Make It Big

By: Frank McKinney

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Frank McKinney graduated high school with a less-than-stellar 1.8 GPA. Shortly after, he moved to Florida with nothing but $50 in his wallet. Sixteen years later, Oprah’s producers interviewed him for a program about successful entrepreneurs to spotlight his latest creation: a $12 million mansion.

Since then he’s built villages for over 10,000 people in Haiti through his Caring House Foundation.

How did he do it? How did he go from a broke 18-year-old to a millionaire and philanthro-capitalist?

He started practicing introspection at an early age. He kept asking himself, “Why is this working? What’s the secret of this particular success?” He studied other successful people and he succeeded himself.

He distilled his observations into a series of Philosophies. So far, there are 49, and in this readitfor.me episode we’ll summarise them for you. To learn more about Frank and his Philosophies, buy ‘Make it Big’ on Amazon.


Part One: Have a Vision for your Passion

To make it big, you have to know where you want to go and have endless passion for getting there. This section discusses how you can create a vision for your life that will keep you passionate enough.

  1. Recognise Your Highest Calling As Early As Possible In Life
    Why were you born? What were you put on this earth to do? A highest calling is beyond your personal vision or mission – it is your destiny. And recognising it should be your first priority.
  2. Know Where You’re Going: Create A Personal Vision or Mission Statement.
    Figure out how to put that highest calling to work, and how you will integrate it into different parts of your life.
  3. Figure Yourself Out: Spend Time in Introspection

The ability to turn inside, examine yourself, and learn from your successes and mistakes is absolutely essential if you want to make it big.

Act with Integrity: Live Up to Your Own Idea of Who You Are

Live up to the best of who you can be rather than settling for anything else.

Be Sensitive to Life’s Lessons and Learn From Them

Life always presents us with lessons. Some are pleasant, and some are not. It’s up to you to recognise those lessons when they come and learn from them as quickly and as well as possible.

Don’t Compromise Your Beliefs or Person, Ever!

Nothing is worth lying about when it comes to who you are and what you believe. It’s far better to cut yourself loose from the situation and find something where you can be yourself.

Each of Us Has Not Only a Professional Talent but a Spiritual One As Well. Find Yours and Apply It

A spiritual talent is that feeling inside that nudges us to do something selfless for others, to contribute and give back in recognition of both the gifts we’ve received and our common humanity with others.

Part Two: Stake Your Territory: Create a Unique Brand for You and Your Life

A lot of success begins with branding. There are two aspects to branding. First is your personal brand, the one you create for yourself. The second brand, the public brand, is about relationships and how others perceive you. Here’s how to establish a unique brand and create a marketplace for yourself and your business.

To Live an Extraordinary Life You Must Resist the Ordinary

Ordinary is what most people settle for. Extraordinary people break away from the ordinary and make sure their lives matter. To be extraordinary, you have to be willing to set yourself apart from your peers and do what they will not. You have to put in the work that will create extraordinary results in whatever field you choose. Living an extraordinary life has little to do with what you do; it is more a function of how you do it.

Find and Fill a Niche – an Area that You Believe Is Missing in the Marketplace

The best niches are found in areas 1) that are missing altogether, 2) that are underserved, 3) that are ripe for innovation and/or improvement, or 4) where demand far exceeds supply. To find your niche, you must start by knowing yourself. Understand where your strengths lie and what your interests are, and based on that, choose a marketplace. Then, look for areas where there is room for improvement.

Apply True Focus to What You Do Best. Do Not Be Distracted Outside Your Niche

Concentration and focus are important in building success. Unfortunately, it’s very easy to get distracted. But pour all your energy and focus into making your dream a reality. Especially in the early stages of an entrepreneurial career, you have to make up your mind and stick to what you believe is your highest calling.

Have a Passion for What You Do, Both at Work and at Home

To stand out in your marketplace and create an extraordinary life, you must have passion. To make a name for yourself, to create a presence in the marketplace, and most of all to put life in your life, you must have a passion.

Don’t Let Others Deter Your Entrepreneurial Passion or Enthusiasm

When you’re first getting started, you’ll hear things like, “you’re too young” or “you don’t have the experience.” Don’t let the naysayers get you down. Ignore them. You must draw on your courage, confidence, intelligence and passion to pull you through. You must believe in yourself so much that no one can deter you.

Learn from Highly Respected, Successful People

Some of the most important learning we can get comes from other people. Experience is the best teacher, but other people’s experiences are great too. Talk to successful people and learn from them.

Once You Are Able to Love Yourself, Don’t Hesitate to Let Others Know

Develop the essential component of self-esteem. Many people think loving yourself is nothing but ego on the rampage, but that’s not it at all. It means you’re willing to say, “Yes I am good at this. Yes, I have value as a person. Yes, I deserve the space I occupy on this earth.”

Entrepreneurs must have ego. It’s the only way they would attempt the things they do. Self-love and self-esteem allow you to learn from your mistakes and failures instead of wallowing in them, and then move on. You should love what you do and who you are becoming in the process, and you shouldn’t be afraid to let others know it.

Set Yourself Apart and Celebrate Your Individuality, Yet Include Humility

Everyone should celebrate his or her individuality. Anything that sets you and your product apart from the crowd is to your advantage. We are all unique expressions of humanity, and we deserve to let our talents shine. You can let yourself shine, as long as it’s balanced with a healthy dose of humility.


Part Three: Take the “Lunch Pail” Approach While Answering Your Highest Calling

Once you have a vision you’re passionate about, and you’ve found a niche and a marketplace in which you want to develop a brand for yourself, the next part is getting out there and doing the work.

Do Your Job, Do It Well, and Do It Every Day

The only way you’re going to make it in the world is through hard work. You’ve got to apply yourself every single day. There is no substitute for your own effort.

Persevere Toward Your Ideal of Spiritual Fulfilment, Happiness, Dream or Goal Each Day

It’s great to have a vision, but if you’re not out there day after day making it happen, it’s only a pipe dream. The mission, vision, dream or goal gives your work a reason, but persevering in that work makes your vision real.

Proactively and Creatively Persist, Day In and Day Out

Persistence is what makes it happen on the days you’re not faced with obstacles. You have to keep at it no matter what, whether you’re feeling great about your job or not, whether you have a million dollars in the bank or your last dollar in your pocket.

Learn Something New Each Day and Forget the Lure of Pride. Ask Yourself, “What Can I Do Better Today Than Yesterday?”

When pride means you think you know it all, then you’re in trouble. Being too proud to learn usually leads to the death of success. Admit mistakes and learn from them. Hear things you don’t particularly want to know, because it will make you a better businessperson and human being.

Sit on the Other Side of the Desk First

Think about the client’s needs or concerns. This will help create relationships that are satisfying to both parties.

Think Win-Win, Be Fair, Then Close the Deal

Win-win begins by listening to the other side and truly hearing what they are saying. When you understand what you want, then you can construct a deal that will feel like a win for them too. Both sides need to feel good about the outcome.

Avoid Vices and Unhealthy Temptations As They Suck the Life Out of Progress and Success

Almost anything that you overindulge in that drains your energy or stops you from accomplishing what you want is an unhealthy vice.

You Must Be Disciplined. Go To Bed Early and Get Up Early

There is no more important foundation for making it big than discipline. Discipline turns your personal vision into reality.

Organisation Is the Key to Success

The best thing about organisation is that it allows you to be extremely efficient with your time. Organisation makes responsibility and accountability possible.


Part Four: Take Risks. They’re the Difference Between a $30,000 Fixer-Upper and a $30 Million Mansion on Speculation

The primary difference between success and failure lies in your willingness to take risks. All progress results from people who have had the courage to push the envelope and see how high they can go.

Gently Yet Often Exercise Your Risk Threshold Like a Muscle. Eventually It Will Become Stronger and Able to Withstand Greater Pressure

Risk is scary. How do we overcome fear? Start small. Building your risk muscle is a process that in no time can be revolutionary because you will revolt against the “no’s” in your life.

Never Gamble. Calculate the Maximum Amount of Risk You Feel You Can Afford to Take

You can probably think of many instances when taking a risk proved to be a smart choice for you. Why did you succeed? I bet you researched your choices and spent time thinking about the risks, both the upsides and the downsides. That’s the basis of sound decision-making.

Trust and Act On Your Gut Feeling

We all have that intuitive little voice inside us, but very few of us act on it. Gut instinct is a valid voice in the decision-making process.

Make a Commitment to Yourself to Say Yes More Than No. Don’t Hesitate.

We need to push past our comfort zones. We need to get in the habit of saying yes as our first reaction.

Be Prepared to Fail Before You Succeed

You will make mistakes. Learn from them.

Live in the Future Instead of the Past

Use your imagination, not memory, when making decisions. Look toward the future.

Celebrate Each Humble Victory as a Triumphant Achievement

Build your confidence. Building your confidence muscle is an essential part of making it big. Celebrate all of your successes, however small.


Part Five: Make a Difference

Live a life that matters. Without a focus on making a difference in the lives of others, success may seem sweet, but it will ultimately be empty. Welcome opportunities to make a difference.

  • Use Your Success to Help Others
  • Many of us are fortunate to be blessed with the ability to succeed – not for our sole benefit, but so we may apply the result of our success to assist others.
  • You Cannot Brighten Another’s Path Without Lighting Your Own
  • When you help others, you help yourself.
  • Be Honest and Truthful with Others As Well As Yourself
  • If you do this, you’ll not only make it big but you’ll also deserve your success.
  • When Your Conscience Speaks, You’d Better Listen
  • Conscience is the voice of your integrity. Listen to it.
  • Truly Feel Compassion
  • Compassion means considering the consequences of your own decisions in the light of how they will affect other people. Every opportunity for compassion is an opportunity for you to be a hero or heroine in someone’s life.
  • Give More Than You Receive

To stand out from the crowd, your product has to be perceived as having value over your competitor’s. If you provide exceptional value in every area of your life, giving your best efforts to your business, family and community, then your life will reflect that high level of quality.

  • Approach Life Knowing There Will Always Be Plenty to Go Around
  • Be generous. This means believing there are enough clients, business, and opportunity to go around. Use common sense, of course, but let your generous heart have a vote in any decision.
  • Leave an Enduring Legacy

You are building your legacy every day. It’s up to you what it is.


Part Six: Enjoy the Ride

You can follow every Philosophy in this summary, but without joy your life will be dry. Put some life in your life!

  • Enjoy The 97% And Adore the 3%
  • If we are fortunate, 97% of our ordinary life is spent pursuing the extraordinary 3%. Enjoy the 97%, and recognise and adore the 3% as extraordinary golden moments.
  • Take Time to Recharge Your Battery
  • You won’t get the golden egg without first taking care of the goose. Take care of yourself.
  • Never Grow Up, and Consistently Renew
  • Keep in touch with your sense of spontaneity, wonder and renewal. Stay young at heart.
  • Resist the Temptation to Act Like an Adult. Never Lose the Little Girl or Boy Inside
  • Don’t lose the child in you that explored the world and faced the future with boundless energy and excitement.
  • Fall in Love; Don’t Hesitate to Show Your Affection
  • Don’t hesitate on anything. Love is one of the greatest experiences we can have. Love for friends, kids, hobbies, charities – anything. Put love in everything without hesitation.
  • Approach Each Day with Flair
  • If you find, accept, and develop your own sense of flair, you can actually enjoy taking the lead in your profession.
  • Each Day You Are on the Concert Stage of Life, So You’d Better Make It Rock!
  • Put more of yourself, your energy and your drive into your
  • day.
  • Laugh Often
  • And make sure you’re able to laugh at yourself.
  • Live Your Life with No Regrets

When you’re older, what will you say from your rocking chair?

There’s Always One More…

Keep learning, growing, and exploring. And make it big!