You can be successful without being special.
You cannot be successful if you choose to be normal.

How do you define success? Perhaps it is career achievement. Or maybe it is accumulating money or power. Maybe it is being faithful, and hearing “well done my good and faithful servant” when you pass on. Maybe it is raising “good” kids.

Whatever your definition is, you likely don’t have to be born with special abilities to achieve it. Rather than excusing ourselves because we weren’t born with some special ability, consider the time you spend.

Your phone logs the time you spend on it. Take a moment and look at your Screen Time. Get your iPhone, click on the settings app, then click on “Screen Time.” It shows how much time you spend on each app.

My guess is that those apps are enemies to your success. Social media, YouTube, games, etc. are all distractions.

Those that have reached the top of their fields are many times the people that come to mind as role models. Those people chose to live differently. They ruthlessly prioritized. They pay attention to what steals their time, their money, their thoughts. They pay attention to their flaws and weaknesses. They did this before anyone knew their name and worked in the shadows.

The goal is not to be famous, but rather to be successful by your definition. This might mean a healthy family and faithful life. The success that you imagine likely does not take being born special. Rather, it means living life differently than everyone else.

One Question

What habits do you need to change? What have you excused for too long that is holding you back?

Other thoughts

• What would you be willing to give up in exchange for peace? If you had to choose between money, power, and fame or internal peace, what would you choose? This peace would be everlasting and consistent no matter the situation. What would you choose?

• It’s easier for the devil to distract you than to destroy you.

• Don’t use disappointment to justify your disobedience.

• Trust comes when your private self is proven to align with your public self.

Thank you for reading my newsletter! I am grateful to have you read each Monday so we can grow together as individuals. Please reply and let me know your thoughts!

Sincerely,
Matt Virgin