The secret is not to give up hope. It’s very hard not to because if you’re really doing something worthwhile I think you will be pushed to the brink of hopelessness before you come through the other side.

Lucas frames perseverance as a practical “secret” rather than a romantic ideal: meaningful creative work often entails long stretches where success feels impossible. The “brink of hopelessness” suggests that discouragement is not evidence of failure but a predictable phase of ambitious projects—especially ones that challenge conventions, require collaboration, or demand technical innovation. By insisting on hope, he emphasizes endurance and iterative problem‑solving: you keep moving, revising, and learning until the project “comes through the other side.” The quote also implies a moral dimension: worthwhile endeavors test commitment, and hope functions as the discipline that keeps vision intact under pressure.