Chapter 13 of the One Life Manifesto: Empire.
I am in the process of building an empire. It’s what I want to do with the remainder of my life. I want to build an empire under my own brand name. When somebody says: hey! I want to build an empire, you might look at them and think they are crazy. Because it is a crazy endeavour. However, when you think about it, this book is all about your one life. What would you build otherwise? Would you build for somebody else? Would you build their empire? Is there any satisfaction in that? Perhaps, if you enjoy following the herd.
If you want to take the lead and really build something under your name, having an empire is quite powerful. Your name will stand as a legacy and people will look back on you and remember your last name. They remember Henry Ford, they remember Thomas Edison.
That to me is an accomplishment. So, this book is a precursor to what I would like to build. As I am working on many content pieces, I intend to wrap all of them into one. Under one name. Under my name. I want to build this empire so that I can help others and improve the lives of others. For me it is critical that I improve the lives of others and that I touch somebody. I want to make an impact on someone, either directly or indirectly through my material. That is a good feeling to have, knowing that my name makes a positive impact on someone.
It is hard work when you want to build the foundation. Then you will want to build the remaining tower. That is your empire. It is no easy feat, that is for sure. It will require great effort from you, many hours. It’s a journey that I am about to take. I am going to document how to get to this goal, to this incredible empire that I would like to build for myself. I think an ambitious goal is important.
I look at top leaders and learned that you must remain humble if you would like to build an empire. You must be helpful to others. I would say that being helpful and humble is critical to your success. Humility and helpfulness – that is how you stand out amongst the crowd. When the crowd looks to always get, you give. You give tremendously. You have that opportunity. Most people will not put in that time to build an empire. But I think it’s critical to have an ambitious goal. To say: yes! That is what I like.
As for me, I would like my last name Carss to stand for something. To be a brand that people look at and say: that’s a powerful brand. Then I can look back with satisfaction and say: that is exactly how I wanted to live my life. That is exactly how I wanted to accomplish life. That is a legacy that will stand the test of time. Consider building your empire with anything that you do, whichever work that you are in. Ideally that work is so meaningful that it stands the test of time. That is important. What are you building?