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Before proceeding, I would highly recommend checking out the first portion of this lesson - as it builds off of that article's core fundamentals. Doing so will allow you to obtain the most value out of this experience. Check it out here.
Unfair advantages may certainly expedite the journey towards success, but they are useless in and of themselves. They are more like the seeds of opportunity; one may plant them in hopes of reaping what they offer, but those seeds will never flourish without proper nourishment. One must fuel an unfair advantage with ample time, effort, and dedication before it truly makes a difference. |
As discussed in our previous lesson (check it out here before proceeding), success is generally misconstrued as a quality inherent at birth. The general population is convinced that one is either born a winner or loser; they fail to connect the dots between consistent, disciplined work and its fruitful outcomes. However, research and numerous success stories continually challenge this popular misconception. They remind us that no one is cut from a different cloth at birth, but the cloth we all originate from may be woven into a beautiful tapestry – an entity which stands out from the crowd. Achieving this status is more a product of pure work, dedication, and consistent effort – rather than the sudden emergence of natal qualities. Of course, unfair advantages may certainly expedite the journey towards success, but they are useless in and of themselves. They are more like the seeds of opportunity; one may plant them in hopes of reaping what they offer, but those seeds will never flourish without proper nourishment. One must fuel an unfair advantage with ample time, effort, and dedication before it truly makes a difference. So, as you progress through your journey, have faith that the cards you were dealt are not tied to one sole fate – either predetermined failure or success. Rather, understand that the outcomes of your situation are directly correlated with HOW you play those cards. Thus, fret not over the cards you were dealt, and always utilize your unfair advantages to play the best hand possible – regardless of your circumstances.
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To further illustrate this notion, let’s thoroughly explore some more unfair advantages usually attributed to a person’s success: opportunities tied to location, family, and time of birth. Like the previous discussion, we will find that, contrary to popular belief, these unfair advantages are not the cornerstones of a person’s success. Rather, they merely provide the seeds of opportunity which support an individual’s journey. However, at the heart of each opportunity, it is really that person’s diligence and work ethic which truly paves the road to success. Without the proper fuel and nourishment, these unfair advantages would have played no role in forging the person’s accomplishments. In particular, one may think of these opportunities as locked doors opening the way to different paths. Each path may lead to the same destination, but the journey along some may be more streamlined and less painful. For example, if born in California, a professional surfer may have had access to more beaches and the greatest surfing mentors. He or she would have been born with a precious privilege – a key unlocking a path conducive for surfing. However, uncovering these resources and walking a path tailored to a specific outcome is never enough; they help immensely, but the surfer still has to invest considerable time to develop into an outlying athlete. In other words, these unfair advantages may certainly expedite the process, but any surfer will have to invest in similar activities to develop a professional skill set; the outcome is a product of hard work – not opportunities at birth. This will be a common theme governing all success stories explored below.
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As you progress through your journey, have faith that the cards you were dealt are not tied to one sole fate – either predetermined failure or success. Rather, understand that the outcomes of your situation are directly correlated with HOW you play those cards. Thus, fret not over the cards you were dealt, and always utilize your unfair advantages to play the best hand possible – regardless of your circumstances. |
Thanks to his high school's parents, Bill Gates had almost unlimited computer access – while professionals and graduate students struggled to find temporary access. This obviously granted him the chance to quickly rack up hours of unparalleled experience, and it definitely played a huge role in cultivating his skills. In this sense, the parents’ choice to purchase a computer was equivalent to sowing the seeds of opportunity. They planted these seeds into their children’s fertile minds – unintentionally giving birth to a future technical giant. |
Of the many success stories found in human history, none exemplify these ideas as elegantly as Bill Gates’s. Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, this technical giant was practically handed the perfect key for unlocking success. Anything that could have aided a computer scientist seemed to gravitate into his life; as he put it himself, he was certainly a lucky guy. For example, when Bill was a young lad, prolonged access to computers was not only extremely rare but also a huge privilege. Most programming was first done on physical, paper cards, and everyone had to wait patiently to execute a given program. It was certainly not uncommon for a programmer to wait an entire day just to access a shared computer ONCE. Since programming is an iterative process, this initially made learning not only extremely difficult but also very slow, and, hence, exceptional programming abilities were a rare skill set. Fortunately, when Bill was attending high school at Lakeside, a group of mothers pooled their resources together to purchase a student-shared computer and defy this norm. As a result, he had almost unlimited access to computer usage – while professionals and graduate students struggled to find temporary access. This obviously granted him the chance to quickly rack up hours of unparalleled experience, and it definitely played a huge role in cultivating his skills. In this sense, the parents’ choice to purchase a computer was equivalent to sowing the seeds of opportunity. They planted these seeds into their children’s fertile minds – unintentionally giving birth to a future technical giant.
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However, as explained previously, it was not enough to simply have these seeds of opportunity; Bill also had to properly nurture them before reaping their rewards. He could have certainly neglected this privilege, and the seeds would have slept dormantly in the ground – failing to have their potential realized. Instead, he personally chose to take the path of most resistance and dedicate his time to programming. While his peers spent their time playing games and goofing around, Bill was literally glued to the screen; he poured almost all of his free time into programming. According to his parents, their teenage son would often stay extra late at school to further cultivate his skills, and his passionate love for computers seemed to drive him forward. Furthermore, regardless of any circumstances, Bill would always find a way to prolong his programming endeavors – even when access to computers was revoked. For instance, when caught trying to obtain extra unauthorized computer time, Bill and a few friends were actually banned from the computer lab, but this condemning event was definitely not enough to suffocate his fiery passion. Instead, Bill and his best friend, Paul Allen, eventually realized that the University of Washington offered public computer access during off-peak hours. Furthermore, they were fortunate enough to live rather close to the facility, and both would ride their bikes daily to the school, taking full advantage of this rare opportunity. Bill’s parents would later recall how abnormally difficult it was to wake him up in the morning; he would apparently neglect his sleep to stay extra late at the university. As this focused drive indicates, Bill may have certainly had many seeds of opportunity, but it was his dedication and concerted effort that really contributed to his success. He truly wanted it, and his actions undoubtedly relayed that message; they watered the seeds of opportunity implanted in his mind.
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It was not enough to simply have these seeds of opportunity; Bill also had to properly nurture them before reaping their rewards. He could have certainly neglected this privilege, and the seeds would have slept dormantly in the ground – failing to have their potential realized. Instead, he personally chose to take the path of most resistance and dedicate his time to programming. While his peers spent their time playing games and goofing around, Bill was literally glued to the screen; he poured almost all of his free time into programming. He truly wanted it, and his actions undoubtedly relayed that message. |
At this point, it is clear that Bill Gates was not only offered the seeds of opportunity, but he personally nurtured them into the flourishing assets they eventually became. On top of this, many other opportunities flocked to his doorstep – which further fertilized those seeds and expedited their growth.Through the combination of such opportunities, Bill Gates was then easily able to invest at least 10,000+ hours into his craft. This established an unparalleled mastery of computer programming unheard of at that time, and it was all cultivated prior to graduating high school. |
At this point, it is clear that Bill was not only offered the seeds of opportunity, but he personally nurtured them into the flourishing assets they eventually became. On top of this, many other opportunities flocked to his doorstep – which further fertilized those seeds and expedited their growth. For example, while Bill attended high school, Information Sciences, Inc. was actively seeking programmers to code an automated payroll system. Thanks to connections established at Lakeside, the company eventually heard of two programming prodigies – both Bill Gates and Paul Allen – at the school, and it quickly extended an offer to develop the system. Again, it was not simply enough to receive this remarkable opportunity though; Bill still had to work hard to reap its benefits. In particular, the ability to even pursue this opportunity was a challenge, in and of itself; Bill had to convince his school to substitute the work for course credits. In the long run, the school was eventually convinced and allowed both Bill and Paul to pursue the endeavor; they gave them permission to further hone their skills. Even better, once the duo successfully completed this work, the school personally hired them to develop an automatic class enrollment program. Through the combination of such opportunities and computer availability, Bill Gates was easily able to invest at least 10,000+ hours into his craft. This established an unparalleled mastery of computer programming unheard of at that time, and it was all cultivated prior to graduating high school. Furthermore, by the time Bill reached his 20’s, personal computers were just starting to gain momentum. His age – coupled with unprecedented skill – essentially paved a perfect path towards success; it offered the opportunity to develop this young industry. Looking at the other most successful computer entrepreneurs (Steve Jobs and Bill Joy), it is no wonder that all were born around 1955; their success was as much a function of birth as it was a manifestation of pure dedication.
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As this example illustrates, unfair advantages may certainly unlock the doors of opportunity. However, to fully take advantage of them, an individual must personally walk through those doors and persist until the end. Simply having access to opportunities is never enough, nor is procrastination along those paths; unfair advantages must be fueled by consistent effort, dedication, and diligence before yielding results. Bill gates was definitely handed a silver plate, but it was his own passion and dedication which built his success from nothing. In this sense, it is illogical to assert that everyone is either born a winner or loser – that success is a quality inherent at birth. Rather, we are all cut from the same cloth, but, through dedication and perseverance, we may weave that cloth into a beautiful tapestry – an outlier that stands out from the crowd. So, as you trek through your own personal journey, embrace this truth, and never allow misconstrued notions regarding success to limit your beliefs or potential. Accept the hand you were dealt for what it is, but also play that hand to the best of your abilities. Also, definitely identify as many unfair advantages as you can and implement them into your life; gather your seeds of opportunity and plant them all. However, at the same time, make an effort to care for and nurture those opportunities, and understand that they are nothing more than that – the potential to flourish, not guaranteed success. We are all the directors of our personal lives, and it is our actions and decisions which ultimately dictate how they pan out – not our opportunities, luck, or any external factors. In the end, it always comes down to the following: what script will you write for yourself; what movie will you personally choose to star in; and how will your efforts change the world?
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Unfair advantages may certainly unlock the doors of opportunity. However, to fully take advantage of them, an individual must personally walk through those doors and persist until the end. Simply having access to opportunities is never enough, nor is procrastination along those paths; unfair advantages must be fueled by consistent effort, dedication, and diligence before yielding results. So, as you trek through your own personal journey, embrace this truth, and never allow misconstrued notions regarding success to limit your beliefs or potential. Accept the hand you were dealt for what it is, but also play that hand to the best of your abilities. |