The Triple C Project

Breaking Free From Corporate Clones: Insights on Individuality, Star Wars, and Living a Lit Life

• Ryan Spence • Season 2 • Episode 113

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This week, we talk Star Wars! It's not something I thought I'd ever discuss on the show, but you'll quickly realise its relevance as the episode unfolds. 

It's about clones. How you're not one. But how can you easily become one as people constantly try to squeeze you into a box?

I share

- the similarities between Star Wars and corporate life;

- why it's time to escape from the box you've put in; and 

-  what you need to start doing to break free.

I also share updates about my upcoming book, The Triple C Project: Find Your Place, Purpose and Peace in a World That Wants To Box You In.

This isn't about running away from corporate life; it's about the importance of maintaining your uniqueness despite the demands of that life so you can live a truly lit life and reclaim your authentic self!

What's your one takeway from this episode? Send a text & let me know

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Speaker 1:

You're not a clone. Your DNA is your DNA. You're a unique, complex, flawed and beautiful human, and the world needs you to be fully you. You're listening to the Triple C Project. Welcome to the Triple C Project. Welcome to the Triple C Project, the podcast that helps you gain clarity, boost confidence, build courage so you can live life lit. I'm your host, ryan Spence, the Big Law Dropout, life coach, author, speaker, lover of hoodies, hip-hop and big, hairy, audacious goals. If you're tired of living the life you think you should want and ready to start living the life you do want, this podcast will help you get from where you are to where you really want to be. So now we're friends. I invite you to grab a drink, take a seat and allow me to guide you towards living a life that's lit. Hey, hey, welcome to episode 113 of the Triple C Project.

Speaker 1:

Every time I start to record this, I think I got to think of a different way of introducing it, and that's what I can come up with. So, hey, if you have a particular request for introduction to this podcast, let me know. I might try it out. You never know what I might do. So it's an exciting week this week Exciting because I received the almost final cover of the new book and it's bold but at the same time it's aligned with the first one, and I won't reveal too much now because you will see in due course, but the main colour that I eventually went for is not really like me, but it's very, as I said, bold. It stands out and if you see that book on the shelf or you see the thumbnail on your online bookstore, then your eye is going to be drawn to it, but at the same time it still ties in with the first book. So very, very pleased with what the designer has done and looking forward to the final, final one in the next couple of days with my last few edits in there, a couple of days with my last few edits in there.

Speaker 1:

And still staying on book news, I received the formatted proof as well. To read Now the formatted proof effectively, what happens is you, you write the book in your normal document, normal program, word, Google Docs, whatever. For me it was in Word. That's how the formatter likes to receive it and then, when that's all done, it's all edited and you're kind of near finished with the actual words itself. You send it to a designer who actually designs how it looks within the book. So if you look at a book, it doesn't look like a Word document, right. It's laid out nicely and obviously the pages are book page size, not a four page size, and how the chapters are and where the page breaks are all that kind of stuff. So that's kind of what the formatting is. So I received that proof, which I will be going through the next few days Again, very exciting, because it's another step on the journey to get in the book out there.

Speaker 1:

The thing that I don't like so much is that when I've done something, I kind of like to be done with it and move on. And with a book, you have to keep going back through your book a number of times. When you get your first edits back, I mean when you get your re-edits back, when it comes back from the format to the proof, you know what I mean as well as there may be other times as well when it comes back from the beta reader, when you're looking at their feedback and their insight. So yeah, by the time this book actually comes out, I would have lived with it and read through it um far more times than I want to, because this is my stuff. I've lived this right, this is my experience. So for you guys it would be all new, but for me it's kind of like oh, I've been here, I've told this story and now I have to read it again. But yeah, you're going to love it because it's new and it's fresh and I'm sharing what I've done and what's worked for me. And I've also booked in a session with my book coach to talk all things marketing and launch plan strategy.

Speaker 1:

Because, in terms of when you do something, obviously you learn from what worked last time, what didn't. And I know that last time I didn't do enough marketing um, because I don't particularly like marketing, which is not really good when you're running your own business, right. But again, I like to do something and then move on, um. And what I've realized is you've got to keep talking and talking and talking, and when you feel you've talked about something too much, you need to keep talking some more. Um. And you also need to think about how you want to do this, like you don't have to do everything, but you have to think well, what do you want to do, where are your strength, what are the things you enjoy doing and what sort of value. Do you want to give to, to to readers, particularly the ones that, um, that are pre-ordering and supporting your book at the very early stages. So they I will have that conversation at the end of the month as well. So hopefully some uh, my well, I've got some great ideas. Hopefully my ideas will be tamed a little bit and we'll come out with a plan. So I have penciled in 5th of November for the release date. I only decided that yesterday, so that may change, but you are the first to hear it. So get that in your diary, get that in your calendar, ready to go and grab your copy. But there'll be details in early September of how to pre-order. And pre-orders are gold for an author and a publisher, because those first week sales, those first week numbers, particularly when you are selling on the world's biggest bookstore, amazon.

Speaker 1:

I have my own thoughts about Amazon, but at the end of the day we are stuck with it. For now it is what it is. It helps the algorithm. If the algorithm sees that people are buying this book, people are interested in this book, it then helps to push it out. So people who maybe never heard of me or the book will at least kind of get to see it on their pages and, again, with this bold cover, be drawn to at least take a look at it and read the blurb. So super important, um, and it's, uh, one of those things where, if you can support um, a pre-order, then that really, really helps for the reasons that I've just said.

Speaker 1:

Um, but it's not for nothing, because, uh, if you pre-order, you get on a list, you also get access to some bonuses, and those sorts of bonuses are again some of the things that I'll be talking about with my book coach in terms of marketing. Um, but you'll get, um, at least a free chapter of the book upfront, um, so before the book's released, so you at least kind of get a taste for it. Um, and some of the goodies too. So, yeah, if there are things which, if you've done this before, if you have pre-ordered from an author before and you've had bolsters that you've loved and you think, yeah, I want to get some of that, um, why don't let me know? Um and um, you never know, you may get access to that from me as well. Um, if you didn't know, you can just go into the show description and click on the link for a text and you can just send me a text there, super easy, um, if you wanted to do that. So be really keen to hear, um, what you'd like in terms of bonuses. But yeah, I will let you know about pre-orders and there's a lot that goes into writing and publishing a book.

Speaker 1:

I realised that as I sort of talk about things, I realised actually not everyone knows this. So if you've ever considered that maybe you want to write a book, maybe you've got an idea bubbling away inside of you that you want to get out there, let me know. And let me know if it'd be helpful for you to talk a bit more about the process that I went through, like from ideation stage to actually getting the book out there and released online so that people can buy it, because it's a super interesting process and you know, the first time I went through it I didn't know what I was doing. Fortunately, I hired support and that kind of helped, but there was still a lot that I had to learn. So if that'll be something helpful for you to know again, let me know.

Speaker 1:

And maybe I'll put an episode together about that or get someone on who's got even more experience than I have to uh, to talk about it with you, um, as well. Okay, and the reason I say that is because, also because I know a lot of lawyers, in particular, um, are wannabe writers, frustrated writers, um, or are just actual writers, but don't tell people that they write. So, um, this might be something which you've thought about but thought wasn't possible for you, kind of like I did Um, and I want you to know that it is. You can write a book, you can put it out there. People will read it, people will buy it, um, so if you feel you have something to share and you want to do that, um, then do it. And again, I'm happy to do an episode on, uh, how I went through it. A bit more about the process. So, reminder of the book title the book is called the Triple C Project, same as this podcast.

Speaker 1:

The subtitle is Find your Place, peace and Purpose, in a World that Wants to Box you In, and it's about escaping from your box. It's about escaping from your box. And that leads me nicely into this week's episode. Look at that. It's almost like I planned this, because this week's episode I'm talking a bit about escaping from a box, about not being in a box, but I'm gonna start.

Speaker 1:

We're talking about Star Wars and Ha, you weren't expecting that, were you? So Star Wars, are you a Star Wars fan? I'm going to presume you know what Star Wars is, even if you've never watched the films. I mean, it's one of those franchises that's just a phenomenon that kind of transcends generations. So you know, I'm sure you've heard of Star Wars.

Speaker 1:

Now I watched the original three films when I was a kid at school and you know I enjoyed them. I'm not a sci-fi fan, really I'm not a big advocate of sci-fi movies, but the Star Wars movies were just. I think they were just. They just captured a time, you know, because I was around for when they first came out, giving away my age there. I didn't watch them when they first came out I mean I'm not that old and but they were. In my view they're more accessible than your typical sci-fi and I mean they had good performances, a bit of humour, good script, et cetera. So you know I liked it, but I wasn't a hardcore fan.

Speaker 1:

There was actually a hardcore fan in my class at school, like he had everything. He had all the toys, all the memorabilia, he watched all the films multiple times, like he was a real hardcore fan like fan boy I guess you would call them these days and when I was talking about this I was wondering kind of, yeah, what happened to him, because if he kept that up, um, all of those things that he had, all of those original toys, I mean, they're worth a fortune now, um, so you know, I can imagine that there'll be a phase, kind of as we got older, got to secondary school cause I knew him before secondary school, so before 11, um, that as you kind of get older, you kind of get into other things. People kind of probably made a bit of fun of him or that kind of stuff. You know what kids are like at that age is you get into stuff that's quote-unquote cool. But if he kind of kept up with that and kept his toys and his gifts, then I'm sure he's doing very well for himself now. So, yeah, I hope he is wherever he is. Sure he's doing very well for himself now. So, yeah, I hope he is, um, wherever he is.

Speaker 1:

Anyway, I digress so back to Star Wars. Uh, a few months ago I think it was towards the back end of last year um, the, the cinema that I go to, that I'm a member of, they were showing the original Star Wars movie. So episode four, a New Hope, which was, for those of us who are around, when it first came around, the first movie, but now is the fourth movie, hence episode four. Um, and it was on at the cinema. I'd never seen it at the cinema, I'd always just watched it at home on tv, and so I thought, hey, you know, I'll go ahead and see it at the cinema. Um, and I took my kids with me. You know they're eight and six now and I thought it was a good age to take them so off.

Speaker 1:

We went to the cinema to watch Star Wars and I created a monster, because they are obsessed, they love the film. They had lots of questions about the film and when I told them that there were other films, they would not stop pestering me until I said, fine, we can watch them all. So there were nine films, if you don't know, nine films in the current Star Wars franchise, and they're all over two hours long, right? So one Disney plus subscription later. Um, because I worked out, it's actually cheaper to subscribe to Disney plus for a year than it is to buy each film individually on Apple TV. So Disney plus subscription, and we spent a succession of weekends working our way through all nine films.

Speaker 1:

So so far, saturday afternoon, two boys, uh, watching Star Wars, which actually was pretty good fun, you know. Um, I I must say it's a kind of nice thing to kind of do with your kids. It's like, particularly with the earlier movies, which is like a sort of a snap from childhood as well. But I tapped out after that, after the main movies, I was, I was done, um, but they've continued. So they've gone on to devour anything else they can find, uh that is Star Wars related, so spinoff films like the Ewoks film, uh, star Wars shorts, uh, lego Star Wars, um, and one unexpected win actually is that on a trip to the library they discovered star wars books, age-appropriate star wars books, and for two boys who will push back against anything that resembles anything school-like, um, it's been a great way of getting them to do a bit of reading every day because it's Star Wars, so they don't mind that, I mean, they're into it. So that's been a good win of this new obsession.

Speaker 1:

So not a day goes by in our house without some mention of Star Wars. You know whether it's asking me what my favourite film is no idea, who my favourite character is no idea. Who my favourite character is, no idea Discussing the intricacies of plot lines that I've long forgotten or just never even noticed because I'm just not that invested. But this week, well the last few days, my eldest, unprompted, decided to start just telling me a Star Wars anecdote about the clones. Now, the clones are an army and they appear in Attack of the Clones, which is I can't remember which episode it is now I made a note to find it out before I started recording and I didn't do that.

Speaker 1:

So anyway, star Wars, attack of the Clones, that's the one where the clones appear and they're an army created by the bounty hunter, jankofet, who's I don't know if you'd say he was hired, or whatever by Emperor Palpatine, who's the bad guy to create this army to fight this huge war with the Rebel alliance, which occurs later in the film. Now, each clone has a drop of their creator's dna, of, uh, janko fett's dna, and so they all look exactly the same and they're all controlled by this Emperor Palpatine. So they have no independent thought, they do what they're told when they're told, and they have no sense as to who they are. I mean they're just these clones. They have no desires, they have no wants, they have no needs beyond the instruction from their owner and master, palpatine. So now, as he was telling me this, I mean very enthusiastically it got me thinking about images that you've likely seen of urban cities at rush hour, where you have hundreds or thousands of people disembarking from public transport, all dressed the same and they're all moving as one before they filter off into these huge towers of glass and steel. And then, when they get there, they're told what to do and when to do it. Read this email Attend this meeting, don't leave your desk until this designated time and then go get some food to fuel you so you can do it all again in the afternoon or until late into the night and then leave the same way you came and come back tomorrow and do it all again.

Speaker 1:

Corporate clones Okay, all right, that's all a bit, that's all a tad dramatic. You know, I'm kind of taking like this dystopian view to kind of paint a picture, um, and I know it's not all like that, um, but it's not a million miles from reality. You know, if I used to ask you, like, how much free reign do you have about when you arrive at your office, the time that you arrive, when you take lunch, whether you can go out and meet a friend for coffee, what time you can leave. Can you go off to a medical appointment, go off to the gym, go off to see your kids school play? Are you allowed to switch off when you leave or are you permanently connected to your emails? Are you expected to be responsive quote unquote out of hours? Are you allowed to decide when and where you work? Are you forced to go into an office? Can you work from home? Can you work from anywhere? Can you work at times that work better for you? Maybe not starting at nine, maybe starting later in the day and finishing later in the day, or maybe checking in and doing what's required of you and being allowed to almost create your own schedule? Is that possible for you?

Speaker 1:

Now, there'll be degrees to all of this, I'm sure, depending upon the role that you have and the organisation that you're in, and even down to the actual main point of contact that you work for. But what I'm trying to illustrate here is that, if left unchecked, many of these organizations and leaders will treat you like the Star Wars clones. You know what I mean. Or if they could get away with it, they would treat you like the Star Wars clones. Because that's that's how the system works, right. You bring people in, you force them to be productive, to make you throw them a little bit of money, which in comparison to the amount of money that they're generating is minimal, because the majority of it goes to people higher up the chain. That's just the way the system works. There's nothing nefarious about what I'm saying here. It's just how it's supposed to work, right.

Speaker 1:

So you'll be designated a particular role based upon the grades that you have and the skill that people perceive you have. So you know, people might say you're good at arguing, for example, which I still feel is hilarious, having done this job now for so long. But people say, oh, you're good at arguing, you should be a lawyer, for example. Okay, in, you should be a lawyer, for example, okay, um. And so you will think, okay, fine, that's what people say.

Speaker 1:

And so you get on that train and you'll be metaphorically picked up, placed in the lawyer box and there you'll be conditioned how to act. You might start with a little bit of spark, a little bit of individuality, um. But again, depending, depending on where you are. That will slowly get squeezed out of you without you even realising. You know, but you'll follow orders that align with the corporate conditioning that attaches to that role. You know you'll dress a certain way, you'll behave a certain way and over time, the you-ness, the things that made you you, the spark, the creativity, the little rebellious streak that you might've had, will be squeezed out of you because you'll consistently be fed this message that you need to play the game if you're going to get on, if you're going to be successful. And so they'll squeeze and squeeze until you fit the mould. You fit the mould of the box that you've been put in. So you're like everybody else same clothes, same car, same holiday destination, same thoughts, same ideas. And then, before you know it, you are perpetrating the same behaviours of the juniors that work below you. So it's a self-fulfilling prophecy, and it continues, and it continues and it continues.

Speaker 1:

It's how you get situations where you're in an organization and the person who you work for kind of makes you do stuff or work in a way that just isn't efficient, isn't helpful, that you just don't enjoy, but justifies it by saying I had to deal with it. So do you, without recognizing that just because they had to deal with it, it didn't make it right then, it doesn't make it right now. So this is what happens, but that can all be avoided. This corporate cloning can all be avoided. It can be avoided if you're clear cut at the outset about who you are, what you want and why you want it.

Speaker 1:

This doesn't mean that you shouldn't or can't go into this corporate world, but it's going into it with your eyes open, with a very strong sense of self that allows you to resist this conditioning and resist this placing into a box, that allows your individuality to shine. And even if you're like me and if that wasn't your experience, you were so happy to to be there, to enter this world and to kind of have this career trajectory that you that it wasn't you know that you didn't actually think deeply about preserving your self, your sense of self. It's not too late to change course. That's kind of what I want to say here. It's not too late to find your way back to yourself and break out of the box that you've been put in. Because here's the thing Unlike the army in Star Wars, you're not a clone. Your DNA is your DNA. You're a unique, complex, flawed and beautiful human. And the world needs you To be fully you, not to be a carbon copy of somebody else, not to be a clone of a hundreds or thousands of other people, but to be you.

Speaker 1:

And, as I've always said, and keep saying boxers, people will try to put you into a box. Saying boxers, people will try to put you into a box. Sometimes it's well-meaning. They think you're really good at this thing. That's what you should do and that's the box that they put you in. But boxers boxers are for products, they're not for people. People are not made to be in boxers, except maybe when you die, but that's a different conversation. Let's not go there right now. But you know boxes things you buy come in boxes. People don't come in boxes.

Speaker 1:

So when you find yourself stuck inside one, it's time to figure out a way to break free, to get out and see what else is going on, to find yourself and so to bring this episode full circle. That's what the new book is about. In fact, that's what all my work, my coaching, my yoga teaching, my writing, it's all about this. It's all about helping you find the keys to unlock the door to your mental cell of self-limitation, to break free of the box that people have put you in, society has put you in. People have put you in, society has put you in and escape into a world of opportunity, a world of possibility, a world where you can let your authenticity and your individuality shine.

Speaker 1:

Because it's only when you do that, it's only when you let go of the weight of the ceiling of that cell that feels like it's crushing down on top of you, or when you let go of the feeling of the walls closing in on you. It's only when you do that you step outside and you look up and you see the sky has no limit. It's only then that you can begin to really start to live life lit. It starts with you. It starts with finding yourself, or finding yourself, finding your way back to you, finding yourself, finding your way back to you. And you can't find your way back to you while you remain stuck in a box.

Speaker 1:

So, whatever it is that you're doing now, wherever you are now, whatever you're thinking now, come back to yourself, get that clarity as to who you are, what you want and why you want it. And if that feels too difficult right now, if you feel that it's been so long that you've been in this place that you just don't know who you are anymore. Let's chat about that, because that's what I do, that's what I did for myself and that's what I help people like you do too, because sometimes it just needs that outside perspective, that aerial view from somebody who's not stuck in the pool with you, but someone who's on the side and can help you figure out a way out. You can help you to see the way that you need to go, the things that you need to do. So head to IamRyanSpencecom, slash, apply and watch the video and, if that speaks to you, apply. Apply for your free strategy session and I promise you that, the very least, you'll leave that session with some tools to help you to keep moving forward, to help you start to unpick and unpack that social conditioning that's got you feeling stuck right now and get you thinking differently about yourself and what's possible for you, where you can go, what you can do, what's realistic. I can't wait to speak with you. I literally live for this work because I know how I felt when, before I started on this personal development quest, before I started working with my first coach and subsequent coaches, um, and I know that wherever you are right now, it can get a whole lot better If you take the time to do the work.

Speaker 1:

Get introspective and let go of what you think that you should be doing. Start doing what you want to be doing. That's it for me this week. Thank you, as always, for being here. I really appreciate you listening in Again. Anything that you take away any insights. Anything that was just like damn, that really hit me hard. Take away any insights. Anything that was just like damn, that really hit me hard. Or if you just want to tell me you're a Star Wars fan, hit me up, hey, at IamRyanSpencecom. Or send me a DM over on Instagram at Iam underscore Ryan Spence, or on LinkedIn. Or just go to the description and click the text link and send me a text.

Speaker 1:

Whatever your preferred way, I always love to hear from you because it helps me to create a show that is useful, that is helpful to you, that gives you the tools that you need to help you in your life. Use some encouragement, some tools, some strategies to help them get from where they are to where it is they want to be, to help them move from survival mode to thrival mode. Thanks, as always for being here. Really appreciate you listening in. It's why I do the show. Until next week, until next time here on the Triple C Project, I want you to enjoy your week, enjoy your weekend, enjoy whatever it is that you're doing and remember to stop living a life of lethargy and start living life lit. Thanks for tuning in to the Triple C Project.

Speaker 1:

In the spirit of the Triple C, here's three things that you can do to support the show. Things that you can do to support the show. Head to ratethispodcastcom. Slash triple C or over to your favorite podcast app and leave a review. Reviews really help people checking out shows to see what they can expect and how the show can help them. Second thing you can do share. Share this episode, share a previous episode with a friend, someone who you feel could benefit from what I'm throwing down on this here show. And number three head to IamRyanSpencecom. Get on the main list. I'll be sharing news about the show, news about what I'm up to my new book, start writing soon. So to be the first to be in the know, you need to get yourself on the list. Really appreciate you being here and until next week, stop living a life of lethargy, start living life lit.