“We Never Guess, We Look It Up”

People often say: “I want to model you, Steve”

Well, that’s fine for the top three arenas. Relationships? I genuinely love my family, and have been happily married to my Soulmate for 23 years.

Martial Arts? In some ways, sure. I genuinely went through the mill. But I don’t know what your goals are. If it is to be Billy Jack or Bruce Lee, you might look elsewhere. If you want to be confident, master your fear, have excellent energy and health…maybe so. Danny Inosanto would be a lot better, wouldn’t he?

Career? Well…my career is a matter of public record. If publishing three million words, thirty something novels, win award, get on the NY Times Bestseller list and be Guest of Honor at Worldcon or Dragon Con…sure. If you want to be one of the top 100 all-time bestselling authors…I’d look elsewhere. Stephen King would be a lot better, wouldn’t he?

What about business? I’ve had people suggest they want to model me for marketing. I wouldn’t suggest it. I’m still on the “Road of Trials”. A couple of years from now, we’ll really know how accurate my perceptions have been. I’d suggest that you model people who have fully completed the Hero’s Journey cycle in that regard, but also adhere to the Three Gates. There are two people I really like there. Russell Brunson is very interesting, but I like Brendon Burchard more. Why? Brunson is a marketer and software guy primarily. As a result, I think he is willing to tip-toe a little closer to the ethical edge than I’m always comfortable with. But…