We love stories of “overnight success.” Someone launches a startup, raises millions, or becomes a household name seemingly out of nowhere. But the truth is that most of these stories hide years—often a decade or more—of preparation, setbacks, and relentless effort. The expression “behind every overnight success are 10 years of hard work” captures this reality perfectly.
Two powerful examples of this are Lucy Guo and Alexandr Wang, co-founders of Scale AI, a company now valued at billions of dollars. Their achievements may look sudden from the outside, but both of them spent years sharpening skills, taking risks, and building experiences before reaching that breakthrough moment.
Lucy Guo: Building Before Scale AI
Lucy Guo’s rise wasn’t accidental. Long before Scale AI, she was coding, designing, and experimenting with business ideas. She interned at tech giants like Facebook and Snapchat, gaining experience in product design and user experience.She also built startups and projects before her big break. Some failed, some succeeded, but each added to her toolkit. By the time she co-founded Scale AI in 2016, she had already spent years learning how to solve problems, raise funds, and build teams. To outsiders, it looked like success came instantly—but it was the product of steady effort.Alexandr Wang: From Math Competitions to AI
Alexandr Wang, Scale AI’s CEO, followed a similar path of preparation. Before launching Scale, Wang was deeply involved in math and programming from a young age. He competed in prestigious math and coding competitions and later dropped out of MIT to work on machine learning at Quora.Those years of discipline gave him a rare edge.
By the time he co-founded Scale AI at just 19 years old, he had already accumulated nearly a decade of hands-on experience with coding and artificial intelligence. That foundation allowed him to move quickly when the opportunity for Scale AI arose.
The Illusion of Sudden Success
Looking at Lucy Guo and Alexandr Wang today, it’s tempting to believe they “got lucky” or hit success overnight. But the truth is their paths were paved with countless hours of practice, small wins, and lessons from failures. Their stories illustrate why the “overnight success” myth is misleading—it ignores the unseen work that makes rapid breakthroughs possible.
Lessons for the Rest of Us
What can we take away from this?
Start Early, Stay Consistent: Success rarely comes instantly. Years of practice and persistence build the foundation.
Learn From Everything:
Internships, side projects, even failed startups all contribute to long-term growth.
Be Ready for Opportunity:
The reason Guo and Wang could act quickly when Scale AI began is because they had already prepared for years.
The saying “behind every overnight success are 10 years of hard work” is more than just a cliché—it’s a reality.Lucy Guo and Alexandr Wang didn’t stumble into success by chance. They built it, piece by piece, over years of dedication. So the next time you see someone rise seemingly out of nowhere, remember: the overnight part is just the last step of a much longer journey.
