small differences are magnified over time

Time magnifies the margin between success and failure. — James Clear from Atomic Habits

As time goes on, small differences get magnified. The farther the target, the more off the bullet may be. One day my tennis coach was teaching me how to serve the ball. When you toss the ball up, you want your arm to be as high as possible when you release the ball so the ball does not have to go very far. The lower your arm the more off course the ball can get before reaching the optimal spot for hitting it with the racket. I would always throw it up with my arm down low and wonder why it never went to the spot I wanted. It all makes sense now. We have to make the target as close as possible for the best chance of success.

This concept is especially true in biological systems where positive feedback loops can enhance the original small difference, leading to large differences. In gene regulatory networks, small increases in a repressor can dramatically decrease the amount of an activator. Bad habits and good habits have compounding effects. Small changes have huge effects over a lifetime. Small mistakes can lead to big problems down the road. Small wins can lead to major wins in the future.

In some ways this makes everything potentially a big deal and feels daunting. In other ways it simplifies things. If we focus on avoiding small mistakes and prioritize small wins, we will be in good shape.