THE 5 MONTH THEORY

5 months left in the year. I like the number 5. Here's what I want you to do the next 5 months in the year because I love you.

Be a good mothafuckin person. It starts there. If you’ve been a shitty person for the past 7 months then here’s my challenge to you to change. You can literally have a subpar product and people will fuck with it off the strength that you’re a good person. I’ve seen it all the time. I’ve supported people who I felt their work wasn’t the greatest but I felt they were good people and liked their energy and I supported anyway.

If you been going through some shit and the first 7 months haven’t gone your way I pray you can get it back right. I can’t really tell you everything will be okay because I don’t truly know that but I pray you don’t give up on yourself. If you’re hurt in any form whether it be physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, use the next 5 months to heal and understand. Health in all forms is the number one priority. Without health you can’t enjoy this shit. This life shit hard man. People doubt you and treat you like shit, never considering how you feel, the world is a shit show, these jobs don’t give a fuck about you. So much hatred and through it all I smile and put my best foot forward. It ain’t that easy for people to do that and I understand. Just find what works for you.

Build 2 new relationships. In the next 5 months just build a relationship with someone you never met. The person doesn’t even have to be in creative field you’re in, build the relationship anyway. You can’t expect people to just find your work. The people you build relationships with can help you do that and that’s why it’s important for you to meet new people. You never know who will end up being the biggest help to your vision.

Don’t worry about being accepted. Just work on what you need to work on. Make something that solves a problem. If you create something that helps people grow then they will come to you over and over again.

Everybody has a fucking idea. You’re not special if you have an idea. A billion people have ideas. It’s the people who execute them who are special.

Write out what you want to accomplish next year. Actually, never mind. Write it all down and start now. Aim to be in the middle stages of what you’re striving for by January. It’s like chopping down a tree. Just attack the tasks day by day. You don’t have to do everything in a day. Just take a step everyday. It could be something as small as reaching out to people you wanna collaborate with. Sending emails. The building don’t get built in a couple weeks. You gotta lay down each brick for your creative empire because each brick matters. It will be the foundation of everything you own in your future.

Try. Try a lot. It’s better than doing nothing. It cost less to fail and cost more to do nothing.

Let the debaters debate. If I have time to argue or debate that means there’s too much time on my hands and I’m not solving anything. I seriously never seen a debate change someone’s way of thinking. They had to go through an experience to change. The debate didn’t change their behavior. Nobody wants to admit they’re wrong because of their pride so it’s a waste of time and energy to debate. Go do what your heart is guiding you towards. There’s gonna be a lot of people who don’t agree with what you want to pursue and they will go ballistic over your decisions and will try to debate you on how YOU feel. It can be a parent that does this. A friend. A sibling. A stranger. You need to let them know that this is your life and you’re holding the dice. Not them. They shouldn’t be rolling for you and if they are you have a huge problem and need to have some tough conversations.

Establish who you are, the message of your brand, and who your brand wants to help. Explain all of this in 2-3 sentences. Write it down and read it everyday until it’s in your brain forever.

Have a monthly financial target you want to hit with the income from your creativity. Everything costs. Get out of the mindset that you’re a starving artist and transition into a thriving artist. If you wanna start small and say I want to make $75 in a month then do that. Keep going higher and higher until you’ve reached what you think your value of your work is.

You already have everything you need to create the life that you’re dreaming of. Ask yourself “What’s holding me back? What am I afraid of?” Be truthful when you answer that question. Please do not lie. You won’t get anywhere if you lie to yourself and you’re going to continue to be in the position you complain about.

Get uncomfortable. Just jump into the pool. People do a lot of dumb shit to avoid being uncomfortable. There’s people who kill people because of the fear of being uncomfortable. All that needed to happen to prevent it was a conversation but tough conversations make people uncomfortable. Letting people go is uncomfortable. Don’t let the tension grow. If someone is not the best fit for your life and putting stress on you then you need to let them know that immediately. Yes it will be a uncomfortable conversation but you have to put the fire out now before it spreads and once it spreads you run the risk of losing everything.

You gotta do things you don’t wanna do to get what you want. You think I like waking up at 4am 5 days a week even on my days off from work? FUCK NO! I’m not even a morning person at fucking all but I seen the common trend from people I get inspired by and they all get up early. Terry Crews gets up at 4:45am everyday. Kobe Bryant before retiring got up at 3am and started practicing by 4am. Nipsey Hussle gets up at 6am everyday. The Rock gets up at 4am. They get up early to have more time to work and grind towards their goals. It’s part of their success. You know the saying “There’s not enough time in the day?” There is enough time you’re just not willing to sacrifice. I hate going to the gym and I rather eat tacos everyday but I like how my body feels when I exercise. There’s a lot of shit you don’t wanna do but if you want shit to change you better lift your head up and do what you don’t wanna do.

Get your work to the people you know. Sell it to them first. The strangers will come later if you handle the people you know first.

It only takes a second to acknowledge the great work you’ve did. Let the people obsess over it. You can’t obsess over it you gotta work towards your next win. One pat on the back and get back to trappin.

Ask for help. If you need help ask. You see a person or a team of people you want to work with and help you create something reach out to them. This a team game. Don’t let your ego convince you that it’s not. Don’t let your insecurities stop you from working with people who are better or smarter than you. Your creativity needs those people.

Make everything legal! Turn your creativity to a real company. Trademark the shit you can. Niggas is out here stealing. A lot of goofy shit going on. Quit playing and get your paperwork in order. Own your shit for real.

Peace.

@politeasflannel

@jayjaybenny

@politecoolery

Listen to the blog podcast Polite Coolery.

Benny