The dull truth of lasting success is this:
It is incredibly hard.
I mean, no one is going to give it to you.
Robert Greene pointed to this when he talked about “the real formula for power.”
And the worst part?
The worst part is that after all that effort, you still may end up like Van Gogh.
But I don’t know, what is the alternative?
The first step of any creator hoping for lasting success—whether for ten years or ten centuries—is to accept that hope has nothing to do with it. To be great, one must make great work, and making great work is incredibly hard.
-Ryan Holiday, Perennial Seller