What if life is a video game, but you’ve been playing on easy this whole time?

Let’s talk about that.

The vast majority of people greatly overestimate their abilities.

This is pretty well known among among behavioural scientists, psychologists and data nerds. It’s even got a nifty name, the Dunning Kruger Effect.

What happens when you ask a group of guys to rate themselves where they rank compared to other drivers on the road?

99% of them will say they’re top ten.

But if you look at the numbers, that’s impossible.

Have you ever thought your the best looking person in a room?

Hav you ever assumed you were smartest at the table?

Chances are, you’re not the only one.

So you think you’ve got it all figured out?

Most of us coast through life with a few big goals. Our dreams float way off in the distance, somewhere on the horizon.

Graduate at the top of your class.

Get a scholarship.

Go to your dream school.

Get a great job.

Make more money than our parents…

Check, check, check….ugh, wait a second.

Let’s stop for a minute and think about that last one.

Will you make more than your parents?

The reality for the majority of younger and even youngish Americans is harsh.

For anyone born in the internet age, like Millenials and Gen Zs, pay and salaries have not matched inflation and cost of living.

So what? I’m broke anyway.

Well, as a smarter man than me once said, knowing is half the battle.

This is when the cognitive bias and the Dunning Kruger Effect come into play. Most of us think we are playing the normal game of life.

But we actually have our minds set to easy mode. We are coasting along without even realizing there is a much greater challenge facing us.

Without facing the facts, we can never level up.

Are you holding back your self and wealth?

Let’s talk about John. He’s a hardworking millennia.

He thought he was levelling up by spending a decade at a big name college.

His parents always said education is the key to success and a high income.

John studied tirelessly, cracking all nighters on Adderall and espresso.

He bought in to the idea that a good degree is a golden ticket to financial prosperity.

He crushed all his classes.

He knocked out a solid B+ average.

He figured his 3.2 gpa in grad school would get him a high paying gig.

Soon he would be able to afford the good life.

“Being average means you are as close to the bottom as the top.“
John Wooden

Reality didn’t match John’s expectations.

He landed an entry-level position that barely paid for his monthly needs.

Rent, car payments, insurance and food ate up his entire pay check.

That and the interest on his perfectly average $30000 student debt.

Five years after graduation, he had $0 savings.

No investments either. He was still stuck in his parents’ tax bracket.

But he had no prospects of buying a house.

And barely any time or money to enjoy life.

That sounds depressing and shitty.

You’re right. Who needs another downer?

Forget John. Let’s talk about Sarah.

She’s an eager to succeed Gen Z who just launched her own tech start-up.

She was inspired by the billionaire stories of other young entrepreneurs.

Sarah planned to change the world and get rich at the same time.

Sarah skipped college.

She learned everything she knows online.

She works 60 hours a week.

She convinced all her friends to join her growing team.

And in the first year, she grew from 0 followers to tens of thousands.

From no income to $100,000 in revenue.

Sarah’s a girl boss.

Now Sarah’s been grinding for nearly two years non-stop.

She has four of her best friends working for her.

She pays thousands of dollars a month to subscriptions, cloud services and online fulfillment companies.

Her company is growing, but so is her bottom line.

She is 22 years old and stays optimistic.

Sarah still believes that success is just around the corner.

But there is more and more evidence that her business is not working.

After year two, all of her friends leave her for college or real jobs.

Sarah is fuelled entirely by strong coffee and a dream…

But is it real?

Their lives are really different.

But Sarah and John are both victims of cognitive bias.

They’re anchored to their own ideas of wealth and success.

It doesn’t matter if they learned from their parents or social media.

Let’s run the numbers. Cold hard facts.

But you might want to avert your eyes. Especially if you’re a Solopreneur or Creator.

89% of Creators make less than the average $48000 salary in America.

Be honest: are you playing life on easy mode?

Overestimating your ability to succeed is like playing a game with a handicap set.

Degrees and ambition don’t always matter.

If you underestimate the challenges of the modern job market at the outset, it will be game over in a few years.

Do not ignore the reality of business and the challenges of economic mobility.

You could delay your own progress and potential.

That’s why you need a solid plan starting now.

If you’re still here, I know you don’t want to end up screwed.

So how can you take action?

Step #1 is to learn.

Ground your perception of success in reality.

Not some pipe dream shaped by the achievements of your parents’ generation.

Not clickbait in your social feed.

You need to pick your strength. Then become an expert fast.

Learn everything. Devour information. Destroy knowledge.

Use your advantage: information is free, online and available if you want to learn.

Pareto’s Law tell us a learning curve is steep. So use it to your advantage.

You can and will outpace 80% of other performers within the first 20% of your time and effort.

Just don’t quit before you make the level up.

Step #2 is to earn.

Equip yourself for the new rules of the game.

To truly level up, you have to recognize that the game of life is not set to easy mode.

The rules have dramatically changed since your parents’ time.

If you are better, smarter or more knowledgable than 80% of people on any topic, you can and should teach online.

Don’t be afraid to start now.

Education has the same business model as every other product.

Solve someone’s problem. They will pay you.

This is how the exchange of goods and services works.

This makes economy function.

Provide value to others.

Produce and serve.

It sounds simple because it is. Not easy. Simple.

Remember, the lesson here is to ground your expectations in reality.

You don’t need to burn money on a fancy degree.

You don’t need to change the world.

Teach your expertise: software, swimming, baking, knitting, painting miniature lawn gnomes, flying an FPV drone.

The topic does not matter.

Dedicate yourself to providing value. You will earn money by generating income.

So what are you waiting for?

After you learn and earn, we can talk about how to save and sleep.

Just start to do LESS: Learn. Earn. Save. Sleep.

Get smarter. And get started today.

Don’t get stuck in cruise control by playing life on easy.

Time to level up.

Thanks for reading.

I write copy & content. I teach courses. I show up everyday.

https://www.youtube.com/evanajordan