Someone I hugely admire is the Nike co-founder Phil Knight.

I read Phil’s memoir Shoe Dog when I was on my glorious sabbatical four-and-a-bit years ago.

In the book, Phil spills the beans on how he built Nike from nothing into a billion-dollar brand. 

Turns out Phil didn’t turn Nike into a behemoth by brushing off his MBA or copying the start-up playbook. 

Oh no.

Instead, Phil did it HIS way. 

Take the time Phil flew to Tokyo to pitch the Japanese shoe brand Onitsuka Tiger without having an appointment or even a business. Then somehow walked away with the sole rights (if you will) to sell Tiger shoes in the U.S. Take the time Phil took a punt on some rookie sports stars and ended up signing Michael Jordan in a deal that changed sports marketing forever. Take the time Phil created Nike’s iconic “waffle sole” by literally pouring rubber into a waffle machine!

Phil’s success came from following HIS nose. Not from following everyone else’s nose.

Now, compare this with the copy-and-paste brigade.

I remember reading an article a couple of years ago about a group of Michelin star chefs (Michael Bras was one, Karen Keygnaert another) who discovered that blindly hunting the same accolades and prestige which are baked into the world of fine dining wasn’t quite the golden goose they expected it to be.

What happened?

Well, the article basically said that after slogging through 18 hour days for 10, 20 then 30 years, these chefs had decided to HAND BACK their Michelin stars, ditch the stress and expectation that came with those stars and go back to the simple joy of cooking. 

In fact, it was Karen who said that once you snag a Michelin star “you lose the freedom to do what you want”. 

Which IMHO defeats the whole point of playing the Michelin star game in the first place.

It’s a great example of how the tried and tested route rarely leads you where you want to go.

Maybe that’s a surprising thing to say.

After all, society is very good at licking the status-soaked boots of experts and role models. 

It’s also brilliant at acting shocked when the copycats end up feeling stressed, frustrated and empty.

(cue the next Daily Mail headline about a Wall Street banker leaving his $500k job to make pottery)

But to me it’s just common sense.

Why would following in the footsteps of someone who is not you, who did their thing at a different time to you, who is not in your situation and who has a completely different set of skills, talents, connections, preferences and experiences ever lead YOU to where YOU want to get to?

I can’t see how it would.

You don't find your path by walking someone else's.

Yet people follow other people’s paths like lemmings off a cliff and try to carve out their career the same way, manage their finances the same way, find “success” the same way or even find happiness the same way.

Fuck that for a game of soldiers.

The right way is YOUR way.

I’ve always liked how King Charles approaches this. 

If anyone has the “your way” approach down cold, it’s Charlie boy.

Whether it’s talking to plants, collecting Sherlock Holmes memorabilia, consulting with psychics & mediums, wearing shoes soled with champagne corks, converting his cars to run on wine or adding to his 1,500+ cufflink collection…

You can bet King Charles isn’t copying ANYONE!

I also doubt Charles gives two royal hoots what the hoi polloi think about his quirky little hobbies.

He’s in touch with HIS compass. He listens to the music inside HIM, as Wayne Dyer puts it in his classic book 10 Secrets for Success and Inner Peace.

In fact, I’m such a strong believer in the power of following your own compass that I decided to create a whole program around it.

That program is called The Music Inside You.

If you want to get unstuck, I suggest ditching all the how-to guides which worked for the person who wrote them.

Once you have, follow YOUR compass instead.

And when you do, it'll feel like stepping out of a current that’s been dragging you sideways so you're finally flowing with the tide of life. 

The Music Inside You will show you how.

If you’re ready to listen to your music:

The Music Inside You

There’s 36 hours until the gates to the program swing shut.

To fulfilment,

Tom