1: Minimize Responsibility
In a world of more, Sol Orwell edges toward less.
Not in a preachy, minimalistic “look at me” kind of way.
Merely in a… “I’m okay, thanks” sort of manner.
If you don’t know about Sol, he’s found infamy in recent years for running “Cookie Events”.
That’s right… events that focus around cookies. No real point to them. But that’s the point.
He likes to have fun with things (which we’ll focus on soon). And part of this is to remove as much responsibility as possible. We talked about success, you see; what it means.
For Sol, success is about doing what he wants, when he wants.
A common definition that I’ve found many people share.
Yet he commits to it more than most people ever will.
How? By removing as much as he can.
The more responsibility he has, the less he can say yes to.
How he wants.
With who he wants.
Responsibility is a great thing. It allows you to take action and live life on your terms. As we grow older, we inevitably gain more of it. But we can always choose to say no to some of it. It’s a choice.
We can add more because we feel like we have to.
Or we can remain true to our success and say… “No. I’m good. Thanks, though.”
2: Minimize Expectation
During our call, he said that if you minimize responsibility and expectation, good things happen.
Take his now-infamous #COOKIEOFF events…
To begin with, they were just him and a few buddies partaking in cookie workshops or the like.
It started from there and slowly evolved. He had no vision for it; no plan to monetize it.
He even said that once you monetize something, you invite expectations onto you (more responsibility). This is fine if you need the money and there’s a gap in the market. But to do so for the sake of it… why?
Yet how often do you place an expectation on a “thing”, when there was no need to?
Instead of forcing it down a specific path, why not let it evolve as it needs to.
This is true in business and in life, surely… when you remove expectation, fun is had.
Less pressure.
Less intensity.
Less stress!
This leads us to the next inspiring life lesson…