The Art of Self Design is now live at a $100 launch discount until Thursday at midnight.
Tonight, I’d like to share a story that changed my life.
It’s a simple story, with a simple message, but it struck my mind like lightning when I first read it in my early 20’s.
In many ways, this story planted the seed of the idea that ultimately became The Art of Self Design.
So it only feels right to share it here tonight.
Sit back, relax, and focus in — the story will only take a few minutes, but the effects can last a lifetime.
Let’s begin…
***
Peter and Howard are competing architects in New York City.
Peter had been a model student:
Top of his class, and the prized recruit of the biggest architecture firm in the city.
Peter was liked by everyone, because he offended no one — he did everything he was told to do, and he did it exceptionally well.
His mother told him to be an architect (“it’s a respectable job!”) so that’s what he became.
His teachers told him to follow standard practices (“that’s how it’s always been done!”) so he made sure his work was always a close copy of the classics.
His friends told him they thought his girlfriend was pretty (“you’re the man, Peter!”) so he married her.
Peter excelled at being what the world told him to be.
Then the world changed.
When his unoriginal work couldn’t adapt to modern times, clients began turning him away.
That would have been okay with Peter — he never really loved architecture anyway — if only his life at home were better.
But his trophy marriage had turned loveless and cold, and the friends who once envied him now looked down at him with pity.
Aging and lonely, Peter began sneaking away to a small, private work shed to practice his first love; painting.
Across the city, hunched over a design table, was Howard.
Howard’s first love was always architecture.
He had grown up alone, without parents to guide him to a respectable career — he only knew that when he looked upwards at the towering skyscrapers of manhattan, a wild spirit rose in his chest.
He knew his path, he knew his purpose, and he refused to bend his vision for anyone.
Howard’s designs were radical; his teachers were too shocked to admit that they were impressed, and kicked him out of architecture school for breaking too many of the classic rules of design.
Without a degree, he fought for entry-level jobs at low-level firms, and then quit as soon as they forced him to do work he didn’t believe in.
He scratched and clawed and sometimes starved, but his love of architecture never wavered.
Then, very slowly, clients took notice of his work.
They appreciated the clarity of his vision, his integrity, the principles he lived by and refused to break.
Howard’s career grew not quickly, but steadily; like an army that refuses to give up any ground until the battle is won.
And finally, he won.
At the end of the story, Howard’s buildings shape the New York skyline, standing in bold defiance of everyone who told him who he couldn’t be.
One day, there is a knock on Howard’s office door.
Peter walks in, carrying a stack of his paintings — paintings he has never shared with anyone, before.
Cautiously, he hands them to Howard.
Howard looks at them slowly, carefully, one by one, saying nothing, as Peter stands nervously beside the desk.
Then he hands them back to Peter.
In a soft, quiet voice, Howard says:
“Peter… It’s too late.”
***
Peter did everything right, except the one thing that matters:
He never followed his own vision.
While Peter shaped himself to the world, Howard shaped himself to his own highest vision — which ultimately shaped the world around him.
This, at the core, is what The Art of Self Design is all about:
Breaking the bindings of social conditioning so that you are free to bring your own highest vision for yourself and your life into reality.
I hope this story inspires you to do that, the way it did for me.
And if you’d like guidance, it would be an honor to help you make the journey.
– T
P.S. Here’s a quick recap of what’s going on:
The Art of Self Design went live this morning, and will be on sale at a $100 discount until Thursday at midnight.
Then we’ll close up shop and I’ll begin working with the group inside.
(I plan to re-open it sometime next year at full price, pending changes)
We have two options for joining:
1 payment of $295 ($100 discount)
2 payments of $147.50 ($100 discount)
And everything else you need to know is listed at the links above.
I hope we see you inside 🙂
