Duck, Duck, Goose

“Duck, Duck, Goose is a fun game for the goose. Less so for the duck. If you're the duck, you have to sit cross-legged in a circle alongside dozens of other ducks, waiting patiently to be chosen. Sometimes you get picked. Most of the time you don’t.”
–Cole Schafer

Cole Schafer sent an interesting email comparing job applications, social media algorithms—even dating apps—to the game Duck, Duck, Goose. It’s fun to be the goose, walking around the circle, all eyes on you, having your pick. It’s also fun to be chosen as the next goose. You get a rush of excitement, everyone sees you hop up and run around. There’s just one problem: most of the time, you aren’t picked. 

All things being equal in a game of Duck, Duck, Goose, your odds of being picked get smaller the more people play. But anyone who has played Duck, Duck, Goose knows that all things are not equal. The Goose doesn’t choose someone at random—the goose chooses their friends. The goose chooses their crush. The fast kids choose each other, back and forth, leaving the slow, unpopular kids to sit and watch. 

This metaphor is apt when we place it in the creator landscape. Many of us are sitting in a circle, waiting to be discovered, waiting to go viral, hoping someone will put us on. 

There’s a different game to play. A game where you pick yourself, and you can play it with other people who are actively picking themselves, too. Ask yourself: what would have to be true about your current process for you to find success on your own terms?