1. You won’t be mentally prepared to deal with all of the fame, fortune, and international attention. You will crash and burn. Remember what happened to Susan Boyle?
2. You won’t be well-rehearsed or experienced enough and your performance won’t be ready for overnight global attention. Remember what happened to Ashlee Simpson on Saturday Night Live?
3. Critics and fans will eat you alive for every little misstep you do, crushing your soul and spirit in the process. Whether it be a misconstrued comment to reporter, a silly tweet, a questionable photo, or even what you’re eating or wearing… you will have a target firmly painted on your forehead for all to take aim at.
4. You will have a very short career. Overnight successes do not create life-long fans. They create flash-in-the-pan, one-hit wonders.
5. You will spend most of your money while being consumed in the excitement and frenzy of your new-found celebrity… only to find yourself broke when your fame suddenly dries up overnight.
6. Substance abuse and addiction is virtually imminent. Your handlers will push you beyond the brink of what your body is able to physically endure in order to squeeze every last dollar out of your celebrity before it fades away. You will be forced to medicate in order to deal with and maintain your frantic schedule.
7. You won’t have the wisdom of past experiences to guide you through the confusing and often deceitful industry. You will be taken advantage of; personally, professionally and financially.
8. You won’t be able to repeat the same level of success ever again. Having your life hit its peak overnight and then fade away as quickly as it appeared is a soul-crushing event and a recipe for severe mental depression, stress and anguish.
9. True success is all about the continuous journey of improvement and the satisfaction you get from enduring the tough times and accomplishing your dreams and visions through persistence and hard work. If you skip the process and the journey itself, your enjoyment will be short-lived, regardless of your riches.
10. Your values and ideals will be compromised. You will lose control of the very thing you believe in the most… your art. You will have to sign lengthy and confusing contracts with labels and agents and managers and publishers and promoters and attorneys… all of whom will steer your life and career in a direction which benefits their own needs, not yours.
