“It is important to know that what I do is not artistic. I am just a film-maker. I live how I live and I do what I do, which is recording moments of my life as I move ahead. And I do it because I am compelled to. Necessity, not artistry, is the true line you can follow in my life and work.” – Jonas Mekas, Born Dec. 24, 1922.

A lot of would-be and could-be gurus mess up the order of things.

They think you need to reach the top of the hill first. Then you need to figure out your products and content, after maybe being successful at services as they climbed.

WRONG.

The thing is, as you climb, you are creating valuable knowledge. You are combining raw information that you studied, with the experience of working to implement it as a unique person in unique circumstances.

And that is of immediate value to everyone who is also climbing that same hill just two steps behind you.

So you live your life and pursue your goals and do your work…

But then you record that in some way. Share it.

Let people know what you did and how you did it.

What worked as stated in your source?

What had to be modified to be made to work for you?

What do you wish existed to help, but didn’t?

Get feedback from whatever audience you put it in front of.

Use that to improve it and save it to share again later as your audience grows.

You can even create products and trainings to help those who want to do what you do, and aren’t as good at it as you are yet.

In the meantime, you’re still working. Advancing. Growing. Creating new knowledge that comes in sequence, step by step as you gain ground and increase your position on the hill.

Your audience grows, and some portion of them follow you for some distance.

You climb higher. They climb with you.

So by the time you do reach the summit you’re trying to achieve, you’ve already got an audience. You’ve already got apostles who have been following you for ages. You’ve left trail markers and breadcrumbs for the entire journey, so people at every stage can jump in and follow along, no matter what level THEY happen to be.

And you’re a living poster-child for your process.

You look like an “after” but the “before” is there, embedded in time, for anyone who wants to go back and look. They see your rise. They see you’re legit. They see you’ve been there all along.

And what “overnight success” fly-by-night operator can show that?

None. It’s unassailable. Undeniable.

And voila – you’re a guru without even really doing anything at all except showing your work as you did it.