I wanna be Made

There’s a television show on MTV that I love to watch… it’s called Made. It usually features high school or college aged kids who want to make lifestyle changes and become something that’s completely different from what they already are. Every episode, someone is paired up with a coach, who they spend four to five weeks training with and learning from. For the finale they enter some kind of competition, tryout, or event. I’ve seen class clowns train and compete in a triathlon, preppy school girls win skateboarding competitions, and quiet kids put on fashion design shows.

Even though every episode is only an hour long, the show is produced in a way that makes you feel like you’re experiencing the journey of the person who is being “Made”. Of course, there are always pitfalls along the way… the people around you don’t always necessarily understand or support your dream. The person who’s being Made doesn’t always commit fully to the training, which frustrates the coach. But in the end, (this may be a production trick) there’s always a happy ending where the person makes the team, wins the competition, or otherwise completes the journey and is officially “Made”.

Why in the world do I like this show?

It might seem silly, but I enjoy watching people extend themselves beyond their boundaries and achieve something. It almost makes me jealous to see someone persevere and accomplish their goals, knowing that there are ways that I’ve never stuck it out and achieved MY goals. It makes the show almost an exercise in humility for me. No matter what journey you undertake, there’s always a level of fear involved… fear of failure, fear of pain, and fear of the unknown. The point is, you need to learn to commit and go for it.

I want to be an internet marketer.

In the course of the last six months, I’ve learned quite a bit about doing business on the internet. I’ve sought out most or all of the knowledge on my own by choosing examples and role models to follow. I’ve faced some major pitfalls. I’ve invested some money in lessons and tools.

I feel that there are a lot of things that I’d like to do on the web that I’ve never done before. I’ve never created a product to market or sell. I’ve never been a credible resource for other people to use as an example, nor have I been regarded as someone who is an expert at what they do, although I do a lot of things well. I’ve only built the smallest, most basic communities on the internet. I believe that all of these things represent the journey that I must take to build a successful, internet-based business.

What do you want to be Made into?

I know that most of the people who read this blog are other bloggers. But in your world, what journey do you most want to take? Who would you choose to be a coach to you and teach you how to get to where you want to go? What pitfalls would you face? How would you demonstrate as an end result that you had completed your “Made” journey and become what you’ve wanted to become?