Obsession is generally frowned upon by society, and yet so many of history’s greatest achievers were obsessives.
Why does society applaud the stories of Albert Einstein, Leonardo Da Vinci, and Michael Jordan, and yet discourage people from replicating their single-minded focus?
Come with me as we explore the complexity of obsession and to try and integrate these concepts with our existing understanding of the world.
Cheap Plastic
In one of the original episodes of his podcast (it’s very good, check it out here), Dr. Andrew Huberman discusses neuroplasticity, which is can be loosely defined as the capacity of the brain to change in response to stimulus.
This plasticity is important, as it enables us to change our behaviour, learn new things, unlearn traumatic experiences, and adjust our brains as means of optimizing life overall.
Unfortunately, as someone becomes older (from about 25 onwards), the plasticity of their brain significantly decreases. Despite this, Huberman explains that there remains a “Holy Grail” of plasticity, enabling you to change your brain in meaningful ways regardless of age. Analysing data from a relevant study, Huberman drew this conclusion:
“[This study indicates] that the plasticity as an adult can be as dramatic, as robust as it is in a young person or in a young animal subject, provided that there's a serious incentive for the plasticity to occur.”
In the experiment mentioned above, subjects were made to hunt for food and water in their environment to ensure their survival, which obviously constitutes a “serious incentive”. Obsession, I believe, is a means of accessing this untapped plasticity in whichever field you choose.
It makes sense, therefore, that a single-minded focus on one thing can replicate this level of plasticity in any given field or endeavour. The question is, does it actually equate to real-world results?
Repetition is Persuasive
David Senra hosts the extremely insightful Founder’s Podcast, where he reads and discusses the biographies of history’s greatest entrepreneurs. One of the key maxims that he consistently repeats is:
“The public praises people for what they practice in private.”
Excellence, Senra argues, requires people to do the same thing over and over again, often out of the public eye. Only through this repetition, he believes, can someone reach the heights of success. This sentiment is echoed by the highly successful entrepreneur Alex Hormozi:
“Most people can’t do one thing over and over again. You need to be able to do the doing without seeing the results of your doing.”
Surely, therefore, success in any given field necessitates some level of obsession. How else can one do the same thing repeatedly and without fail?
It was the great Albert Einstein who once said:
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”
To develop the skills necessary to move forward in life, maybe we must become a little bit insane. Perhaps—as is often the case in life—we have to learn how to balance this dichotomy in order to fulfil our potential, even if it might sound a bit strange on paper.
The average person lives a relatively inoffensive life, but they probably haven’t gotten where they wanted to go. Achievement is measured relative to the population, so the most successful among us—by definition—cannot be average. This is the eternal struggle for each of us as we walk along the edge of disorder towards meaning. Don’t seek a concrete answer, but learn to love the process of approaching it.
Is There a Middle Ground?
Kind of.
If you choose to dedicate 50% as much time to something as someone else, you will almost certainly yield less than 50% of rewards. Let’s crunch some numbers:
In 2021, legendary basketballer Steph Curry was paid an annual salary of $48.07 million USD. This is approximately 49070% of the average American income of $97,962 in the same year. Assuming that the average person works 40 hours a week, Curry would have to work 19628 hours a week (~163.6 days per weekday) for this level of pay to be proportional to his input of time.
The reality is this: by focusing on becoming world-class in a particular skill that society has deemed as valuable, Curry has made himself immensely valuable. As a consequence, his ability to earn money is leveraged to a point that almost seems unfair. We see this happening not just in athletes, but in CEOs, famous musicians, and skilled investors. These people have sacrificed most of their lives to become good at one thing, and—oftentimes—it shows.
This isn’t a recommendation or a warning, but rather a reminder of your theoretical capability. It’s up to you to weigh these decisions according to your values and priorities, but it’s important to understand that—regardless of your decision—there will always be a subset of the population that’s willing to give up everything to achieve excellence in your field.
A Worm in Your Apple
Depending on who you ask, Steve Jobs is possibly the greatest entrepreneur ever to have played the game.
Therefore, Walter Isaacson took on huge pressure when he was tasked with writing Jobs’ biography.
Isaacson once asked Jobs why—despite being such a private person—Jobs had voluntarily answered so many questions for the biography. This was his response:
“I wanted my kids to know me. I wasn’t always there for them, and I wanted them to know why and to understand what I did.”
Holy shit.
This man redefined the personal computer, was fired from his own company, and returned only to rescue it from bankruptcy. He founded what is now the world’s most valuable company, and he regrets not spending enough time with his family.
You and I have a finite amount of time and effort in our lives, and nobody knows exactly how finite it is. There is something to be said for concentrating this effort into a small number of meaningful pursuits, but—in my eyes—it remains crucial to live a balanced life. There’s no telling exactly where this balance lies, but you probably shouldn’t let that stop you from working to live an enjoyable, varied, productive life.
I want you to carry this perspective forward throughout your life. Almost always, there will be someone somewhere who is currently outworking you. But at what cost?
Regardless of your choice, remain grateful for the few obsessives who painstakingly built the technological and philosophical masterpieces on which today’s society is built.
At the end of the day, your values and actions are your responsibility, but it’s important to realise that—if you theoretically sacrifice everything in favour of one thing—you can move mountains.
Never stop thinking.
- Will