People love the story of a self-made man. Inspiring as these stories are, they are usually misleading. Behind many straight-A academic careers are seven-figure trust funds, elite schooling, and well-connected parents. The truth is that money and background are the true drivers of success, not raw talent and intelligence. Most successful people are “successful” thanks to their privilege.

The invisible head start

We all want to believe talent is what brings you success. This is not true. Your socio-economic background is the main predictor for academic success. In fact, students from wealthy backgrounds get higher grades, which in turn helps them get into higher ranked universities. This process may be indirect, but in short, their money buys their spots at good schools.

Wealthy kids have access to private schools and personalized tutoring that goes beyond what public schools offer to middle or working class families. Wealthier students outperform their peers not because they are smarter but because they can access better resources and support systems. The tutors, private schooling, and test prep are paid for by their parents. Honor role students at international schools are often kids who get private tutoring or attend expensive cram schools.

The playing field is not level. Your parents literally buy your opportunities. A hardworking student who doesn’t have an Ivy League educated tutor does not have the same opportunities as a hardworking student who does. Hard work can only get you so far when you are competing against that kind of access.

It’s not what you know, it’s who you know

Elite institutions often favor legacy students: students whose parents are alumni. This means your last name may matter more than your GPA and SAT scores on your college application.

Furthermore, after graduating from college, the network you built there is your most valuable college legacy, not your grades or diploma. Hard work is no guarantee of success. If it were, how many more janitors, convenience store clerks, and nurses would be millionaires? Success usually happens when your parents know people. When your dad knows someone at a major consulting firm who can help you get an internship, it can lead to a corporate job that is impossible for other kids to get. Calling yourself “successful” when your parents are already CEOs, investors, or politicians is misleading. The successful people you see in the media are often legacy princelings who’ve had a step ladder since day one.

The luxury of failure

Another key factor behind success is having the capacity and luxury to fail. If you come from money, you can afford to take risks, fail, and try again. Meanwhile, kids from families who live paycheck to paycheck can’t afford to make mistakes. One wasteful purchase can cause huge problems for them, to say nothing of failed start-ups or scholarships.

Oftentimes successful people are just kids who were lucky enough to have the time and money to fail until they were successful.

The denial we live in

We want to believe that society is a meritocracy because this is an easy lie to swallow. If society is a meritocracy, then people who are successful must have achieved that success through smarts, hard work, and virtue. This belief allows those at the top to pretend they earned everything on their own.

It also allows society to blame the poor for their lack of success rather than on systemic realities that we need to change. And it also gives everyone else hope that they will one day be able to join the top one percent if they are only smart or hard working enough.

Talent, smarts, and hard work absolutely exist. But opportunity determines who gets the chance to showcase their talent, and ultimately who will fail and succeed.

The truth is, if you succeed, it doesn’t mean you are smarter than everyone else; you just probably started closer to the finish line.