Breaking Orbit

Fredrick Douglas Bussey is an investor, author, speaker, coach & serial entrepreneur. His new book Breaking Orbit: Rip Out of the Regular By Unearthing the Power Within, explores how to discover, own and master the unique superpower with which we were all created. He coaches millionaires, entrepreneurs & leaders, showing them how to realize their untapped potential to create the life they deserve. As a husband and father though, he claims his family as his greatest legacy.

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Website: www.fredrickbussey.com

www.marlanasemenza.com

Audio : Ariza Music Productions

Transcription : Vision In Word

Marlana: Frederick Douglass Bussey is the owner of icon status, His new book Breaking Orbit, Rip Out of the Regular by Unearthing the Power Within explores how to discover, own, and master the unique superpower with which we were all created. Welcome Frederic.

Frederic: How are you, Marlana? Good to see you.

Marlana: You too. So first of all, explain that phrase to us breaking orbit, what does that mean?

Frederic: Well, when I came up with the idea for the book, I started thinking about how we have this idea of success, almost a visual in our heads that the higher you go, the more successful you are. But then there is. So, if you think about it a plane, then we think about in terms of you take off, and now you're flying high, right? But often what happens is that we didn't get stuck in this orbit, right? Because that's really what flying is it's orbiting the Earth at a certain altitude. But when we realize that we are really built created for so much more than just going around in circles, even at a high level, we kind of misunderstand what it is that we're created to do. There's a phrase in the book that I coined, it says that rockets belong among stars, which means that rockets are meant to go up and out and to explore the deepest reaches of the galaxy, not to orbit around the planet. Even though you're a PI, a lot of people can look at you and say, Oh, they're really doing really well. But if you notice that a lot of people, especially when you're dealing with celebrities, or people that are really well known maybe for wealthy, there's this belief, there's this sense that you get that once you have reached this peak, that's all there is. And there's a kind of emptiness and loneliness that comes with that. But when you realize that you're actually capable of so much more. And that trajectory is not meant to be up and around, but up and out. Always exploring, always creating more, always seeking what is deeper. Because that's what we are created to do, then it helps us understand that what we're really meant to do, what I want to help people do with this book is to break that orbit, right? So not just go up and around, but up and out.

Marlana: So how do we determine if we are basically on autopilot and just orbiting or if we are going in the trajectory that we should?

Frederick: Well, there's a sense that a lot of us are having. We're always chasing meaning, versus creating it. And, you know, you're in a creative space as well. But even the midst, even the idea of a creative space is a misnomer that some people are creatives, and some are not. If you are not in a place where you are always creating that fulfilment, creating that meaning through new things to new endeavors through to the everyday inner interactions and the impact you're designed to create. And that's the impact, is the ultimate way that we measure how we are moving throughout the world. I think you know, it's a word that gets thrown around a lot. And I think what people really mean is that things don't feel meaningful or significant to them. They don't really know what they're doing is moving the needle of exchanging right. I think we all have a sense that we're here today gone tomorrow. But we want to be remembered, we want to have mattered otherwise, what are we doing this for. And so, the thing that we have when we're pursuing relationships with people is that we can look in their eyes, and we can see that what we are doing matters to them, we matter to someone, our words, our actions, our impact. We feel seen, we feel validated, we are seeking to find that through others, because that is what we crave as human beings. And so, relationships give us that when we are in work, work also creates a significance, there is the ability to create something out of nothing, whether it's a photograph, whether it's a sculpture, whether it's a company, a product, whatever the case may be. When we can do those things, we create that sense of significance. However, if the things that we create, feel finite, feel flimsy, feel hollow, then we feel the same way. And so, while we always have this need to create something new, to create more, we need to know that the impact that we're creating is meaningful and it matters. And so, I think if you don't have that sense about yourself, you feel like you're not making any way. And I don't mean just in terms of if you have a business and just start growing monetarily in terms of revenue, or size or scale, I mean that in terms of impact, you feel like you're not moving the dial that your clients aren't being transformed by the work that you're doing together, that your products aren't essentially solving a problem that moves the world forward. In a way, if you don't feel that sense of impact, and I suspect that you are probably in orbit, even if you feel like you're doing very successful, maybe making a few million dollars a year in terms of your income, but at a certain point, you can only buy so many things, you can only do so much with that money. It is not in service of creating greater impact. And I think that's what we're all pursuing. On a day to day basis, we're all searching for that meaning that we can create it.

Marlana: So, let me ask you this, because I know a lot of people that make their living in the creative space, once we have created something, we're excited about it, and then we're kind of over and on to the next thing. So how does that play into all of this?

Frederic: That's a great question. There are different phases or levels of that. So, I was a songwriter for many years, I still write songs, even a as a practice of creativity. But I think that there is a sense of completion that we're seeking, right, there is an idea that we have in our, our creativity is about bringing that idea into fruition. So, once it's done, in sense of, I guess even in a Biblical sense, right? Once you can, you can create it and say it is good is complete. In its whole, it's like a connection that we make, say I have been completed through this work. But there is more for me to do. So, I like going into the process of when I use a phrase in the book called walking in your gift, which means that I am constantly every day, my job is to show up and to create, right. So, it doesn't mean that once I have done this one thing that I've done, it just means that every day I am seeking to create something in a complete form to complete an idea that has impact in the world. So, you can use a song as an example. Right? Once you correct that song, and it is complete that idea it does the thing that it was meant to do. But there are more songs to be written. Because there are more choose to be told, there's more insight to be gleaned, there are more emotions to be expressed. If you can, if you're in a relationship, and I believe as a woman, as a wife, or a husband, if you were to tell your spouse that you love them once, right, that will be a complete act, they will feel great. But you need to continuously do that, because the relationship that you have between yourself and them can always be expanded and can go deeper. And so, it's the constant affirmation, the constant creation of more love and the deepening of that bond. And so, your gift is very much like that in the way that you show up in the world. You continuously lead show up as powerfully as you can by moving on to the next thing, and creating more of these ideas, these products, or more leadership, whatever the case may be, so that you can impact the world continuously. It's a journey, not just a onetime event.

Marlana: So how do we get in touch with that gift? How do we know what gift is ours?

Frederic: So, in the book, I give nine keys for discovering your gift. I bring them in to break them out into three categories. I won't go through all the steps, but essentially it is a disc, a process of self-awareness to dive in and discover what type of impact you create in the world. So, a definition of a gift is your capacity to create a specific, unique impact in the world. And so if it's about impact, it's understanding well, how do I create an impact? And those three categories that I use to describe that are transformers, translators, and transistors, right? So, transformers have the ability to create something out of nothing. They are which we would call innovators or maybe even creators. They are the ones that are originals in terms of how they think, or they are able to reimagine things in particular ways, whether it's a product, fashion, art, music, engineering, ideas, whatever the case may be. Translators are people who are able to convey the meaning and stuff So like, again, it's about your capacity to create the impact, not about the thing that you do. It's not about the patient per se. But a translator is someone who can take those, the meaning that is inside of something, and make it simplified, create more clarity around that. So, you could think of it as if you had someone who wrote a song, you would have a critic who could review it, but maybe it was someone who wrote a book about the music itself to help people understand the real meaning behind it, to expose more insight around it, then you have what are called Trans sisters. These are people who have essentially through their presence are able to enhance other people's gifts, to be able to bolster the power that someone else has or that other people have in organization. In a group, you could think of it as we call it, in basketball, we call it being the glue guy, the guy who comes in and does all the dirty work, he doesn't get all the glory, doesn't make the greatest shots, but he does all the little things that make things happen. And there are people that show up most powerfully in those roles. They may be the life of the party, you know, they're the ones that when they step in the room, all the everyone's eyes light up, and they're making everyone feel at ease, are empowered, but you, we judge our gifts through the impact that we create and knowing the particular way that you create that impact, what your capacity is to create, the impact is essential to how you can show up in the world most powerfully.

Marlana: So, do we fall into just one category? Or can we fall into certain categories based on certain situations?

Frederic: Another great question. As I was writing the book, I actually had this question come up in my mind, because it seems like sometimes, they will overlap. I think that the power of a gift is that it can have multiple impacts. But I think essentially, every one of us a is a container for a type of gift. So that is the way that we show up the most powerfully. When you are a transformer and you are creating things that are original, you are enhancing other people's gifts, because you're inspiring them, right. But the way that you inspire them primarily happens through creating these things in a particular way. Or if you're a translator, like for instance, I'm a translator, it's not that I have the most original thoughts, although I made but it's my ability to be able to articulate them in a way that makes it clear for other people, which also enhances them and allows them to be inspired or motivated, or to get into action to understand themselves better. But the way that I show up is in a particular type of container. And I think what that does is it minimizes the comparison ism, that a lot of us kind of encounter, right? So, you're a creative and in photography, if you were to compare it, compare yourself to any Liebowitz all the time, right? And that is your bar. But you are not understanding that you have your own particular capacity to do things in your own way, then you would potentially always be imitating her when we say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But there is a level of imitation in terms of trying to raise your skill level and imitation or trying to be this person to feel validated. And recognize that we all have our own gifts, we all have our own capacity in which is valid, which is necessary, which is meaningful. And if we don't lean into what we are designed to do, the way that we are designed to do it, we're not leaning into that particular impact the way that we are capable of creating it, then we're cheating ourselves or we're cheating the world. So hopefully that answers your question. 

Marlana: Yeah! So, let me ask you this, then how do we use our gift to cut through the noise or to stand out in our industry or to make a greater impact? How do we use that?

Frederic: One of the things I love about this concept of giftedness is that you recognize how unique you are. Every human being even if they were to imitate someone else, what they're doing to the letter would still come out slightly different because we are all genetically met differently. We have different degrees of talents and skills and abilities and even the length of your fingers as compared to somebody else will alter the way in which you do something. there's a signature, human signature that we all have. And by striving to lean into that, we are able to show up in a way that sets us apart because you're going to see things and filter things differently than someone else will. And we really have to learn to lean into those things and trust them, because that is how we are able to articulate our uniqueness. I love to talk about, there's a concept of developed called singularity, which simply means the art of being singular, the art of being the one category of one. And art is a great way to do that. Because if you're imitating the Mona Lisa, like Seth Godin likes to talk about this, this village in China, where they churn out these replicas of masterpieces of art, like the Mona Lisa, by until they do hundreds of them a day, they're all exactly the same. They're carbon copies, because these people skill is replicating other people, yet they have a skill set that if they were to be their own individual artists to lean into that they could be making hundreds of different unique pieces of art every single day. And what would that do to inform the world to inspire the world to fill it up with more beauty? Because the beautiful thing about the Mona Lisa, the reason why they're copying it is because it is a singular piece of art, right? And so, if you have an artist that creates a similar piece of art is able to stand the test of time, that is what we should be learning to do. We have been educated, however, to be replicators of the Mona Lisa, not understanding that we all our own Vinci's, our own Michelangelo's, our own van Gogh's in our own way, our gifts or that capacity to show up with that artistry at their level.

Marlana: Hmm, I love that. So let me pull it into the music industry, because I know that you've worked in the music industry for 15 plus years. What makes one person stand out above another? Or is it always talent? Or is it something else?

Frederic: Yeah, this is a great question. My business partner and I, high standards, we talk about this often. There's a phrase that people use in the industry just called a star, right. And what it means is that they have this unique quality that attracts people to them. If I was using Categories of gifts, I would say that they're a transistor. They're simply able to embody whatever their energy is, it's a different level. And when you've been around them, and I'm sure you have, you work with different people, but there's some people that almost they set you on edge. So, I remember the stories about Michael Jackson. And how Michael would step on the stage, and he could just stand there. And he would literally start concerts when he would just stand there for minutes at a time. And people would lose their minds, like most of us can do that be like What are you doing, like we're gonna start to show, Michael because Dan there and you will feel completely entertained, because that was his level of energy, focus, the anticipation, he can lean into that for four minutes at a time. He did that in Super Bowl, biggest beanie on stage, he just appearing all over this failure. However, they did. That was amazing. But the point is, they are uniquely themselves, and they have the competence to be themselves even when it makes other people uncomfortable. Because that's all they know how to be. I think to a degree, we all have certain elements of that, that we can show up as stars in our own gift. But when it comes to the music industry, especially, you just see that talent is not enough, like the greatest singers are not always the biggest stars, right? Michael Jackson wasn't the greatest singer in the world. He was unique in the way that he sang vocalized, he was a great singer. But he wasn't the greatest. But he had that ability to embody something in a particular way. And so, their ability to be authentic in terms of conveying the music and just believe that you're entertained, you are captivated, you know that that's the level that we're searching for. And I think one of the things that's happened in this age, because of the ability of anyone now to create an album, to create a song, to produce music, to create anything to create anything, you know, and I can trend, I can cross borders and talk about you know, digital photography or whatever right? Because everyone has the iPhone, they have the tools, they can imitate a great photo, but there are elements of understanding what needs to be articulated through photo, what needs to be articulated through music or writing or whatever, there is an art and a science and a science and an art. And there are those who have the gift to be able to do that. And it's something that you could describe. But you cannot replicate it. It's an obvious most authentic form, right? You can't replicate a Lady Gaga or Mary J. Blige or even a Luciano Pavarotti, like technically, people can know how to do certain things. But the humanity of it, the level at which it just transforms people right there. You have, you can hear, we all like tick tock and Instagram and things like that we all have these duets, and people are doing their cover versions of other people's songs. So, there's the cover where somebody can sing it perfectly well, but there was the original that made you love it and fell in love with it for a particular reason. Now, artists was able to convey that. And it's something that's being lost because we have so much music now. And so much, so many photographers, photographs, and so much data that's being put out there. Your ability to lean into your gift can be your superpower, whether it's music or whatever, if you understand that no one can do it like you. If you know what you can do, I know the impact you can create and how you can create that. And you can lean into that, that can set you apart. And that's what the world needs. We need more one on one. We need more. Michael Jackson's and Lady Gagas and, Marlana Semenzas and, you know, Frederick busseys, we need more individuals, because that is what makes the world what it is. 

Marlana: In your opinion, the people that are only striving to copy something, or to recreate something that's already been done, lazy or just playing too safe.

Frederic: That's not lazy. I mean, it can be. And there's certainly, especially in the music industry, there are a lot of people that are, I would say lazy, they're trying to take the shortcut to success, oh, they did this or let me do that. Some of it is flattery, and that you like it so much, you just want to make your own version of it. Right. But also, there's a way that we are programmed to think from the time that we were born, that there is a way that you have to do things. And so, people are kind of taught that success means that there's a blueprint. And there are blueprints for how you can execute the steps. But executing the steps towards success does not mean doing what someone did, like they did it exactly that way. Because there are variables that go into it. That's why a lot of times when I'm coaching people, I don't give them the particular steps, more or less than I give them a framework for how to think about to how to proceed and go forward by so you could with your work, you could sit there and tell somebody when you point the camera and you make sure it's in focus, and you have a lighting here and things like that. But there's all these variables that you can do. And the wizardry of it, that can turn it into a story that makes it alive, that communicates something that is meaningful, or dangerous, or sinister, or secretive or seductive. And your ability to be able to do that is based on your own particular filter, your particular gift. And that doesn't come through playing safe that comes through playing outside lines.

Marlana: Yeah, you know, and it's interesting that you say that too. Because I have said to people in the past that I can teach you what to do, but I can't teach you how to see. And so, I think there is always that element that nobody's gonna do it like you do it. Right. And like you said, If you lean into that, and embrace that and run with that, then that's kind of where the magic starts to happen.

Frederic: 100% I love that; you can't teach people how to see. I was listening to a podcast seven years ago, young lady, she’s a scientist who studied the art while the art the science of how we see, right? And if you notice that what we think we see visually and it's very interesting because we have been able to, again, replicate what we see but what we see is not really a visual thing. It's not like a camera. Our brains interpret the light and shadows in a particular way that creates this impression in our minds that we are seeing the physical world. And so, if you are blind, you have to see with your hands. If you are deaf, maybe you see with your eyes, you know, you're not able to use your ears. But then we see in so many different dimensions, right? We see with sound, we see with touch; we see with taste. And then these, these senses translate, and so being able to articulate all those different things, texture, color, volume and things of that nature. Like there's all these different dimensions to our world. And to be able to convey that power and force and subtlety, and softness, right, are all different dimensions of these things. That's the power of a gift, because it's about the details, one of the keys I'm talking about, in discovering your gift is understanding the details that stand out to you that no one else can see. Right. So, when you talk about teaching people how to see well, how you see, right, understanding that for me, you know, I may pay more attention to the tone of a person's voice, how they articulate a particular word, whereas someone else may focus more on the actual word itself, or the shape of their lips when they're articulating that word, I don't know. But it's all in the details that you see that allow you to show up in this particular way. So, you take any of those categories, you take the way that you see things, you think, you take the things that rankle you, they get under your skin, because you can't stand it. Like I'm sure there are things that photographers do they drive you crazy, right. And those are the things that you make sure to take the care about to ensure that you're articulating your art in a very special way, that's really important that we understand that about ourselves, that is valuable, right. Some people will call it being a snob, but when you care about the craft, that you are putting out into the world, right, not just the work. But they really mean something to you emotionally, that you show up in this way that when you create this idea that is articulated with a very particular sort of care, and intimacy if you will, right. So, if you're looking at a jungle, it's trees and dirt. But it's also the smell is also the scent of it. There's a jungle is just a forest. But a jungle can be different in Amazon versus in Africa versus in India. And so, all the details of the things that kind of set it apart, understanding where your element is, and how you can show up in an element is really important.

Marlana: So, if people get nothing else out of this episode, what would you like them to walk away with?

Frederic: So, they're what I call the three laws of giftedness. And one of the things that is most important for people to recognize is that we all have the gift, right? So, the first law simply says that every person is born creative with a special unique and powerful gift. You have a gift; you have to use it. It is why you're here, is why you are created in just what is going to fill your life with meaning and significance. The second law of giftedness says that every gift is created with a specific purpose. And you need to know that you don't have to chase purpose that even while you're trying to live intentionally understand the purpose of what you create is important. So, the light switch in your room, the lamp behind me, the picture frames, this chair, the zipper on my sweater, everything was created with intention and a purpose. It serves a function in this world. What But human beings believe that things are created with purpose, but human beings are not. And that's a very hollow place to exist. And most of us spend most of our lives chasing or trying to create a purpose for ourselves. The zippers don't have to create purposes for themselves. You know, and it doesn't mean that your purpose is unimportant, either. Even if it is narrow, because the more narrow it is, the more clear you can be on how you show up and all you have to do is do that thing every single day, right? So, making sure that you understand that every gift is created with a purpose. And the third law of giftedness is simply that no gift can fail in the purpose for which it was created. So, you look in the natural universe, and everything that was created with a specific purpose and a gift fulfils that purpose. Right, so the sun always rises. Wind always blows, water always flows, birds always fly, grass always grows, everything that was created with a purpose fulfils His purpose, you have a purpose, your gift has a purpose, and you will not fail. So, all that fear of failure that many of us have even a fear of success, which is actually a fear of failure. You don't have to worry about that. Because you were created with the purpose and intention and you're not going to fail at death. Birds don't fail at flying, fish don't fail at swimming, you're not going to fail your gift.

Marlana: Beautiful! And with that Frederic I have some four final questions for you.

Frederic: Oh no! Here we go!

Marlana: First one, what's the best piece of advice you were ever given?

Frederic: This year a friend of mine, Nick Peterson, he is talking about this concept, raising the floor, we all get into this cycle where sometimes we can do this doom loops. What he talks about is that what you are doing is you wanna continuously raising the bar, raising the level at which you are failing. So, if you are continuously moving forward, that floor continues getting higher and higher. So, if you start up out of ***, what's the bar? Let me push up 1 today, tomorrow I will do 2, the next day I will do 3, I get closer to the ceiling, but eventually I can raise the ceiling or what I'm capable of because I'm continuously raising the floor. I love that concept of just raising the floor everyday.

Marlana: Yeah, me too. The next one, show us this one thing on your bucket list.

Frederic: I have a list of 300 things, Stevie Harvey talks about writing 300 things for your bucket list, and he warns that it will be hard and it is hard. Because I am close, I think 99 or 100, so I'm carefully adding. You know what? I have it hear, let me read, I will pick one from my bucket list. I will pick the last one, take a ride in the space. 

Marlana: That looks like it’s going to be getting easier and easier to do as we go along here. 

Frederic: It is. Amazingly, some people have never travelled out of the country, some people have never traveled to any place, so taking a ride on the space will be a great conversation starter. 

Marlana: Very well! When the toys company finally gets around to making an action figure of you, what two accessories will it come with?

Frederic: That's a great question! I would say a book, then we will call it a super book where anything you read from this book you can make it happen, and a magic pen, because you can write a story of your life and you can make it come true. 

Marlana: Love it! And the last thing, how do people find you?

Frederic: I am everywhere on social media, and you can go to my website (fredericbussey.com). You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter (Frederic Bussey). Instagram (frederic.bussey), Facebook (Frederic Bussey), LinkedIn (Frederic Douglass  Bussey). I am easy to find.

Marlana: Love it! And lastly, I know you have a master mind, tell us really quick about your mastermind and how people can get your book if they would like to read about more of this.

Frederic: Absolutely! Thank you so much for that. The book is on Amazon (Breaking Orbit, Rip Out of the Regular by Unearthing the Power Within), is available there now. You can Google my name as well (Frederic Douglass  Bussey, Breaking Orbit). I have a master mind called Seven-figure Circle Million-Dollar Mastermind. I have a Facebook group, If you'd like to join that you can click over there and apply to be admitted. It’s for six and seven-figure entrepreneurs that wants to scale up their businesses, to create more impact and freedom without being overwhelmed, without beating their head against the wall, without losing relationships that matters the most to them. So, they can create the things that matters the most to them and the things they love. It is something meaningful to me and I love working with people that want to create those things that matter the most, their  desire. 

Marlana: And leaning into your gift.

Frederic: Leaning into your gift, yeah absolutely! We have a process called Dominance which has had a bad connotation in the past. But the first 3 letters D for discover, O for own, and M for mastering your gift. 

Marlana: Very interesting! I suggest everybody checkout the book and thank you so much for being here.

Frederic: Thank you so much, it’s been a pleasure.