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it took me 25+ years to realize what i'll tell you in 13 minutes — Transcript

by Iman Gadzhi · 3,150 words · 423 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00Here is the cold hard truth about how to
0:02be successful. I was out on the water
0:04most of the day and I was reflecting on
0:07this. I guess I was just thinking about
0:08my journey and I've done relatively okay
0:11in life, I guess you could say. And and
0:13it's always hard to pinpoint what's that
0:15one thing
0:17that made it all possible. And I think I
0:19figured it out. So in today's video, I'm
0:21going to talk to you about what it took
0:22me 25 years to realize and hopefully I
0:25can deliver in however many minutes in
0:27this video. First things first, I do
0:28apologize. I'm profusely red like a
0:30lobster today. So, I literally just came
0:32back and showered up. So, I was almost
0:33not even going to make this video. So,
0:35with that being disregarded, I'm going
0:37to share something that took me 25 years
0:38to realize and hopefully it saves you
0:41many years of wondering. You see, you
0:42are not waiting to become somebody. You
0:45already are. And I know that sounds very
0:47woowoo and very like, oh, you know,
0:49self-help, you know, make yourself feel
0:50better about your life situation. But,
0:52but please hear me out. You see, you are
0:54invisible right now to the world. And
0:56trust me, I know how that feels. But
0:57what you're going through right now is
0:59the test. Most people don't fail because
1:01they're not talented. Most people fail
1:03because they can't survive the season
1:05where no one sees them, where no one
1:07acknowledges them. So if you're putting
1:08in work right now, I know what that
1:10feels like. And by the way, that is why
1:12I have some people ask me sometimes
1:13like, "Why do you still keep up all the
1:15old videos of yourself when you're 15,
1:1716?" You know, I've been uploading on
1:18YouTube for this will be my 10th year
1:20now. Why do you keep those videos up on
1:22YouTube? And the reason why I do it is
1:24because I want people to know or I want
1:26people to have a reference of what it's
1:27like to be invisible, invisible to the
1:29world. What it's like to feel like you
1:31are a hero or you could be the hero, but
1:34the world just hasn't caught up to it
1:35yet. So, I want you to know if you're
1:36putting in all this work and no one sees
1:38it or the world doesn't acknowledge it,
1:39you're not crazy. You're not this wacko
1:42dreamer. You are just underground like
1:44the roots of a tree. You see, before a
1:46tree can blossom into its final form.
1:48What does it have to do? It has to build
1:50the foundations. Do you ever see the
1:51foundations? Do you ever see the roots?
1:52No, you never see the roots. The roots
1:54just grow deeper and deeper until the
1:56point in which you have a tree in front
1:58of you. When even when the wind is
2:00howling even when everything around it
2:02is shaking, it is the one thing that is
2:05impenetrable. And I feel like, as I
2:07mentioned, I've I've done okay for
2:08myself in my life. And even when people
2:10saw me and even when people acknowledge
2:11me, I still didn't feel like my roots
2:13were solid enough. You know, it's only
2:14now after 10 years in the game where I
2:17genuinely feel like, not to say that the
2:18wind never comes or the storms will
2:20never come in future, but I just feel so
2:23equipped to handle anything life throws
2:24me at this point. And that's me after 10
2:26years. Not thinking that I can
2:29accomplish anything, not thinking that
2:30life will be easy and everything will be
2:32roses and fairies, but after 10 years
2:34only feeling like, you know, I have saw
2:36enough roots, I have saw enough
2:37foundation that whatever life throws me,
2:39I can handle it. So, just understand
2:40that you are in the process right now.
2:42You are in the process of becoming. even
2:43if the world isn't clapping for you yet.
2:45So, I don't think everyone's journey
2:46will take the same amount of time. So,
2:48genuinely for me, when I look at the
2:49people who are the most successful in
2:51life, I don't think they're the
2:52smartest. I'll be frank with you. I'll
2:54be entirely honest with you. I don't
2:55think they're the most hardworking,
2:56although that is a big component to it.
2:58I think they are the cat who stands in
3:01front of the mirror and rather than
3:03seeing a frightened kitten, they see a
3:06lion. And that's a choice you have to
3:07make because I think that reflection,
3:09that self-image, it genuinely becomes a
3:11prophecy. It's interesting when you
3:12speak to very successful people and you
3:14know I even get this sometimes people
3:15are like oh aren't you like you must be
3:18so surprised or like you must be like so
3:20in awe of everything you've accomplished
3:22and I know in the the right thing to do
3:23in that moment is to be very humble and
3:25say you know I could have never imagined
3:26in a while see yours but I'll be honest
3:28I I knew for a fact and I think that
3:30level of certainty is incredibly common
3:32with successful people now the timelines
3:34are very different I'll be honest I
3:35didn't think that I would be able to
3:36accomplish what I have in the time frame
3:38that I did but I knew no matter what
3:40come hell or high water, it would be
3:42accomplished. So, I genuinely believe
3:44the number one, in fact, potentially
3:46maybe even the only determining factor
3:48to someone who's going to become super
3:51successful in life is the ability not to
3:53wait for the world to tell you a hero is
3:55the ability and the self-belief to
3:57believe you are one before anyone crowns
3:59you with that. Before you've won
4:01battles, before you've won victories,
4:03well, actually, we'll talk about
4:04victories because u you know, I have
4:05here tattooed private victories and that
4:08was something very instrumental to me.
4:09So that's another thought that I had
4:10earlier today. But the point is before
4:12the world awards you with the medal or
4:14the honors of being considered a hero.
4:17Now bear in mind you'll always be a uh
4:20to some people you'll be a hero to some
4:21people you'll be a villain. You know to
4:23some people no matter how much proof,
4:25how much documentation 10 years in the
4:27game with everything literally in front
4:29of the world to see I will forever
4:31remain a villain in some people's eyes.
4:33You know that comes with the territory
4:34as well. So by the way that's not to say
4:36that everyone will like you. A lot of
4:38people will dislike you, but I think you
4:39always know when people respect you. And
4:41just remember, they might not say it to
4:42the world. And that's something you need
4:43to be prepared for, by the way, as you
4:45get crowned by some people a hero. And
4:48by the way, when I say some people a
4:50hero, I'm talking about in your circles,
4:52you know, changing your family's
4:53trajectory. You know, please don't think
4:55for any second that you need to be a
4:56social media this that, you need to
4:58document your entire life. I'm not
5:00saying it, you know, that was a
5:01something that just happened by accident
5:03in my life. But just understand that
5:04even when you become a hero in your
5:05community, even when you become a hero
5:07for changing your family's trajectory,
5:09to some people you always be a hero, to
5:11some people, you will be a villain. It's
5:12just the way the world works. Now, I
5:14don't know how many people know this,
5:15but growing up, my favorite book, and
5:18still to this day, my favorite book uh
5:20is Great Gatsby. And for me, it wasn't
5:22the extraordinary
5:24vast sums of wealth he amassed or, you
5:26know, the notoriety, the the parties,
5:29the glitz and the glam. I'll be honest,
5:30it wasn't about that for me. For me, it
5:32was the vision. the vision he had for
5:33his life they held so near and dear to
5:36him, so close to his chest. And well
5:38before the world saw it, he always used
5:40to look up at the stars and you know, as
5:42he says, his mind would romp and he
5:44would just be overtaken by these visions
5:46for what his life would be. To me,
5:48that's that's what I love about that
5:50book. Long before anyone else saw it,
5:53Gatsby saw it. And yeah, you know,
5:55there's many holes you can poke in that
5:58story and his life. And you know, I
5:59think that's also what I love about that
6:01book. I don't like heroes that are
6:02perfect, you know, because also, by the
6:04way, the heroes are perfect always
6:06behind the scenes. It's no hero is
6:08perfect. Everyone has their
6:09imperfections. Everyone has their
6:10skeletons in their closet. And trust me,
6:12as I said, the people who seem the best
6:15on the forefront and unwilling to ever
6:17admit their shortcomings, those are
6:19usually the ones you need to be the most
6:20afraid of. But for me, it's just really
6:22that refusal to settle. That is what's
6:24so inspiring about that story. And I
6:26know I'm throwing a lot of things at
6:27you, but really the crux of this video
6:29is that you have to become a hero in
6:31your mind well before you did. And I
6:32think one of the reasons I relate so
6:35much to that book is I viscerally
6:40remember probably from the age of 8. 8 9
6:4310 11 12 13 all those years my mom would
6:46come into my room which you know the
6:48reason I say eight is that's when I got
6:49my first room. Before that, I never had
6:51my own bedroom, but suffice to say, you
6:54know, my mom would come into my room
6:56until late hours of night and I'd be
6:57doing one of two things. I would either
6:59be reading or I would be looking up at
7:01the stars. And I don't know, in my mind,
7:03I would just had this vision that I
7:05would be something. And I know that a
7:07lot of you guys are in that place right
7:08now. And as I said, I genuinely from the
7:10ball of my heart believe that if you
7:12have that feeling, you're going to be
7:13fine. You're going to make it in life.
7:15And I'll give you an example of this. I
7:16was just reading the first draft of my
7:19dear friend and colleague Alex. I'm sure
7:23some of you guys know him. You know, the
7:25mystical man behind some of our best
7:28creative campaigns and 101 other things.
7:30You know, that's doing him a disservice
7:31by just saying that. But anyways, he has
7:33been working on a book about the past
7:36few years and our life and our
7:38adventures and telling his story, which
7:40is so incredible, you know, for him to
7:42come where he's come from and end up
7:43where he has. And it's so funny, him and
7:45I, even though we come from such
7:46different parts of the world, are so
7:48similar in so many ways, which is just
7:50like everyone thought we were crazy, but
7:52we just knew. We didn't know what way it
7:55would take form. We didn't know when it
7:57would materialize, but we we just knew.
7:59You know, the reason I keep saying I'm
8:00watching from afar and I'm rooting for
8:01you. I think sometimes you just need a
8:03reminder that like there's an audience.
8:06I know sometimes it doesn't feel like
8:07there's an audience, but generally like
8:08I am your audience. Even if you don't
8:10know it, I am there with you. Not in a
8:13weird way.
8:14and uh you know and I'm watching from
8:16afar and I'm rooting for you and I
8:17cannot wait to celebrate once you become
8:20your hero. And I please urge you to keep
8:22going in these moments where you feel
8:23like no one's watching and you feel like
8:25you haven't become the hero of your own
8:27story yet. And just know that those
8:28stories are boring. The ones where it's
8:30too quick or it's too easy. Going back
8:32to why I leave some of my old videos up
8:33on YouTube, I leave them up on YouTube
8:36so that way you could see me potentially
8:38in the situation you're at. You know,
8:39whatever. Maybe you probably watching
8:41this, you're a lot older than I was when
8:43I was uh uploading back then. You can
8:46see me as I get my first inklings of
8:48success, the ups, the downs, as I start
8:50trying to deal with the inklings of
8:52success, not lose my head, not letting
8:55my ego get the best of me, which
8:57everyone's got an ego and sometimes it
8:58does get the best of you, but you know,
9:00I think I've done a relatively good job
9:01in not, you know, letting it get to my
9:03head and, you know, still staying humble
9:06enough to keep progressing and keep
9:08moving forward and keep working and
9:11understanding that yesterday's win means
9:13nothing today. It's a fresh day. It's a
9:14fresh chapter and you know you got to
9:17keep putting one foot forward in front
9:18of the other as I always say. Now as you
9:20are in this season of life just remember
9:22that private victories always come for
9:25public victories and for every one
9:27public victory a person sees there are
9:31hundreds if not even thousands private
9:33victories that no one never gets to see.
9:35I have tried my best and I will continue
9:37to try my best to document as much as I
9:38can. But the greatest private victories
9:40and battles I have fought and won.
9:42Unfortunately, people will never see
9:43that. You know, I'm coming off the back
9:44of 2024 was the hardest year I've had in
9:47many, many years. And listen, there's
9:48certain years you take the ass beating
9:50and there's certain years you give the
9:51ass beating.
9:53Last year was one of those years I took
9:55the ass beating and this year is, you
9:57know, so far potentially been one of the
9:59greatest of my life. And you always need
10:00to remember what season of life you're
10:02in. And the only reason I was able to
10:04have these wins that I'm having right
10:06now is because last year I had many,
10:09many private victories. And that was the
10:11only reason I'm here today and I get to
10:12celebrate some of these public
10:14victories. So please never forget that
10:15private victories come before public
10:17victories. It is the hours and hours you
10:18spend building your craft when no one is
10:20watching. It is the discipline to keep
10:21showing up when you have every reason
10:23and every right to quit. It's choosing
10:26excellence not because you think anyone
10:28else will notice, but because you know.
10:31So just remember and I think this is
10:32very pertinent in today's society
10:34because unfortunately once again all
10:36tying back to the reason I keep a lot of
10:37these old videos up and just remember
10:39you saw tail end of 2015. It was all
10:412014 and 2015 I was still building and
10:45you know I've tried my absolute best to
10:46to highlight the highs and the lows.
10:48It's becoming increasingly difficult to
10:50document the highs. This year for every
10:53one resounding success I've shown
10:54publicly I'm telling you right now
10:56there's 10 more. In fact, my best
10:58successes and my best wins this year I
11:00have not shown and uh I will not show
11:02because unfortunately on the flip side
11:04and you're going to experience this once
11:05you get out of that season of being
11:07invisible and you get into that season
11:08of receiving the fruits of your labor
11:10now all of a sudden it's like you know
11:11no one's no one's clapping for you
11:13anymore because it's like cool we get
11:15like you're doing well for yourself. So,
11:17as I said, I've tried to document my
11:18highs and my lows these days. I guess a
11:21lot less of my highs just because quite
11:23frankly, I'm I'm very self-aware that
11:25people are like, "What do you do?" Like,
11:27great for you. You know, what does that
11:28mean for us? So, I try my best to to
11:31document the lows, but at the end of the
11:33day, no one except for yourself truly
11:35sees that. Reason I bring all this up is
11:37I feel like in today's society, everyone
11:39wants to skip the invisible season.
11:40Everyone wants to skip the foundation
11:43building and root building season. And
11:46if you can just get past the temptation
11:47for quick wins and focus on what I've
11:50talked about for many times, you know,
11:51on this channel and in my life, which is
11:54skill stacking and constantly evaluating
11:56what is the best vehicle for me to be in
11:57right now for my stage and season in
11:59life. If you can get past that long and
12:01arduous period of your life, you will
12:03get to the period of your life where
12:04everyone finally sees you. Everyone
12:06finally sees you for exactly what you
12:08knew that you were and are, which is a
12:11hero. And as I said, heroes come in all
12:13shapes and sizes. For me, hero, by the
12:15way, I want to make this very clear,
12:16does not mean being the richest person
12:19on earth. Uh, it doesn't always mean
12:20material wealth. Being a hero can take
12:22many shapes and forms. And in a way,
12:24what a dull and bleak life if we were
12:25all chasing the same pursuit of heroism.
12:28So, as I said, being a hero can mean so
12:30many things, and that only you get to
12:33decide. But eventually, you will get
12:35there. And the funny thing is, when you
12:36get there, people will call you lucky.
12:38People might call you gifted. People
12:39might say that you had XY Z advantage.
12:41People will make every single excuse not
12:43to give you the flowers that you
12:44deserve. And you will just sit quietly
12:47smirking to yourself knowing that you
12:48did not come out of nowhere. You grew
12:50your roots. You believed in the time of
12:54your life when everyone saw you as
12:55invisible until the point in which you
12:58became undeniable. So with that, my
13:00friend, it took me 25 years to unpack
13:02what is that one thing to make sure that
13:05whatever your goal is in life, you will
13:07get there. And you got that delivered to
13:09you in however many minutes this is
13:10going to turn out to be. So, I
13:11appreciate your presence as I word
13:14vomited all this out. And with all that
13:16being said, as always, I'm watching from
13:17afar and I'm rooting for you.

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