is hard work good enough?

[xyyz]

I was watching some program about what hard work can do... people were talking about how America was a land of oppurtunity (this isn't being debated here) and that they achieved everything they wanted through "hard work."

Everyone claims that any goal can be achieved with hard work. If something is unattanable... the more hard work you put in the more and more the goal becomes attainable.

However, I'm not too sure about this.

For example, I know for a fact that no matter how much hard work I put in I will never be able to get into Harvard or Stanford (well the ADD really kills me too).

Many people here are extremely intelligent *cough*scottmac-and-the-networking-crew*cough* and for these people, perhaps hardwork makes their goals achievable... but for others, no matter what is done... we can study or practice something for hours then days then weeks then months and then years, but we will never be able to reach our goal... because it's just beyond our ablity.

Dunno... just something I was thinking about... :/

 

[minendo]

<< >>


is what?

 

[The Stigenator]

kya post nehi hai?

 

[ricerx]

was?

 

[Valhalla1]

is not!

 

[Zim Hosein]

I scream, you scream we all scream for ice scream! Now that's out of my system, what are you posting about xyyz?

 

[Colt45]

<< is not! >>



i agree...

 

[xyyz]

bloody friggin hell... you people are fast...

 

[The Stigenator]

<< bloody friggin hell... you people are fast... >>



somebody is on dialup.. :Q

 

[xyyz]

not me....

 

[hans007]

you need hard work, luck and brains. all 3 are needed to make it big time i'd say. like bill gates big time.


like with just hard work, you'll obviously do better than not doing hard work. but if you are stupid, and spend all your life say working on vacuum tube technology and spend countless hours on it, you are still not gonna get anywhere, because well you are such a moron you are working on vacuum tubes.

 

[xyyz]

<< like with just hard work, you'll obviously do better than not doing hard work. but if you are stupid, and spend all your life say working on vacuum tube technology and spend countless hours on it, you are still not gonna get anywhere, because well you are such a moron you are working on vacuum tubes. >>



oooookay....

that's one example that i'll never forget...

 

[Juniper]

people were talking about how America was a land of oppurtunity (this isn't being debated here) and that they achieved everything they wanted through "hard work."


I think those people meant that through hard work, they can get rich easily and live a good life in America more than anywhere else. For instance, compare the amount of work somebody in India puts in for a months salary. That could have been worth a thousand more in the U.S.

However, even though hardwork will bring you a good life, nothing beats using one's brain to do something. Thats the difference between leaders and followers.

 

[notfred]

Anyone can do hard work. Good ideas are what make money.

 

[rudder]

its not the great American know how...

its the great American know WHO.

Many people can succed with just hard work. but many more people succeed because of who they know. My first job out of college was obtained because I just happen to meet an old army buddy of a person I had been sending resumes to. At the time I was grossly underqualified, but I ended up getting the job because of that connection.

 

[mithrandir2001]

In terms of labor and production, it's not the means, it's the ends. That's not to say that you can do whatever you want to attain goals...it means that hard work in and of itself has no real inherent value; rather, it's what you create that matters. Sure there are cases where the harder you work, the greater the output, but that's not necessarily law, especially in intellectual/creative fields.

 

[Sir Fredrick]

Hard work alone won't get you rich. You should work smarter, not harder.

 

[bandXtrb]

if you have passion, the work won't be hard.

 

[StageLeft]

Hard work is not all, but it is most. If you're of average intelligence but work hard you'll succeed. On the flip side you can be smart and lazy and find yourself a failure. The best of course is smart and a hard worker, but I've seen time and again that without hard work you can't get anywhere unless you're very very lucky.

 

[Spamela]

i don't think any goal can be achieved with hard work - i could never be an artist no matter how hard or long i worked.
skill in choosing the right goal is important.
good/bad luck & social skill/connections help, too, depending on the goal.

 

[TheBlondOne]

Hard work is supposed to be good enough, but we know that's not 100% true. There are issues like personal intelligence, abilities, and of course discrimination. All of these things can keep people from going as far as they want in life.

BUT that shouldn't stop people from working hard and still trying to achieve their goals. Many have done it despite a variety of handicaps (physical and otherwise). A low intelligence, a physical disability, and even being a minority are not good excuses for not working hard. It's still worth the effort...and hopefully will pay off in the end.

--Sarah

 

[Descartes]

The idea of hard work is overrated. The perception of "hard work" is only so if you dislike your job. For instance, can you say Itzhak Perlman worked hard at becoming one of the greatest violinists of all time, even though he loves his music? If you say he did work hard, then is it not the same to work hard at doing nothing? Rather paradoxical, no?

I personally enjoy what I do, and because of that, people think I work less hard than those who hate their jobs. Also, the more physical workers feel that my job is less strenuous simply because I sit behind a computer all day. Does "hard work" only apply for physical exertion, and not mental exertion? Personally, I've done both physical work, and mental work, and I'm far, far more exhausted after a day of strenuous mental exertion than a day of physical exertion.

Lets recap.

If you're apathetic, any job is hard work.
If you enjoy your job, you're not capable of hard work.

 

[jjones]

Hard work can be good enough to obtain realistic goals but I would also say that you have to take advantage of opportunity. You can work very hard but if you let opportunity pass you by most of your hard work will be for naught. Some call opportunity "luck" but I just see most luck as awareness of opportunity and capitalizing on it.

That being said, it is very unlikely you will achieve any of your goals without hard work. Some do fall into opportunity and are able to capitalize on it without much hard work but that is rare in the everyday world. Most people get what they work for.

 

[kranky]

Let's set aside the scenarios where something is simply beyond the person's abilities (the music/art situations, et. al.).

Anyway, I find the vast majority of people not only don't work hard, they take pride in it. There is a lot of peer pressure against it, also. The slackers don't like to be shown up, so they try to get the hard workers to back off. How many times I've heard some one say "Why work hard, it doesn't get you anywhere" - in fact, they have never tried, and that's why they feel that way. Or they did it for a couple of weeks, and expected good things to start raining down on them immediately.

The person who works hard often stands out head-and-shoulders from the rest of the crowd. I can only say from my own experience, it's paid off handsomely. Develop the habit of working hard early, and it won't seem like a big deal.