I ran across two unrelated things this week that reminded me how easy it is to forget that the formula for success is really a lot simpler than we make it out to be. Especially as the economy tanks and people from StartupLand waste countless hours second guessing what this will mean for those seeking funding/exits/etc., it's great to keep these things in mind.

The first was a video of Michael Crichton being interviewed by Charlie Rose which incredibly refreshing. After Charlie asks Crichton what the secret of his success is, the latter responds non-chalantly that it is just hard work. It's great because it is such an atypical super successful person answer; what is better is that he then admits that he doesn't even consider himself a super talented writer, but just one who worked really really hard to get there (for more on how important this is for writing, check out this great book).

The second was a post by Brent Simmons, developer extraordinaire on what it takes to become a successful independent Mac developer (quoted via Daring Fireball):

You have to work every day. You have to sit in the chair and stay seated. And sleep and come back to the chair. You need to wear out that chair and then buy a new one and then wear out that one.

Both of these also reminded me of the upcoming Gladwell book on outliers and how they go there. In a recent New York magazine piece, the author reveals some of Gladwell's research where a psychologist has uncovered that it takes about 10,000 hours of serious work to become truly expert at anything.

Too bad working hard is well— so hard.