From the many podcast interviews I’ve watched or listened to and books I’ve read on people who have succeeded greatly in what they do, I’ve found different traits they have and different things they do. Two things I’ve found common in them is firstly that they never gave up on what they were pursuing. Secondly, they were obsessed with whatever they were pursuing. They ate, slept and breathed their pursuit. They went all in. They pursued it relentlessly, ignoring all else. Sometimes to the detriment of everything else or other aspects of their lives. As a society we tend to frown upon doing that. We view obsession as a bad thing and yet I believe that’s what’s required to truly succeed at something. I should probably point out that in saying this I’m excluding obsession with people. I don’t want you getting a restraining order and saying but Sibo said…
Whether its athletes who practice for hours and hours a day or dancers who do the same or someone who studies the human brain, they are obsessed with their craft. They think about it constantly. They want to talk about it all the time. They want to be around people who obsess about it too, usually not finding people like that and ending up with no friends for certain periods in their lives. They basically live and breathe their chosen craft. I find that admirable. I love people who are obsessed with what they do, probably because I know I am.
To become a master or really good at something, takes time. Time that if you’re not obsessed with what you’re doing would lead to giving up. Sometimes only obsession will keep you going because the time I’m talking about is not weeks or months but years. Years of doing the same thing over and over. Years of learning and growing. Years of perfecting a skill or skills involved in what you’re pursuing. Often years of seeing no tangible results and seemingly having no impact. Years that someone in their right mind or in other words someone who is not obsessed, would give up.
If you look at someone like the YouTube sensation that is MrBeast, he wouldn’t be where he is if he wasn’t obsessed with what he did. His obsession with YouTube is clear and now years later it has paid off because he has over a hundred million followers on the platform. It was through his interview on the Joe Rogan Experience that I became aware of him and his story solidified my belief that obsession is an essential in mastering something.
Warren Buffett is another example. He lives and breathes investing and his success is evidence of the results of his particular brand of obsession. I watched this documentary about him called Becoming Warren Buffett and I appreciated what it takes to build up a man like him. There are many other examples, in fact, I would go so far as to say name anyone who is considered a success in what they do and I bet you they were or still are obsessed with what they do.
I know obsession can sometimes be to the detriment of a person’s life and the people around them but I don’t think you can be a master at something without being obsessed with it. So this year, why not choose to be obsessed about something. Give it your all and see what happens.
