Overnight Success Stories Are Glorified BS

Unless we're keeping time in dog years.

Today’s guest post is brought to you by a dear friend whom I unabashedly idolize—

Veronica Llorca-Smith

. The topic is resonant AF, too, considering that when I met her on Medium in 2023, she had only just launched her writing career, and since then, I have watched her growth positively explode.

If you don’t yet know her, Veronica is a woman to watch. She has written five books in less than two years’ time—and her most recent one, The Anti-Procrastinor, was published by Penguin Random House.¹ She has simultaneously built a thriving business here on Substack while raising two daughters, traveling the world as a professional speaker and doing the occasional Iron Man for funsies.

Without question, Veronica knows a thing or two about what goes on behind the scenes of an apparent “overnight success.” And what I love about her is that she won’t sugar coat it just to sell you a dream and line her own pockets. What you’re about to read is as real as it gets.

Hello Rabbit Holers!

I’m really excited to join you down here and explore the darkest holes together . . .

I don’t know about you, but I’m fed up with overnight success stories: 6-figure agencies in record time, Substack Bestseller badges in weeks, fancy cars powered by a 20-hour workweek.

I’m feeling slightly inadequate here because that’s not my story at all.

Don’t get me wrong: I love seeing people win and achieve great things, but those same people only show the tip of the iceberg and conveniently brush off the full story, leaving the inconvenient details under a thick carpet of ego. And decontextualizing wins is a sophisticated form of manipulation, because success is not a freaking a la carte menu.

Sadly, though, “working hard” doesn’t seem to sell these days because it’s not what people want to hear. It’s not as sexy and appealing as a masterclass for fast growth, fast cash and a fast bikini body.

But worry not. Today, we are bringing sexy back.

As a triathlete, I love watching the Olympics, the races and the smiles and tears on the podium. I look up at winners in any field and turn that admiration into fuel for motivation and growth. Yes, a healthy version of jealousy.

But here is the deal: the Olympics are only a snapshot of an athlete’s life. In the Netflix documentary Sprint, you see and appreciate the ruthless behind-the-scenes, the incredible amount of sacrifice that happens in the dark when no one is clapping. Sure, genes matter, but it’s the bloody hard work that draws the line between the GOATS and the rest.

Behind every story of glory, from self-made millionaires to artists and top creators, lie years of sweat and invisible building blocks that hide below the surface.

Underneath the Iceberg

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt once said,

“I trained 4 years to run 9 seconds, and people give up when they don't see results in 2 months.”

Warren Buffett holds one of the largest fortunes in the world, but not many are aware that he started investing when he was 11. He wasn’t an investment genius—he created the genius by studying, reading and dedicating his life to mastering the psychology of money.

David Goggins is my favorite nutcase. In this book, Can’t Hurt Me, he shares his journey towards breaking the world record of pull-ups in 2013. He was the underdog, the obese guy out of nowhere who had every excuse to fail in life, and he proved everyone wrong by showing what’s possible when you put in the reps pull-ups. 4,030 in 17 hours, to be precise.

One of my gal crushes is Whitney Wolfe Her, the youngest self-made female billionaire in 2021. The reason I admire her is not because of her bank account (that too), but because she had one of the best comebacks in history. Whitney was one of the original founders of Tinder; however, things turned ugly: she was bullied out of her own company and ended up back home, dealing with depression and mental health issues. It took her two years to get back on her feet, and boy, she did! She outsmarted the all-boys club by launching Bumble, a dating platform that empowers women and puts them in the driver’s seat—the first of its kind. No more 🍆 pictures, harassing messages and unsolicited sexism in your inbox. Bumble is now a multi-billion-dollar business. Queen B is showing us how it’s done, after a hell of a lot of hard work.

CTO Larsson is one of the top voices in the crypto space. With over 500,000 followers, his YouTube channel is a gem, and his digital courses on investing are worth every penny for crypto enthusiasts. He has become an icon for crypto enthusiasts and has built a considerable reputation for himself. But Larsson isn’t just an unbelievably gifted—and funny—tech guy. He’s been working his ass off for years, being on top of the markets, following the latest trends and anticipating investment opportunities ahead of the masses. He’s got his eyes on the ball, and he's constantly stepping up his game to stay relevant.

Michael Phelps never attributed his gold medals to nature but to the extra hours of training he spent in the pool, which gave him an advantage over his competitors. He often swam 80km a week, averaging 5 to 6 hours a day in the pool.

If you want to become a legend, you first have to put in legendary work.

Success is a Mindset

You see the trend here, and it’s not a random coincidence.

Overnight success stories are glorified BS.

Top athletes, self-made tycoons, bestsellers . . . the people leading the charts don’t have a one-night stand with success. They have a committed relationship with it based on discipline and hard work, and they are proud of it. They spend years mastering the craft, always going the extra mile. And they are never done. Because the markets change, technology evolves, competitors get better and consumers’ preferences shift.

The common pattern here is that success is not a destination, or even a journey: it’s a mindset. One of hard work, resilience and humility. If you ask the people who are at the top, they won’t lie to you. They will tell you how hard things were and how much effort it took them to conquer the peak.

And that’s pretty damn inspiring if you ask me.

So yeah, it’s time to bring sexy back.

3 Questions for You

What is one skill that would transform your business if you focused on it for 6 months?

Are you ready to put in the hard work?

What’s holding you back?

If you enjoyed this, check out my Substack, The Lemon Tree Mindset 🌳🍋

Can I Interest You in a Rabbit Hole?

Here are some additional resources to makeover your mindset:

A Better Life is One Delusion Away
5 Weird Ways to 4x Your Income
“Jack-of-all-trades, Master of None” Isn’t a Bad Thing

1. I hate Amazon with the passion of 1,000 flaming suns, but that’s the only place to get it right now, and this is a testament to how much I love her. And also, that’s an affiliate link, so if you buy it, Amazon will graciously pay me 1.2 cents.