Practice makes perfect. May be it’s the first thing that comes to mind. Whether in school or in they society, you will always find people around you who seem to get better grades by just relying on their natural talent. On the other hand, you may have spent a lot of time studying but still can't remember the material nor understand complex theories no matter how many times you study them.
You think it's certainly due to the difference in talent. And after reading many books on success or watching motivational speech in YouTube, you were told the solution is to keep working hard. You believe that someday, after putting in enough effort, you can compete with the top students.
Like the fable of the Tortoise and the Hare, the persevering turtle will someday win the championship.
But sorry, fables are fables, and reality is reality.
The reason top students become top students is not only due to their talent, but also because they have a more resilient spirit than most people and are willing to spend more time studying. It's a combination of talent and hard work. As a top student, I can straightly tell you that I basically spent all my time on textbooks when I was a kid. And that took no mental effort because I enjoyed learning the knowledge in the textbooks. This attitude and effort naturally resulted in good exam results.
You may say you can also work twice as hard, but top students also can work very hard. If you spend two more hours studying, they can also spend two more hours. To surpass top students, your need to think a paradigm up.
The way for low-achieving students to compete with top students is not to compete with them on the same lane. It’s that simple. How can you not lose to boxing champion Mike Tyson? Don't fight him in the ring! If you don't fight, you won't lose.
Broaden your horizons and you will find that there are many different lanes in the world. If a lane is too crowded and you know you can't compete, choose another lane. Top students may be invincible in their studies, but they cannot perform equally well in all areas. How about sports? Art? Social skills? Public speaking? A smart person should choose a lane that suits his natural strength. So focus on your strengths, and not waste resources on your weaknesses.
Polish the skills that you are already good at!
I see many parents these days spend a lot of money to send their kids to different tutoring classes, only because they discover that their kids’ academic result is just slipping a bit. They want their kids to be the top of the class, even if they know their kids are not cut out for studying and have no interest in it. They keep pushing them. It's better to spend resources elsewhere and cultivate other aspects of their children's achievements.
In the workplace and in the business world, the principle is the same. Find your niche, and no one can compete with you.
Original Post in Chinese
將勤補拙呀。這個可能是第一個浮現在你腦海裏的答案。讀書時又好，在社會工作又好，身邊總會發現一些人，好像不用怎麼努力，憑着自己的天賦，就能得到比你好的成績。反觀自己，好像已經花了很多時間去讀書，東西就是記不起來，深奧的理論怎麼反覆研究也搞不明白。
肯定是天賦的差距，但是看了很多成功學的書，或者一些 youtuber，他們總叫你要不斷付出努力，將勤補拙。你相信總有一天，付出足夠努力後，可以和學霸爭一日的長短。
就像龜兔賽跑的寓言故事，永不放棄的烏龜，總有一日也可以贏取冠軍。
但不好意思，寓言是寓言，現實是現實。
學霸之所以成為學霸，除了天賦以外，就是他比常人有更堅毅的精神，更願意花時間去讀書，是天賦與努力的結合。我作為一個學霸，可以很負責任的告訴你，我小時候基本上就是所有時間都花在課本上。而我感到很快樂，原因就是因為我喜歡學習課本上的知識。這樣的心態和努力，考試出來的成績固然是好。
你說你會加倍努力，但學霸比你更努力啊。你多花兩個小時讀書，他也能多花兩個小時。我所以要超過學霸，你的思維要上升一個維度。
學渣與學霸競爭的方法，就是不和他們在同一個賽道上競爭。這其實是個非常簡單的道理。怎樣不輸給拳王泰臣？不要和他在擂台上打呀！不打就不會輸。
擴闊自己的眼界，就會發現世界上有很多不同的賽道。這個賽道競爭太激烈，知道自己比不過，就選擇其他賽道。學霸在讀書上可能很無敵，但其他方面一定有短闆呀。你在學業成績上比不上，運動方面呢？藝術方面呢？社交方面呢？演講方面呢？更聰明的辦法應該是選擇適合自己的賽道，集中發揮自己的長處，而不是把資源浪費在自己的短版上。
好鋼用在刀刃上。
看到很多時下的家長，有天發現自己的子女學業成績有點稍為後退，就馬上花大錢讓他們上不同的補習班。要子女做班上的第一名。即使心知子女不是讀書的材料，對這方面沒有興趣，還不斷催谷。不如把資源花在別的地方，培養子女其他方面的成就。
在職場，在商業世界也是同樣的一個道理。找到自己的 niche，沒人可以和你競爭。