Effort and progress

There’s a common Thai saying: “Where there is effort, there is success.”

But I question this. Does effort always equal success? Does every attempt lead to victory? Perhaps this saying was coined in a time when outcomes were more predictable. For example: if you planted a mango tree (effort), you would eventually harvest mangoes (success). But in today’s world, where AI accelerates change daily, who can honestly say they don’t try? And who can predict that every effort will lead to success?

I believe in effort, but I also see success and failure as temporary states—fluid, not fixed. Take career growth as an example: if you get promoted this year, you might call it success. But if you remain in the same role next year, do you still see yourself as successful? The promotion that once symbolised achievement might later feel like stagnation—or even failure. Humans evolve continuously, and we are the ones who define what success means at each stage of life.

That’s why I believe: “Where there is effort, there is progress.” Some efforts don’t pay off immediately, but the world tends to reward those with an action bias. At the very least, effort guarantees one thing: you did something. And doing is what drives change. Action is the best form of learning—no one ever learned to ride a bike just by reading about it.

So maybe we should stop chasing a handful of “big” successes. Instead, we should seek daily progress—because we never know when today’s success will become tomorrow’s failure.