It's The System. Always.

image: linkedin.com

Growing up I always wished and sometimes believed that I am a genius. That I could do better than those who have gone ahead -- the older successful people.

My experience over the last three years has delivered me from that wish and helped me realise that I don't need to be a genius. And that being an average person will helped me become successful more than being a genius will. 

How is that possible?

Number 1: Being a genius is useless in Nigeria. Ever watched those American movies where CIA goes all length and spend government resources to recruit a young genius? Or you have watched how companies go after college geniuses? Maybe you have seen movies where an elderly person helps a young genius harness his special abilities for good and heroic exploits.
Well, the one thing common to all those movies is that they happen outside of black Africa. If you a genius in Nigeria, you will have to be the CIA that discovers you and be the government with deep pockets to spend on you, all on top of being the genius you. If you are waiting for someone to discover you, you will become Methuselah and still die with all your potentials. There is nobody who genius epp in Nigeria.

Number 2: Slightly better than average sells a lot better than genius. Think about it. All the documented top geniuses are working for lesser geniuses, other people who are just slightly above average. All the billionaires in the world and owners of the companies where the super geniuses work are just slightly above average people.
The thing about success than most people don't realise is that it is much like a finish line. Whether you go a hundred miles beyond it or just a step beyond that finish line is irrelevant. What becomes relevant is how much you monetize that success. So rather than try to beat everyone, rather than try to break every IQ test record, rather than try to outwit the smartest people; better to put your energy in spreading the impact of your success.

Running my own business for the last three years has opened my eyes to the truth that the most successful guys I come across are not the smartest nor the most hardworking, they are simply the ones who make the system work for them. 

It's the system. It has always been the system. And the quicker you can get the system to work in your favour and let things go on autopilot, the greater your reward of success.

Like me, you have to forget about yourself and focus more on the system. Making it work for you. The system comprises people and structures. Let other people work for you and build systems that extract value from them. Let their success be your success and not the other way round. I am at that stage now that I am trying to figure out how best to make the system work for me. How to build the structures and leverage other people's efforts. 

I am already making small progress.