Why Must We Work Hard?

The vast majority of ordinary people have obsessions and habits handed down to them by a crowd of people who never figured out their own lives. In other words, they're born in a pile of mistakes, spinning in it—so how can you expect them to make correct choices?

A person can only choose within the world they already know. If you've only ever seen 1, 2, 3, then you can only pick among those; you can't choose 4, 5, or 6 because you have no idea those options even exist.

Effort is what lets you see the 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 hidden beyond—options that let you break through into an entirely different life trajectory.