If hard work really yielded the top income, wouldn’t the people in power look a lot different than they do? The definition of “hard” and “work” really depends on who you speak to. A much more accurate way of saying it is “How we work produces the results” If something feels like an uphill battle, then find an alternative route, one where you needn’t exert so much of your precious energy. It’s not a competition on who can be the most exhausted. But if it was, you would surely win.