WARNING: If you have unwavering self-confidence and self-esteem, stop reading. It will be a complete waste of your time. If you have bouts of self-doubt, please continue. The story below may prove helpful and entertaining just like a guru gladiator.

It’s been awhile since I wrote an over the top post. But this time, the dramatics almost came true. I’ve been pushing myself extremely hard the past two months and been achieving some pretty productive personal goals. I survived my first year of blogging, went to my first BlogWorld New Media Expo, created my first podcast, partnered with Incrwd, and added a professional sounding podcast intro. I was flying high with all this momentum and ready to soar to greater heights in 2012. Everything screeched to a grinding halt when I visited I Will Teach You To Be Rich and Smart Passive Income.

Ramit Sethi Speaking Video

Since things were humming along, I thought perhaps I could start setting my sights on higher goals, specifically making videos and speaking. I visited I Will Teach You To Be Rich’s About section and watched Ramit Sethi’s Speaking Video. It was totally awesome. But then a strange thing happened. Self-doubt and inadequacy reared its ugly head. Sethi ripped on a personal finance frugality story where the blogger cut down on some grains of rice to save fifteen cents. “Get a life!” I nodded in agreement, but then realized I have a half a dozen stories on saving a quarter or two during my bus commute! He continued his rant by saying there are tons of personal finance information out there that is totally irrelevant. He has developed systems to help people achieve results. More power to him, but where does that leave me? What am I thinking? Who do I think I am? How can I compete with his 250,000 visitors per month and his extensive media coverage? I took a breather and switched gears by visiting Smart Passive Income. Buck Inspire was on life support and Pat Flynn nearly finished me off.

Pat Flynn’s How to Be Everywhere – Building a Profitable BRAND by Thinking Outside the Blog

To catch my breath after Ramit Sethi sent me reeling, I decided to learn a thing or two about improving my budding podcast. I went straight to Pat Flynn’s podcast section and watched his video presentation from BlogWorld LA, SPI 028. I confess. After BlogWorld LA, I was so inspired that I wanted to speak at next year’s event! I am still debating my topic, but it quickly became a new personal goal. I then soaked in over an hour of killer content from Pat. His presentation was off the charts. I learned so much, but then it was déjà vu. What am I thinking? Who do I think I am? I am doing better than two cents from Adsense, but when compared to Pat’s monthly reports, I’m missing a few zeroes. My podcasts are just under two minutes. Pat’s are over an hour. You want to speak? Are you insane?

Breathe Buck Breathe

Buck Inspire is producing and innovating like never before. But when stacked up against Ramit Sethi and Pat Flynn, I felt like I didn’t belong, I wasn’t in the same league, and almost pulled the plug on Buck Inspire all together. What’s the point? Why am I wasting my time? It is hopeless! My confidence was shot. My mojo was gone. The tough got going and I almost got up and went. What saved me? One word, basketball.

NBA: It’s Fantastic

When I was younger, I loved playing basketball. I could go on for hours. Part of the fun was watching NBA videos and mimicking the moves of the superstars. Skyhook. Killer Crossover. Jab Step. First Step. Pump Fake. Dream Shake. Watching, practicing, and using the moves on the court made me a better player. The entire process was fantastic. Although I imitated the moves fairly well, no one would ever mistake me for a NBA player, Kareem, Jordan, or Hakeem. I am 5’10” on a good day. I have no fast twitch muscles and I can barely touch the backboard these days. What does this have to do with Ramit and Pat? Plenty. Although they are online superstars, they seem so accessible like you and me that I couldn’t help but compare myself to them. I momentarily forgot that they’ve been in the game for years. I just passed year one. I then realized my huge mistake and was unfairly and unrealistically judging myself. I developed a short action item list to improve myself and stop being my own worst enemy.

Emulate

Just like in basketball, find a move (crossover dribble) you can apply to take your game to the next level. Ramit developed step-by-step scripts and processes that are easy to follow, actionable, and designed to help anyone succeed. If I create a post to help my readers, I need to attack the problem in Sethi fashion and provide a simple, understandable solution.

Practice

After finding the move, practice, practice, practice. Referring back to basketball, dribble with your right hand, quickly crossover to your left. Dribble with your left hand and quickly crossover to the right. Do this often enough and your crossover dribble will become quicker and deadlier in game time situations. Even Pat admits his current podcast is so much better than his first. Practice does make perfect. He also practices tirelessly on his presentations and his hard work paid off as a technical malfunction rendered his BlogWorld slides almost useless. He managed to roll with the punches, delivered a memorable presentation, and was one of the highlight presenters of the show.

Don’t Compare

Just like how I am not Kareem, Jordan, or Hakeem, we are also not Ramit Sethi and Pat Flynn. If we emulate their time-tested methods and practice as diligently as they do, we are guaranteed to achieve some level of access. If we compare our achievements with theirs, it would be just as ridiculous as wondering why I never came close to winning NBA championships.

Final Thoughts

Although this is focused on blogging, you can apply the same principle to making money, planning for retirement, debt management, and investing. There are tons of systems and techniques out there. Find the one that suits you, emulate it, and practice. Over time and if you are truly applying yourself, you will improve. You may never make the NBA or become a household name, but at least you are constantly improving and being the best you can be. Finally, don’t compare yourself to others. Ego and emotions come into play. You start to chase high flying stocks, try to keep up with the Joneses with extravagant purchases, and make illogical real estate and lines of credit moves that could make you worse off than when you started.

Stay Inspired!
Buck

Ramit Sethi Speaking Video

Pat Flynn How to Be Everywhere – Building a Profitable BRAND by Thinking Outside the Blog