I got my first pair of glasses when I was barely five years old. My mother noticed that I was having trouble seeing the TV. I could see the world a lot better with the glasses, even though I was subjected to five years of Steve Urkel jokes with those things on.

When I got my contact lenses at age 10, things changed all of a sudden. Other boys showed me more respect for some reason. Girls who had saw me in class every single day all school year, now were sending their girlfriends to ask me if I liked them. I was eligible for the "cool kids" group just by default now. And I took advantage.

A new prescription can change a lot of things, but it changes two in particular: The way you see the world and the way the world sees you.

When you have a clearer view of the world, you can read between lines, hear what goes unsaid, and trust your gut more.

When the world decides to see you differently, you get to choose what they see and how they perceive it. Many people go through life fully unaware of this opportunity and never make any choices about how the world will see them. So they become "whatever": Average. Nondescript. Good, nice, but forgettable. We see you and forget you five minutes later. This doesn't make you "wrong" or a bad person -- there's nothing wrong with not wanting to stand out or be remembered (there are actually some benefits to be had from both).

But the people I hear from often are looking for the exact opposite. They're trying to stand out in some crowded field of athletes or actors or small businesses. And the  choice to stand out is not about an increase in skill: It's a new prescription, a change in the way people see you.


The first step is to figure out what people are seeing in you now, that's your point A. We need Point A in order to get to Point B, the same way you can't buy a plane ticket without declaring where you're flying from. Point B is what you want the world to see and how you want the world to perceive you. The gap between the two is not cleared by you acquiring more skills or certifications or taking some course. It's your presentation. Your energy. Your standards of behavior. What all three have in common is that you can change them all, by choice and decision, right now.