> There are three ingredients in great work: natural ability, practice, and effort.
There is one essential factor that if someone does not have, everything else mentioned here does not matter: luck or provision (scientifically speaking, luck does not exist). Every entrepreneur knows that no matter how hard they work, at the end of the day if they are not in the right place, at the right time, with the right people, success is not guaranteed.
This view is biased towards certain kinds of people. Yes, these three ingredients might increase your success chances, especially in the US (being born is the US is luck). This is why so many 3rd world country people want to emigrate, for better opportunities. Even with this premise, you probably know of someone who worked incredibly hard only to be screwed by their boss, or the privileged kid who got a foot in the door at an Ivy League or a job.
People in Silicon Valley and tech live in a bubble - the danger of this is to attribute your success to hard work, when in fact everything was given (yes, even your opportunity to work hard or ability to be self-motivated was provided). Examples of SV's bias: "Everyone should learn how to code" (not everyone has a coder's mindset). "Universal Basic Income" (pandemic checks, people become lazy)
With this said, it is still our responsibility to work hard at everything we do.
> It comes partly from popular culture, where it seems to run very deep, and partly from the fact that the outliers are so rare.
As an outlier, you are the lucky few, don't forget that.
Would it have soothed you if he began the article with: “Though the advice in this article is necessary, it alone is not sufficient to achieve success. Luck also plays a large factor. You need both. You will also need to obtain financial leverage. Hard work at McDonald’s is not the type that this article addresses.”? It seems unnecessary to me, particularly because he’s already written articles on these subjects. [1] [2]
Also, as another person that doesn’t believe in free will, I find it interesting that you thought it necessary to critique the way PG handled this subject matter, as if he had any choice.
There is one essential factor that if someone does not have, everything else mentioned here does not matter: luck or provision (scientifically speaking, luck does not exist). Every entrepreneur knows that no matter how hard they work, at the end of the day if they are not in the right place, at the right time, with the right people, success is not guaranteed.
This view is biased towards certain kinds of people. Yes, these three ingredients might increase your success chances, especially in the US (being born is the US is luck). This is why so many 3rd world country people want to emigrate, for better opportunities. Even with this premise, you probably know of someone who worked incredibly hard only to be screwed by their boss, or the privileged kid who got a foot in the door at an Ivy League or a job.
People in Silicon Valley and tech live in a bubble - the danger of this is to attribute your success to hard work, when in fact everything was given (yes, even your opportunity to work hard or ability to be self-motivated was provided). Examples of SV's bias: "Everyone should learn how to code" (not everyone has a coder's mindset). "Universal Basic Income" (pandemic checks, people become lazy)
With this said, it is still our responsibility to work hard at everything we do.
> It comes partly from popular culture, where it seems to run very deep, and partly from the fact that the outliers are so rare.
As an outlier, you are the lucky few, don't forget that.
Perhaps the greatest myth in American popular culture comes from the belief in free will, which makes hard work seem like the most plausible explanation for someone's mis/fortune: https://m-g-h.medium.com/free-will-a-rich-fairy-tale-4fecf80...