Einstein once remarked, "Success is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration." This mantra is often repeated, and has been the motto of many desiring such success. Yet, in today's world, there have been an increasing number of examples of people who have succeeded without much effort. So then, is hard work still required for success, or can it even guarantee success? Judging from evidence present in the world, hard work has never been able to guarantee success, but hard work could be needed to ensure success is possible.
First, let us look at the idea of success. Success can come in many forms, depending on the individual. Examples include success in one's career, but success is not just limited to the earning of money and power. People can also have a successful family life, or successful friendships. An environmental awareness project could be deemed a success, yet the success may not even be tangible, since it is difficult, or perhaps even impossible, to measure the growth in environmental awareness.
Economically, hard work has been the foundation of success for many. C.K. Tang's story about arriving in Singapore with nothing but a bit of cloth to sell has often been told. And his rags-to-riches tale is not unique. What is common in all these tales is the fact that the people involved all worked extremely hard. However, not everybody who works hard is guaranteed such success. Furthermore, in some cases, hard work may not he needed at all. During the dot.com craze in the mid to late 90's, 60 millionaires were being created a day. Yet few of those dot.coms had a sound business plan or idea. Amazon.com, one of the biggest dot.coms around, never posted a positive quarter, yet Jeff Bezos is now one of the richest people in the world.
Hard work is also not the only thing required for success. Nowadays, image also plays an important role. In America, it has been statistically shown that balding men