking fear of snakes and spiders, I mean: fear of failure, fear of failing in front people, fear of not being as good as we think we are, and a general fear of the unknown. Emotional fear, just as paralyzing as the snake and spider, but more manageable.

For those of you unfamiliar with The 5 Whys, it is exactly what it sounds like. Take an issue you are having, for instance, why am I not a fill-in-the-blank yet? Then ask yourself, “why?” and keep asking yourself why until you get to the root of the problem. Money, reality, time, blah blah blah, will all work itself in there, but if you are honest, it will come down to fear. Maybe you are scared you will lose the money you invest in yourself, which means you are scared you won’t be good enough. If you don’t believe you are good enough, you are beating yourself before you even start. Either by not putting in the time at all, or working on your project with the feelings of eventual failure at every step. It will come through in your work, it will seep out during your sales pitch, and you will fail. A self-fulfilling prophecy. Killing your own dream.

The most important thing to recognize is each dream has steps. Do not look at the finished product and think of it as too big. Think of it as a collection of next steps, just out of your reach, attainable at every turn. If this is really your dream, you will be willing to put in some serious time to realize it. I am not talking days and weeks, I am talking years and years. No big deal. No pressure.

Like Tony Robbins says, “People overestimate what they can do in a week and underestimate what they can do in a year.”

This three step approach is designed to give you a comfortable space to work in. The key to it all is W-O-R-K. Without really going for it, putting in some major blood sweat at tears, your dream will just be sitting there, waiting for some attention, for the rest of your life. Give it and yourself the respect it deserves and get after it in the way you should.

Baby Steps

Dream living is a new thing for you. It will be hard to just jump right in 100% unless you are already working in the field you are “dreaming” in.

Plan out your attack. Set a schedule. Do something every day.

In the beginning, you may not even know what in the hell to do. That’s ok. If you have time set aside for your dreams, you can research people in your field, steps they took, or things you should be working on. Every piece of knowledge that you pick up will help. Everything you do in those hours must be something that will help you reach your goal. If it’s not, you need to stop doing it right now. What you will find is the more time you put in, the more clarity you will receive on the steps you need to take. Think of your time investment as earning compound interest. Pretty soon you won’t need a schedule, you won’t need to research anything, because you will be humming 7 days a week.

Start with baby steps, every single day, and make sure it all is focused on something that will allow you to reach your goal. Everything else needs to be put on hold.

Mitigate Your Risk

You need to be 100% on your dreams if you want them to happen, but you don’t need to sell the farm to do it. If you are working, then work on your dream before and after work, on the weekends. Get the 9–5, 5 days a week thing out of your head right now. You know who works 9–5 and then shuts down? No one who is trying to actually get something worthwhile done. If you want to be a cog in the machine, stop reading this right now. If you are willing to go 7 days a week, some on stuff you love, some on stuff you don’t like to do but it allows you to do the stuff you love, keep reading.

Don’t quit your job.

Don’t pee in the boss’s planter and tell that secretary you don’t like to F off, keep working. The less financial pressure you have on yourself, the more clarity you will have to approach and attack problems. Desperation is ugly and it will hijack your dreams. The less desperation the better. No desperation is best, obviously.

If it is going to cost some money, cut back on household expenses: eat out less, don’t use so much data on your phone, cut out some of the movie channels, or don’t buy so much expensive wine. Remember, you are going to be working your ass off. You will not have time for some of the extra-curriculars you have come accustomed to enjoying anyways.

This is a huge test for you: are you willing to give up your “fun” time in order to pursue your dreams?

If the answer is no, you need to make sure it is really your dream. Then make sure you understand what it is going to take.

The answer, by the way, should always be yes. Of course you are willing to cut out some “fun” for your dream. Why? Because the pursuit of your dream should be fun already!

Do you think Casey Neistat (@CaseyNeistat) hangs out with friends all the time?

You think Gary Vaynerchuk (@GaryVee) is going out to dinner and partying on the weekends?

The answer to both is hell no.

Take care of your dreams and your family. That’s it. You don’t want compromise your family or your dreams, so don’t.

Dreams are fun. Family is fun.

Remember that.

Change Your Mindset

What is winning, and what is failing?

Forget everything you know, or think you know.

From now on, winning is: learning, gaining a new skill that can be applied later through a project that doesn’t “go anywhere”(I call this failing up), taking a step in the right direction, doing something better than the day before, learning from mistakes because you know it is all part of the learning process, and finally, doing it all again tomorrow.

On the flipside, failing is: not in your vocabulary anymore.

Adios.

Ciao.

Hasta la bye-bye.

You can’t fail. It is not an option because it is not possible. Let’s put our Thomas Edison hat on. From now on when you don’t get the result you want you have just found another way it didn’t work. 

That’s it. Move on.

You are on a journey.

The path is not important, it’s the destination that is.

As long as you are still moving in the right direction, you are winning every single day.

Don’t forget that. You are winning every day you do something towards your goal.

You are a winner.

You are winning.

Congratulations.

You should be proud of yourself.

Down Days

You are going to have days that are harder than others. If this is truly your dream you will figure out ways to get through them.

Here is my vlog on what I do when I have s*** days. (What To Do When You Are Having A S*** Day) I know I am all “ra-ra-go-team!” but I can get in to a funk too. I have things in place to make sure they don’t last longer than they need to. Hopefully some of those techniques can work for you 

too.

You know it’s a dream when you are willing to take some lumps along the way. It will get hard. You will get down. You will not be as far as you wished you were. It’s going to happen. It happened to me yesterday. Boo hoo. Get over it and get back on the horse.

Keep in mind that this is a journey, this is a lifetime. Get the calendar out of here, don’t put a time limit on it, you shouldn’t even be thinking of it like that.

Your time is up the day you die.

It’s time to stop dreaming, and start doing.

You have wasted every day up to this point by not following your dream.

The good news is, you never have to waste another day again.

So don’t.

Joey

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