My point is that I don't think most people understand the nature of the enemy. Most of the bad stuff in the world doesn't flow directly from a few powerful, evil people, but rather from the mass of flavorless mediocrity they push us to become. Somewhere right now, a human being is in a hospital shitting himself to death because some line cook didn't wash his hands, because he wasn't given quite enough time to do it. A corner cut here, a phoned-in effort to meet a deadline there. They're not trying to turn you into a villain, they're trying to turn you into mush.
It is worth resisting, if at all possible. In a system in which routine work is quickly being swallowed up by machines, being extraordinary at something matters even more. But it is harder than you think. Much harder. Much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much, much harder. Especially if you walk into it sneering to yourself about how the world sets such a low bar for quality. You're right, it does! Whoa, don't try clearing it yet -- here, put on this backpack full of bricks first.
You'll may find yourself backing away, full of rationalizations. Why be great at a job just to make your stupid boss rich? Why excel in a corrupt system? Why not just withdraw and wait for the world to change, hold out for a time when everyone gets treated equally regardless of whether or not they happen to have some kind of marketable skill? You know, the way you treat the UPS driver equally regardless of whether they put your package by the door or fling it into your neighbor's kiddie pool.
And besides, don't great, talented people still get screwed on a daily basis? Aren't some of your favorite movies box office flops? Don't some of the most remarkable people you know still struggle to pay the rent? Yes, yes, and yes. Being great at something -- locking in on that thing and being relentless about improving it at all costs -- is still your best chance. Even if it doesn't work out like you thought, even if the system is inherently unfair to trailblazers. Remember, you're talking to someone who as a kid in the early '90s had only two goals: to invent a personal communication/computing device which I tentatively called the "iPhone 6," and to be the white member of Run the Jewels. The world had other plans.