How To Find Your Confidence | BIG SEAN's Advice in 12 Minutes

He's an American hip-hop recording artist from Detroit, Michigan. He signed with Good Music in 2007, Def Jam in 2008, and Roc Nation in 2014. His album Dark Sky Paradise earned him his first number 1 on the Billboard 200.

He's Big Sean, and here are his top 10 rules for success.

One thing people need is inspiration. You know, they need a lot of things, but they definitely need that too. You know, inspiration can, you know, it can like create anything. Inspiration can create the best ideas, it can create the million-dollar ideas, it can create the billion-dollar ideas, it can create leaders. You know, inspiration can change everything, so I feel like people need that.

Man, you just gotta stay real to yourself, you know, don't ever try and follow the trends, that's when you get lost in the sauce, man. You gotta do what you feel, man, and be creative, and don't be scared to be yourself, and always keep that faith. You know, I've been in the darkest times of my life, man, where I didn't know what was gonna happen. I was flat broke. Anything you could think of, man, I done been through it. And like, you know, you gotta be strong enough to make it through. And it just makes it that much sweeter when everything starts going right. When I was in the third grade and my teacher was like, nah, this is some funny shit though. My teacher was like, ask people what they wanna be. And they was like lawyers, doctors, this. And I was like, man, I wanna be a rapper signed to Def Jam. I said that in the third grade, right? And my teacher was like, oh no. And shit, right? Same teacher wants me to come back and speak at my school. Don't do that shit, cuz. No, no, that's not my point. My point is, man, that whatever you doing in life, man, you make sure you follow your heart and do what the fuck you want to do, man.

That shit—

you don't want to be 50, 60 years old wishing you would have, could have, should have did something, man. Like, that's the best advice I could give you, man. I promise you, and I promise you, man, if you follow your heart and always keep that faith It'll lead you to your pot of gold, it'll lead you to your million dollars, whatever you want in life, man, it'll lead you to that shit. I promise, man.

I learned something different from everybody, you know. It's just like it all depends on, like, from Ye, I just learned, you know, always follow your heart, always be real, straight up, don't take no shit, you know what I'm saying. Common, just Common is somebody who like, no matter what Common has going on with one thing, he'll always have something else going on. Like, he'll always be like, if he's not acting right, then he's making music. If he's not making music, he's always finding some ways to brand himself away from music too, and I respect that, you know what I'm saying? He's more than just a rapper, he's like an all-around businessman, and I respect that about Common. You know, so it's little things you learn from guys like that, that you hang around, and you know, you take little tips and apply it to yourself.

Risk. There is no chance to evolve and progress without taking risk. I feel like it's the necessary element to self-development, you know, like it's the key to living life to the fullest. Risk, according to Webster, is the chance of injury, damage, loss. The failure of your expectations. But I realize that it's also the opportunity to learn and gain the fulfillment of your desires and dreams. When I think of risk, or just what risk means, I feel like I might think of being afraid, or— when really, risk is a way to overcome what you fear. You can be afraid to risk something or everything because you don't want to lose what you have, because you're afraid you may fail or think you can't handle it, or whatever the case. You'll spend so much energy and time trying to keep what you have instead of progressing into something new. Everything changes Nothing stays the same forever.

Nothing.

From business to personal, everything in between. I realized that you can't be afraid. A lot of us aren't all the way satisfied but are scared to lose security in what we do have, like I might not be able to get a better job or a better partner, etc. Or even as bad as prison is, you know, there are people who don't want to leave because they're afraid of what's on the outside or being able to succeed. The number one thing I got to remind myself sometimes and remember is that life is here not to survive but to live it up, you know, to expand, to grow. When you settle for what's familiar or safe, it's because we forget that God is our security. God is creating all this, and that's the only security. You know, you could try and find security in people, in jobs, or anything man-made, but there's no point because everything is designed to change, including you.

We want songs like Memories, Desire, One in These.

You can keep Guap.

Most people who have successfully taken risks and succeeded have failed too. But the point is, you learn from every lesson. You learn from every risk. Change is always exciting. It's always exciting when you know God is involved. The world is designed for change. Don't ever be afraid to take risks.

How did you make this perseverance to push through all of this?

I don't know, man. I just did, you know, I just— that people, man. My grandma, you know, my grandma is one of the biggest inspirations. My mom, you know, my desire to want to give everybody around me a better life, the desire to want to live a better life, man.

That's just—

that's my whole motivation, man. Coming from Detroit City, people don't make it out the west side of Detroit.

You know, I believe in just like spreading that love, you know what I'm saying? That good, just like good vibes. Like, I live like a hippie, you know what I'm saying? So I believe in just like, you know, feeling great, letting people know like how I made it happen for myself and am making it happen.

One thing I used to be a victim of is like when I was in the studio with Kanye, Jay-Z, all these people, and they would do a verse to a song I would try and do a verse like they would, you know what I'm saying?

And that shit just wasn't me.

It wasn't me.

It didn't sound right.

So I just realized that you have to stay in your own lane. You have to just do what you do and go all the way with it, man.

Don't look back. My definition of success? I think success is more like an emotion than it is, you know, what you get physically. Like, success isn't how much money you make. It isn't like You know, it's just about like what you accomplish, how you feel at the end of it all, you know, that's success. And I feel like I've been successful in some ways, but I'm still, you know, hungry for that success that I want. And, you know, I'm gonna get it, I'm gonna make it happen. I'm young now, 25, and, you know, I look at people who, um, who I consider successful and they're, you know, way older. You know what I'm saying? I got a lot of time to get it right, and I'm learning, you know. So I think success is definitely an emotion more than $100 million or anything.

Yeah, man, I've interviewed quite a lot of people and asked that same question, and that's one of the best answers.

Really?

Yeah, really, man.

Yeah, success is like— yeah, you can be successful. There's people who are richest, the richest people in the world. You could be the richest person in the world and not be successful, you know. There's people who have the most money who got the most problems too and are the unhappiest. And it's people who are taking a bus every day and, you know, who got a family and they're the happiest ever, you know. So I think success isn't measured by how much money you make or the big, you know, the house you want. It's measured by how you feel.

Imagination. How many people you know, I mean for real know, made it, got on? Nobody from my city. Detroit? Hell nah. I ain't no Eminem. I don't know nobody who did it.

Them waves is for real too.

I know I made it my point to be the one who made it. The one people knew before I made it. To show everybody it was real. I grew up watching Biggie, Mase. I wanted a Rollie like Pac, feel me? I wanted money like Master P.

You see what it is, man.

I'm slumming, man.

Stun like the big timers. Wanted to pop champagne, feel me? I wanted to put my crew on, have a label like Rockefeller, put the city on. You know, I started off young spitting, rapping.

Hey, turn me up!

Trying to be a role model, trying to be signed. I knew I was gonna make it, I just ain't know how.

Ain't nobody fucking with me.

But I knew. My mom taught me early on, this world is what you make it. You create your own environment. It all starts with a vision. What you can imagine, you can create. I came up middle class.

Family!

Family!

Not really having shit to spare, not having no money to spare. Had to work for new clothes, gas money. I always wanted to get my mom what she wanted, you know, cars, Benz, houses, whatever. I ain't have it, but I could see it in my head. I could feel the energy of it. Build a house up on that ass, that's a nice steak. Roll my weed on it, that's a nice tray.

Say, "Hey, say, hey, don't we do this every day day?" Something, something, da-da-da. Like you just had a payday.

I don't even know if that makes sense, but it always made sense to me. It was all real to me. My imagination was real to me. The people who used to tell me I was wasting my time or said it wouldn't work out were the people who ain't have shit. They ain't have nothing. It wasn't till after meeting the people I grew up to, getting a chance to meet my idols, work with them, I realized they believe what I believe. Imagining it. Changing the world. Changing their world. A lot of people could imagine but wouldn't believe it, couldn't fathom it. Not me. I believe. I had imagination.

Thank you guys so much for watching. We made this video because Patrick Vang asked us to. Now, if you have a famous entrepreneur you'd like Evan to make a video of, leave it in the comments below. And we will make him do it. I'd also love to know which of Big Sean's top 10 rules meant the most to you. Leave it in the comments below and we're gonna join in the discussion. Thank you so much for watching. Continue to believe, and we'll see you soon.