Someday, it will happen. At least that’s what we tell ourselves. It’s the mantra of every artist/entrepreneur: “Work hard, never quit, and someday I’ll get there.”
Back in the day, it was the gatekeepers that got in our way. More recently, it’s the challenge of mind-numbing, non-stop, exponential technology, and the total transformation of our entire industry, caused by the disruption from the global pandemic.
However, for an aging artist or entrepreneur it’s the challenge of time—the push to achieve our big goals & dreams before we run out of gas. Many artists & treps find themselves growing older with an ever increasing fear that the biggest opportunities have already passed them by, and the only thing left to do is settle-in or toss the towel. To others it’s no longer about getting there, it’s now about staying there. Even the word “dinosaur” has shifted from a jurassic zoo animal, to a personal insult to anyone approaching 50.
That said, I think the biggest time-wasting mistake we make is waiting; waiting for the economy to turn around, waiting for a vaccine, waiting for new leadership, waiting for the kids to grow, waiting for the phone to ring, waiting for an offer, waiting for things to return to normal, or waiting for that breeze to blow in, and that ol’ second wind comes along!
Important because maybe it’s as simple as changing our mantra, from “What’s in it for me?” to “How can I continue to be relevant and offer my best work, to those who continue to want it?” Truth is, you may not have an audience of 100k, but you still have an audience. Your video may not get a million views, bit you still have viewers. Your company may not have 50k customers, but you still have customers.
In the meantime, Elton John continues to shout his own timeless mantra from the mountaintop: “I’m still Standing, better than I ever did, Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid.”