A word we throw around all the time is difficult. How difficult will the journey be? How hard is it going to be to succeed?

This is more or less asking, is a desirable outcome likely? We're asking if it's worth our time.

Right?

If something's difficult, we associate that with the low probability of success.

But that's not the right way of looking at it.

If you want something enough, difficult becomes your best friend. It's your greatest

asset. And this is one, because of the growth that comes with it, but two, because very few people

are willing to chase it down. The reality is, most people are average.

And that's just looking at the definition of the word.

Right, if everyone was great, greatness wouldn't mean anything.

There's something special about it. It's unique.

It sets people apart.

We generally live amongst people, places, and expectations that make up everything we know.

That's our normal. That's our box.

But what's particularly interesting is that the people we celebrate, the accomplishments we admire,

they go far beyond this sort of confined view of the world.

So where is the line?

Something's weird, it's abnormal, it's looked down upon until suddenly it's not.

You snap your finger and it's cherished.

That guitar player practicing 15 hours a day, it's lame, they don't have a real job, they're not contributing anything to society,

and then he or she puts out an album that revolutionizes music and they're a hero.

The whole thought process is counterintuitive, and that's why the words difficult and great are so closely related.

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