The Gatekeepers Are Dead
In the last few months, I've heard an array of mirroring comments from people in my life:
I wish I could start a podcast.
I wish I could publish a book.
I wish I could record an album.
I wish I could start a business.
For generations, we lived in a world of gatekeepers. If you wanted to publish a book, you'd need a publisher to say "yes" to you and offer to publish it. If you wanted to be a radio or TV personality, you'd need a network to sign you. If you wanted to record an album, you'd need a label to discover you. If you wanted to start a business, well, there were a ton of barriers to entry. Gatekeepers were abundant, and our culture required permission to enter.
The gatekeepers are dead! Sure, publishers, networks, and labels still exist, but they no longer have the power to gatekeep like they once did. Yes, you need their permission if you want to access their particular platforms. However, due to advancements in technology and a massive cultural shift, we are no longer at the mercy of these gatekeepers.
If you want to start a podcast, start it! If you want to publish a book, publish it! If you want to record an album, record it! If you want to start a business, start it! The cost and friction points to initiate any of these endeavors are so low.
You can start a podcast on your phone today for free. If you wanted to, you could use your phone as the recording device, and Spotify For Creators (free!) as your distribution platform. Within seconds, your podcast could be on every meaningful podcast platform in the world.....for free! Zero gatekeepers!
If you want to publish a book, Amazon's self-publishing platform allows you to do it for free! No up-front cost, no minimum inventories. If someone orders a copy, Amazon fires up the printing machine, sends the customer the printed copy, and keeps a chunk of the revenue as compensation. Zero gatekeepers!
I know 12-year-olds who are starting creative businesses that are now making more than the median U.S. adult. I once had a high school youth group kid who made twice as much as I did! Zero gatekeepers!
None of these are easy endeavors, but nobody said it should be easy. This isn't about hard or easy, but rather, why we're waiting for permission from the gatekeepers. Spoiler alert: Permission isn't coming. The gatekeepers aren't what's coming between us and our callings. Instead, we're coming between us and our callings. We're too much in our own heads, using no-longer-existing gatekeepers as the excuse.
So many of you have dreams of one day doing xyz. Whatever that endeavor is, just do it! Don't wait for the gatekeepers.....they are dead. There's no better day than today to give yourself permission.
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