“I am simply trying to struggle through life; trying to do God’s bidding,” says George Lucas.

Lucas’ struggle first began on May 14, 1944 when he was born in the relatively humdrum city of Modesto, California to parents George Walton Lucas, Sr. and Ellinore Bomberger Lucas. He grew up on a walnut farm and was destined to take over the small office supply store owned by his father.

The young Lucas didn’t go to many movies nor did his family have a TV until he was 11-years old. Little did his parents, or anyone else know that Lucas would go on to become one of the world’s most successful and well-respected filmmakers in history.

From quiet, humble beginnings in Modesto, California to a multi-million dollar ranch and hub of activity in Nicasio, Lucas has taken the film industry by storm.

From his technological innovations to his business strategies to his beloved science fiction androids, Lucas has become a household name and an immortal part of American cinematic history. “Good luck has its storms,” Lucas once said. But, his success has had little to do with luck. How did he do it?

“When I first got to college, I was very interested in the social sciences, anthropology, sociology, psychology, those kinds of things. And I was still interested in art and photography. I didn’t know that I could actually put them all together in one occupation and love it.

Suddenly everything came together in one place. All my likes, everything I actually seemed to have talent for was right there.

I’m extremely grateful that I discovered my passion. I love movies. I love to watch them, I love to make them.

I thought it [Star Wars] was too wacky for the general public. Right or wrong this is my movie, this is my decision, and this is my creative vision, and if people don’t like it, they don’t have to see it.

You have to find something that you love enough to be able to take risks, jump over hurdles and break through the brick walls that are always going to be placed in front of you. Otherwise, you’ll stop at the first giant hurdle.

Talent is a combination of something you love a great deal, something you can lose yourself in – something that you can start at 9 in the morning, look up from your work and it’s 10 o’clock at night – and something that you have a natural ability to do very well.

My first six years in the business were hopeless. There are a lot of times when you sit and you say ‘Why am I doing this? I’ll never make it. It’s just not going to happen. I should go out and get a real job and try to survive’.

If you want to be successful in a particular field of endeavor, I think perseverance is one of the key qualities. You have to have a thick enough skin to cope with criticism.

The secret is not to give up hope. It’s very hard not to because if you’re really doing something worthwhile I think you will be pushed to the brink of hopelessness before you come through the other side. You just have to hang in through that.

You simply have to put one foot in front of the other and keep going. Put blinders on and plow right ahead.“

Would you push for over six years, face constant failure, and continue trying to build your business not knowing if it will ever become anything substantial?

Evan Carmichael