To a Young Creator,
Your job is one of the most important and least understood on the planet.
To imagine a thing and to bring it into the world is no walk in the park. There will certainly be: failures, missteps, moments of doubt. Here are some things I have learned about how to handle this life (in no particular order).
1. LISTEN TO YOUR GUT
Tuning in and listening to your gut takes practice. A lot of things can get in the way of being able to hear, including self-doubt and external criticism, you have to break through the noise so you can hear it clearly: your gut-radar. Later in life I realized: if you think it, it is.
2. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
Easy to say, hard to do. If you want to create something, you have to really, really believe in that thing, and in the person who thought it up: YOU. And if something doesn’t work, don’t throw the whole thing away—I say if the veggie burgers aren’t selling, you don’t mark down the hamburgers.
3. SUCCESS IS NOT THE END GAME
Don’t relax with success. I never thought: oh, I’m special. I was never the smartest kid in the classroom, but I was always privately ambitious. Sometimes when people find success, they sit back and relax. I see it as an opportunity to take on another challenge, to continually improve.
4. CHALLENGE YOURSELF
I challenge myself on stupid little things like how quickly can I get dressed in the morning. I don’t like to be late. I set up barriers: Can I do that? Can I do this? I make these games and NO, they’re not comfortable after all these years. I’m always climbing the mountain. I’m always trying to prove myself. Every day, I go to work trying to do better than I did yesterday.
5. MISTAKES ARE GUARANTEED
Who doesn’t make mistakes? Some of the best lessons I’ve learned are from the mistakes I’ve made—and I’ve made a lot of them. If you don’t make mistakes, you are not reaching high enough. This is something I wish I had been aware of years ago.
6. GET OUT OF YOUR HEAD
I’m not a natural optimist. I wake up every morning full of doubt and anxiety. And then I go to SoulCycle and schmooze after class. Get out of your own head and connect with what’s going on around you.
7. SAY WHAT YOU THINK
I speak what I feel, I say what I really think—no filter.
Even if they don’t agree, people respect this.
Insincerity is something you can feel.
8. STAY CURIOUS
I ask questions and I solicit opinions, from colleagues, from friends, from customers and strangers. I’m a detective. I love feedback—I dote on criticism. I am learning every single day of my life. There is never a person I don’t learn something from.
9. BE KIND
10. NO ONE IS A SUCCESS ALONE
In both business and in life, there is nothing more important than the team you surround yourself with. Surround yourself with people who inspire you, challenge you, and bring out the best in you. Choose friends and life partners to be your personal board of directors—people who know you well, and who are supportive but brutally honest when need be, and who share your values.
11. NEVER GIVE UP
I’ve been fired by some big shots from big companies, it just made me work harder to prove to myself. I never gave up. I got knocked down and worked hard to do better. I never stopped running the race. My life has been a marathon. I love this quote from the renowned cellist Pablo Casals. When asked why he continued to practice at age 90, he said: “Because I think I’m making progress.”
Be good,
Millard "Mickey" Drexler