Why reading someone else’s rules of success is a waste of time

When we're told success stories, it seems like everyone can just go and become Mark Zuckerberg. Or Elon Musk. Or Oley Buzova. You know who these people are, don't you? What? succession They use how they got on the Olympus of universal recognition? Let's try to think.



Editorial "Site" Brad Pitt has not yet raised her, but will use him as an example. I'll talk about it a little bit later, and now what we're trying to get across here. It is that to achieve success, you need to look not only at those who have achieved it, but also at those who have made mistakes. That is why any success stories are useless.

No, they can certainly be read as fiction stories and only. Think about what practical advice you can get. Just to be persistent, to see the goal, not to give up. Look, the same thing is said by those who didn't. Well, or something. mediocre. Okay, let's get this straight.



Brad Pitt Imagine the situation. When the young and handsome Brad arrived to conquer Hollywood, most likely, on the same day there appeared with him a hundred other talented guys, who probably were not inferior to him. Maybe they were better than him. They might have had more talents, connections and prerequisites for success, but Pitt was on top.

If you asked him how he did it, would his answer reflect the big picture? How did he manage to do everything that day? perfectly? He can't explain. How can you avoid failure if you haven’t had that experience? Anyone who fails will be able to. Because they fell victim to a mistake, did something wrong.



Transfer this model to all areas of life and you get a person from whom everyone wants to learn, and there is nothing to learn, because it coincided. He came at the right time. It is better to ask those who “failed”, they may well know where they were wrong. If only the winners were counted without the losers, the sample would be incorrect.

The plane that survived Consider one curiousIt was discovered during the Second World War. U.S. commanders, concerned that too few bombers were returning home, decided to collect damage statistics.



The study found that the holes are greatest in the wings and in the lower fuselage. It seems logical that this is where you need to add armor. The generals were dissuaded by an ordinary statistician who argued so. Obviously, the wings and fuselage are the most “persistent” components of the aircraft, while others just left him no chance.

They are the most vulnerable, they just did not hit the shells. That's why the plane survived. This is a systemic error when research results commonality Among the “survivors”, although equally important information may be hidden among those who could not survive. Let’s go back to our success stories.



It would seem that everything is clear, but we continue to make the same systemic error. It’s a kind of logic when we want to be like someone and believe that their path applies to us. If we want to know the secret to a long life, we'll go ask the hundred-year-old grandfather how he did it. He said he had been drinking and smoking all his life.

And for us it will be a formula - to hell with the gym! But who is thinking about what this grandfather Brad Pitt is one of hundreds of other grandparents who, with a similar lifestyle, most likely have long rested on their laurels somewhere in paradise? This is not statistics, but rather luck. That's a coincidence!



So the next time you read someone’s great success story, think about the fact that there are those who haven’t. To win, you need to know both opinions: those who won and those who lost. Stop making the same systemic mistake and think again about why any success stories are meaningless.

We think you are well aware that it will not be possible to go exactly the same way as Brad Pitt in the new conditions. You won't be as successful as he is. Or like Mark Zuckerberg or Elon Musk. Or like Olya Buzova. But you can do it your way. Win on your own behalf. Who says the world doesn't need it?



Condition of success It is universal only in one case - nothing happens if you sit back. Even if it doesn’t work out, you’ll rightly say to yourself, “I tried and did my best.” And you won’t be ashamed, because it’s a victory. Read this article if you lack motivation, and be sure to share your opinion in the comments. We wish you luck!