How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life

by Lilly Singh

Whatever you’re doing in life, whether you’re a doctor, painter, student, or lemonade stand owner, it’s important to know the game so that you can excel at playing it.

Recognizing that you’re playing a game doesn’t just make things more fun (who doesn’t love games?) but also helps you understand why people do the things they do, allowing you to react with rationality, not emotion.

Many situations in life require us to climb an invisible ladder, and it’s not usually an easy climb. You have to earn each rung.

The thing about the ladder is that no matter how high a rung you reach, there will always be people above you. And sometimes the people above you will throw stones at you to try to knock you down. This behavior can be intentional or unintentional. Sometimes they might not even realize their feet are kicking dust onto you.

It’s a hard ladder to climb. There will be obstacles, exhaustion, and sometimes even a few snakes along the way (now it’s the Snakes and Ladders game). But when you climb the ladder you learn lessons, build character, and earn knowledge. The worst thing you can do is act entitled when you are at the bottom of the ladder, refusing to get sweaty. It doesn’t work like that.

a Bawse knows that shortcuts do not exist when it comes to success.

Working hard feels good.

One of the best feelings in the world is when you know that luck didn’t play a role in your success. Doing work eliminates the need for luck.

Procrastination is a hustler’s worst enemy. It’s that little voice inside of us that craves instant gratification and convinces us that almost anything can be put off for later, no matter how unrealistic.

Now, imagine how powerful procrastination would be if you had absolutely no deadline at all—completing the work was merely good for you.

As you can imagine, creating deadlines takes a huge amount of self-control, and that’s why sometimes you have to force them upon yourself.

Deadlines are always easier to follow when they’re public and you’re held accountable for them.

Of course some things in life are very important, but a Bawse understands that no one thing should make or break you.

One success is a terrific building block, but it’s not the only thing supporting you.

therefore, one failure should not destroy everything you’ve built.

In other words, if one opportunity will make or break your success, then your idea of success isn’t solid enough to begin with.

“YOU CAN’T BANK YOUR ENTIRE SUCCESS ON ONE ACHIEVEMENT. YOUR SUCCESS SHOULDN’T WALK ON STILTS.

A Bawse cannot walk the walk if the ground is crumbling beneath them. You need to strengthen your empire.

Here’s the thing, though. There is no correct way of living life. Similarly, there’s no one path that leads to success. A Bawse knows that there are many different pathways to every destination in life, and just because you’ve only been given one set of directions, that doesn’t mean ten other roads don’t all lead to the same place.

We live in an exciting time where almost anything is possible. All you need to do is use your unique mind to create a path that works for you. Think about it. Each pathway has only so much room. You don’t want to be that awkward third wheel who’s forced to walk on the grass because of a crowded path, do you? No, you don’t.

Think about where you want to get in life, what you want to achieve, and where you want to be years from now. Now think about the directions you’ve been given to get there.

Find two or three more paths that all lead to the same place. That’s how you should view the road map to success. It’s not a straight line, but a loopy, curvy maze that resembles one of those puzzles on the back of a cereal box.

You’re standing in the middle of a blank piece of paper. Unleash your inner architect and design your path to success. Get wild, be creative, and don’t get distracted by the flow of traffic.

Being active has nothing to do with being sexy, sculpting a six-pack, or fitting into a smaller size. It’s about making sure your body can keep up with your hustle. Having an amazing work ethic means nothing if your body can’t handle your fast pace.

Making small changes in order to live a healthier lifestyle can make a big difference. Here are a few ideas.

STRETCH IN THE MORNINGS

DON’T TAKE THE EASY WAY

Throughout your day, take the stairs instead of an escalator

walk to your destination instead of driving, get up to change the channel instead of using the remote, and when you’re getting ready to ...

DON’T BE SO HARD ON YOURSELF

You don’t need to cut out your favorite foods completely; you just need to eat things in moderation.

While the popcorn is popping, do some jumping jacks, and instead of extra butter, settle for regular.

DRINK WATER

But drinking water has so many benefits that it’s literally stupid not to just do it.

pay attention to my glass while I drink it.

drink a glass of water every time you post on Instagram (or your favorite social media platform).

good indicator that you should slow your roll. If you’re overflowing, you’ll know how our timelines feel.

I know it can be hard, but it’s important to be active and healthy. Aging is inevitable and poor health will catch up to you very quickly.

A Bawse knows the importance of creating a positive environment for the mind, heart, and soul. You can’t have a happy mind if you have an unhappy body; it just doesn’t work. They would fight and break up.

Life is sort of like Mario Kart, and every day we play a different level. We wake up and race through the day, trying to reach the final destination, but we’re bombarded by little nuisances at every turn.

Aside from implementing fixes to small problems, it’s important to also eliminate stress around larger events and recurring tasks.

The next time you’re in a stressful situation, instead of becoming flustered and frustrated, take a deep breath and ask yourself, “What can I change next time to avoid this situation?” And then proactively take steps to implement a solution.

Failure doesn’t necessarily mean the end of an idea or project. When things don’t go the way we anticipate, it’s easy to feel like we have to start over, but that’s not always the case. Just because one door has closed, it doesn’t mean it can’t be knocked down or forced back open.

Bawse knows that, yes, sometimes failure does indeed mean starting over. But a Bawse also knows that other times failure can be molded into unexpected success.

In most negative situations in life, you can create a positive outcome if you just look hard enough.

To take failure and turn it on its head, to make something unexpected out of it, is a beautiful thing.

Often we’re too busy being disappointed or upset to recognize that the tools we need to create a new masterpiece are right in front of us. They just require a little rearranging and assembly. Don’t let disappointment blind you to potential. Roll up your sleeves, use your creativity as glue, and mold your success.

Just because you’ve climbed one ladder doesn’t mean you won’t have to start from the bottom of another ladder.

It’s also a matter of respecting a different ladder and everyone on it. The climb up any ladder teaches you lessons and provides you with the necessary experiences.