A speaker argues that real success takes a decade of sustained effort, not overnight. He shares a professor's metaphor about standing on a table with two people below: one you lift up, another pulling you down. The key is raising both while distancing yourself from those who drag you under.
Most people settle for less than they're capable of, mainly because they're not prepared to do the work to get to that next level. It takes a lot of work to get to where people are at. People are often envious of successful people, but most people don't tell you that the overnight success story was a ten year long night. At the end of the day, I never forget being on a plane the one time I always have this intention when I'm flying. I get on a plane and say, put the right person next to me, that's going to teach me something. And I got on this flight the one time there was a 21 year old girl that was sitting there. I got to know her age by chatting with her and I was like, what's she going to teach me? Which is a little bit arrogant, a little bit egotistical, but you know what? I sat down and said, be humble. And she said to me, you know, I'm at university and one of my professors said to me, life is like standing on a table. There's two people below you, one person you're trying to put onto the table and the other, the other person below is attempting to pull you off the table. Who most often wins, of course, is the one attempting to pull you off the table. Your life should be about raising both people onto the table and let go of those ones that try to pull you off the table. The biggest part to life is surrounding yourself with the right people who want to raise your game, support you on your goals, and raise you to a next level that you never thought possible.
