How close are you to success? Do you see the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?
We never really know, do we? We don’t know what is around the next corner. Just ask someone like Hugh Howey of Wool series fame. In his interview with IU he mentioned that he attributes a lot of his success to “… dumb luck. Things just take off sometimes.”
How do we know if success is just around the corner for ourselves? We don’t. I’m not a Starbucks Coffee fan, but its founder, Howard Schultz, once said, “I believe that life is a series of near misses. A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all.”
As an indie writer/publisher/marketer/etc., we don’t have the “corporation” looking over our shoulders, giving us deadlines. Sometimes, discipline and perseverance are tough to find. I remember a story by Napoleon Hill that he penned in the early 1900s. During the gold rush of the 1800s, a man had set out to find his riches. After weeks of work, success. He struck gold! He sent a message back east to raise the money and bring out the equipment to mine the gold.
They mined the first car of ore and shipped it to the smelter. The returns proved they had one of the richest mines in Colorado. They went to work mining when suddenly the vein disappeared. They drilled on, trying to pick up the vein without luck. Defeated, they sold off the equipment and headed back east.
The individual who bought the equipment did a little calculating and took into account “fault lines.” He determined that the vein should pick up three feet from where the others quit. That’s exactly where it was and he made millions.
You can and will be successful. In so many cases, you are just three feet from the gold. We just need to see what other people don’t see and pursue that vision. We’re a different breed. Keep writing your goals. Keep getting better every day. It will change your life. Whatever you do, don’t be the one to stop three feet from the gold.
Thanks!
My pleasure!
Sometimes, I really need to hear this. Thanks for the great post and the good timing. 🙂
Thanks for the comments!
Jim, we have nothing to lose. As Indies we already call the shots regarding our careers .We aren’t on any deadline unless it is self imposed. Remember the old,”what if?” When I sang, a producer once told me two things I keep in mind. #1 if it was easy everyone would be doing it, and #2 It only takes one person who falls in love with your work to change your life.
Great stuff. “It only takes one person who falls in love with your work to change your life.”
thanks
Thanks Jim, I enjoyed it very much, absolutely agree with your comments and Aronjoice too. Pick up the pen, hit the on switch and get back on the keyboard, however you write. Keep doing it, success may be three feet away, give up and three feet could be a million miles. We do have the control, but we also need the self-belief and determination to keep going, the door to success is out there, just have to keep pushing until it opens.
Good advice, Martyn!
Great post. Aronjoice is correct that it only takes one person as long as that one person is someone who has the influence you need. If lots of people love your work but its still not going anywhere, then perhaps what you are needing is PATIENCE. Just so you can keep going until the person comes along who not only loves your work, but has the influence to move it along powerfully.
Great insight. Patience is a tough one to master for me. Thanks for the comment.
Wonderful post. Helpful to keep us motivated.
My pleasure, it keeps me motivated too.
Thanks for this, Jim. GREAT timing!
Thanks, Daphne. Now you know what those voices in my head are saying!
Can’t see that pot of gold yet, but I’m still plodding on. Great post Jim.
That’s what we have to do, thanks.
Right on the money, Jim! Excellent post!
Thanks TD!
Jim, you give the best pep talks (after the EM’s, of course 😉 ). We just gotta keep on keepin’ on.
EM gives pep talks?? I thought he just took away our gruel. Thanks, Lynne.
Thanks for the pep talk, perfect timing. 🙂
No problem.
Bravo! You couldn’t be more right about this. Things keep happening dynamically as long as you keep on your dedicated path. Don’t look look at the one closed door,but at all the other open ones.
You nailed it Ester. I love your attitude.
Great piece. Couldn’t come at a better time. It’s not really being talked about much, but only about 25% of the US market has tapped into e-books. That means that three feet down is the mother load. It’s coming. I think we have about 3 years to go before we pass the 50% mark. By 2020 e-books will be the standard reading format for most books except the super special ones. For now, the best advice anyone can give a writer is keep writing and keep publishing. Don’t think about the money. Think about quality. Relax and create.
You are right David. Great comment. Quality is key and keep writing.