Over the weekend, I attended a few talks at the one-day ARC festival in Toronto. They featured guests who were foodie entrepreneurs, TikTokers with 1-2M + followers, as well as the duo Jeremy Lin and Simu Liu (c’mon, I don’t need to introduce them, right?!)
I want to start off sharing Jeremy Lin and Simu's talk (I'll share my insights on the content creators in the next email.)
Their talk was on perseverance and resiliency.
First off, Simu and Jeremy have both accomplished big, big things in their fields.
🔥 Simu was the first Asian lead for a Marvel movie. He was casted in various Asian movies.
🔥 Jeremy was the first to play in the NBA and rose to fame through the Linsanity movement.
They have both been in their respective industry for over a decade, which shows they’ve gone through the ups and downs and gained tremendous wisdom.
I loved how they both spoke about seeing the bigger picture of things, zoomed out with perspective. I've dissected their talk into 3 main categories.
1. Seeing the gaps and opportunities in the current environment
For Simu, although there’s now an Asian Marvel movie and more Asian representation in Hollywood and movies, he says: “Why haven’t we had a continued level of success? There’s still challenges [in the industry].”
He’d like to create a “continued level of success” with Asian representation in the industry, not just a one-time thing.
💭 In your industry/niche/environment, what gaps and challenges do you see that’s not being addressed?
💭 With the current challenges, how does it present an opportunity for you to show up? (If you’re building a business/social media, how can you show up?)
2. Have a big dream that’s almost unreachable for you. (What would you like the next 5, 10, 15 years look like for you?)
“You always need to set a goal for yourself that’s almost unreachable.” - Simu Liu
For Simu, he’d like to win an Oscar. He’d also like to help out the next creative who is hungry to show up in the industry and build a production company that can uplift creatives and foster storytelling. He emphasizes that “Our stories are important too.”
For Jeremy, he’d like to redefine love for the next generation. He wants to prioritize depth and quality in his work, rather than the flashy quantity and numbers.
Damn, these are some big, audacious goals. Some might tell them they can chill out, build their family and enjoy their life.. but they are still dreaming it up. I love it!
💭 What is your big dream for the next 5 years? 10? 15 years? GO BIG.
3. Do the inner work. Don’t get jaded by success/fame.
Simu: “Success can be traumatic.”
Jeremy had a ton to share about the practice of looking inwards and not getting jaded by other people who may hurt you - instead, ask: “why did that affect me? Is there something I need to address within myself?”
He’s proud that he’s been practicing maintaining the same level of joy and purity towards basketball and being in the spotlight after all these years of gaining massive fame then not being in the spotlight again.
He’s also very open about having a therapist and sports psychologist aid him in his own “funk” with trauma and upbringing.
💭 Do you have a daily practice of looking inwards and doing reflecting, especially on the people and things around you that trigger you?
💭 When you want to close off your heart, how can you use that as a learning opportunity?
💭 Could you consider doing therapy with a human therapist? (If you can comfortably afford it or have it insured through insurance)
Alright, I've got to also take some time to go through these golden nuggets. I'd love to hear your answers too if you're open to sharing - simply hit that 'reply' button!
Cheers,
Nicole
Free YouTube Workshop next month
On August 14, I'll be sharing with you live, my approach to navigating the fear of sharing yourself and techniques to confidently creating your content without mind drama and imposter syndrome.
