Something we have to realize is that most people are going to lose. And that people suck.
It's just the plain facts.
I had this conversation with my wife, yesterday. She told me about a colleague that complains about missing the ball on their opportunity. This took me back to my childhood when my dad would often remind me that even when I did my best, it still may not be enough.
I was eight years old.
My dad was completely crazy, but in my honest opinion, he was very, very helpful in my early childhood development. That frame of reference molded me into the adult that I am now. I think the majority of adults fail to realize this harsh reality—even at your best, when you put in all the work, your time, work ethic, everything that you believe in—the intended output may never come.
And it's essential to remember and to keep in context that sometimes you just don't win. It often comes down to looking at yourself in the mirror and having a hard conversation with yourself around “maybe, I'm not good enough at this thing.”
My wife, however, disagrees almost wholeheartedly.
“I don't really believe in the idea of people sucking. I just don't get that concept. People don't suck. They're just not good at the thing yet. They should keep going until they’re good enough.” - My wife
I mean, that's understandable, but I do believe that people can suck.
Her argument was that talent really doesn't exist. Talent is learned or trained. Only through hard work and repetition can talent grow. My counter-example is that some people are just naturally and physiologically gifted. Shaq, Shaquille O’Neal, for instance, is physiologically advanced in comparison to the modern human.
He's 7’2”, 300 pounds. He's naturally strong. His body mass is naturally larger than that out of an average human. Which makes him stronger. And also means his potential talent throughput is already higher than average. Metaphorically speaking, he has a bigger scale.
Let's say you're a writer or you are a pianist or anything that's just not based on physicality. In these fields, it often comes down to repetition, understanding the variables at play, and knowing where you fit in given the variables.
Personally, I just don't think a lot of people do that.
So with that said, people suck. A lot.
I suck at a lot of things. But the things that I am good at, I think I'm aware of about 50% of those things. It's not a long list, trust me. An example: I had to realize that after spending 15 years of my life running Track & Field at the highest levels, I wasn’t going to ever run in the Olympics.
It wasn't like I wasn’t physically gifted. I was usually faster than most kids. I mean, at one point I was top one of the top 10 sprinters in all of America. Regardless, the variables would have never added up for me to make the Olympic team.
The variables at play: I worked harder than everyone else. I could not be beaten. Not at practice. Not in a race. Not in a single rep. And that's where the talent came in as a result of hard work and the endless work ethic my father put into me. I often think about this a lot.
If you didn’t read this whole article, that’s fine, but you’re now in the batch of people who “don’t put in the work.” A lot of people like to talk about it. Very few people like to do the thing. And I think that's what it boils down to. Most people are going to lose.
You're gonna suck at times…and that’s okay.
Just realize what you’re good at and double down on that.
Ciao,
Corey