10 Ways to THINK BIG - #OneRule

Think big.

Think big.

Think big.

Thinking big.

Thinking really big.

Think bigger.

Go big.

Think big.

Dream big.

Think big because then you're going to get big. Then you're going to go and achieve big things. That is the most important thing. We don't achieve big things by accident. So shoot for the top, shoot for the sky, shoot for the stars.

I come from a small city in Florida, in Central Florida, and there's not too many people in my city who've sort of spread out around the world. I live around the world, I travel around the world, and it's really great, it's a lot of fun. But I think as a kid I had a lot of ideas that were really big, and both my parents had passions that they never really followed. Both my parents loved to play music. Dad played guitar. My mom loved to sing and play banjo. My dad did a little bit of theatrical acting. But they never really followed their dreams, either one of them. And I think that was one thing my mom always wanted for me. She always wanted me to follow my dreams and to think big. Don't just think of just a little problem you have at school or just a little— I mean, you've got to take care of those things too. Thinking about the, you know, someone like the Dalai Lama, he's thinking about the whole world every time he makes a decision, you know, and if people think, if more people think that way, more big great things happen.

Taking risks for me has been a big part of my journey. Just thinking outside the box, you know, doing the thing that everybody thinks is dangerous sometimes and just knowing that you can do it, knowing that you'll get through it. Thinking big. It's something I say a lot, a lot of times when I get awards, where I always encourage my fans to think big, think as big as you can. You reach, reach way beyond, and even if you fall, you've still gone so far, uh, short of your goal. You still have went so high.

And you had some problems early on, right? You had some time in prison. We'll talk about that later. What— how did the rebound happen?

You—

what this— you had a 10-year plan?

When I got out, I had a 10-year plan that I wrote when I was in there on what I planned to accomplish when I come out. You know, the goal was to stay out of trouble and not come back into that environment. So I had to have a plan. Not the trouble, you know? So ultimately, that goal became— of course, I started Convict Music, which was supposed to be a concept that would rehabilitate convicts coming out and utilize the talent that they have. And it just sprung into this huge entertainment enterprise.

So before prison, no music was in your head?

No, definitely not in a way of making money from it. It was more as a hobby, yeah.

So what happened that— what was your big break?

Uh, the big break actually was getting locked up, believe it or not, Larry.

Explain that.

Well, fortunately for me, my concept was always thinking big. And before getting locked up, my goal was to be rich by any means necessary.

So you robbed a bank. That's one means necessary.

That was a little too risky, but what was scary was that that thought crossed my mind a couple times before. And ultimately was it like, okay, how do I do it and get away with it? And just made a lot of bad decisions, you know. Ended up getting locked up, which saved my life.

What'd you get locked up for?

Actually, I got locked up for a stolen car and a concealed weapon.

How much time did you do?

I ended up doing 6 and a half months for that. The judge was actually lighter on me. He saw the potential.

So how did the X-Files— was there a break? You're the first solo artist to simultaneously hold the number 1 and number 2 spots on the Billboard Hot 100. That wouldn't guess— you wouldn't have guessed that for someone coming out of prison.

Absolutely not.

So what did it?

I think it was more of the drive and constantly recording, constantly, you know, just working towards that plan to one day work with Michael Jackson and become the biggest artist.

You didn't know him.

I didn't know him.

But you wanted to work with him.

That was the top. That was at the top of my goal. I said, if I can shoot for the sky, you know, at least—

So you set goals high.

Absolutely.

I think the most important thing about growing a business successfully is thinking ahead about where you're going to be. So I think about like the 3 tips you have for scaling an organization. The first, and I think the most important, is to think big. People think about how do you manage, how do you motivate an organization, and they think about management, you know, basically the science of administering a business, or leadership. And my favorite definition of leadership is the art of accomplishing more than the science of management says is possible. When you have a big vision, when you're thinking really big, something that can change the world, so my favorite example connecting the world, which was Mark Zuckerberg's vision for Facebook. That's the kind of thing that excites people and motivates them. That gets them to follow you, not just because they work for you and they need to do what you say, but because they believe in what you're trying to do. And when you're trying to really scale an organization, you need to go really quickly and get people to accomplish more than they thought was possible. And I think that comes from internal motivation, which really comes from a vision that's big enough.

What is it you're really after, and is it after what you— are you after enough for yourself? Are you limiting yourself based on your current competencies? A lot of people do that. They narrow their vision or their ambition for tomorrow based on what they can do today or who they are today without realizing they can develop their mastery, their skills, their competencies, their knowledge, their experience, without realizing they can become a better person. They can live into their highest self. They can live into the type of person who could accomplish those goals, who could have those things. So never limit your ambitions based on your current competencies. Never limit yourself today based on your current inadequacies, because those can be irrelevant tomorrow. The main thing is to have aim in life, to have your own aim, to have your own ambitions, not the ambitions somebody told you you should have or someone told you you're supposed to be after, because that's how we all get on sort of, you know, sometimes a corporate treadmill, or we get on those things where we just start trying to live a life that's not even our own because we're just going with everybody. But ambition liberates that. Your individual ambition, who you want to become, What you want to do, what you want to contribute. And the highest forms of all ambition usually come down to your creative expression, your contribution, and your connection with others. That creative expression— what is it you want to create in this world? And I mean, get your hands dirty doing, you know? Not just create some PowerPoint once in a while for some corporate thing, but something real and meaningful that you consider art for yourself, whatever that is. Even if it is a PowerPoint presentation, right? But to do something that you find artistic and meaningful, that's our human drive for creative expression. Then, what about contribution? What's your ambition to give and to serve greatly for others? What do you really want to give back or give to others? What is it? And what about connection? You know, the ultimate ambition and aim to have, I think, for a lot of people, is their relationships. To operate and have a love that knows no bounds. I mean, a love that is extraordinary, that is amazing. You can't improve your relationship with your family or your spouse or those that you serve unless you have in some sense about you that desire to love or give or connect more. So today, get clear. What is it you want? And is it big enough for yourself? Not limiting yourself based off your inadequacies, your competencies, but based on what you truly desire. Last challenge, take whatever that is that you come up with and 10x it. Take it by 10 times. What would be 10 times that ambition? Not just because it's silly, I know, I know it's kind of silly, but to take that ambition that you initially have, which is usually, what we usually want is an impulse based on who we are today. And I just challenge people, no, think bigger for yourself because you are immense. You are magnificent. You are powerful beyond your current understandings. So break through that another level. Challenge your brain to think even bigger for yourself. Even if it's just as an activity to break the bounds of your current beliefs and behaviors. You deserve something extraordinary in your life, but at first, you have to want it.

Go big or go home. It's so easy to think that if you play it safe, If you do it a little simpler, a little smaller, you won't scare yourself, you won't scare your friends or your family, you won't scare your investors when you go ask them for money. It's just not true. The world just doesn't work like that. It's counterintuitive, but you can't go too big. You really can't. The bigger you go, the more inspired you will be personally. and trust me, you will need to be inspired to get through the hard times that will hit you. The bigger you go, the more of a cause you can make it for the people who you're going to need to attract. "Hey, come with me. We're going to do something and make the world 5% better." "Eh, you know what? I'll stay in my current job." "We're going to make the world 10 times better. We're going to make the world 100 times better." "Now you got me." Now it's like, I'll ask what I'm getting paid 3 months after I start work, right? That's the feeling that you need to be able to create in people in order for them to join you. So go big or go home.

To be an entrepreneur and also to be a visionary person, you have to actually be very, very bold. You have to be ready to take calculated risk, not just any risk. You have to take a calculated risk, and you have to think big. If you think small, you'll always remain small in life.

What do you mean by think big? Well, each one of those letters means something special. The T is for talent, which God gives to everybody, and everybody has their own unique set of talents. Develop those, use them, and let those carry you where they will. The H is for honesty. If you lead a clean and honest life, and you don't have a bunch of skeletons in the closet. It's really hard for them to come out if you don't put them in there, and it really uncomplicates your life quite substantially. The I is for insight, which comes from listening to people who've already gone where you're trying to go. You know, a lot of the adults in your life have been through the very things that you're going through right now, and if you can talk to them, and see what lessons they learned. Maybe you don't have to repeat the same things. And maybe that will allow you to move much further and faster than they did. The N is for nice. Be nice to people. Because once they get over their suspicion of why you're being nice, they'll be nice to you. And you can get so much more done when you're being nice, when they're being nice, and not get caught up in the meanness and the selfishness that is promoted by many segments of our society. The K is for knowledge, which is the way that you make yourself more valuable. And no one else can do that for you. You have to actively participate in the process of becoming knowledgeable. And the mechanism for doing that is the next letter, B, books. You know, some people say, "I don't like reading books." Besides that, I can learn anything I need to learn from watching DVDs and videos. Well, that's like saying that you can develop your muscles by watching somebody else lift weights. You know, it doesn't work that way. You have to exercise your brain if you want it to work for you, and reading is a perfect way of doing that. The second I is for in-depth learning. Learning for the sake of knowledge and understanding, as opposed to just learning some answers so that you can put them down on a quiz. That superficial learning doesn't last very long. And the last letter, G, is for God, which is such an important part of each of us as individuals and the fabric of our nation. And we make a grave error when we allow the secular progressive movement to push God out of our lives. You know, we shouldn't try to force God on them, but by the same token, we should not allow them to remove God from our lives.

Most entrepreneurs are dreamers. We dream big. We dream out of the box. And we dream out of the reality of our circumstances. A lot of us come from the inner cities and we want to be somebody. But after you have your dream and you have your vision, you have to open your eyes and to see and deal with the reality of what it's gonna take for you to achieve that dream. And now the real work begins.

Thank you guys so much for watching. I hope you enjoyed. I'd love to know, how do you think big? And also, what did you take from the clips? Which one did you like the most? Why? How is it gonna impact you? Leave it in the comments below and I'll join in the discussion. Thank you so much for watching. Continue to believe, and I'll see you soon.