This was emailed to me. I think this is the original (http://www.quora.com/...-and-Richard-Branson). Many of you will recognize someone like this...
The Obsessional Path.
Obsessional success derives from an extreme personality and comes at the cost of many other things. Obsessional success is different from what most of us define as "success". You certainly don't have to be obsessional to be affluent, accomplished and maintain a comfortable lifestyle. In fact, your odds of happiness are better that way. But if you're obsessional, you must be what you are, which means that happiness is more or less beside the point.
Obsessionals tend to be freaks and misfits who, early on, were compelled to engage with the world in an unusually challenging way. They developed strategies to survive, and as they matured they found ways to apply their various strategies to an array of life-elements, and create for themselves a distinct and powerful advantage.
Obsessionals don't think the way others do. They see things from angles that unlock new ideas and insights. Other people consider them to be somewhat insane.
Be obsessed.
If you're not obsessed, then stop whatever you're doing and find what does obsess you. It helps to have an ego, but you must be in service of "something bigger" if you are to inspire the people you need to help you (and make no mistake, you will need them). That "something bigger" prevents you from going off into the ether when people flock around you and tell you how fabulous you are (when you aren't) and how great your stuff is (when it isn't). Don't pursue something because you "want to be great". Pursue something because it fascinates you, because the pursuit itself engages and compels you. Obsessionals combine brilliance and talent with an outlandish work ethic, so if the work itself doesn't drive you, you will burn out or fall by the wayside or your extreme competitors will crush you and make you cry.
Follow your obsessions until a problem starts to emerge, a big meaty challenging problem that impacts as many people as possible, that you feel hellbent to solve or die trying. It might take years to find that problem, because you have to explore different bodies of knowledge, collect the dots; then connect and complete them.
It helps to have superhuman energy and stamina. If you are not blessed with godlike genetics, then make it a point to get into the best shape possible. There will be mental fatigue, loneliness, pointless meetings, major setbacks, family drama, dark nights of the soul, people who bore and annoy you, little sleep, less sleep than that. Keep your body sharp to keep your mind sharp. It pays off.
Learn to handle a level of stress that would break most people.
Don't follow a pre-existing path (there isn't one) and don't look to imitate your role models (you don't have any). There is no "right" next step; there is only your next step. Obsessional success is not like other kinds of success; what has worked for someone else, probably won't work for you. Obsessionals are individuals with bold points of view who exploit their unique and very particular strengths. Obsessionals are unconventional, and one reason they inevitably become entrepreneurs is because they can't or don't or won't fit into the structures and routines of corporate life. They are dyslexic, they are autistic, they have ADD, they are square pegs in round holes, they piss people off, get into arguments, rock the boat, laugh in the face of paperwork. But they transform weaknesses in ways that create added advantage -- the strategies I mentioned earlier -- and seek partnerships with people who excel in the areas where they themselves have no talent whatsoever.
Whether or not they fear failure, they move ahead anyway. Obsessionals experience heroic, spectacular, humiliating, very public failures but find a way to reframe until they aren't failures after all. And when they do fail in ways that other people won't, they learn things that other people don't and never will. They have incredible grit and resilience... as well as perhaps a stiff drink should they need it.
The Obsessional Path.
Obsessional success derives from an extreme personality and comes at the cost of many other things. Obsessional success is different from what most of us define as "success". You certainly don't have to be obsessional to be affluent, accomplished and maintain a comfortable lifestyle. In fact, your odds of happiness are better that way. But if you're obsessional, you must be what you are, which means that happiness is more or less beside the point.
Obsessionals tend to be freaks and misfits who, early on, were compelled to engage with the world in an unusually challenging way. They developed strategies to survive, and as they matured they found ways to apply their various strategies to an array of life-elements, and create for themselves a distinct and powerful advantage.
Obsessionals don't think the way others do. They see things from angles that unlock new ideas and insights. Other people consider them to be somewhat insane.
Be obsessed.
If you're not obsessed, then stop whatever you're doing and find what does obsess you. It helps to have an ego, but you must be in service of "something bigger" if you are to inspire the people you need to help you (and make no mistake, you will need them). That "something bigger" prevents you from going off into the ether when people flock around you and tell you how fabulous you are (when you aren't) and how great your stuff is (when it isn't). Don't pursue something because you "want to be great". Pursue something because it fascinates you, because the pursuit itself engages and compels you. Obsessionals combine brilliance and talent with an outlandish work ethic, so if the work itself doesn't drive you, you will burn out or fall by the wayside or your extreme competitors will crush you and make you cry.
Follow your obsessions until a problem starts to emerge, a big meaty challenging problem that impacts as many people as possible, that you feel hellbent to solve or die trying. It might take years to find that problem, because you have to explore different bodies of knowledge, collect the dots; then connect and complete them.
It helps to have superhuman energy and stamina. If you are not blessed with godlike genetics, then make it a point to get into the best shape possible. There will be mental fatigue, loneliness, pointless meetings, major setbacks, family drama, dark nights of the soul, people who bore and annoy you, little sleep, less sleep than that. Keep your body sharp to keep your mind sharp. It pays off.
Learn to handle a level of stress that would break most people.
Don't follow a pre-existing path (there isn't one) and don't look to imitate your role models (you don't have any). There is no "right" next step; there is only your next step. Obsessional success is not like other kinds of success; what has worked for someone else, probably won't work for you. Obsessionals are individuals with bold points of view who exploit their unique and very particular strengths. Obsessionals are unconventional, and one reason they inevitably become entrepreneurs is because they can't or don't or won't fit into the structures and routines of corporate life. They are dyslexic, they are autistic, they have ADD, they are square pegs in round holes, they piss people off, get into arguments, rock the boat, laugh in the face of paperwork. But they transform weaknesses in ways that create added advantage -- the strategies I mentioned earlier -- and seek partnerships with people who excel in the areas where they themselves have no talent whatsoever.
Whether or not they fear failure, they move ahead anyway. Obsessionals experience heroic, spectacular, humiliating, very public failures but find a way to reframe until they aren't failures after all. And when they do fail in ways that other people won't, they learn things that other people don't and never will. They have incredible grit and resilience... as well as perhaps a stiff drink should they need it.