Where Will Great Work Take You?

jamesarcher.me

I have seen people rise in unexpected ways because of their great work skills. Sometimes, they've got average skills but excellent work dedication. They work hard and consistently.

There is a magic in delivering great work.

The most successful people in the world are either extremely good at one specific thing or big risk takers.

Have you ever wondered why individual musicians, even young, make a lot more money from music than choirs (team of professional musicians)? Or why one man will make more money than an entire company with teams of people?

Well, after observing the usual patterns successful people follow, I found out they can be broadly classified into two -- be a celebrity in your chosen field or be like Dangote (take big risks). In this post I will talk about the former because that is the path I have decided to follow.

The same way musicians, artists and famous authors manage their career is the same way I am trying to manage mine -- by delivering consistent great work. Start early, make all the mistakes fast, put yourself out there, be visible, be bold, be focused, and charge crazy high.

If you consistently deliver great work and don't reset your career every few years or spread yourself across too many things, then that great work will take you places. Usain Bolt can run all races but he decided to focus on short ones (sprints). Most musicians focus on just one genre of music even though they can sing across multiple genres. Famous authors specialize in one type of theme. Movie starts have their niche roles. Imagine Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) and Rowan Atkinson (Mr Bean) switching roles.

Finally, focus on the end consumer and not critics/peers. I see too many people trying to please the expert community in their field than the people who pay for their services. The highest paid musicians are not the prodigies in the music schools or professors of music who are expert at wowing critics. The highest paid ones are the ones focusing on delivering great enjoyable value for the general consumers (like you and me). It's the same approach I take in my business. I don't care what other experts say or try to enter a competition with them. I focus on the mass market -- people who care about me solving their problems and willingly pay me for it and not people who will engage me in superiority argument that waste time and don't put money in my pocket.

So, are you doing great work?