There are no shortcuts

There are no shortcuts to success. Whether it be in athletics, academics, or business, excellence is achieved not from luck and natural talent (although those certainly play a part), but from work ethic and desire.

Yet everywhere we look, we are presented with shortcuts. Shortcuts to weight loss, shortcuts to higher test scores, and shortcuts to business success. Entire industries are built on our societies laziness (liposuction comes to mind).

You ARE NOT going to lose 20 lbs in a week (but with proper diet and exercise you can lose it over the course of a year)

You ARE NOT going to look like Joey Porter by going to the gym a few times (but after a few years of working out and a strict diet you can get there)

You ARE NOT going to rock that damn Organic Chemistry final exam without any studying (but put in a few hours a day for a few weeks and you will)

You ARE NOT going to have your company featured on the front page of the NY Times a week after you launch (but with a few years of hard work you can get there, in the meantime you should embrace your suckiness)

You ARE NOT going to sell 1,000,000,000,000 of your widgets in your first month in business (but after a few years of steady growth you certainly can reach that number...or a similar number with less 0's)

There are always exceptions to the rule, but you shouldn't expect to be one of those exceptions. That leads to a sense of entitlement that only leads to disappointment. Ultimately you control your success in life. The sooner you believe that, the sooner you can start on the track towards meeting your goals. There is no substitute for hard work - there are no shortcuts.