Lifestyle Entrepreneur reveals radical new theory why people’s ‘supposed to’ no longer works
Blake Mallen, Co-Founder & President of two global lifestyle brands, revealed in his TEDx Talk on June 9, 2018 in Watts, California a radical new theory why so many people feel stuck today. His message: We need to stop trying to be the person we’ve been told we’re ‘supposed to’ be, to become the person we’re ‘meant to’ be, and that it’s time to #ShiftTheScript. His mission to ignite a lifestyle revolution has since become a growing movement that is inspiring thousands to create the life they’re meant to live.
This idea to ‘Shift The Script’ was initially seeded 18 years ago when a friend asked Mallen, while interning at a District Attorney’s office, ‘why’ he had focused his life working so hard on graduating college early with honors, getting a pre-law degree, and building the resume to become an attorney, when, in truth, Mallen was not even excited about becoming one. “Because that’s what I thought I was supposed to do,” he said. It was Mallen’s discontentment with that answer and the realization he was following somebody’s else prescription for how to live life (“The Script”) that would begin a journey to create the life he felt he was ‘meant to’ live—and then inspire others to do the same.
“I wondered how if all of us are so different, with unique talents, gifts and goals, then why were we expected to follow the exact same Script—to get good grades, graduate from a good college, get a good job, get married, buy a home, save up enough money to retire, and then be happy,” said Mallen. “No wonder so many people today feel like they’re failing because they don’t go to a top-notch college or get that high-powered job, or get married and buy a house by a certain age. Who said you have to put happiness on hold until you achieve a certain number of societal milestones? The Script says that; but we can shift that Script anytime. And that’s the point.”
Mallen started his first personal blog over 15 years ago appropriately titled “Life off the Script” in which he chronicled his new path forward (and away from what his family, friends and society expected of him). Over the last two decades, Mallen has continued to publish articles and speak on the subject, and many of his keynotes at local and international events centered on the ‘shift the script’ theme and the benefits of shifting his own script. Blake’s learnings led to him co-founding in his early twenties the company Vi, which he and his Co-Founders built from an idea into a global healthy lifestyle brand, with millions of health transformations. As the CMO, Blake architected a disruptive “Challenge Marketing” strategy that propelled the company to nearly $2 billion in cumulative revenue and growing, earning the title as the #1 weight-loss and fitness challenge in America at the time. While still leading the international expansion of Vi, Mallen co-founded Liv, a new global lifestyle platform created to inspire people to trade in the notion of the “Bucket List” for a “Liv List,” with a vision to revolutionize the Life Experience category by providing extraordinary curated life experiences to the everyday person.
Meanwhile, as Mallen noticed that Millennials were increasingly experiencing a ‘quarter-life crisis’, he realized that the promise of the Script, and the reality that came from following it, started to become very different things. It inspired a personal mission to educate and inspire others to become aware of ‘The Script’ and then learn how to shift it in all aspects of their lives. This passion became the theme in his TEDx Talk, which has ignited a movement to raise awareness that The Script most people are following no longer works for everyone, and people have the power to shift it.
“At 19, when I woke up and started living life off the script, I never predicted the profound positive impact it would have on my life and how my story would inspire so many others to shift their script and begin to realize their own purpose, passion and potential,” said Mallen. “This TEDx Talk is my message to the world because I really believe that if enough of us as individuals shift our scripts… then it’s only a matter of time until we shift THE Script. And that shift is long overdue.”
Mallen’s TEDx Talk has sparked international conversation around the need to shift The Script.
“According to the TEDx YouTube Channel, at the time of this news announcement, out of the over 1,700 new TEDx videos uploaded in July 2018, my TEDx Talk is the #1 most viewed TEDx Talk in the world,” said Mallen. “That’s crazy to me, but I am both incredibly honored and humbled that so many people are connecting with the mission behind my vision to Shift The Script.”
Watch Mallen’s TEDx Talk at http://shiftthescript.com.
About Blake Mallen
As a Millennial Lifestyle Entrepreneur, Blake Mallen has built billion-dollar brands and created success the unconventional way. He is the Co-Founder and President of two global lifestyle brands providing platforms that power health transformations and inspire people to turn their “Bucket List” into a “Liv List.” Continually challenging the status quo, Blake is known as the Voice of the Micro-Generation, is featured in industry publications, and speaks at national and international conferences on the topics of social marketing, brand building, organizational culture, entrepreneurship, leadership and personal growth. Learn more at https://blakemallen.com