4 paths to success, 1 to failure

Four are the paths to success: genius, which is the most unusual; the path of diligence, which is the most righteous; the path of luck, which is the most uneven; and the path of dishonesty, of which we do not speak.

Success in business, but also in many other areas, is often a combination of the 4 paths, in varying degree and intensity.

The path to failure, in contrast, consists always in the incorrect judgement of which of the paths led to success, in oneself and in others. Confucius would doubtlessly have told Mitt Romney about that.