As a food influencer, I go to quite a few tastings every month. On that one particular day, we were talking about careers and what it would take for a young person to pivot and take a long shot. It so happened that there was a question at the table about that particular topic that goes as such:
This person’s friend is basically an exceptionally talented baker.
She’s 27, and she was a business consultant in Japan, who dropped everything to attend baking school. But now that she’s completed her training, she is afraid to go into baking or start a business and take a risk on her skills. What should she do?
I couldn’t help but share with her my perspective, based on 3 things:
- That 27 is VERY YOUNG relative to people who start and grow successful enterprises.
- That there’s a tremendous moment right now on social media. Everything is free or underpriced, and it’s a land grab.
- That learning to failing forward is key, and it’ll give you an advantage beyond everyone else in life.
Early in the curve
In this case, I think 27 is a SUPER good time. If you’re not married, you’ve got no commitments, THIS IS THE TIME. Having helped dozens of entrepreneurs in my own career, I notice that a common thread for a lot of entrepreneurs who started later in their lives often tell me that there’s nothing better than having nothing to lose.
The truth is that the moment you have a house to pay for, a child to raise or a family to take care of, you’re risking the welfare of your loved ones, and it’s just that much harder to execute deeply. Now I’m not saying that it will be impossible when you’re older. But, things are generally less challenging if you’re 27, so take your shots, push hard, and don’t doubt yourself any longer.
Attention is Affordable
At the same time, Social media – Facebook, Instagram and messaging apps mean that it has never been easier or cheaper to get the attention of people around you. Today, everything is about being able to write, compose a picture or shoot a video to transmit your message digitally to the world. If you even remotely have any ability in one of these 3 areas, you’re going to have at least a modicum of success.
Attention on these platforms are also ridiculously underpriced. For $50, $20 or even $10 a day, you will be able to reach out to thousands of people on Instagram or Facebook. It’s ridiculous, considering the (relatively) astronomical cost of advertising on Google Adwords today. So, whatever budget you have for your marketing, PUT MONEY IN SOCIAL AND PUSH YOUR PRODUCT OUT!
Failing Forward is Key
Finally, I always use my good friend Daphne as a good example in situations like this. For those who don’t know Daphne, check out her website. So Daphne decided to chase her passion, and she’s looking to triple down on what she loves and is good at.
I had a conversation with her about it and she basically said “I’m going to take a year, maybe 18 months. I’m gonna do it all the way, work really hard, and EVEN if I fail, I learnt something. If I succeed, that’s great.” The most amazing thing is that Daphne is around the same age range as the subject of this post, the only difference is that Daphne is doing it because there’s simply no reason not to!
You’ve got something
At the end of the day, pivoting out to do something completely different from what you’re doing now is about recognising that if you’ve got latent potential. Success is entirely dependent on how you view it. If you can remember that the definitions your parents, relatives, and society puts on you are arbitrary and untrue, then you’ll be able to move forward in life and get really good at what you want to be good at.
Just take it, run with it and just absorb everything from the journey. Enjoy the process
Now go ahead and seek your greatness.
