Be so good they can’t ignore you – Steve Martin

Steve Martin“Be so good they can’t ignore you”

– Steve Martin

Steve Martin is one incredible dude.

I’ve been a fan since his 1978 comedy album “Let’s Get Small.” I saw him live shortly thereafter doing comedy including his infamous “Cat Juggling” bit. In a high school English class we actually analyzed his comedy.

He is credited as “an American comedian, actor, musician, author, screenwriter, film producer and voice over artist” (ref:Wikipedia).

He is phenomenally successful in many areas, and has won and been nominated for awards in many categories, including comedy, acting, bluegrass (he plays a mean banjo!), writing, and more. These awards include Grammys, Emmys, Golden Globes, and the list goes on.

Steve Martin’s “Secret” to Success

He’s often been asked about the secret to his success, and he usually disappoints in his answer as there is no secret. “Be so good they can’t ignore you,” is what he says. And yes, that takes lots of dedication and hard work. He keeps plugging away.

Steve is talking about core competence, the Geek part for us, which is 100% essential.

Being great is essential for a Rock Star

It alone is not enough, but it is absolutely required!

Some quickies:

  • Continually strive to improve your skills. Steve certainly does. I do. And improving your skills includes improving both geek and non geek skills.
  • Never stop learning. When the last time you read a book is, took a class, listened to a Webcast, etc? Currently I’m working on two books, finishing up a Forensics class, starting a marketing related class, and I listened to an infosec Webcast last week.
  • Don’t assume too much about where you are heading. I’m currently mentoring a couple of pretty smart younger infosec guys. As I tell them, you never know where you might end up, where you might shine, were you might be happy, where you might be a Rock Star. I never thought it was possible to fly around the planet and talk about infosec professionally, and that is about half of what I do right now. Steve Martin never planned on being a Rock Star at comedy, acting, the banjo and more I’m sure.

    You never know where you might end up. Enjoy the ride!

 

 

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Comments

    • Fred
    • December 2, 2014
    Reply

    Yes, he is quite amazing, and credits hard smart work for his successes. Everyone wants a short cut, even if there isn’t one

    • Pasquale
    • December 22, 2014
    Reply

    Steve Martin is one incredible dude, and his successes in numerous areas are massive. I never knew he credited hard work – he obviously has talent aplenty as well!

      • Ted Demopoulos
      • December 22, 2014
      Reply

      Obviously such a talented dude, that many of us think his success comes naturally. But as he points out, everything he does he still pours massive effect into to truly excel!

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