Five Lessons of Success I Learned from Eminem

1. Be Real. Whatever your opinion of Marshall Mathers, aka Eminem, and his controversial rap music recordings, one thing cannot be denied… he is real. The stories told in his lyrics talk about a life of poverty, violence and overcoming the fear of what may come next. He is bitter, angry and aggressive. He is what he is… take him or leave him.

Who are you? Find the true you and live it to the fullest.

2. Never give up. The lyrics to the rap, Lose Yourself, describes a time in the young rapper’s life when he “choked” and failed to perform. The humiliation and embarrassment would have sent weaker men running, but Mathers regrouped, put the experience behind him and jumped right back into the mix, winning praise and success.

In order to reach the highest levels of success, you must never give up.

3. Curse…alot! Well, not really, but Eminem’s passion, anger and pain are so very clearly communicated by his controversial lyrics and foul language that there is absolutely no doubt what he is trying to say.

Mean what you say and say what you mean. Communicate clearly.

4. Collaborate. A common practice among recording artists is to collaborate and work with other talented people. Eminem has collaborated with dozens of people including Dr. Dre, Kid Rock, Jay-Z, Rihanna and Elton John. The mix of sounds and styles results in unique opportunities for music not possibly created as individuals.

Find talented people, mentors and peers, and seek to develop new ideas, new products and new services. The results may surprise you.

5. Pay it forward. Under the Shady Records label, Mathers signs talented unknown artists, mentors them and collaborates (see above). The exposure provided by Eminem has created success for superstars 50 Cent, D12 and Royce da 5’9” of Bad Meets Evil. Mathers experienced similar mentorship from Dr. Dre of Aftermath Records when he was an unknown artist.

Once you find your own success, pay it forward and help others succeed.

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Learn more about Eminem at Wikipedia.