The hero no one will remember
What 20 seconds can teach you about how the world really works
Last week at the 2026 London Marathon, Sebastian Sawe crossed the finish line first, breaking the 2-hour marathon mark.
Seconds later, not minutes, Yomif Kejelcha followed.
Both did something that, not long ago, was considered impossible.
Both broke the barrier.
Both reached the frontier of human performance.
Sawe became history.
Kejelcha became a footnote.
Unfair? Maybe.
But that’s how the world works.
It’s the Power Law.
The Power Law describes systems where a small number of players capture a disproportionate share of the rewards, attention, or outcomes. The gap between first and second is often tiny in performance, but massive in results.
And this isn’t just a human phenomenon. It’s everywhere in nature.
In elephant seals, a single dominant male can control up to 90% of all mating opportunities in a colony. Meanwhile, 50–70% of males never reproduce at all.
In forests, the same pattern appears. Sunlight decreases exponentially as you move down the canopy. Towering trees like the ceiba, reaching 60–70 meters, capture a disproportionate share of solar energy, while smaller trees survive on scraps.
Small differences in position lead to massive differences in outcomes.
When It Gets Real
Business works the same way.
Markets reward the leaders disproportionately. A handful of companies drive the majority of returns. The winners don’t just win, they take most.
In recent years, just seven companies, roughly 1.4% of the S&P 500, generated more than half of the index’s total returns. 7 out of 500 drove the majority of outcomes.
This doesn’t mean everyone should aim to be an elite athlete or build a billion-dollar company. There are many valid paths.
But if your goal is outsized success, you have to play a different game.
The Power Law Game.
And in a world where the winner takes most, the strategy is simple, even if execution isn’t:
Don’t aim to be good.
Don’t aim to be among the best.
Don’t aim for second.
Aim for number one.
Thanks for reading.
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