In the Rocky training montage, thirty seconds of relentless effort is all it takes to push forward. If real life worked like that, anyone could do it. But the real-life training montage stretches across three, five, even ten years, with no visible reward, no light at the end of the tunnel. And in the meantime, life doesn’t pause for you. The unpaid bills, the sick dog, the broken relationship, the stolen car, the flooded apartment, the monotony of daily life, the laughs of others, the gloomy weather—even your own body starts to betray you. You have to endure all of it while staying focused, while relentlessly devoting yourself to your goal.