life is a use-or-lose-it proposition for most humans. They take one career path, and if you've only got one shot, and then it's all over, why not do what makes you most happy? Yep, that's right, today I'm getting deep because there are three things certain in life: death, taxes, and existential meltdowns about what we're supposed to be doing on this floating rock, at least for me anyway. And as someone constantly trying to appease this existential dread, I've noticed that a lot of stuff out there can be quite cheesy, impractical, fluffy. And I mean, look, we all need a little bit of fluff now and then, but eventually, we've got to get our hands dirty, which is where today's resource comes in: a relatively unknown talk by a dude worth an estimated $8 billion, and probably the most practical advice I've ever heard on the idea of doing what you love. The dude's name is Bill Gurley, and he noticed that the stories of a lot of his heroes all looked quite similar. So he

looked a bit closer and pulled out five guidelines they all followed, and that's what I'm going to share with you today: his five guidelines to succeed and thrive in a career you love, and how they help me. Bill believes the most important decision you can possibly make in your career is picking a profession in which you have a deep personal interest. There's nothing that's going to make you more successful than if you love doing what you're doing because you're going to work harder than anybody else. It's not going to feel like work; it's going to feel like fun, which is very similar to an Naval quote: I love do what feels like play to you but looks like work to others. Now, Bill is also very honest about how you can find it, saying, This is the one that I can provide the least amount of help with you because I don't know what your passions are. It's only natural for us to be influenced by what our parents want, what our friends want, what society wants.

I know I certainly was, but ultimately we're the only ones that can find our passion. Now, you might be thinking, Well, Jay, that's not very practical, is it? Well, no, but Bill does go on to give us a good test we can use to know if we've found it. Inspired by what one of his heroes said, Everybody has the will to win, but not everybody has the will to practice. If you love the preparation of whatever it is you're doing, the stuff that happens behind closed doors, whether things are going well or not, then you've probably found your thing. Trust me, I love it when these videos perform well, but I enjoy every single one regardless, which is a good sign I might have found mine. It's extremely important to be obsessive about understanding everything you possibly can about your craft. Once we've found our thing, we should strive to know more about it than anyone else. But Bill emphasizes this: it's not necessarily about becoming better than anyone else, but knowing more about it than anyone else. He uses Pablo Picasso as an example.

showing one of his paintings from when he was 15. Now, it's very different from his most famous work, but showed that before he could do any of that, he was committed to mastering the art of painting in a traditional sense. Because it's only when we've mastered the fundamentals that we can even hope of achieving success. And he goes on to say that today is the best time in history to do it. Quote, You have zero excuses for not being the most knowledgeable in any subject you want because it's right there at your fingertips and it's free. Now, I think that's incredible advice, but I also think it's another good passion test. If you genuinely want to learn about a particular field, almost to an obsessive degree, it's probably your thing. One of the heroes Bill's basing these guidelines on is Bob Dylan, who he believes has one of the most ambitious actions anyone that he knows has taken to pursue their dream job. Because at the age of 20, Bob Dylan hitchhiked from

Minneapolis to New York City 1,200 Mi with a guitar, a suitcase, and $10. Why? All to try and find his hero Woody Guthrie, one of the most significant figures in American folk music, so he could study and learn from him. And he did. All of Bill's Heroes had mentors, and he said you should take every chance you can to find somebody who can teach you about the field you want to excel in. So, I guess I'm on the hunt for a mentor, somewhat related. Bill also says it should be a priority to develop deep relationships with people on the same journey. They don't necessarily have to be in the same field, but anyone you can discuss with, debate with, argue with is going to help you. Now, this immediately reminded me of what the musician Brian Eno said, that although great new ideas are usually articulated by individuals, they're almost always generated by communities. It's what he often refers to as the senius rather than the genius. And while there's a lot of charm about a

group of people getting together in a studio or a coffee shop to collaborate. Bill himself even mentions how you might want to move to the epicenter of your field. It doesn't necessarily have to be in person because Bill also says Twitter is the most amazing networking and Learning Network ever built. And while it's certainly changed since he gave this talk, he's probably still right. It's been a long time since I've been on Twitter, but I always remember being fascinated by how close I was to some of the greatest Minds in my field, YouTube, and creativity. Fortunate enough to meet and speak with so many of them because it and without a doubt seriously helped me along the way. Now the first point can make success and finding your passion feel like quite a selfish act. And while you may be the only person who can find your passion, other people are certainly going to play an important role helping you succeed in it. Quote always give the majority of the credit to the other people that helped you along the way. One, it's the right thing

to do and two. It'll keep you from being an [ __ ] when you're successful. An important reminder we shouldn't forget. And the last thing I'll leave you with is how Bill realized none of his heroes started what they were doing for money. Quote in each and every story they were chasing a passion and a dream that allowed them to want to study. And he closes with a quote from Tom Petty, the person who inspired the name of the talk, running down a dream. Do something you really like and hopefully it pays the rent. As far as I'm concerned, that is success. All right, see you tomorrow.

How to succeed (without losing your mind)

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