The last little bit | Seth’s Blog

Important hills usually get much steeper at the top.

99% of the training in competitive athletics is devoted to the last 1% of performance. A tenth of a second.

The same is true for squeezing the last bit of performance out of a car, a grape or a semiconductor. And healthcare, luxury goods and science as well.

As soon as we declare it important and invite the world to compete, the problems become more difficult.

Our experience tells us that more input leads to more output, but in asymptotic conditions, where competition is seeking to go to the very end of the curve, this rule is often suspended. The entire point of the competition is how extreme the last few steps are.

The options are pretty clear:

1. focus on activities where you’re in the sweet spot of the curve, where more preparation, focus and effort lead to huge benefits. This means walking away from competitions against people who are committed to being unreasonable.
2. embrace the unreasonable and accept that your competitors will as well.

While the unreasonable is thrilling, it’s difficult to build a sustainable career around it.

July 30, 2024