AA Ep. 306 - Mac Lethal: The Path to Excellence

Mac Lethal (born David McCleary Sheldon) is another overnight success, 17 years in the making. In November 2011, he released a video on YouTube of him rapping over the beat to "Look at Me Now" while he prepared pancakes in his kitchen. The video became a viral hit and got millions of views in a matter of days, but he'd been practicing his craft for years and years. As he tells James on the extended version of Ask Altucher, high school bored him so he started writing rap songs in study hall. Rapping wasn't his passion, but it worked. As he became better at it he became much more passionate... By 2011 he'd finally made it. Today he often spends hours listening to rappers and learning from them. He tells James that he believes it takes 20 years to become a real master at your trade. It takes you a couple of years to move past a beginner, and by year five you start to find your voice and stop mimicking others. By year 15 you finally focus and become an authentic voice. But he didn't stop there. He's written a book, Texts From Bennett that was optioned by FX. Most things you try probably won't work, but keep trying and eventually one good idea will slip through... And no one will remember your prior mistakes. This is a great interview and you'll want listen to the entire conversation. Listen to today's show and you can find Mac here and here. Regards, David Newman P.S. NOT SURE WHAT TO DO WITH THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?   A great new resource shows a clever way to start a business, get a new job, find a retirement career, publish a book, make extra money in your spare time, and more. ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.