On Doing Great Work & Getting Lucky.

lessons on how to make work work for you.

I think newsletters on Mondays may become a thing for a while until they no longer can be, so bear with me if you’re getting this while at a meeting. I know it’s not the most convenient time of the week to read me, but maybe this might just be the brain juice you need to do amazing things this week. Who knows.

A while back, I stumbled upon an article written by Paul Graham titled: How to Do Great Work. I was delighted, mostly because levelling up and improving one’s quality of life is a topic a few of my friends and I have been discussing lately, and I know just how intrinsic knowing what to do and doing it well can be to one’s success.

Paul shared various gems that made me go, “ooh” and “aah.” So I’ll share some of them with you. Of course, feel free to read the article yourself. It is quite lengthy but also very enlightening. You can access it here.

Here it goes.

1. The way to figure out what to work on is by working. If you're not sure what to work on, just guess. But be sure you have something you’re working on: I thought this point was cool because it’s so true. When I listen to people who have made it talk about their journey, there is oftentimes an element of randomness in their success story that came as a result of doing the right thing at the right place or time. It’s not common for the answer to land on your lap or come to you in a dream. Most times, you discover your path simply by doing random things. I wrote more about this phenomenon in this article. This is why I am a huge fan of volunteering and engaging in extracurriculars while in Uni.

2. Learn enough about what you’re interested in to find your angle. One of the ills of the basic school system is monopolizing the culture around knowledge and learning. As human beings, learning should not stop outside the classroom. If you happen to stumble upon something that tickles your curiosity, learn as much about it as you possibly can. Once you know enough about a topic, you will discover new angles, problems, and gaps that will help you carve a unique space for yourself.

   The founder of Nigerian Cocktail company Quacktails found his place in the drinks industry by realizing that cocktails were not as easily accessible as one would expect. To drink deliciously mixed drinks, one had to go to a bar or mix drinks at home, which was not always ideal. So he started supplying his aesthetically pleasing punch packs, and now we can order Quacktails on a Tuesday evening while watching movies. The founder of ReelFruit also discovered a market for packaged dried fruit even when people told her nobody would be interested in dried mangoes when fresh ones were readily available. So find your angle. The opportunities are endless. You just have to learn enough and think.

3. Don't let "work" mean something other people tell you to do: An uncle told me this once, and I have never forgotten it. As much as you want to earn money, ensure that you take your own personal work —this could be developing your talents and skills (or starting a podcast or YouTube channel)— with as much seriousness as you would paid employment. Don’t narrow the meaning of work to only what other people tell you to do. It takes away the joy of work and ties the passion and fulfilment we’re meant to experience as creative beings to a paycheck, which is the easiest road to waking up at the age of 40 and realising that you’ve spent your entire life slaving month after month for a salary. Of course, there’s a lot more nuance to this conversation. Not everybody can be an entrepreneur or founder or should be for that matter. But the key point is this: Have something you do that does not need external stimuli, and that gives your life meaning.

4. Work on things you’re interested in: Passion is sexy. It goes a long way in holding the house up when we feel like giving up. Find something you are crazy about so that when the going gets rough (because it might), it will not be easy to throw in the towel and give up. It’s like how people joke about dating fine people so that when they get into arguments, they will look at their fine faces and get distracted. This applies to the work you choose to do too. Do something you’re madly in love with, so it is not easy to lose interest or give up.

5. Luck has a role to play, too: Graham says, “When you read biographies of people who've done great work, it's remarkable how much luck is involved. They discover what to work on as a result of a chance meeting or by reading a book they happen to pick up. So you need to make yourself a big target for luck, and the way to do that is to be curious. Try lots of things, meet lots of people, read lots of books, ask lots of questions.”

I think this part of the article reminds me of an interview featuring Fola Olatunji-David, where he shared his idea on the Four Types of Luck. There is luck that comes from birth—being born in the right country, to the right parents, in the right social class. There is luck as a result of motion. If a key is lost, you increase your chances of finding it by moving around. The same applies to life—doing things even in the midst of uncertainty. There’s luck from awareness. If you know something and you apply it, and it works, then people would think you’re lucky. And then there’s luck from uniqueness—being the only photographer/writer/designer/hairdresser in the room can be the right opportunity you need to change your life forever.

Fola says that our goal in our careers is to increase our chances of being lucky. This means: how do we move, what can we learn, and what can we do better than those around us? The luck from birth is already taken care of, whatever your lot may be. But you can make the others work for you.

You just have to get up, and work.

Have a wonderful week.

Rooting for you always,

Tres.

---

Media I Consumed Last Week

Reading: Still Reading a Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. My reading has been slower than usual but I am loving every bit of it.

Listening: A lot of Mitski. A lot of Obongjayar. A sprinkle of Damso. Listen here.

Watching: Gossip Girl & Succession. I think both shows meet at the intersection of the ridiculous tendencies of the wealthy, and it’s been a fun watch so far. Gossip girl stresses me because miscommunication is often used as a plot device, but it is so funnnn.

Note: I am fully back, so expect letters from now till the end of the year. I am also working on a few exciting sub-projects for the newsletter, so stay tuned. Thank you also, for 3k followers. Love you guys, see you next week? This Saturday? Let’s see.