In "Khan's Anger" (part of the Star Trek series), the initial scene shows the performance of the test called Kobayashi Maru . The test given to all Starfleet cadets simulates situations in which they never win. No matter what they do, there's no way they can handle it, and they end up losing it.

In the middle of the movie, Cadet Saavik learns how Captain Kirk manages to beat the system. After taking the test 2 times, he secretly reprograms the simulation. Saavik asks: Why do not you play the rules ? And Kirk answers:

"I do not believe in a scenario in which there is never a victory. I like to think I always have the opportunity to win."

Source: youtube.com
Author: Kobayashi77Maru

The Kobayashi Maru test makes me think about the circumstances around us and how they influence our success. On this we will reflect on the remaining rows:

The painful truth

Yes, the circumstances around us affect not only our person but also our ability to create successful products and services. This is the topic that looks at Malcolm Gladwell 's popular " Outliers: Our situation in life predetermines our success ". Gladwell, for example, claims that Bill Gates would not have been so successful if he did not have access to computers at the age of 13.

Calculators were extremely rare for anyone grown up in the 1960s, and Bill's ability to touch them from teenage teens to the rest of the world had put the world at his feet. Life limits us, and some of us face more than others.

This leads us to the second point : the idea of ​​"unfair" advantage.

Yes, some people (and teams) have a natural advantage over everyone else in the game of business and life. If you are a single parent, you will certainly need more time than a person who does not have a similar leak of time resources.

A Harvard study clearly shows that increasing the level of stress (especially financial) has a negative impact on cognitive abilities. This means that the circumstances you are in are increasingly influencing your ability to make good decisions and act creatively.

Well, is there hope anyway? Is there anything we can do?

Be like Kirk: create your own unfair advantage!

Captain Kirk cheats on the system by taking action that is out of the system itself, an action that does not depend on it. He looks at the big picture and asks:

What avoids anyone who appears on the test? What have I not tried? Why are they all doing it this way? Is not there another?

There are always opportunities - Spock

No matter what they are, Kirk is looking for opportunities. He does not allow himself to believe in a scenario in which victory does not exist. He is determined to find a way.

The story of Dan

Dan Martel , the founder of Clarity , as a minor, had a lot of problems with upbringing. His mother was an alcoholic, and at the age of 11 he fell into a foster home. After his parents divorce, he starts making and selling medicines. At age 17, Dan faced the police.

He was arrested and served 6 months in prison. He was then sent to a clinic.

But in the clinic everything is changing: There he discovers computers and programming, transforming the terrible circumstances surrounding his life into something constructive: when he stays there he reads every computer book and programming he can find.

I've always created something and always sold something, so I started selling drugs. But when I got to the clinic and found the power of computers, I learned to create things that are legitimate. It turned out that much of what I learned while selling drugs has built up a business flair in my mind that I could apply to other areas of entrepreneurship. - Dan Martel

According to Dan, part of his staying in the clinic is also due to employees who have previously been drug addicts.

This, plus the lessons learned about programming and business flair from selling drugs (this story very much reminds me of 50 Cent), creates the basis for its successful launch in the world of (legal) entrepreneurship:

Clarity is based on the advice of people who have been "there" before.

Dan does not start his business under the traditional rules of the startups. He refuses to live in San Francisco in favor of Moncton, New Brunswick. In the beginning, instead of collecting money to launch Clarity, in just two days it creates a working prototype.

Then, of course, Dan took advantage of traditional advice when starting a business and started charging people using his services.

3 things you can do right now:

The circumstances around you affect what's happening to you, but they do not have to define your life. They may interfere with or help but prevent it.

Instead of focusing on your current flaw, concentrate on what you can do to get out of the swamp.

1. Do you have 5 minutes a day to create something new? Do something tiny!
2. Do not focus on the people who are ahead of you. Instead, turn your eyes to those who can help you right now.
3. Look for a way that you can be healthier, go to bed early, drink more water, make 10 pushups a day, go to work without delay and pack your lunch at home .

I know that many of you are already in the anvil, and the heavy hammers of your circumstances hit you mercilessly one after another. I hope this post encourages you, to make you focus your efforts on what you can do, not on what you can not do. Find out how to break the rules for yourself to find out your unfair advantage to apply. I will cry for you! Good luck.