>hard work is neither necessary nor sufficient in order to get ahead. It's being able to provide something that others value that matters.
While nominally true, this falls apart in the real world. Creating value is great, but if you aren't working hard at it then you will likely be outcompeted by someone who creates similar value per work unit, but works much harder than you. There are caveats and exceptions to this, but one cannot take the statement "hard work is not a necessary condition" to mean anything other than "hard work is a necessary condition" if one is to have any expectation of success.
While nominally true, this falls apart in the real world. Creating value is great, but if you aren't working hard at it then you will likely be outcompeted by someone who creates similar value per work unit, but works much harder than you. There are caveats and exceptions to this, but one cannot take the statement "hard work is not a necessary condition" to mean anything other than "hard work is a necessary condition" if one is to have any expectation of success.