Originally Posted by teamawe

I think greatness comes inside a paradox. Americans hold out that anyone can do great things with enough courage. We have a moral code, a right and wrong in how things should be done. We covet those that do great things seemingly on guts alone. But that is very seldom the case. For someone to be 'great', regardless of the field, most of the time requires that person to be VERY self focused, driven, sure of themselves, etc. Not the posterboy underdog with the egoless personality we see portrayed in movies (because thats the sterotype we buy into), but a real live jerk to some folks, cocky, abrasive etc.

Think about it, can or do any of us get up at dark-thiry in the morning and torture ourselves for 5-7 hours 7 days a week for years to acheive a goal? The willpower to do this will manifest itself in interpersonal relationships, just can't see how it wouldnt.

So, in a nut shell, we covet those that do great things, but the disposition required to become great usually comes with a price tag.