There’s a matriculation process that’s prescribed for the masses:  graduate from high school, go to college, start a career, get married, have kids, buy a house, and sort out the details for the remaining 50 years.  For the vast majority of us, this process works well enough and provides the best balance between security and comfort.  Unfortunately, the process has become so wide-spread and commonplace that virtually no one can fathom the viability of any other way. 

I’m the type of person who simply cannot live within the parameters set by this process.  The way my mind is wired makes following the prescriptions of others hard to do because I’m constantly in search of a better way to do just about everything.  I’ve accomplished enough in my life to understand and accept this fact, regardless of how little the loved ones around me do.  For 31 years, I’ve battled with both outside pressures to adapt and internal compulsions to be my own man ruled by my own mind, and I’ve finally decyphered life’s code and hacked it to better suit my personality.

I cannot fathom a “career” as others see it, because I simply have far too short of an attention span and have a tough time committing myself to improving someone else’s dream.  I’m experienced enough to know that traditional labor benefits primarily an employer, and I simply don’t want to spend the rest of my life benefitting someone else.  Furthermore, the traditional career path in Southern California is an exercise in frustration once commuting, housing costs, overpopulation, and ridiculous social practices are considered.  I won’t do it, and I’m not going to run away to some other community where my SoCal woes will likely be replaced with whatever downside the new environment presents. 

Millions of people each year opt to chose their own fates, and thousands successfully take control.  These are the folks that refuse to listen to the “you can’t”, “you shouldn’t”, “get real” and “are you insane” responses to their ideas.  They stop trying to innovate in markets bursting at the seams with narrow-minded competition.  Freed from the chains of peer pressure, they create markets of their own and watch as the rest of the world rushes to it.  

I suggest you dump your chains.  It’s hard to do, because it’s contrary to everything our parents, teachers, friends and employers tell us.  But until we recognize that the “authorities” of our lives are incapable of grasping the nature of our brains, we’ll never accept the reality that they are unsuited to review and evaluate what our brains produce.  Don’t misunderstand me:  I’m not saying we should reject these people from our lives, shun them, or ignore them altogether.  But when that big idea strikes, when we think we’ve created the next big innovation or struck gold, we need to seek out others like us, not others who don’t understand us, when looking for an honest evaluation.

Hack your life.  Write your own code and listen to the beat of the drummer inside your mind.  The only other option is conformity with a process not tailored for you.  Recognize your ability to create your own rules, live by them religiously, and watch as your life blooms.