The Lesson of Obsession: Robert Caro and Mr. Beast

How to successfully compete in the arena of attention.

Over the past few days, I encountered two very different creators. First, I visited the Robert Caro exhibit at the New York Historical Society. Then, I read “HOW TO SUCCEED IN MRBEAST PRODUCTION,” a remarkable little document by top YouTuber James “Jimmy” Donaldson aka “Mr. Beast.”

I don’t watch Mr. Beast’s content but I inhaled much of those 36 pages, skipping only the YouTube minutiae. The document lays out goals, expectations, principles, and lessons for new team members of Donaldson’s production company. I suspect he leaked it to inspire young ambitious outliers to apply and if you run a team with ambitious goals — hedge fund, startup, anything creative — I highly recommend you analyze the booklet for its clarity and structure (also, The Goal is the one book he recommends).

At first glance, Caro and Donaldson couldn’t seem more different: thousand-page biographies vs. a YouTube channel whose most popular video is “$456,000 Squid Game In Real Life!”

However, both owe their success to an intense passion and awe-inspiring obsession with mastering their craft. Where they differ is not just their medium but their goal — and this is where I found a foundational lesson about creative work.

New York Historical Society

“This channel is my baby and I've given up my life for it,” Donaldson writes. “I’m so emotionally connected to it that it’s sad lol.” Caro likewise has given his life to his work. Or you could say that his work has given him life. “As you get into a chapter, you get wound up,” he explained in Working. “You wake up excited—I don’t mean “thrilled” excited but “I want to get in there,” so I get up earlier and earlier.”