#derek sivers

[hiveandmeadow]

"Mastery is the best goal because the rich can't buy it, the impatient can't rush it, the privileged can't inherit it, and nobody can steal it. Mastery is the ultimate status."

- Derek Sivers, 'How to Live'

[dk-thrive]

Mastery is the best goal because the rich can’t buy it, the impatient can’t rush it, the privileged can’t inherit it, and nobody can steal it. You can only earn it through hard work. Mastery is the ultimate status.

— Derek Sivers, "How to Live: 27 Conflicting Answers and One Weird Conclusion (Derek Sivers, 2021) (via Shane Parrish)

[quotelr]

You grow (and thrive!) by doing what excitesyou and what scares you everyday, not bytrying to find your passion.

Derek Sivers

[elcielosobremi]

Sea lo que sea lo que te gusta, ve y hazlo. Sea lo que sea lo que te consuma, déjalo.

Derek Sivers

[lqb2quotes]

When you experience someone else’s genius work, a little part of you feels, 'That’s what I could have, would have, and should have done!' Someone else did it. You didn’t. They fought the resistance. You gave in to distractions. They made it top priority. You said you’d get to it some day. They took the time. You meant to. When this happens, you can take it two ways: You could let that part of you give up. 'Oh well. Now I don’t need to make that anymore.' Or you could do something about that jealous pain. Shut off your phone, kill the distractions, make it top priority, and spend the time. It takes many hours to make what you want to make. The hours don’t suddenly appear. You have to steal them from comfort.

Derek Sivers

[donttelluswhattodo]

How to Be Successful?

“If [more] information was the answer, then we’d all be billionaires with perfect abs.” - Derek Sivers

I have read far too many self-help articles, books, and blog posts claiming to contain the secrets of success.

“Do these 5 things every day to turn your life around.”

“5 morning habits of the ultra-successful.”

“Put this weird butter in your coffee and earn a million dollars.”

It all comes down to more or less the same answers, along the lines of: Read and exercise more, take risks, have no fear, work work work, wake up early, meditate often, be disciplined track your goals, ketosis, hope you like butter, etc, etc.

I’ve read it all ad nauseum while searching for answers to guide a lost young man in a previous life - myself. I’m happy to admit that I have not figured it out in the slightest.

One thing thing that always struck me about every single one of these was that I could read them from first light of day until the sun set beneath the horizon and I would still be no closer to realizing my goals. Worse yet, I had no clearer picture of what the hell my goals actually were.

These books and and articles gave me real advice, they motivated me, and acted as a call to action. They taught me things that I could use in my own life which I had never considered before. In this way, they were invaluable to my current state of mind, lifestyle, and where I hope to go in the future. I believe these books, if used correctly, can be excellent sources of self empowerment and knowledge.

But they all lack the personal touch of: what about me? This is where the soup thins out and the books leave that abysmal feeling in the chest, leaving me wondering what the hell to do next.

I sought answers in knowledge, but instead I built an empty well with strong walls - sure, the tools and everything on the outside were stronger, but what does it matter if the essential water is missing from the inside?

To avoid speaking in metaphor, I had a more willful mind because of everything I learned, but I still had no idea what to do with MY life, my own personal journey, and where to go from the present moment.

The thing is, all of these books, blogs, and inspirational videos are flawed because the best they can do is give you a push, they can never tell me how to be me, or tell me how to build a better version of myself.

They are catered to mass audiences, to reach as many living people as possible within the shortest possible time frame, thus they speak in generalities that fail to make a meaningful or relatable bridge from your point A to your point B.

By relying on them, that well becomes a prison.

Here us my truth: I will never know what will be the correct path to take, because there is no absolute correct path. I will always live a life that is firmly constrained by mystery and I have realized, as all people ought to, that this constraint is actually a great freedom, because I will never have to answer to anyone’s expectations but my own.

I will set my own standards. I will relax when my body and mind are tired and never feel guilty for it. I will push myself and train harder because it is what I want to do. In this moment, I am investing in my future self and making the best plans with my passions being what they are.

The only book that could be written which would teach me, personally, how to be a great success - defined as only I can define it - can only be written by a successful version of me far into the future, and it would take a lifetime to write.

I suspect it will be titled: Make your own damn mistakes.

So never will externally born must-haves ever need to enter into the equation, because it will always be my choice.

That is what is missing from the vast, and admittedly useful world of “self-help.” It is the personal power of choice and comfort in knowing that I will always do my personal best to make the best decision possible in this moment.

I’ve found joy in knowing I will always have a choice.

[arinewman7]

Photo by Derek Sivers

[samxcamargo]

Even when everything is going terribly, and I have no reason to be confident, I just decide to be.

Derek Sivers