By Monroe Mann
Unstoppable Artists, LLC
Co-Author, Guerrilla Networking

We’ve all heard of the term ‘one-hit wonders’.  And a big bravo to those individuals!  I mean

Monroe Mann

that sincerely.  The fact that someone even succeeded with ONE hit is pretty amazing.

Lasting success, however, requires that you go beyond the ‘one-hit wonder’ status, and continually push for that ‘second hit’, and then that ‘third hit’.  And this requires that you continually and regularly create and make your OWN opportunities, and the time to start is now.

When I arrived on set at CNBC studios in Jersey a couple weeks ago for the taping of my segment, I made it a point to become as friendly as I could with everyone I met.  My mission was to see how I could potentially turn my one hit into a second hit—to make my own opportunity.

For me, my ‘first hit’ was the invitation to appear on the show.  The ‘second hit’ was—well, I didn’t know what it was at the time.  That’s the key.  I didn’t know how it would all unfold, but I did know that I had to turn opportunity # 1 into opportunity # 2.  The only thing I knew is that I was going to try to turn the appearance on the show into a second hit.  It could have been a return invite onto the show; perhaps a business relationship with someone I met on the set; it turned out to be an invitation by Big Idea web producer Paul Toscano to write a regular column on this blog.  Groovy.

But it didn’t ‘just happen.’  It only happened because I found the guts to flat-out ask him, risking major rejection in the process.  You see, when I arrived on set, he asked if I would write something for the blog.  Always on the lookout for the next opportunity, I immediately asked, “I know this is only a one-time thing, but if I wanted to contribute more regularly, would that be possible?”  And so a conversation began.  And two weeks later, here I am, still blogging on The Big Idea website!  How cool is that?!

And here’s my point: things don’t just ‘happen’ to me; I actively strive to make them happen.  ‘Cause if you sit around waiting for someone else to make your dreams come true, you’re living in a fantasy world.  If you think someone is just going to magically ‘discover’ how talented you are, you are seriously mistaken.  Most importantly, if you think all the successful people in the world just somehow stumbled upon greatness, you are gravely misled.  As computer genius Howard Aiken once said, "Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats."

In other words, success takes effort!  MAJOR EFFORT!  And it doesn’t matter how talented or amazing you are.  To get the recognition you deserve requires that you get laughed at by nine out of the ten people you pitch to.  It requires that you get slapped in the face and punched in the groin over and over again until finally you start getting some credibility.  That proverbial rug?  It’s been pulled out from under me—oh, about 327 times.  And it takes every ounce of strength I have just to get back up, and then—am I crazy?—I actually step back on that damn infernal rug, already knowing that it’s probably gonna get pulled out from under me again.  Am I insane?  Maybe.  More likely, it’s just that I have faith, and a lot of it.  And surely you know this feeling too, right?  Then guess what: welcome to world of successful people!  Because that feeling means you are taking risks, and attempting the impossible, and doing what everyone else says can’t be done.  And guess what this all results in: serious tangible progress and dreams coming true. 

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