5 ms·

There is nothing wrong with being average. You should have enough energy to swim above the event horizon, where bad things happen (i.e. financial instability an

There is nothing wrong with being average. You should have enough energy to swim above the event horizon, where bad things happen (i.e. financial instability and job insecurity, the root of all evil). If you don't have the motivation to be excellent, don't try. There really is no point to it, as the author pointed out. Excellent people have an inner "drive" to get there and they seek tremendous joy from walking that path. If you force yourself to do it, you will always be unhappy and your brain won't be able to compete no matter how much you try because there is nothing more important for success than this: You need to love what you do. But also, you need to be at the right time in the right place, have the right environment to strive and parents who have the ability to support you. The world is a mean and unfair place...

friendlybus 7y ago
Being above financial instability and job insecurity is a good thing. It doesn't follow that the average person having a stable life means that the world is cruel and unfair.
- l1g2d5 7y ago
  But nobody really wants to be average. We all deep down want to be exceptional or important or matter in some way - not average.
  - Cougher 7y ago
    Average people can matter in very important ways indeed.
  - techslave 7y ago
    how small is your social circle? some entire nations seek to be average! have you never been in say a DMV office? i assure you, everyone working there is quite content to be average.
chii 7y ago
> If you force yourself to do it, you will always be unhappy and your brain won't be able to compete no matter how much you try the problem is that people don't want the actual excellence - they want the prestige and reward for being excellent. They want the money, financial gains and status. Most people are unhappy doing what they do, but they see it as a way to achieve said status. If you already have something you love doing, and is doing it with secure financials, you're already ahead of the game imho.
blub 7y ago
What makes you believe that all excellent people love what they do, are happy and seek joy in what they do? My impression from reading successful people's autobiographies and their biographies is that they're very much human - plagued by doubts, uncertainty and the pressure to succeed.
Cougher 7y ago
I generally agree with your comment, but I think it could use further elaboration. This is going to sound ridiculously obvious, but obviously it isn't: most things in life are a lot more complicated than we think. Like what it means to be "excellent" or "average". There are a lot of people who are viewed as excellent and yes, it often takes tremendous drive to get where they are (sometimes luck plays a bigger role), but how excellent are they really? Your suggestion that "they seek tremendous joy from walking that path" may work for some, but certainly not for all. A lot of the high achievers that I've known are relentlessly driven to the brink of mental or physical self-destruction. They may be proud of their success, but they don't seem to be joyful people. They may feel good when comparing themselves to someone like me, but they tend to compare themselves to people who are more successful than themselves, creating a vicious cycle of demanding higher achievment for themselves, yet never being satisfied by it. They concentrate on their careers at the expense of their families, so they have a lot of familial strife. Their spouses and children are virtual strangers. Then can't connect with them emotionally because that's a beta trait. On the other hand, I've known high achievers who are very happy, loving people. Are the former types really excellent? It depends on where we place our priorities, but as a culture (in the US), we tend to view ruthless, self-obsessed near-madmen as excellent. What's average? Inevitably, it's someone who hasn't made a lot of money or grown high on a career ladder, or who hasn't had a large presence in helping people outside of his or her immediate social circle. In this last case, how wide does the circle have to be to elevate the person from average to excellent? Can an aide who works with disabled children in a high school be considered excellent? She's just a regular person with a below average income. But she may be inspiring because she's loving and thoughtful and thought-provoking. Her presence in the lives of her student may be the single most positive thing in their lives, but that impact is within a very small social circle. But then again, her small social circle of impact can include one person who goes on to have a tremendous impact on a large number of people. Does that now make her excellent? Contentment with our lot seems to be one of the most underrated of human achievements and it can be well within the reach of the average person and far beyond the reach of the person of excellence.

friendlybus 7y ago

Being above financial instability and job insecurity is a good thing. It doesn't follow that the average person having a stable life means that the world is cruel and unfair.

l1g2d5 7y ago
But nobody really wants to be average. We all deep down want to be exceptional or important or matter in some way - not average.
- Cougher 7y ago
  Average people can matter in very important ways indeed.
- techslave 7y ago
  how small is your social circle? some entire nations seek to be average! have you never been in say a DMV office? i assure you, everyone working there is quite content to be average.

chii 7y ago

> If you force yourself to do it, you will always be unhappy and your brain won't be able to compete no matter how much you try the problem is that people don't want the actual excellence - they want the prestige and reward for being excellent. They want the money, financial gains and status. Most people are unhappy doing what they do, but they see it as a way to achieve said status. If you already have something you love doing, and is doing it with secure financials, you're already ahead of the game imho.

blub 7y ago

What makes you believe that all excellent people love what they do, are happy and seek joy in what they do? My impression from reading successful people's autobiographies and their biographies is that they're very much human - plagued by doubts, uncertainty and the pressure to succeed.

Cougher 7y ago

I generally agree with your comment, but I think it could use further elaboration. This is going to sound ridiculously obvious, but obviously it isn't: most things in life are a lot more complicated than we think. Like what it means to be "excellent" or "average". There are a lot of people who are viewed as excellent and yes, it often takes tremendous drive to get where they are (sometimes luck plays a bigger role), but how excellent are they really? Your suggestion that "they seek tremendous joy from walking that path" may work for some, but certainly not for all. A lot of the high achievers that I've known are relentlessly driven to the brink of mental or physical self-destruction. They may be proud of their success, but they don't seem to be joyful people. They may feel good when comparing themselves to someone like me, but they tend to compare themselves to people who are more successful than themselves, creating a vicious cycle of demanding higher achievment for themselves, yet never being satisfied by it. They concentrate on their careers at the expense of their families, so they have a lot of familial strife. Their spouses and children are virtual strangers. Then can't connect with them emotionally because that's a beta trait. On the other hand, I've known high achievers who are very happy, loving people. Are the former types really excellent? It depends on where we place our priorities, but as a culture (in the US), we tend to view ruthless, self-obsessed near-madmen as excellent. What's average? Inevitably, it's someone who hasn't made a lot of money or grown high on a career ladder, or who hasn't had a large presence in helping people outside of his or her immediate social circle. In this last case, how wide does the circle have to be to elevate the person from average to excellent? Can an aide who works with disabled children in a high school be considered excellent? She's just a regular person with a below average income. But she may be inspiring because she's loving and thoughtful and thought-provoking. Her presence in the lives of her student may be the single most positive thing in their lives, but that impact is within a very small social circle. But then again, her small social circle of impact can include one person who goes on to have a tremendous impact on a large number of people. Does that now make her excellent? Contentment with our lot seems to be one of the most underrated of human achievements and it can be well within the reach of the average person and far beyond the reach of the person of excellence.