You’ll Be Better Off By Creating More

It’s not enough to make one great work.

What should we do to become a great writer, a successful entrepreneur or simply a better spouse and friend? The answer is more.

It’s a widespread opinion that we should only publish our best works. That we should never show a sign of weakness. And that the quality matters more than the quantity.

It’s an easy belief. Especially as this lets us seem perfect in the eyes of others. But perfection doesn’t take us to the good life we’re dreaming about.

Yes, in the short term we may enjoy the fruits of envy by people around us. We might also win the lottery and become successful right away. Yet this isn’t how the story usually goes.

Even the most successful authors, celebrities and entrepreneurs have taken multiple shots to achieve greatness. For example, Nassim Nicholas Taleb has written four books, marketed collectively as the Incerto, to become who he is.

Meanwhile, Woody Allen does a movie nearly every year, for decades. He even has a saying on that: “If you make a lot of films, occasionally a great one comes out.”

And Apple didn’t make it with the first computer or smartphone. Instead, they keep on releasing new products, always making them a bit better.

Yes, sometimes people get lucky fast. Such as Zuckerberg by creating Facebook. But to stay relevant, they’ve constantly released new products. Sometimes winning, sometimes losing.

Thus, if a person wants to become a great writer, they have to publish more. Or if they want to become a successful entrepreneur, they need to establish more companies. And the same goes for becoming a better spouse and friend — spend more time with important people.

Why not just write more without publishing? Or create more business plans without executing them? Because by releasing the works we’ll get real feedback from the world. Meanwhile, marketing ourselves to more people and potential fans.

So that’s why I keep writing daily and publishing the results without evaluating it myself. That’s also why I’ve been starting various businesses the moment I get a new idea. Because to become great, we need to create more…

If you loved any of this and want some more, then let me know what you’d like me to write about via my Newsletter, Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook.