I think we've built up a little bit of a relationship here, ya think?  Not to the point where I think you can trust me, but enough to know that I'm going to tell you what you need to hear, not necessarily what you want to hear.   I think we've gotten to know each other at least that well.  So, I want to tell you something that some of you need to hear.

This is not a competition.  It has never been.  It never will be.  This creative pursuit that we share is not a contest. It's not a zero-sum game where there are winners and losers.  It's just there.  It is what it is, as cliche as that saying has become lately.

You're not going to be the next Joe Rogan or Roman Mars.  You're not going to be the next James Patterson or Neil Gaiman.   We're not the next Sue Bryce or Annie Leibowitz or Ansel Adams. We won't be the next Casey Neistat or Peter McKinnon.  

As Brother Dave Gardner used to say, "Take that one, friends.  Weigh it."    I know how this goes because I've done it.  We see the one we like, and we want to be like them.  Sure!  But here's the thing: That's easy.  That's the cheap way, the coward's way.   That's the way of people who are in it for the likes and the LOLs and the money.  

I mean, you can crank out some content, don't get me wrong.  You can crank out all kinds of content that sound like someone else, stuff that's trending, and stuff that you find on YouTube that has a bajillion views on it, so you know it's gonna work for you as well.  Do you know what you're not creating?  Anything that lets people know you YOU are.

If you've listened to me for any length of time, you know a few things about me.  You know I've been married for 26 years.  You know I've got three kids.  You know my parents are gone, and I've spent a lot of time examining that relationship and realizing exactly how dysfunctional it really was.  You know I have a psycho brother.  You know I tried to be in the military when I was 18, and that ended quickly.  You know I think Pink Floyd is the greatest band ever and that Roger Waters is amazing.  You know I've spent time in radio, in call centers, and at the age of 47, stumbled into a new career path as a multimedia specialist that opened many new possibilities for me.  You know coronavirus ate my job this year, and that I've been looking for work in multimedia with not a lot of success because I need qualifications I don't have.  You know that Kim and I try to shoot photography on Saturday Mornings, and it's done more for our marriage in 25 years than anything else I could name, and you know all this because *I* told you on this show or anything connected to it.  Casey fucking Neistat didn't tell you that.  Joe fucking Rogan didn't tell you that.  I shouldn't say that, I suppose.  I actually respect Casey Neistat.

Study those that have succeeded, absolutely.  Gain every bit of knowledge you can from those who have done it, absolutely.   But take that knowledge and create something that is unapologetically, unmistakably, and authentically yours.  You might not be as successful, but you'll be able to point to it later and say, I made that.  That was me.   I promise you, that is WAY more fulfilling.