Optimizing for Success

Success Loves Speed...and Those Worthy of it

Wednesday, April 9th, 2025

Writing to you from Denver, Colorado

First off, I want to apologize for using the word ‘Optimize’. It’s grossly overused and has lost much of it’s meaning.

But, I’m not going to tell you how to optimize for success by giving you 3 vague steps to achieving your wildest dreams…and I’m not going to try to sell you a course.

No, I’m giving you a philosophy for success…within The Preparation.

First, lets define what “success” means in the context of the program: accumulation of a large number of skills, development of character, acquiring a vast network of interesting people, having unique experiences, and making money.

The great thing is that life itself and The Preparation are very similar…

A life well-lived means that all of the benefits of the program that I just mentioned are experienced by you. Living life well means having a wide array of skills, good character, a network of people, wild experiences, providing value to make money, and receiving the occasional amazing opportunity - not to mention that your success is 99% up to you.

The only major difference between life and the program is the lack of responsibility in The Preparation.

Later in life you’ll most likely have a wife and kids to take care of, bills to pay, and people dependent on you in just about every possible way - emotionally, physically, financially. Most likely, the only person you’re responsible for during The Preparation is you.

Anyway, what’s important is the notable similarities between The Preparation and life itself. If you find success within the program it’s highly likely that you will live a good life.

So, what do you need to do to optimize for substantial success within the program?

Act Fast

Time is finite.

You will only be young and full of energy for a very short period of time. Believe me, once you put effort into seriously making progress every week you will begin to see just how fast time passes.

All of a sudden I look up and I’m almost at the 2-year marker in the program.

So, you must act as soon as you come to the conclusion that doing something, learning something, or going somewhere would be beneficial to you. Set aside the initial fear that you may feel when faced with trying something new - buy the course, learn the skill, go wherever you need to go - and do it as soon as possible.

Quick action is what started the program…

In August of 2023, The Preparation was brought to life by my father and Doug Casey, and I had the chance to be the beta tester for it. Thanks to my dad for pushing me off the cliff, I was enrolled in an EMT school before I even knew what it would entail. Months later I graduated and became a certified EMT.

Jump into the deep end.

Any time I have delayed doing something I have regretted it. The time was lost where I could have learned something new, met good people, and done something unique.

Find something and do it. Don’t delay.

You’ll rack up a lot of accomplishments fast if you go about life this way. You can get more done in 2 years than most people do in 10.

Accept this Fact

No matter what, whenever you try something new, you’re going to look like a fool.

I was nervous to go to EMT school because I knew I’d be clueless at through most of it. While learning how to work on our ranch in Uruguay (by being practically apprenticed to a gaucho) I didn’t know what I was doing, and sometimes looked silly. Same with the rope rescue course, sailing, working on wildfires, packing horses into the backcountry, writing…

The funny thing is: nobody cares.

Especially when you are young, no one expects you to be good at anything, there are no expectations on you. Hell, if anything, the bar is set amazingly low today.

If you come to the table with ambition and a good attitude it doesn’t matter if you look like a fool for a bit.

The Struggle of Virtue

Those who have success in life - and I mean doing the things worth doing and becoming a person worth being - pursue virtue.

These people constantly work to improve their character by ridding themselves of addictions, fears, and other vices. In turn, they aim to act honorably, become generous, industrious, strong, courageous, magnanimous, and dangerous.

When it comes down to it all that matters is your character.

Everything good stems from this - a person with good character does the right thing, good and interesting people want to be around them, opportunities are thrown to a person of good character, and they work hard to make themselves valuable.

Throughout The Preparation you must always be aiming to craft your character.

Your life, and the lives of those around you, will greatly improve if you do this - not to mention that the people you encounter will pick up on the feeling they get that you bring the “give a shit factor” to your life.

A good character is priceless.

These are the 3 most important aspects (in my mind) of the philosophy of success. However, there are more and we can talk about them soon…

P.S. I want to thank our family friend, Craig Ballantyne, for the subtitle: Success Loves Speed…

-Maxim Benjamin Smith