Success has always bred success—or at least a hunger for it. I always think about stories like the first four-minute mile or the Fosbury Flop. People just assume that something is too difficult, or even impossible, until they see someone do it. And then it opens the door for them to do it.

And this is especially true when we see someone relatable accomplish something big. Gary Vee and entrepreneurs like him aren’t any smarter than most reasonably intelligent people, and they don’t start with an inordinate or unachievable amount of outside resources. What they do is use what they have and the power of their own will and personality to go out and achieve, and that inspires like-minded people to do the same.

It’s why we study success stories. It’s why we network with successful people. We’re building up enough ‘career capital’ or inspiration or new resources to leverage into a life we want.

The problem is we sometimes forget that getting from the starting line to the finish line means actually running the race. The examples in my post—they’re basically thinking in terms of ‘I got here, I put on the shoes, I wore the number, and when the gun sounded I left my mark. Where’s my trophy?’ They forgot that there’s a whole race, and all the pain and struggle and euphoria and joy that comes with it, between the start line and the finish line.

Or that’s how I see it. Your mileage may vary!