They're Going To Laugh — That's Ok, Keep Writing
My wife and I recently celebrated our ninth wedding anniversary. As a part of our celebration I surprised her with tickets to see the award winning stage play, Hamilton, written by Lin - Manuel Miranda.
For those of you who may not be familiar with it, the play is about the life of one of the United States Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton.
The catch is, the cast is mostly people of color and the majority of the play is performed using Hip Hop and rap lyrics to tell Hamilton's story.
In the last few years Hamilton has taken over and reached international prominence! I have to admit, I was blown away by how amazing this show was! I was so impressed by the talent of the actors and actresses that it inspired me to dig deeper into Lin - Manuel's journey to see where his vision for this play had come from.
I later learned he had read Hamilton's biography and then spent the next six years writing the music and play!
Lin - Manuel turned his love and passion for art, history and storytelling into an amazing show that has wowed people al over!
After days of reading and watching everything I could find on Lin - Manuel, there's one thing that he said that really resonated with me.
Lin - Manuel said, "They're going to laugh. That's ok. Keep writing."
When I read this it really made me think. I found this line to be very encouraging and true! After I read this I thought about all of the writers, dreamers, CEO's in the making, entrepreneurs in training, etc. who are all working on a dream right now that only they can see.
After that, I thought about when I first started writing. I thought about all of the times I wrote articles that were full of grammatical errors because I was still learning. I thought about all of the times I received feedback from people who negatively criticized my work and message because they didn't see my vision. Last, I thought about all of the people that laughed at me when I told them that speaking and writing is what I want to do as my career.
They thought I was crazy and told me it would never work.
After they laughed and told me I wouldn't make it, I did one thing…. I kept writing.
Yeah, I kept writing even when I didn't feel like writing.
Even though it was hard to feel inspired knowing a few people didn't see my vision I knew I had to keep writing to become better at my craft and to gain clarity to better see my future.
To keep me going I told myself, "If they laugh now, make them applaud later."
I was determined to win.
One of the videos I saw of Lin - Manuel showed him at the White House Poetry Jam.
Before delivering his poem he started off by telling President Obama and the rest of the audience that he was working on a hip - hop album about the life of America's first Treasury Secretary, Alexander Hamilton.
Lin - Manuel felt Hamilton embodied the message of Hip Hop due to his writing and his constant "beef" with everyone in the political game. The audience laughed at him and he said, "You laugh, but it's true!"
He then went on to further explain his vision. Even First Lady Michelle Obama laughed after he gave his introduction.
As he began to rap the lyrics of his vision the audience continued to snicker at parts of his poem. Lin - Manuel didn't let the laughter bother him. He stayed focus and continued to deliver his poem showing more and more of his passion and creativity in every line!
When he ended his poem and said "Thank you," President Obama applauded and gave him a standing ovation that was followed by the rest of the audience.
In the beginning, Lin - Manuel gave his vision and the audience didn't get it! They laughed at him! He then had the courage to further share his incomplete version of what he had created with the hopes that they would appreciate his love and passion for storytelling!
For a lot of us it's the same in our lives.
You see, we have friends, family, coworkers, and even strangers who just don't get it.
They laugh at us, crack jokes and tease us while we work on making our visions come to life.
I believe as a creator of content, "If they laugh now, make them applaud later."
I remember when I began this journey and I started writing and speaking. People simply didn't believe me either.
I got the jokes and laughs for a while. Then as I grew so did my ability to tell stories. Then I wrote my first book, From Success to Significance and I shared more about my life and vision. I remember walking into a Barnes & Noble and seeing my face sitting on the shelf for the first time. After that, anytime I spoke at an event people would applaud and it often led to a standing ovation.
It was then that I realized that I had turned the laughs into an applause.
So I say to you, no matter what you do, keep writing, keep working, keep believing and keep moving towards your dream! They may laugh now while you're doing the work and trying to figure it out, but I promise you they will applaud you later.
In the opening song of Hamilton one of the lyrics says, "There's a million things he hasn't done; but just you wait, just you wait."
I'm looking forward to seeing the things you go on to do!
I also can't wait to share with you the new things I'm working on as well, "But just you wait."
Just like Lin - Manuel once said, "They're going to laugh. That's ok. Keep writing."
Let's make sure the world knows your name!
I wish you nothing but success on your journey for a better life.
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