Become Unmistakable

"What would happen if you actually said what you were thinking – honest, imperfect, unedited, and unfiltered?"

When following society’s life plan becomes too painful. When you have nothing left to lose and the one thing you want more than anything in the world is to just be yourself. When you’re ready to embrace your inner misfit and approach your life like a work of art, you’re ready to become unmistakable.

It’s time to stop mimicking your mentors and the “celebrities” in your industry. Stop inhaling blogs and clinging to the words of others. Stop following formulas for success and please, stop waiting for an invitation to the ball. The invite may never arrive, but you can attend regardless.

Let’s do it. Let’s become unmistakable. I’m right here with you. The first step is to give yourself permission to be your no-bullshit self.  Once you find your no-bullshit self, life will become more colorful – or so I would imagine. (I’m still searching for my no-bullshit self.) You’ll start to choose yourself and you’ll stop working for the sake of accolades, invitations, and vanity metrics. You’ll create for yourself. You’ll create to help others. You’ll create because that’s what you were meant to do.

So stop with the bullshit already, okay?

Become the No-Bullshit Version of You

"In a world where everybody has a voice, the only ‘personal brand’ that will stand out is one that is honest, imperfect, vulnerable, and rough around the edges. When you polish anything too much, it loses the thing that makes it shine from within."

We’re so accustomed to fitting in and dressing up for a motley of parts in our lives – spanning from job performances to cocktail parties – that we actually leave our true selves at the door. We drop off our opinions, vulnerabilities, and inner misfits at the entrance along with our faux fur coats. Stripping off our layers feels safe.

I hate to tell you this but “fitting in” is so last decade. It’s out, o-u-t, OUT and the no-bullshit bandwagon is here to stay. The no-bullshit approach to life is one that allows you to take risks, speak your truth and work on projects you actually care about. Your no-bullshit self isn’t concerned with validation and creates for the love of creating.

Here are 3 ways you can tap into your no-bullshit self:

• Piss people off – you may shock ‘em but at least you’re speaking your truth.
• Focus on your impact, not your open rate – metrics feed your ego but force you to follow a formula to online success. Avoid formulas.
• Stop saying what people want to hear – You’re probably wrong anyway.

If you feel uncomfortable, you’re most likely on the right track. If colleagues start looking at you like, I can’t believe you just said that, you’re making progress.

Remember, be YOU. Don’t settle for a “pale comparison of someone else.”

Choose yourself

"The opportunity to choose you, do something that matters, make dents in the universe and leave your soul print in the sand is more accessible than at any time in the history of western Civilization."

Have you heard? The gatekeepers – you know, the ones that hold the key to your imminent future – are going extinct. This is good news for some of you … and bad news for others.

It turns out many of us like the idea of being chosen. I mean, who doesn’t want to be labeled as special and singled out from the masses? I certainly do.

Yet we’re living in a magical time where you don’t have to wait for the Oprah of gatekeepers to let you into the party. You can now shimmy past them and show up to the fête armed with your talent, a 6-pack of Heineken and your no-bullshit charm. Your inner-creative will shine, brilliantly, for all to see.

Choose yourself. Don’t wait for a fancy schmancy invitation from anyone. In other words, stop worshipping heroes and become your own superhero.

Here are 3 ways you can choose yourself immediately:

1. Learn something that you actually want to learn. Not something you think you should learn. Ask yourself, what am I interested in? And then pursue it.
2. Grab a virtual mic (we all have access to a microphone) and speak your truth. When I say mic, this may represent your blog or your YouTube channel or if you’re a podcaster, it is literally a microphone at your desk.
3. Share your art with everyone you stumble across. Don’t be afraid to connect with key influencers too and say, “Here I am and this is what I’ve got to say. Take it or leave it.”