Getting Ahead Of 99% Of People: Is It Really Easy To Win Nowadays?

Recently, I've listened to a couple of podcasts that all express how easy it is to "win" nowadays, that the bare minimum is ridiculously low and achieving anything above that will put one ahead of the majority.

For example, it is said that consistently going four times a week to the gym(or exercising one's body) will put you at the top 1% of the population in that regard, since most don't bother with such.

From my own experience, there's some bone to the meat. Given the current trend of living a physically passive existence, people find it much harder to commit to a physically active lifestyle or overcome the initial discomfort of exercise.

If we sketch the current landscape of our modern era, we will notice that information access is democratized, automation handles the mundane, and global connectivity fosters collaboration. This creates a landscape where the barriers to entry are much lower compared to before, making it seem easier to 'win' nowadays.

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Of course, this easy aspect is different from the one mentioned in the exercise example. I think there are layers to it.

The Two Layers of Winning

The bottom layer has to do with building basic habits and discipline, which puts you ahead of the vast majority who struggle with consistency.

The top layer is mostly about creativity, critical thinking and innovation, where you're not just competing but also collaborating in creating or achieving something truly remarkable.

I believe the top layer is truly marvelous. For one, the wealth of information and breath of opportunities have the potential to usher in an era of unprecedented human achievement.

Now, to truly capitalize on this marvelousness, we must address the leaky foundation. Without basic habits and discipline, the top layer becomes a house of cards, vulnerable to endless distractions and ever present procrastination.

Besides, the wealth of information is useless without the discipline to learn and apply it. The breath of opportunities is meaningless without the critical thinking to navigate them.

Picture a magnificent ship, overflowing with treasures from all around the world(the top layer). But if the hull is riddled with holes(lack of basic skills), the ship will probably never reach its full potential, and the treasures will eventually be lost.

What's important to remember is this marvel of the top layer is built upon the unseen groundwork of countless individuals who honed their basic skills and built the infrastructure we take for granted today.

So it makes sense that without addressing the bottom layer, the brilliance at the top remains out of reach for far too many.

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An Interesting Challenge

In my view, this creates a dilemma of sorts in which it's both easy and not easy to win nowadays. Really, one could argue that we need to be disenchanted from the marvels of the top layer to zero in and build the bottom layer.

In practice, however, things are not that clear cut or simple. So we keep putting one foot in front of the other, our feet engulfed by the sand, hoping that we may reach a point where the sand stops swallowing our feet.

Of course, we can also view the situation as an interesting challenge. Perhaps, leverage the "easy wins" of the top layer – the information and opportunities – to fuel our efforts in building the strong foundation of habits and discipline (the bottom layer).

Akin to using the ship's abundant resources to patch the hull, making it seaworthy and ready to navigate towards achieving truly remarkable things.


Thanks for reading!! Share your thoughts below on the comments.

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