Duc Hoang
“Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.” — Archimedes
It’s a quiet, boring Sunday morning.
I’m at home, coffee in hand, mind drifting, and like most of us do these days—I open my laptop and start surfing the internet, trying to kill some time. I scroll aimlessly through the latest news in Vietnam, expecting something new, something refreshing. But instead, I find the same tired headlines flooding the screen.
Another celebrity scandal. Another influencer caught selling fake goods. Ads promoting fake milk, counterfeit cosmetics, knockoff fashion brands. It’s like a carousel of absurdity that never stops spinning.
I switch over to international news, hoping the broader world might offer something better. But what greets me is a heavy dose of geopolitical drama: U.S.–Iran tensions, Israel, oil, conflict, power struggles. Same chaos, different headlines. Another day, another storm.
I stare at the screen for a moment, then sigh deeply. Click close. Sit back.
What a strange, crazy world we’re living in.
And then, almost accidentally, I click on another page. A quote appears. Simple, yet profound.
“Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.”
It stops me for a moment.
It’s a quote I’ve read before—probably a hundred times. It takes me back to high school, to those long afternoons filled with physics and math classes. I can still remember solving lever equations, calculating torque, drawing force diagrams on the chalkboard. Back then, it all seemed so theoretical. Just numbers and formulas to memorize for exams. But now, reading it again in a completely different context, it hits differently.
I pause. Sit still. Reflect in abit.
Leverage. Not the physical kind. Not just mechanical levers on diagrams. But real-world leverage—the kind being used all around us, by people, systems, platforms. The kind that actually moves the world today.
Suddenly, things start to connect in my mind. Media. Influencers. Politicians. Tech moguls. Think about it: Trump, anti-Trump, MAGA, Social movements. Viral trends. Conspiracy theories. The rise and fall of reputations in a single day. It’s all about leverage.
Not muscle. Not manpower. But influence—strategically applied at the right time, in the right place. That’s the lever.
The internet is overflowing with information. Scroll long enough and you feel like you’re drowning in noise. But behind all that noise, there’s something else: structure. Strategy. Hidden levers being pulled.
The floods of headlines, viral content, emotional manipulation, echo chambers—it’s not random. These are tools. And behind them are people or systems that know exactly how to use media leverage to shape opinions, drive clicks, spread ideas, and gain power.
And here we are—caught in the current, reacting, commenting, sharing.
Whose lever are we helping to pull?
As I think more deeply, another uncomfortable truth surfaces: In today’s world, a minority of people—just a small group—are gaining massive wealth and accumulating unprecedented influence. And they’re not necessarily doing it by working harder. They’re doing it through leverage.
They’ve mastered how to use platforms, algorithms, networks, capital, and narratives. They’ve figured out how to build systems that multiply effort, automate influence, and scale results far beyond what any individual could achieve alone.
It made me stop and ask myself: What happened to hard work?
We were raised to believe in effort. In putting in the hours. In earning success through time, skill, and perseverance. That if we worked hard, we’d be rewarded.
But increasingly, that belief feels outdated—maybe even naive.
In this new digital world, hard work alone isn’t enough. Because while we’re grinding day to day, others are building systems. Others are leveraging code, capital, connections, and platforms to achieve in minutes what might take someone else years.
Maybe it’s time we stop ignoring this shift.
Maybe it’s time we take leverage seriously—not just as a concept, but as a tool for living, working, and succeeding in this new age.
Leverage is, at its essence, a force multiplier. It’s the principle that allows a small effort, strategically applied, to produce massive results. A little action that creates disproportionate impact.
Imagine a crowbar prying open a stubborn crate. A pulley lifting a boulder. A simple tool turning the impossible into the achievable. That’s the power of leverage. But in today’s world, the real levers aren’t just mechanical.They are:
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- Media leverage – one post reaching Billions
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- Technology leverage – code running 24/7 with zero marginal cost
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- Network leverage – one connection opening endless doors
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- Capital leverage – money working while you sleep
Those who understand and apply these forms of leverage don’t just work hard—they work smart. They design systems that scale. They plant seeds that grow exponentially. They use modern tools to extend their reach and compress time.
And the truth is, leverage is everywhere. In business, in education, in politics, in personal branding. It’s how books become bestsellers, how startups disrupt industries, how movements start from a single tweet. This isn’t about giving up or complaining. It’s about waking up.
We can no longer afford to think in purely linear terms—put in X effort, get Y result. Because the world no longer works that way.
We have to start thinking about how to apply our time, skills, ideas, and relationships with leverage.
How to use tools that amplify our voice.
How to automate, delegate, and collaborate.
How to turn one action into many outcomes.
We need to ask:
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- What should I build?
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- What knowledge can I share at scale?
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- What platforms can I use to multiply my message?
Because in this new world, it’s not about how hard you push—it’s about where and how you apply the pressure.
As I close my laptop and finish the last sip of coffee, the thought lingers.
This is no longer the age of effort alone. This is the age of leverage.
Those who understand this will lead, create, and shape the future. Those who ignore it may work endlessly and still fall behind.
So maybe the old quote was right all along:
“Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.”
The lever is here. The fulcrum is now digital. The question is: What are you trying to move?