Through out trial and error, reverse engineering and process refining, it is fair to say that we managed to design a blueprint for success.

Let’s say you want to learn a foreign language, get in shape, start a business or even get laid? The blueprint is laid out for you. It is accessible. Available on the internet, mostly for free.

There are no longer gate keepers for such knowledge. You do not have to be part of a secret society or an elitist to gain access or opportunities.

And still, very very few actually achieve this level of success. Only few become millionaires, get 6-pack abs, learn to speak 3 languages and travel the world.

But why?

Why only few manage to reach this level when the blueprint is already out there? Why only few manage to become successful when all the footsteps are actually paved down for us?

1) Talent.

Whenever I hear someone saying hard work beats talent, my bullshit detector goes off!

Talent always wins. Every single time.

You are born with it, or don’t bother. There is no amount of wishing will make you have it. Any counter-argument you have is merely rage; rage against nature and unequal distribution of talent. Rage that genius appears, whenever it wants to appear with no materialistic reason whatsoever.

Think: Shakespeare, Jimmy Page, LeBron James.

2) Luck.

The big elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about. No matter how hard you work or how talented you are, if luck doesn’t smile in your face, you won’t get so far in this life.

You can call it chance. Fate. God. Randomness. Whatever you want to call it, it might be one of the most deciding factor on how your life will unfold.

Think: Mark Zuckerberg, Megan Fox.

3) Relentlessness.

Interestingly enough, this factor is also not something you have much control over. You are either born with it, or you develop it at an early young age.

Some people are simply not satisfied by what this world has to offer. They always want more. Their soul is set on fire, burning them from the inside.They never stop until they get it. And once they do, they want more and more. They never stop. They never give up. No matter what life throws in their faces, there is a mysterious force that keeps pushing them forward. Until death or victory.

Think: Elon Musk, Thomas Edison, Muhammad Ali.

These are the reasons why you have been reading books on how to become a millionaire, and you will never become one. This is why you go to the gym every day and you never seem to get in shape. This is why you are not an NBA player or a Formula-1 driver.

This is why you aren’t great.

This is why you are not in the 1%.