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Chapter 24: The Effort Paradox

Chapter 24: The Effort Paradox

the secret to joining the 1%, jerry seinfeld, and a pottery class

Eric Dodds
May 17, 2025

I used to think talent was everything.

That the best writers, athletes, and creators were just built different.

Some creative gene. Some hidden talent. Some divine gift that made it easy.

But I was wrong.

Here’s the truth:

The more effortless something looks, the more effort it took to make it that way.

That’s the Effort Paradox.

Let’s talk about it.

Seinfeld’s Rule

Jerry Seinfeld is a billionaire.

He’s been at the top of comedy for decades.

And he still writes every day.

His rule?

“You don’t have to write. But you can’t do anything else.”

Same time. Every day.

No distractions. No scrolling. Just you and the desk.

Eventually, boredom wins — and the words come out.

It’s not glamorous.

But that’s how great work gets made:
In the dark. Behind closed doors. Reps no one sees.

The Pottery Parable

There’s a famous story about a ceramics teacher.

On day one, he splits the class in two:

Group A is graded on quantity — the number of pots they make.
Group B is graded on quality — one “perfect” pot.

By semester’s end, who made the best work?

Group A.

Why?

Because while the “quality” group sat around theorizing about perfection…

The “quantity” group made stuff.

They failed. Learned. Iterated.

You don’t reach mastery by aiming for perfect.
You get there by making more pots.

The Power of Streaks

Last year, I bought a wall calendar the size of a damn window.

At first, I planned to use it for trips and big life moments.

But it turned into something else:

A workout tracker.

Red = run
Blue = bike
Green = swim

Every day I trained, I added a mark.

It sounds silly — but watching those colors stack up? Wildly motivating.

Each “X” was small. But over time?

They became momentum.

Ten months later? They added up to an Ironman.

You don’t need a breakthrough.
You need a streak.

The Trap of “Effortless”

The internet loves to glamorize the end result:

The polished product.
The clean aesthetic.
The founder who “just had an idea and launched.”

But what you don’t see?

The 100 practice videos.
The 200 bad drafts.
The first 5 failed ideas.

“Effortless” is a vibe.

But it’s never the truth.

Behind every smooth performance is a mountain of invisible work.

Try This Today

Forget talent.

The edge goes to the one who trains.

Pick something you want to be great at. Then ask:

What would it look like to practice this every day for 6 months?
What’s the smallest unit of progress I can track?
How can I see my progress build?

Start there:

Write 100 words
Record one short video
Run 1 mile

Track it visually.

The work won’t feel magical.

But if you keep showing up?

It starts to look that way.

Wrapping Up

The people who make it look easy?

They’re not better than you.

They’ve just been at it longer.

They’ve stacked the hours.
Built the streak.
Honed the skill.

So if it feels hard right now — good.

That means you’re doing the part no one sees.

And if you stick with it?

One day, people will call it talent.

But you’ll know the truth.

Rooting for ya,
Dodds