In today’s internet era you can create unparalled impact and make tons of money if you master one game-changing habit. And needless to say, you must put in titanic effort. So, what is the number one game-changing habit that will revolutionize your life?
Some may argue we are in the post-internet era as artificial intelligence takes the driver’s seat. However, for most people, the internet era is just beginning so it’s important you listen to me.
According to the University System of Georgia, January 1, 1983, is considered the official birthday of the Internet. Prior to this, the various computer networks did not have a standard way to communicate with each other.
Since its inception 40 years ago, the internet has created more wealth than all eras in human history put together. The internet is not just creating humungous wealth for huge companies like Amazon, Google and Microsoft but also for individuals. Young boys and girls, old men and women, the educated and school dropouts are making insane amounts of money online.
However, a lot has changed since the internet era began and the way of making money has also changed. The internet era started gathering steam in the 1990s. That’s when behemoths like Amazon, E-bay, Google, Netflix, Alibaba, and Salesforce were founded. The internet dizzying growth led to the dot-com bubble, not different from the golden tulip-bubble of 1634 – 1637.
During the dot-com bubble, you could put up literally any shit online and become an overnight millionaire. Internet millionaires sprang up all over the place. Then the bust came on Friday, March 10, 2000, and took down with it the millionaires that had no substance. All those without substance crashed out never to be remembered.
Yes, during the bubble many of the whiz kids made insane amounts of money. Expectedly, after the bust, they had to return home to their disappointed parents to lick their wounds. The party had abruptly ended. Finito. Were the whiz kids unlucky? Were they at the right place at the wrong time? What really went wrong? The reason for their rapid rise and fall was simply because they had no substance.
Unlike the whiz kids, Amazon and Jeff Bezos are still standing strong because Jeff had and still has substance. Jeff once said that Amazon’s cash-flow projections showed the company would be growing at over 1000% annually. He said this happened no matter how he tweaked the projections. As you can see, Jeff Bezos had substance and that’s why Amazon has endured. As you may know, Jeff is now heading to the *Moon* with his Blue Origin space program.
Paul, I’m becoming impatient, what exactly is the one game-changing habit that will revolutionize my life? I’m happy you asked. This is the habit: *FOCUS ON BEING A PERSON OF SUBSTANCE IN EVERYTHING YOU DO*. By substance, I mean pursuing excellence in everything that you do. Being a person of substance or someone that pursues all-round excellence is a huge habit. Remember, a habit is not a skill or competence, it’s a way you live your live.
Why is being a person of substance or pursuing excellence important today? Here is why: because you are competing with the best of the best all over the world. Thanks to social media, the internet has been opened to everyone. You don’t need coding skills. You don’t even need higher education to know how to post something online. Making it so easy to access the internet, especially social media, is a double-edged sword. The system swiftly cuts down mediocrity and promotes excellence.
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This is what you have to know. The entire internet ecosystem operates on algorithms and the algorithms reward substance. There are hundreds of social media platforms and thousands, if not millions, of marketing platforms and market places online. Although they operate on different protocols, the bottom line is, they all reward substance. Gone are the days when you could post junk online and get rewarded.
This is why the platforms reward substance (or excellence if you like). All the platforms are competing for the same amount of limited resources: eyeballs. There may be 8.2 billion people on earth, but when someone is on YouTube, he can’t be on Facebook or X or LinkedIn, etc. So eyeballs are limited. Accordingly, every platform aims to create the best user experience possible so that every visitor is hooked.
The platforms make money through adverts. So, they want users to be engaged and remain on their platforms for as long as it takes so they can sell adverts. This is why you can create multiple accounts on Amazon, Google, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube all for free. The platforms need eyeballs. It’s a game of numbers. The more eyeballs, the better. To retain people on your platform you must have quality content. That is why economists say we are now in the content economy.
So, from the elementary algorithms of the 80s, 90s and early 2000s, algorithms have evolved. Today advanced algorithms carefully review everything you say, do, post, and reward you based on “*SUBSTANCE*” as measured by viewer *ENGAGEMENT*.
If your content has substance and hooks people, the algorithm rewards you by showing it to more people. If the opposite is the case, it hides the content unless you pay. That’s why you see *Boost this article* all over the place. If you don’t boost, then no show. That is why I’m saying for the umpteenth time, your content must have substance to hook people. If you have money you can keep boosting sh*t but that’s for idiots and not you.
You must aim for substance or quality or excellence. However, you will not be able to achieve excellence from day one. That is why it’s important you start early. First, you go for quantity, then you gradually up the quality. The more content you create the more experience you’ll garner. So start. Begin. Get on with it. Rome as they say was not built in a day. To begin with, you don’t know what you don’t know, so, *BEGIN* and learn from your mistakes. The more mistakes you make the better you become along the way.
The algorithm is actually your friend. Although it changes frequently you have nothing to fear if you have substance. The reason the algorithm changes now and then is to weed out cheaters and enhance user experience. So, forget about the algorithm and how it changes and focus on the quality of your content. Once you have quality content, the algorithm will reward you. In short, focus all your effort on substance.
*Paul, how do I get substance?* You start by investing in books, courses, workshops, and internships, both free and paid. Attend summits, conferences, conventions, both locally and abroad. Join international Clubs like Toastmasters, Lions, Rotary, Kiwanis, and so on. Also, consider launching a YouTube channel, a podcast, and writing books and seeking feedback from people of character and letters. Finally, position yourself to attract mentors, and if you can afford it, get coaches.
You need coaches in all spheres of your life. You may ask, Paul, how do I afford coaches knowing coaches don’t come cheap? You can afford coaches by reordering your priorities, delaying gratification and adopting abundance mentality. Why buy a big car when your priority as you’re starting out should be how to grow your wealth? Same thing with renting an expensive apartment. Once you put your priorities right you can afford a coach. Start with one coach in the area of your biggest need like confidence building.
A word on why having abundance mentality is very important. Many people you’ll come across have scarcity mentality. They are corrupt. They steal to become rich. They will never spend a Kobo to improve themselves, pay to attend a course or get a coach. They rather bribe to get what they want. They may be educated but lack wisdom. That should not be you.
Remember, everything to do with education (First degree, second degree, MBA courses, webinars, conferences, etc.) is simply preparation. The magic happens when you begin to practice what you have learnt. To succeed, you must *Execute*. Execution is the key to the kingdom of impact, wealth, and abundance. So, don’t delay, stop procrastinating, stop unnecessary perfectionism, and begin to *EXECUTE*.
Get out of your comfort zone and begin. *JUST DO IT* as the Nike’s tagline commands . Get up and shoot your first video and podcast. Get up and create your website. Get up and create your first blog post. You may be scared to death that people will laugh at you because your first video or article will suck. It doesn’t matter if it sucks and fall below expectation. First, no one really cares because people know you’re a “newbie.” They will even applaud you for daring to try.
Second, I can assure you the people who laugh at you today will hail you tomorrow. They will applaud you when you mount the podium to accept your first award. Take as an example the case of Godwin Benson, Tuteria’s co-founder. Godwin has won so many awards, I’ve lost count. He started with zero knowledge online. What of the co-founder of Airbnb, Brian Chesky, and the creator of CD Baby, Derek Sivers? Godwin, Brian and Derek all say they didn’t know what they were doing when they started out. Today, they are household names.
With your first degree and years of experience, you can write a book, create a website and start flapping your wings. This is my plea and advice to you. Wake up from your slumber because the game has changed. The way of making money today is different from the way money was made yesterday. To make money today, you must create content that people love. In short, you must have substance. Having substance is the one game-changing habit that will revolutionize your life.
Get started. Jump into the water *NOW* and start writing and creating. I can assure you the water is warmer than you think. As the saying goes, when there is a will, there is always a way. Focus on substance on whatever you do. Make it a habit. Do it, and the algorithm will handle the rest. You’ll win Big.
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