Getting What You Want In Life: Luck, Fate, Or Work?

Over the last few months, a lot of people have commented or questioned how exactly our life is possible. How does it all add up? Chanel flap bags, downtown living, constant travel and hotel stays; and all this by 'simply posting pics' on some free social media networks. But how though? Oh, it must be luck. It definitely has to be fate. Well, today I am here to share another unpopular opinion: there is no secret formula, no life hack, no hidden treasures funding this all. The only way to get what you want in life is through work. Lots of work. Hard work. Long work. Unpleasant, frustrating, seemingly unending work. And once you get to where you want to be in life, the work doesn't end, it only just begins.

It wasn't that long ago that both Monika and I lived in Calgary, worked conventional corporate jobs, and took one two-week vacation a year. And while there is nothing wrong with that lifestyle, we knew that we wanted to work in the creative and digital space, and that it was going to be no easy task to get to that goal. With no wealthy parents to bankroll our adventures, we knew what we had to do. We saved, we planned, we explored, we brainstormed. We ended up moving to Berlin, and still we saved, we planned, we continued to explore. And throughout all of this time, we worked. We worked and we learnt and we taught and we failed and we tried again.

Through constant work - and continuous improvement - we are able to love what we do for a living. Creating content and sharing it with the world is no easy task; photography is its own beast, filmmaking is its own speciality, writing copy demands a degree. These are just three of the many, many qualities needed to succeed in this field of work, and the only way that I know how to do any of them is by learning and working and improving.

And I'm not here to tell you to grind to the bone and work yourself crazy (I wrote about the importance of aligning versus hustling), but I am here to say that there is no secret formula to succeeding in what you want in life. Learn from the best, and teach yourself. Surround yourself with those that inspire you, and work together. Don't allow failures or disappointments to define you. Use them as learning lessons and vow to never make that mistake again. Weather its your Master degree, a new hobby/skill, or a promotion at your current job - whatever it is that you're working towards, just take encouragement that your hard work will pay off!