Follow Eminem's Pace
“Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity,
to seize everything you ever wanted.
One moment.
Would you capture it, or just let it slip, yo?”
- Eminem
I don’t care if you like the God of rap or not. I don’t care if you like Hip Hop or not. There are certainly things you could learn from Eminem. Let’s enter Emimen’s life: his humble background. Where he came from, before he made his name, becoming the God of rap. Let’s peel off the excessive fame of his life like an onion until he appears as a nobody like you and me.
Another nobody’s life - Marshal Bruce Mathers III was born on the 17th October 1972, Kansas City, Missouri, USA. Son of a fifteen-year-old mother at the time of his birth and a father who left six months later who never returned, Marshall spent his early childhood being shoved back and forth from Kansas City and Detroit. He settled on the Eastside of Detroit when he was 12. Switching schools every two to three months made it difficult for him to make friends, graduate and to stay out of trouble. Failing at the 9th grade three times until finally dropping out, he said he wasn't stupid. He said he was not interested in school because all he wanted to do was rap.
Marshall listened to his heart and took the initiative. He started pursuing a rapping career at the age of 14. That was the time when he began performing rap in the basement of his high school friend's home. When he was 17, he eventually made a name for himself - Eminem. But the Hip-Hop community back then, belonged to the black, no room for the white …
How difficult was it for a white guy to stand out in a black community? As you can imagine, that could be as difficult as Obama’s victory in the 2008 U.S. presidential election. But he made it. Although at that time rap music was almost exclusively produced by black people, Eminem, who has pale white skin and bright blue eyes, nevertheless entered the Detroit rap scene as a frequent competitor in rap battles. Along the way, there was no romance at all. In his early school life, he got beaten up by other kids all the time. “Beat up in the bathroom. Beat up in the hallways. Shoved into lockers.” He remembered.
In the pursuit of a rapping career, he has been working odd jobs to make ends meet while participating in rap battles and desperately attempting to land a record contract. Meanwhile, his daughter was born. But he didn’t even have the money to buy diapers for pampering. When the opportunity came, he geared up and fought. Period.
“You better lose yourself in the music.
The moment you own it, you better never let it go.
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow.
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime, yo”
- Eminem
Being another nobody in the universe, I had my own moment as Eminem’s. Despite being a poor 20ish, my love for my fiancée is non-negotiable. I made a promise to myself - I would make a lifetime memory for our upcoming wedding. We planned to have a pre-wedding shoot overseas. Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Singapore were our destinations.
I have been following Derek's blog for a few years. Knowing that he’s living in Singapore, I carefully crafted him an email four months before the trip. I tried to be enthusiastic, but not using any extra words. I tried to impress Derek in a way that he couldn't refuse a young man who fell in love with a role model.
I waited. I tried to be patient. I knew a hero like him must be busy. Then, something magical happened. I couldn't believe that Derek replied to me the next day! He told me he would love to meet me if he would be in Singapore during the period of my trip. WOW! I felt like I was having the whole world.
One month before my trip, I emailed Derek again to make sure he would be there. Unfortunately, he told me he would be in New Zealand for a few months of solitude, programming. Ouch...... I was really disappointed. I stood the pain to tell myself that a hero like him must be working on something important to the world. I shouldn't bother him and should move on with my life. I took a deep breath, turned on the computer and typed the body of the email.
--
Hi Derek -
That's totally fine.
We'll meet up someday.
Sounds like you're getting back to productive mode.
I hope everything is running fine ;)
Keep in touch! Please do the same.
Have a wonderful day!!
- Nobody
---
So, that was it. I felt relieved. I told myself I wouldn't regret it. Because I’ve done something I’ve always wanted to do. The world is not against you, but it wouldn't line up all the pins either.
June is the birth month of my fiancée. In late June, we will be in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and then Singapore, shooting the best pictures of our lives, having fun in the Universal Studio and articulating a lifetime memory for ourselves. I was utterly happy and looking forward to that, hoping for the best to happen.
In the same month, I received an email. Head title went like this: Hong Kong Startup Guide 2013. Hiring for 2014. It was from Derek! He was hiring for his new company - WoodEgg! It's a series of 16 books about starting and growing a business in 16 countries.
Haven’t I always wanted to work with a role model I admire? How could I let it slip? I remember the email came to my inbox on Saturday. I spent the entire weekend in my brother's office, blocking out anyone to enter, focusing on crafting the best resume I’ve ever had in life. After an Olympic athlete of researching and consolidating, finally I came up with an email attaching a pdf file which talked itself - who I am and why you should hire me. I was extremely nervous before pressing the send button. I was afraid my pitching was not perfect enough. I was afraid I made some stupid mistakes. I was afraid for no reason. I was simply afraid.
In a few days, I received nothing from Derek or his company. I started to think there might be some other outstanding candidates so that Derek wasn't hiring me. I have already done the best I could. I wouldn’t regret it.
Eventually, 5 days after my email was sent, an email came to my inbox. Derek said I have done an excellent job of introducing myself. But he thought I was better fit to be a researcher than a manager for his company. He asked about my thoughts. At that point, I was thinking how dumb this question was. Derek simply didn't know how bad I wanted to work with him. I would take on any role he assigned me, as long as I am building something important to the world with him.
I said YES.
Read the next chapter: Nightmare
Or table of contents: Brick by Brick