So much I haven't written about, but there's so much I've wanted to say.
"It's a new life for me... and I'm feeling good."
I'm been in Mexico since last Thursday. The view above has been my office during the day. There is a gorgeous patio view that overlooks the ocean. Since last night, I've been spending a lot of time standing on that patio looking over into the ocean below and thinking a lot about my life.
Standing on this porch... I can't help but feel incredibly satisfied with my life so far. It hasn't been the wealth of riches I expected, but it's been rewarding in other ways. Today was the first time I let those waves of acknowledge reach me.
The MT breakup has been hard. It's been a bevy of emotions - anger, sadness, a feeling of unfinished business... it's been about seven months since I left, but it feels like a lifetime ago.
I've dealt with that departure in a lot of different ways, but I'm finally ready to put it all behind me. No more looking back - only looking forward. And I know this, because the inner workaholic has returned with a vengeance.
By all accounts, it takes 10,000 hours to be successful at anything. When Rza started the Wu-Tang Clan, he had all members commit five years of their life to him, and he'd take them to the top. A few weeks ago, I was speaking to a friend of mine who started a restaurant. His words of advice to me were to set aside your life and commit yourself fully to the enterprise for the first couple of years.
Working 40 hour weeks for 50 weeks a year ... 5 years of that is 10,000 hours. That's what it'll take for me to really take a shot at success. Success won't come in year 1 or year 2 - but year 5. And I have to be wililng to accept that and still walk down this path.
For many different reasons, I've been unwilling to commit the past seven months to my rykorp vision. The biggest culprit was the pains I felt from the MT experience. I put in my 10,000 hours there, and leaving it behind was incredibly difficult. What if that happens again?
I realized, standing on that patio, that even in that pain was a great success. I had deveoped a unique set of skills that let me work from anywhere, with projects that I enjoy.
In my travels lately, I've noticed two contradictory things: (1) Everybody is hustling for a better life and (2) the American culture breeds an incredible work ethic. You can put 10,000 hours into building a better life in a taco stand, but that has its limits. What if those people had the access that Americans have? You can rail against the glass ceiling in American culture (the rich vs. the super-rich)... but most Americans are also standing on a glass floor that the rest of the world looks up on.
I realized I have limitless potential. The 10,000 hours I put in will be ones I learn and grow in a career that I love... and not many people have *that* opportunity (even amongst my friends).
It's been a while since I've worked as hard as I have the past few weeks and felt good about it. I'm ready to put in 50 - 60 hours a week. If it takes five years of commitment, that's what i takes. I'm already 27: I don't have time to waste.
But I'm not doing it for another company ... but for myself. To build something bigger than myself and to make a difference.
Work hard, play hard, and enjoy life. Because when I do, I can reward myself with awesome views like this:
