The one trick to getting ahead in life

When I was a kid I would sit on the porch playing with my red fire engine. Sometimes my mom would come outside with a plate of brownies and just smoosh them into my face like I was a foie gras duck and not her son. She would display erratic behavior like that sometimes.

But now look at me. As I write, I’m sitting on the 10th floor of my own office skyscraper. If I wanted I could press a red button next to my desk and a 20-something unpaid intern would come in and ask me, “Do you need something, sir?”

So, how did I get here? Did I work harder than others? Was I smarter than others? Lucky? Did I read a particularly helpful book? No, none of those things. Those are the ways life’s losers describe its winners, just to make themselves feel better. Forget all that. There is only one thing you need to know to achieve your greatest aspirations —

If you want something, you must be that thing.

“What did he say?”

Oh, did you not hear me? I’m sorry. I’ll say it again —

If you want something, you must literally be that thing.

Let me give you an example. When I was looking to acquire my lavish 50-floor office skyscraper, I first transformed into a bulldozer. As a bulldozer, I was able to sweep away the occupants of a full city block to make way for my office skyscraper. This reveals another oft-overlooked key to success. To become huge, you must first become a series of smaller things.

With my lot cleared, I invested three days into becoming a swamp of concrete. Before I fully dried, I grew a mountain of steel girders straight out of myself. It was excruciating work. It was also satisfying work.

With each new layer I evolved from a vague idea to an imposing edifice. With this material investment complete, I was able to transform once more into a man.

This is the real secret to success.