The Cavalry Is Not Coming

Are you waiting for someone to make your dreams come true? Guess what, they’re not coming

Many centuries ago, when the wars were primarily fought by manpower, cavalry used to be the last hope of the army losing the battle. When they were done and exhausted on the verge of giving up, their eyes would search for the cavalry to save them and bring them home.

Even when our lives are much safer today and the world much calmer, the battles are still being fought. These battles that we fight every day in private — with ourselves and with people we love.

If you’re waiting for someone to come and save you from the pain and hard work and take you to your dreamland, similar to those soldiers, I have news for you.

The Cavalry Isn’t Coming

Remember when we were in high school, we used to think that our lives will turn into something magnificent once we get into a good college?

The college then would get replaced by the university degree which made us believe in our dreams all over again.

Once we received the degree, we thought — okay, now we only need to get this amazing job in the city and will finally be able to live our dreams.

Does this ring a bell?

Today I am going to tell you about the harsh reality of our lives! Guess what the cavalry we all are waiting for is not coming.

As a compulsive content hoarder, I recently watched the most valuable video, which blew me away. The video was of Mark Duplass’s keynote from 2015 at the South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival.

In this keynote, Mark talks about how his own career in the film industry taught him how he needed to stop waiting for the cavalry to build his career in Hollywood.

If you’re wondering who Mark Duplass is, let me remind you. Mark is the elder one of the Duplass Brothers, who have carved a way for themselves in the movie industry with their Indie film projects like The Puffy Chair, Baghead, Creep, and most recent, The Paddleton on Netflix. Mark Duplass was seen last in the Morning Show and received an Emmy nomination for his performance as Micheal.

Mark’s story is rather interesting; coming from a small town in New Orleans, Mark and his brother were always interested in making movies. They made their first movie for only 3$. The first movie they sent to the Sundance film festival was recorded on their parents’ videotape.

After the success of his first short film, Mark believed that his days have come, and now he’ll be set to launch his film career in Hollywood.

But he didn’t know that the cavalry wasn’t coming.

He thought maybe moving to LA and getting himself an agent will kickstart his career but guess what, the cavalry wasn’t coming.

In 2017, when I published my first book, I thought my life would change once the book comes out.

In 2018, when I got my dream job in a top-notch private firm in Bangalore, I thought my cavalry was here. Now, I’ll lead a successful career and live happily ever after.

Earlier this year, when I had a meeting with one of South India’s biggest media tycoons, I thought that was it — my career will explode now.

I was wrong all this while!

The first book I published looked like cavalry, which was going to change my life. The job I so waited for, gave me false hope. The meeting looked like a golden ticket to kickstart my media company.

All this while the cavalry was either another person, a job, or a situation. It didn’t end here. I found myself in the same spot — expecting a book deal from a big publisher to change my life. Waiting for that viral video that was going to establish me as a content creator and whatnot.

But the cavalry wasn’t coming.

After so much hard work and patience, when things don’t work out as you imagine, you start to question yourself. “Am I good enough?” “Will it ever happen for you?”

All our lives, we wait for someone to come to save us.

A friend, a spouse, a lover, or even an investor. But the real truth we often ignore is no one can save us or build a career. There’s no knight in the shining armor; there is no cavalry coming for you.

I have waited for the right moment, the right opportunity, and the right person for years. I have given people the responsibility to control my life. I have done it over and over again — until I learned this lesson.

The only person that can save you is yourself!

You’re the cavalry you’ve been waiting for

You become a cavalry when you hone your craft. You become a cavalry when you get equipped with skills and experiences that have changed you into a person who knows what he’s doing.

You become a cavalry when no one else can replace you with what you do. It’s not about that book, that piece of content, or that job — it’s what you’ve become after forging yourself day in and day out to become a better you.

No one else can replace you, and no one in this world will be as committed to your growth and success as yourself. If this isn’t self-love, then what is it?

“No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. we ourselves must walk the path.” — Buddha

How differently will you live your life if you understand that you’re the only one who’s in control?

People can assist you, guide you, and perhaps accompany you for a few miles, but they can’t walk that entire journey for you. The journey, which we call life, is your responsibility. Only you have the power to make the shift in your life,

The more you wait for the Ginnie to appear in your life and do its magic, the more you’re getting behind in the game.

Teachers won’t make you smart. Gurus won’t make you calm. Mentors won’t make you rich. Trainers won’t make you fit. Ultimately, you have to take responsibility. Save yourself. -Naval

In his memoir, Like Brothers, Mark talks about how he decided not to indulge in a general meeting with production companies and studios. It saved him tons of time and shrank his dependency on others.

The amount of time he saved from not going for meetings and waiting for someone to validate his idea was invested in making more movies and working on more scripts, leading to signing a 4 movie deal with Netflix.

The Duplass Brothers made it possible because they weren’t waiting for someone else to give them a chance to prove their art.

Instead, they took the plunge and became their own cavalry when they realized no one else would fulfill their dreams. And that’s what we all should be doing!

“A definite yes today is better than a maybe tomorrow.”

If you’re waiting for someone who can change your life, look no more. This is your chance to take control of your life.

Final Note

Start this journey by watching this speech which made this article possible, and stop waiting because — the cavalry is you.

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