There Is No Formula (And That’s Why You’re Failing)

Why Action Beats Advice

At age 22, I graduated from one of the nation’s top institutions with undergraduate and graduate degrees in English literature. At age 24, I started a company that reached half a million dollars in annual revenue within two years of operation. At age 26, I launched my newest venture, Pens and Poison, a multi-platform literary project that has reached millions of literature lovers worldwide. At age 27, I completed two novels that will hopefully soon be on their way to publication. I still make time for friends and family, and I’m always either reading a book or finding a few minutes to squeeze in a daily run. In a world where many young people struggle to find direction and stability well into adulthood, the most common reactions I get are either filled with disbelief or teeming with jealousy. Then comes the million dollar question:

How do you do all of that?

It’s an innocuous question that arises from either genuine wonder or a desire to replicate my success—surely, I’ve tapped into some arcane knowledge that has guided me throughout my life. But such a line of thinking does not do anyone any good; one of my greatest pet peeves, in fact, is the belief in this mystical formula for success.