Bet on yourself.

Let’s rewind the clock to 2004…

A more carefree me landed his first job as a graphic designer at a promotional products firm at age 19 - four months after graduating from college with a relevant Associate’s Degree.

Four years later, I’d outgrown my role and couldn’t ascend any further. I spent months sending out resumes, but no one would interview me, let alone hire me.

I felt unworthy and devalued because I couldn’t even get a response from employers.

“No one at all is willing to give me a shot?” Damn… ok.

One morning, I woke up with the epiphany to just hire myself rather than indefinitely wait for a callback. So I immediately put in my two-week notice.

By quitting my job, buying a new home, and a new car - with no savings, favors, or lines of credit - I backed myself into a corner with little time to succeed before it all could come crashing down.

My then-GF supported me emotionally and financially, which allowed me to try my hand at freelancing as a graphic design hired gun. Within weeks, I landed my first official job designing a logo, and I never looked back.

I only built a rep by getting out there and putting in the hard yards when it wasn’t fun nor easy. What I didn’t know, I took the time to learn. What I didn’t have, I eventually earned. In my mind, this was an invitation to grow, not to not try. All I needed was a chance to prove my value.

Look, chances don’t come around often. You have to be so good they can’t ignore you when they do. In the meantime, you have to make your own opportunities happen through creativity, hustle, and conditioning.

Waiting on the gatekeepers to open the entrances for you is a fool’s errand. Because they don’t bet on you until you’ve won a few races first. Instead, we must put ourselves in positions where the shot-callers are bending the knee to endorse our talents. The best chance is the one you create for yourself. When they don’t believe you, lean into that. Become untenable. Make it a feature, not a bug.

Here are three first-hand bullets (proof) points to help you bet on yourself…

1. Think back and hone in on your lifelong superpower. I was born with a gift for arts and a strong trust in self (a facet of hustle). While trust is something you learn, every child is already an artist. Though we aren’t all nurtured equally, you, too, have inherent gifts. If they’re dormant, make them vibrant by asking those with memories you don’t about the things you did and were interested in during childhood. This knowledge is a pathway toward tapping into your superpower(s).
2. Be still and turn the world off. The noise of the world is ubiquitous. But who are you when all the sounds are drowned out? Are you mellow or anxious? How do you feel about yourself when you’re cloaked in complete silence? The body doesn’t lie. We have to turn down the volume on everything else to listen to its language. A state of equanimity is critical. Get to know yourself. Love yourself. Trust yourself. Despite every reason the world gives you not to. Only then can you bet on yourself without reservations. Your most extraordinary power lies in the paramount belief in yourself when no one is around or watching.
3. Take inventory and get resourceful. Tally what you’re good at, what you love doing, the positives people see in you, everything you know and own; look at all that’s there, and then tell me you can’t do it or that you’ve tried everything. What you don’t know is learnable and probably available free/cheaply somewhere. If you don’t know where to start, know when to start, which is yesterday. It’s not about your resources; it’s about your resourcefulness. No matter how little or amateurish, they exist if you’re observant enough to see them. The tools on their own are irrelevant. It’s how you use them that makes your reality.