The Harder You Work, the Luckier You Get: An Entrepreneur's Memoir

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In 1913 the fantasy author L. Frank Baum, creator of the famous World of Oz, uses the maxim variant that hails knowledge [OZP]: The first half of the book was a 5, the 2nd half was a 2. It was a great entrepreneur journey defying the odds and fighting through many obstacles. But the version that Barber is quoted saying does not contain the word “practice”. Indeed, the version Barber uses invokes “hard work” and that variant appears more than a decade earlier in 1949 as shown further below. It is possible that Barber also used a version of the maxim containing the word “practice”, and Gary Player heard or was told of that version.

Suppose you are a house builder. You cannot build a house without first acquiring the land, getting the necessary permits, and assembling a team of workers. Once you have taken these steps, you can begin construction. But if you do not take action, your dream of owning a home will never become a reality. As the saying goes: Don’t Wish for it. Work for it. Admittedly, about 30 minutes through the conversation, my mind began to wander. Another common practice in our family, ha! But it dawned on me just how far my sister and I have come, both professionally and in developing a genuine relationship with each other with meaningful discussion. And so after that 30 minute mark, I interrupted my sister. "Roxie, how wild is this? Did we ever expect to be having conversations about data and customer journeys with each other... and actually understanding and enjoying the passionate dialogue?" And that's the secret ingredient. Passion. Hard work will take you pretty far - but that hard work can only take you so far. You need to feel connected to your work. You need to feel excited. Have a sense of drive. A sense of purpose. This is what gets you over the big finish line - and makes you crave the next challenge. Quote Investigator: Gary Player is a very fine golfer, but he is not responsible for this well-known maxim. The best evidence that he did not coin the adage is in a book written by Player himself in 1962 where he credits the aphorism to fellow golfer Jerry Barber. Before discussing that book QI will review support for Player and some other claimants to the phrase. The earliest instance of the expression found by QI that uses the word “practice” is not from a golfer. It appears in a memoir published in 1961 by a soldier of fortune during the Cuban revolution. Update History: On May 4 2016 the October, 2002 “Golf Digest” citation was added. It had inadvertently been omitted from the article.I understood when she told me how her family had lost their farms that she was again teaching me a lesson in how to act right. If you wanted what she called a nice life, you had to make it yourself. You had to work hard every day, and when you got what you were after, you had to keep working hard because you could lose it all. And so, I understood early that I had to succeed on my own.

I believe in Communism. Rom-communism, that is. If Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan can go through some heartfelt struggles and still end up happy, then so can we."

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Sometime after the party, it was discovered that the new bull was diseased. It might have had tuberculosis or hoof-and-mouth, a deadly infection that could spread through a community and ruin all the farmers around. This was before science understood the transmission of the disease, so to make sure it would not pass beyond my grandfather's farm, his entire herd had to be destroyed. Once the vet made his diagnosis, my grandfather had no more say in the matter. The state sent men to dig an enormous hole, drive the animals in, slaughter them all, and fill the hole with dirt. There are few true overnight successes. Behind what looks like sudden success is often years of work, trial and error, and failures. But the harder you work, the more good ideas and chances you may make for yourself. For me, success is not about the wins and losses. It's about helping these young fellas be the best versions of themselves on and off the field." My mother didn’t tell their story all at once. There were many different parts and versions, and they would come out while she was cleaning the house or painting, home all day with us kids and thirsty for someone to talk to. I can picture her with her sleeves rolled and her hair tied up in a scarf—she reminded me of the wartime poster of Rosie the Riveter, with the slogan “We Can Do It!” Like my father, she was a person resigned to adversity, but she could not talk about her family history without emotion. Yet, 1961 is the date of the earliest instance of the aphorism that QI has located that uses the word “practice”. It appears in a book titled “The Devil to Pay” and is used by a soldier of fortune. (Thanks to ace researcher Bonnie Taylor-Blake for verifying this citation on paper.) The following passage describes a man being killed with a single shot [DTP]:

That was what he wanted me to understand: the effect this tool could have on their work and their lives. In that sense, he had an innovator's eye, not because he had invented the buzz saw but because he saw the possible benefit in it. I did not need to know the concept of productivity or the term early adopter. I could hear the meaning in my father's voice and see it in the men's smiling, sawdust-covered faces. Building Reputation: A strong work ethic can help build your reputation in the industry. Partners, investors, and clients are drawn to entrepreneurs who are known for their dedication and reliability. This can open up numerous opportunities for your business.Each of them, I felt, honored me by taking an interest in me. I learned social skills that many other young men, who knew only school and sports, didn’t learn, and that gave me an advantage. They helped to shape me and also, I would realize later, to shape my ideas on how a business owner should treat their employees.