“Prejudice is a great time saver. You can form opinions without having to get the facts.” —Elwyn Brooks White Okay, wait. Hear me out on this. It’s not as bad as you think… Do you know what Authority followers (read: pretty much everyone, everywhere, always) want more than anything? Easy decisions. A world that makes …
“I constantly think I’m a fraud – that this success is not warranted or justified.” — David Chang Everybody hates a fraud. Nobody likes to be defrauded, and nobody wants to be a fraud — at least not good people, right? But here’s the dirty little secret about being an Authority: your “thing” is probably …
“I decided that I would be one of the biggest new names; and I actually had some little fancy business cards printed up to announce it, ‘Count Basie. Beware, the Count is Here.’” — William James “Count” Basie There are a few key elements to his quote, and this is one that we really need …
“I don’t look at a man who’s expert in one area as a specialist. I look at him as a rookie in ten other areas.” —Conor McGregor Specialization is great. It allows you to establish your brand, stand out in a crowded marketplace, and become known for your “superpower.” Most Authorities will teach you to …
Specialization is great. Until it’s terrible. Maybe Read More »
“Either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing.” —Benjamin Franklin Ever see a would-be Authority who is most decidedly NOT an authority? There’s only one reason why: they’re not interesting. Boring. Flat. This would-be Authority doesn’t make anyone feel anything, because they’re too busy “informing” them. This person has, consciously or not, …
“Don’t try to be different. Just be good. To be good is different enough.” —Arthur Freed I suspect my wife is beginning to hate going out to eat with me. The thing is, it’s hard to find a restaurant that does a really, really good job. Lots of restaurants do an “okay” job, and we’re …
“Human beings love stories because they safely show us beginnings, middles and ends.” —A.S. Byatt One of the things I love about biographies of great people is to watch them go through their lives without knowing how things would unfold. This is especially true as they are starting out. Abraham Lincoln certainly didn’t know he …
Use time travel to finish the story for your audience. Read More »
“I think it’s a fallacy that the harder you practice the better you get. You only get better by playing.” —Buddy Rich For some would-be Authorities, it’s time to stop practicing and start performing. Nobody’s embarrassed at practice, but when it’s time to perform, they can come up short in front of everyone. And that’s …
“I’m always trying to turn things upside down and see if they look any better.” —Tibor Kalman A lot of very smart, capable people with something to say and holding back. Why? Because they don’t feel like they are smart enough. But what if I told you that being an Authority is about something else? …
“I wish I had invented blue jeans. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity – all I hope for in my clothes.” —Yves Saint Laurent It’s easy to fall into the trap of piling on complexity to prove your worth. Gotta stack that value, right? Hold on. Don’t be so proud of what you know …