History Main / HardWorkFallacy

For example, sometimes ''[[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections whom]]'' [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections you know]] is more important than ''[[EncyclopaedicKnowledge what]]'' [[EncyclopaedicKnowledge you know]]. Or, your [[AllLoveIsUnrequited unrequited]] LoveInterest isn't dating ''you'' [[OccamsRazor because they're already dating and satisfied with someone else]]. Or, the so-called SelfMadeMan ''did'' indeed have help from other people, even if it wasn't direct or reserved only for him (e.g., parental or public education, housing, healthcare, etc.). In addition, it is a fallacy because it is ''unfalsifiable''; i.e., no matter how hard you worked, if you failed others could just claim however much you worked wasn't "hard enough", and never lay out an explicit definition of how much work is required to do whatever it is.

* The 2003 ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemist'' anime series is built on the idea of EquivalentExchange: if you put X in, then you get X out. Yes, it is a Real Life scientific law proven by UsefulNotes/IsaacNewton, but in-universe, it is also treated as a philosophy to live by. The final villain [[{{Deconstruction}} attempts to prove that real life is not so neat or predictable]] in order to [[BreakThemByTalking break the heroes near the final leg of the series]]. [[spoiler: Edward is also told point-blank by his father (who's the closest thing this series has to a BigGood) that the world in no way works according to an EquivalentExchange system. A major point in his argument is that nothing he could personally give up would be worth having two wonderful sons.]]
* The ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' manga (and accompanying anime) deconstructs this from the opening narration. "Back then, we really thought that was humanity's one and only truth." It's repeatedly pointed out that just because the exchange is ''equivalent'' doesn't mean it's worth it, or even anywhere close to what you were expecting. Even though some things thought impossible can be bought with enough alchemy (like immortality or godhood), the price is too high and it is quick to backfire. [[spoiler:At the end, Al decides to travel the world with the philosophy of giving ''more'' than what he receives in return, in order to enrich the world instead of just turning it into an endless series of deals]].

* Almost any time someone unironically uses the phrase "pull yourself up by your bootstraps", it's a combination of this and CompletelyMissingThePoint, as the original meaning of that saying was something like "do something patently impossible (or claim you did)", which should be obvious if you know what bootstraps actually are (for those who don't, they are those little things sometimes attached to shoes to make them easier to pull on, and, believe it or not [[CaptainObvious no matter how hard you pull on your own shoes, you can't make yourself float off the ground.]])

* GeniusBurnout: Your innate talent won't get you very far, you have to work for it.

* In ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' only the strongest and most worthy will emerge from their training group a Sith. [[TrainingFromHell The rest usually all perish]]. This trope's mentality is ingrained within Sith teachings. The problems with this soon become rather self-evident. The Sith trials serve the grim purpose of weeding out those who would not last long in [[TheEmpire the Sith Empire]], but if there's more than one capable acolyte, [[ThereCanOnlyBeOne only one can emerge alive]]. So, in the long run, this means that working hard to be strong enough to be a Sith isn't enough if there happens to be a more powerful rival in your group. This is made worse by the fact that some individuals are simply ''born'' with a stronger affinity with the Force than many could ever hope to learn. The Sith Warrior's storyline has you play the role of a powerful young acolyte from an ancient [[InTheBlood Sith bloodline]] who has been brought into the Sith trials at the last minute. The strongest member of the group, Vemrin, fought his way up from nothing against Sith snobbery. Unfortunately for Vemrin, this new arrival is one of the most powerful acolytes to ever set foot in the Sith Academy. After the inevitable confrontation, and despite giving everything, Vemrin is slain.

* A cornerstone of some American politicians' ideals is that anyone can be "rich". This idea is the basis of UsefulNotes/TheAmericanDream, but is difficult to reconcile with reality, as it ignores multiple factors like where you grew up, whether you had a good support environment or whether or not you were safe in your home or at school, and even pure dumb luck. It also isn't even close to possible for an ''entire society'' to live the life of millionaires since somebody has to clean the toilets, at least until we become advanced enough to develop robotics more cost-effective than cheap labour.[[note]]It's also been argued that toilet-cleaning, trash-collecting, etc. should be high-paying jobs, expressing thanks and esteem to those who do such work. Even in pure market terms, demand for sanitation is most certainly high enough to warrant it on paper.[[/note]] The basic concept of supply and demand also means that in order for money to be worth what it is, some people must have not enough of it.

* In ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' only the strongest and most worthy will emerge from their training group a Sith. [[TrainingFromHell The rest usually all perish]]. This trope's mentality is ingrained within Sith teachings. The problems with this soon become rather self-evident. The Sith trials serve the grim purpose of weeding out those who would not last long in [[TheEmpire the Sith Empire]], but if there's more than one capable acolyte, [[ThereCanOnlyBeOne only one can emerge alive]]. So, in the long run, this means that working hard to be strong enough to be a Sith isn't enough if there happens to be a more powerful rival in your group. This is made worse by the fact some individuals are simply ''born'' with a stronger affinity with the Force than many could ever hope to learn. The Sith Warrior's storyline has you play the role of a powerful young acolyte from an ancient [[InTheBlood Sith bloodline]] who has been brought into the Sith trials at the last minute. The strongest member of the group, Vemrin, fought his way up from nothing against Sith snobbery. Unfortunately for Vemrin, this new arrival is one of the most powerful acolytes to ever set foot in the Sith Academy. After the inevitable confrontation, and despite giving everything, Vemrin is slain.

* Mr. Money Mustache (who famously "retired" in his late-''twenties'' after saving hundreds of thousands of dollars from his job, and then lived off the interest) falls into this. Basically, he runs a blog on how to save a lot and be rich in only several years. Those who argue the absurdity of his steps[[note]]for example, MMM [[https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2013/07/25/50-jobs-over-50000-without-a-degree-part-1 suggested among other things]] being a [=YouTuber=] to make a decent living, while someone argued that few ''can'' succeed at it regardless of how hard they work[[/note]] are mocked as "complainypants" and "not being badass enough". It doesn't help that he (and his wife, who supported him all the way) got near six-figure incomes ''right out of college'', something even the hardest-working people cannot get. In short, it required ''all'' the right things to happen to him (including not getting major illness, or a divorce, or a job market bust) to succeed.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': The episode "Bart Gets an F" was a deconstruction of this fallacy. Bart has been failing his history class and is in danger of being {{held back in school}} unless he can pass his final exam. He struggles greatly, but still buckles down and does his very best to study and prepare for the test. Then, the day he finally takes the test...[[YankTheDogsChain he still fails.]] This was meant to teach the lesson that we can do everything right and still fail, and that hard work does not always guarantee success (especially poignant since Bart seems to genuinely struggle with the material instead of just being a lazy underachiever.)

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': The concept was discussed in "Hurricane Fluttershy". Fluttershy had several problems with flying fast, including childhood trauma and her not being the athletic type anyways. Even with all the training she did during the episode, her wing power remained mediocre at best. Still, what mattered most in the end was not her inability to brute force outstanding results through hard work alone, but that she had the courage to face her fears and was there for Rainbow Dash in a time of need.

* A cornerstone of some American politicians' ideals is that anyone can be "rich". This idea is the basis of UsefulNotes/TheAmericanDream, but is difficult to reconcile with reality, as it ignores multiple factors like where you grew up, whether you had a good support environment or whether or not you were safe in your home or at school, and even pure dumb luck. It also isn't even close to possible for an ''entire society'' to live the life of millionaires since somebody has to clean the toilets, at least until we become advanced enough to develop robotics more cost-effective than cheap labour.[[note]]It's also been argued that toilet-cleaning, trash-collecting, etc. should be high-paying jobs, expressing thanks and esteem to those who do such work. Even in pure market terms, demand for sanitation is most certainly high enough to warrant it on paper.[[/note]]

* The fallacy of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivorship_bias survivorship bias]] thrives on this. To name a few examples, it's all too easy to forget that for every Google and Facebook that become Silicon Valley giants, there are dozens that crashed and burned like Webvan, Pets.com, Boo.com, and Friendster. Much is made of Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates dropping out of university to make it big in the tech sector, with little mention that they already had the affluent family backgrounds and university and business connections, or that the universities they dropped out of were already nearly impossible to get into, such as Zuckerberg getting admitted to ''Harvard''. There's even less mention of the many university dropouts who wind up with [[PerpetualPoverty massive debts]] and [[SoulSuckingRetailJob dead-end jobs]] -- let alone the people who ''do'' finish college, get a degree, do everything right, and ''still'' -- often owing to the way management manipulates things -- end up in the unemployment line, on job-hunting websites, attending endless "workshops" and trying to "network".
* Almost any time someone unironically uses the phrase "Pull yourself up by your bootstraps", it's a combination of this and CompletelyMissingThePoint, as the original meaning of that saying was something like "Do something patently impossible (or claim you did)", which should be obvious if you know what bootstraps actually are (for those who don't, they are those little things sometimes attached to shoes to make them easier to pull on, and, believe it or not [[CaptainObvious no matter how hard you pull on your own shoes, you can't make yourself float off the ground.]])

* The 2003 ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemist'' anime series is built on the idea of EquivalentExchange: if you put X in, then you get X out. Yes, it is a Real Life scientific law proven by UsefulNotes/IsaacNewton, but in-universe, it is also treated as a philosophy to live by. The final villain [[{{Deconstruction}} attempts to prove that real life is not so neat or predictable]] in order to [[BreakThemByTalking break the heroes near the final leg of the series]]. [[spoiler: Edward is also told point-blank by his father (Who's the closest thing this series has to a BigGood) that the world in no way works according to an EquivalentExchange system. A major point in his argument is that nothing he could personally give up would be worth having two wonderful sons.]]

* GeniusBurnout: Your innate talent means that you will succeed, disregarding issues of emotional stability, [[CelebrityIsOverrated dealing with minor levels of fame]] or [[IJustWantToBeNormal being separated from your average friends and loved ones]].

* RagsToRiches: From poor to rich, though not necessarily through hard work. [[GoldDigger Marrying someone who was already wealthy]] and winning the lottery are all valid examples for this trope.

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* On ''Series/MyNameIsEarl'', Earl gets a promotion from docker to appliance salesman based on hard work and determination, despite teasing from everyone else...and wins their respect. (The episode is a parody of the above-mentioned ''Film/{{Rudy}}'', even featuring a few of the actors from that movie.)

* In ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' only the strongest and most worthy will emerge from their training group a Sith. [[TrainingFromHell The rest usually all perish]]. This trope's mentality is ingrained within Sith teachings. The problems with this soon become rather self-evident. The Sith trials serve the grim purpose of weeding out those who would not last long in [[TheEmpire The Sith Empire]] but if there's more than one capable acolyte, [[ThereCanOnlyBeOne only one can emerge alive]]. So, in the long run, this means working hard to be strong enough to be a Sith isn't enough if there happens to be a more powerful rival in your group. This is made worse by the fact some individuals are simply ''born'' with a stronger affinity with the Force than many could ever hope to learn. The Sith Warrior's storyline has you play the role of a powerful young acolyte from an ancient [[InTheBlood Sith bloodline]] who has been brought into the Sith trials at the last minute. The strongest member of the group, Vemrin, fought his way up from nothing against Sith snobbery. Unfortunately for Vemrin, this new arrival is one of the most powerful acolytes to ever set foot in the Sith Academy. After the inevitable confrontation, and despite giving everything, Vemrin is slain.

[[/folder]]
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* Mr. Money Mustache (who famously "retired" in his late-''twenties'' after saving hundreds of thousands of dollars from his job, and then lived off the interest) falls into this. Basically, he runs a blog on how to save a lot and be rich in only several years. Those who argue the absurdity of his steps[[note]]for example, MMM [[https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2013/07/25/50-jobs-over-50000-without-a-degree-part-1 suggested among other things]] being a [=YouTuber=] to make a decent living, while someone argued that few ''can'' succeed at it[[/note]] are mocked as "complainypants" and "not being badass enough". It doesn't help that he (and his wife, who supported him all the way) got near six-figure incomes ''right out of college'', something very few people can do. In short, it required ''all'' the right things to happen to him (including not getting major illness, or a divorce, or a job market bust) to succeed.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': The episode "Bart Gets an F" was a deconstruction of this fallacy. Bart has been failing his History class and is in danger of being {{held back in school}} unless he can pass his final exam. He struggles greatly, but still buckles down and does his very best to study and prepare for the test. Then, the day he finally takes the test... [[YankTheDogsChain he still fails]]. This was meant to teach the lesson that we can do everything right and still fail, and that hard work does not always guarantee success (especially poignant since Bart seems to genuinely struggle with the material instead of just being a lazy underachiever.)

** The is the crux of Frank Grimes' conflict with Homer in "Homer's Enemy". Grimes has had to work hard his whole life for minimal reward, and is enraged at the idea of a person like Homer having a comfortable life with many luxuries in spite of his incompetence and character flaws.

* The fallacy of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivorship_bias survivorship bias]] thrives on this. To name a few examples, it's all too easy to forget that for every Google and Facebook that become Silicon Valley giants, there are dozens that crashed and burned like Webvan, Pets.com, Boo.com, and Friendster. Much is made of Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates dropping out of university to make it big in the tech sector, with little mention that they already had the affluent family backgrounds and university and business connections, or that the universities they dropped out of were already nearly impossible to get into, such as Zuckerberg getting admitted to ''Harvard''. There's even less mention of the many university dropouts who wind up with [[PerpetualPoverty massive debts]] and [[SoulSuckingRetailJob dead-end jobs]] -- let alone the people who ''do'' finish college, get a degree, do everything right, and ''still'' -- often owing to the way management manipulates things -- end up in the unemployment line, on job-hunting websites, attending endless "workshops" and trying to "network". (For a quietly nightmarish look at this end of things, read Barbara Ehrenreich's ''Bait and Switch'').

* Discussed in [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-things-rich-people-need-to-stop-saying/ 6 Things Rich People Need to Stop Saying]] from ''Website/{{Cracked}}''.
* The "Journalist" Tim Pool relies on this fallacy a lot, including an unintentionally hilarious instance where, after stating in a tweet all you need to succeed is hard work and perseverance, someone posited a hypothetical where two loggers were in a forest. One of them had a big logging machine, whereas the other just had an ordinary hatchet. When asked if the hatchet guy really had a fair chance against the machine guy, Tim responded with something like "Yeah, if [[PoesLaw the guy in the machine was asleep.]]"

->''"If you believe that dedication and passion alone will give birth to to equivalent results, then you're living in a naive dream."''

%%[[folder:Web Original]]
%%* [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-things-rich-people-need-to-stop-saying/ 6 Things Rich People Need to Stop Saying]] from ''Website/{{Cracked}}''.
%%[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-things-rich-people-need-to-stop-saying/ 6 Things Rich People Need to Stop Saying]] from ''Website/{{Cracked}}''.
[[/folder]]

-->-- '''Lin Setsu A ''', ''Series/ThunderboltFantasy''

* JapaneseSpirit: Persistence and hard work is one of three major values for the concept of "Yamato-Damashii". The idea being that if you work hard enough, your [[DieOrFly true power]] will be revealed.
* RagsToRiches: From poor to rich but not necessarily through hard work. [[GoldDigger Marrying someone who was already wealthy]] and winning the lottery are all valid examples for this trope.

* TrainingMontage: By working hard (TrainingFromHell level hard) you [[TookALevelInBadass take a level in badass]]. (''Gonna Fly Now'' from the ''Franchise/{{Rocky}}'' Franchise is optional.)

For example, sometimes ''[[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections whom]]'' [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections you know]] is more important than ''[[EncyclopaedicKnowledge what]]'' [[EncyclopaedicKnowledge you know]]. Or your [[AllLoveIsUnrequited unrequited]] LoveInterest isn't dating ''you'' [[OccamsRazor because they're already dating and satisfied with someone else]]. Or the so-called SelfMadeMan ''did'' indeed have help from other people, even if it wasn't direct or reserved only for him (e.g. parental or public education, housing, healthcare, etc). In addition, it is a fallacy because it is ''unfalsifiable'' i.e. no matter how hard you worked, if you failed others could just claim however much you worked wasn't "hard enough", and never lay out an explicit definition of how much work is required to do whatever it is.