A Company with Passion (Part 2 of 2)

All my life, I've met people who were smarter, richer or more talented. But only a fool gives up just because there's someone out there who's more qualified. If we let that stop us, we'll never get anything done. Many of the greatest achievements of man would never have come to pass. Just because someone's smarter, doesn't mean they are the right person for the job. Just because someone has more money than you, doesn't mean they can do what you can do. Just because someone has more talent, doesn't mean they have your vision, your passion, your creativity, your potential. I've met many people who seemed to have loads of potential, but never seemed to get anywhere. Because Potential is not dependent upon intelligence, money or even talent. Not really! Sure, those help, and I'd like to think that the team and company we've put together does have a reasonable amount of each, but true potential often requires other, less obvious traits.

Look back over history and you'll find numerous examples of people that seemed to have little or no potential, yet they accomplished far more than anyone could have imagined. The exciting thing for those of us, who are smart enough to know there are smarter people out there, is that there's far more to being successful than having a high IQ, piles of money, and a big resume. Passion and faith can move mountains, conquer kingdoms, produce works of art and literature that touch their fans to the core, and accomplish more than intellect, money or talent could ever hope to achieve alone. We are our own greatest enemies. No one can defeat us but ourselves. QT Games may never produce an award-winning RPG or board game, novel or other product. We may never win the hearts of millions, inspire someone to make a movie about our storylines or setting, but our potential can only be snuffed out by losing faith, giving up, and cowering in the face of great odds, never chasing our dreams nor giving it all we've got. All it takes for us to be defeated is for us to do just that.

Intelligence is hard to come by. Wisdom is cheaper and will often get you farther. But if you must have someone who is smarter on board, get someone. Money is hard to come by, but it should never be considered insurmountable. There's lots of money out there. If we need more money than we have available, we'll move toward acquiring more. If you think for a moment about how much money you likely throw away on entertainment over the course of the year, you likely have more money than you realize. You might have just enough. If we need more talent, we'll work hard to develop it, and bring more talent on board as needed.

Figure out what you need, and go after it. Do your homework. Be positive. Be realistic. Be aware of your strengths and weaknesses and if you have a team, then those of your team as well. Be motivated. Be prepared. We've done these things to the best of our ability. We'll keep doing them. We'll likely make mistakes, get beyond them and move forward in faith. Believe you can do it? Great, then follow your dream!

Success requires movement. Action. Sacrifice, Passion and Faith. I have all that. My team, according to his or her own passions and goals shares these to one degree or another. Each will have to face the future with their own eyes and make their own decisions. Indeed, these are exciting times. As success is not dependent upon being smarter, richer or more talented, I believe we have little to fear. Just as I can use improvement, so can they, but we are not giving up. We refuse to allow our weaknesses to overcome us, stifle us. Come what may, I have no regrets and I don't believe they will either, not if they share my view of potential and success.

Of course, not everyone is meant to write the world's greatest song, paint the world's greatest painting, win an Oscar, etc. and that's OK. We may never win anything, become rich and famous, but we can accomplish much if we're willing to - if we don't give up! Being happy is nothing to shirk at, and we may well accomplish more than we even dream, if we're committed - If we share the qualities I've described. Regardless, you can never let others drag you down, stifle your enthusiasm, rain on your parade, and if they do, you don't have to choose to give up, throw in the towel, allow others to diminish your potential, drag you down.

Each member on the QT Games Design Team, just like you, has the potential for greatness. It may not seem that way to you, but as history shows us, potential often lies not in those obvious, visible qualities, but in the invisible. It only seems like the most successful people are the smartest, richest, most talented, best looking, whatever. How many at the top have fallen? How many through history have risen from meager beginnings to topple empires and change the world. How many talented people do you know that have never been on American Idol or who had potential, but never followed up on it? Do you have a passion for producing a great RPG game and the faith to follow up on your dreams? Contact me. I'd love to talk with you!

Together, we can accomplish anything, period. It doesn't mean we will. We are our greatest enemies after all. We can shut down our own dreams; let our passion fade away as so many people do. We can let ourselves become distracted by meaningless pursuits, that's what has defeated so many around us. I can't speak for anyone else, but I'm too driven for that outcome. I'm too ... stubborn. The future is a great mystery, but if we don't try, if we don't give it everything we've got, then we've already failed.

People of passion don't let little things get in their way. We all have setbacks. Life doesn't always go the way we want it to. Things don't always work out, but people of passion have true potential and can accomplish much. The most powerful things in the universe, such as love, hate and faith, are invisible. So if someone tells you that you don't have what it takes. If you look at yourself and you don't think you have what it takes, don't believe it! The heart can be deceiving above all things. If you don't have passion, find it. If you don't have faith, find it or ask for it. Hang out with people who have it! If you need to improve your education go back to school, read a book, do something! Think. Dream. Pray.

If we don't chase our dreams, we'll always regret our inaction, always wonder what could have been, and never live the sort of lives we were meant to live. And if we do reach some measure of success as the world sees success, well that will be cool, but success should never be the goal, nor riches, nor being the best at something - just doing our best at something. So, yeah ... these are exciting times indeed!

The Future Looks Bright

It's been awhile since I posted. One could assume that QT Games fell off the map, but actually, we've been busier than ever - hence posting has nearly halted. I will continue to use this blog from time to time, moreso as we get more followers. Currently, most followers are using the QT Games Forum to keep up on the latest news, ask questions, etc. This blog will serve more for the purpose of Game Company diary and general State of the Union, for now at least.

After two Open Calls for team members (and a significant response, dozens of emails going back and forth, reviewing resumes, samples of work, considering contracts and negotiating with hopefuls to join the QT Games Design Team), we've finally completed the team! Now, as soon I get over this bad cold, we'll start the ball rolling at a faster clip!

Of course, just because I'm no longer the only one designing the Cosmothea Roleplaying Game doesn't mean that progress makes an immediate leap forward. If it takes me 1 month to design something, that doesn't mean that adding a second designer results in twice as much output or a third designer results in three times as much output. It's much more complicated than that and will likely never yield such output for a variety of reasons. Still, it's a good thing, and our team is much larger than 3 members.

It takes time to train a team on a new game system and a new setting - now Cosmothea is not new, but it's new to them, as it is not on the market yet. This is Cosmothea's 4th version - a major revamp, but there is much already done, so there is much for them to learn before they are able to move forward effectively. And my own time is diminished as I now have a team to manage, teach, assign tasks, review, edit, meet with, motivate, etc. So, the larger the team, the more time you spend doing things other than game design. Still, this is a good move for QT Games, and fulfills our first company goal. I have been saying for a year now, that the only way an RPG game company could be truly successful - even a small one, was with a dedicated team. I still believe that, and while it remains to be seen how dedicated each member is on a team, I feel really good about those on board currently. Good stuff is coming, but it's going to take some time.

There are other factors to consider with this move, of course. I didn't have to worry about paying myself or how committed I was to the project. Now there is the matter of paying writers and designers, drafting contracts, spending money, spending time communicating with others, team dynamics and juggling differing personalities, etc. but I was expecting that, and have been doing some legwork in that regard, so we should be OK in that regard, though such factors should not be taken lightly.

The game is shaping up, despite the lull while I spent a couple months or so, forming the team and also becoming an LLC (Now called QT Games LLC). With that behind us, we can turn our attention to the reason QT Games was formed. :)