What do you want? What do you really want?
Those questions stump most people. Deciding what you want can be the hardest thing.
Most of us spend our lives going along with what others want for us or chasing what we’ve been told we should want.
We choose things out of habit, not desire. We find ourselves on well-worn paths that were never ours to walk. We color between the lines of sketches drawn by someone else.
As a result, we become a supporting actor in our own life. Many of us go from birth to death without knowing what we really want from life.
And even if you figure out what you want, it can be scary to go after it. Because you may not get it.
To avoid that pain, we play it small. We turn away from seemingly closed doors before life has the opportunity to open them. We block our own sunshine. We ignore our own wisdom.
But a closed door isn’t always a locked door. Sometimes, you just have to push.
And the pain of not getting what you want? That’s the price of admission to a courageous life—and I’m happy to pay it.
There’s another type of price you pay—not for failing, but for failing to try at all. I’ve felt that pain before, and I never want to feel it again.
To that end, I’ll share with you what I really want.
My new book, Awaken Your Genius, will be out THIS Tuesday. I’m more proud of this book than anything else I’ve written (I’m not going to hide that shine!).
I want the book to debut on the New York Times bestseller list. I want it to reach every single person who would benefit from it—and that includes YOU.
And I’d love your help to make this happen. (Typing that sentence makes me feel really vulnerable. A previous version of me would have said, “I don’t need help! I’ve got this. I can MacGyver what I need myself.”).
So here’s my ask: Please buy the book. (If you already bought it, thank you!). Every single order counts. It’s readers like you buying my books (1 book every 3 years) that allows me to keep writing week after week and sharing new ideas with you.
If you’ve been saying to yourself “I’ll buy it when it comes out,” now’s the time. Tuesday is just around the corner.
I know in my bones that the book will help take your life to an extraordinary new level—by helping unlock the wisdom within and unleashing your unique talents.
I’ve already seen this transformation happen in keynotes I’ve given that were based on the book. People were moved to tears—and told me this message was exactly what they needed to level up in life. (Here’s a video with some of their reactions).
As Zora Neale Hurston writes, “there is no agony like bearing an untold story inside you.”
This book is here to help you uncover that story, tap into your inner wisdom, and give birth to your genius, your true self—the person you were meant to be.
P.S. If you struggle with figuring out what you want, think back to what you loved doing as a child—before the world stuffed you with facts and memos and before the word should dictated how you spend your time. What made you weird or different as a child can make you extraordinary as an adult.
Here’s me, writing stories in my tiny room in Istanbul, not knowing where it would lead one day.
Related
What do you want? What do you really want?
Those questions stump most people. Deciding what you want can be the hardest thing.
Most of us spend our lives going along with what others want for us or chasing what we’ve been told we should want.
We choose things out of habit, not desire. We find ourselves on well-worn paths that were never ours to walk. We color between the lines of sketches drawn by someone else.
As a result, we become a supporting actor in our own life. Many of us go from birth to death without knowing what we really want from life.
And even if you figure out what you want, it can be scary to go after it. Because you may not get it.
To avoid that pain, we play it small. We turn away from seemingly closed doors before life has the opportunity to open them. We block our own sunshine. We ignore our own wisdom.
But a closed door isn’t always a locked door. Sometimes, you just have to push.
And the pain of not getting what you want? That’s the price of admission to a courageous life—and I’m happy to pay it.
There’s another type of price you pay—not for failing, but for failing to try at all. I’ve felt that pain before, and I never want to feel it again.
To that end, I’ll share with you what I really want.
My new book, Awaken Your Genius, will be out THIS Tuesday. I’m more proud of this book than anything else I’ve written (I’m not going to hide that shine!).
I want the book to debut on the New York Times bestseller list. I want it to reach every single person who would benefit from it—and that includes YOU.
And I’d love your help to make this happen. (Typing that sentence makes me feel really vulnerable. A previous version of me would have said, “I don’t need help! I’ve got this. I can MacGyver what I need myself.”).
So here’s my ask: Please buy the book. (If you already bought it, thank you!). Every single order counts. It’s readers like you buying my books (1 book every 3 years) that allows me to keep writing week after week and sharing new ideas with you.
If you’ve been saying to yourself “I’ll buy it when it comes out,” now’s the time. Tuesday is just around the corner.
I know in my bones that the book will help take your life to an extraordinary new level—by helping unlock the wisdom within and unleashing your unique talents.
I’ve already seen this transformation happen in keynotes I’ve given that were based on the book. People were moved to tears—and told me this message was exactly what they needed to level up in life. (Here’s a video with some of their reactions).
As Zora Neale Hurston writes, “there is no agony like bearing an untold story inside you.”
This book is here to help you uncover that story, tap into your inner wisdom, and give birth to your genius, your true self—the person you were meant to be.
P.S. If you struggle with figuring out what you want, think back to what you loved doing as a child—before the world stuffed you with facts and memos and before the word should dictated how you spend your time. What made you weird or different as a child can make you extraordinary as an adult.
Here’s me, writing stories in my tiny room in Istanbul, not knowing where it would lead one day.
