The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure- Grant Cardone
About Book
10X rule says that whatever you want to achieve in life, set 10X target and then take 10X action on those targets. The reason why most of the people are not able to achieve great success is that they do not set very high goals for themselves. If you want to fulfill your dreams, then take massive action for that. In this book you will find many such important key-lenses and ideas which can bring great changes in your life.
Author
The 10X Rule Book is authored by Grant Cardone, a renowned International Sales Trainer, Real Estate Investor and a successful Motivational Speaker. He was born in U.S. on 21 March 1958. K was born in Lake Charles. His specialty is that he is a multi-talented personality who has been included in the list of New York Times best seller author as well as the host of the radio show Cardon Show.
Introduction
Has it ever happened in your life that you were dying to be the center of attention? Maybe this happened in high school time or college or while playing some sports or in the business world. Did you think that at that time any person who saw you would just fall in love with you? The answer would probably be that many of you must have experienced this thing sometime in your life but the real question is: could you really become a star attraction? Did you become the heartbeat of millions or could you win the heart of even a single person? If not then it does not matter because I tell you that it is not too late.
But if your answer is yes, then I can say with a claim that you could have done better than this. I remember in my childhood, I had decided that when I grow up and go to college, I will prove to be the best among all my friends. I swore that the next time there was a reunion, I would be the best at the games. Of course, this was my heart’s desire, yet I could not achieve even half of what I had thought. The truth is that the next time the reunion happened, I was so ashamed of myself and my achievements that what to say. I kept asking myself where I fell short but I had no answer until I came across this book by Grant Cardon called: “The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure”
The aim of this book is to help you and I achieve better by reading this which is our biggest fear for all of us. This book instills ten times more discipline, focus and the habit of hard work in us and lifts us from the position of an average person and takes us ahead. Bear with me till the end, I will tell you more about the book so that you can get a journal and addict idea of what it is all about.
Our Society and Its Script: Defying the Odds
The things that we learn when we first come into this world, this society has already predicted. When you came into this world from your mother’s womb, your mind was completely blank like a tabula rasa. Whatever your knowledge is today, it is the gift of this society and association. Now our society had already decided these things like male domination and female submission, i.e. dominance of men and keeping women suppressed. We are just following him ahead. There was a time in my life when I used to think that I am ahead of every woman in the world except my mother.
I used to fight with my elder sister everyday because I felt she was holding me down. Why? Where did I learn all this? Off course, this society must have taught me this! The second myth that we have learned from the society is that there is nothing wrong in being mediocre and unluckily we also start following it. According to Cardon, this is the biggest lie that society has taught us. If society likes you to be mediocre then it is good for them and not for you. You have to break this jinx to become successful.
Since childhood, I used to watch my dad doing the same thing every day. He kept doing the same job for years, same status and he was happy like that. Although he sent me and my siblings to school, he himself could never rise above his status. It seemed that this was written in his destiny because he had become comfortable in it. It was enough for them that their children progress in life. But this is wrong thinking! If I had a little understanding at that time, I would probably have explained to my father. The word average means ordinary. Trust me, this is not what you need.
Now suppose if all the people in your school, office or other places want to be the best, then you have to try that you are ahead of all of them. Your desire should be to be the best in your community, district and even in your country. To achieve your best, your aim should be higher than average. Imagine where you will reach in comparison to those people who limit themselves in school, workplace or anywhere – you will automatically be best everywhere by beating those people in their desire, then understand this better. For let’s have a look at success.
What is success after all?
To better understand success according to Grant, you must first understand these three things:
1. You are incomplete without success
This thing is simple and clear! There will always be a feeling of incompleteness until you get success. I am sure you must have heard many such elders regretting that” I had to do this thing when there was time but could not do it.” Such people always keep shaking hands because they do not get that fulfillment feeling in life. And if you haven’t found such a person till now, then take my dad’s story which is a perfect example. Till today my dad keeps crying that how I wasted my entire youth like this. This is the feeling of unfulfillment – a life full of regrets
2. Being successful is your duty
I also found some people who feel that their parents have taken the contract of their success. A few days ago, the son of a rich man told his friends that his father is working hard to make him successful. Now this is not a good thing. Your success is in your hands and you have to do whatever it takes to achieve it.
3. Success is not that difficult
It is a very popular thinking that success is hard to come by and it is very difficult to achieve. The truth is that it is not so at all. Due to this wrong mindset, many people stopped achieving their best. This wrong mindset handicapped many people so much that they adopted the wrong way to get success.
There is a saying that “the sky is so big that every bird can fly comfortably without touching each other” this is true to a great extent because you too can get your share of success without doing bad to anyone else. . I have heard many such stories where in order to get success, people make ladder to such people who are not privileged like them. A friend of mine told me that there are some youths somewhere in Africa who do tantra-mantras using people to become rich and successful. No, don’t even think so! No one has been successful by doing this till date.
And secondly, success should not be an option for you but a necessity. This should not be a choice for you but it should be your only choice. The baseline is to never put yourself in limits. Just keep thinking that what can you achieve and what will your achievement mean in the eyes of the world. Extraordinary success is not such an easy thing. For this you will have to do extra hard work and extra effort. Like I said earlier, to become the best in the country, just thinking will not work.
For this, you will have to put more effort than the rest – now it is a bit of hard work. Many people want to become successful but without implementation and actualization they cannot reach anywhere. I don’t know how many times this has happened to me during high school. I used to take a resolution in every term that I will come first in the class this time but I used to keep thinking. I never put in that much effort and that’s why I never became the best in class. To reach the top, you have to try much more than others. That’s the 10X Rule!
However, let me tell you that striving 10 times more than the people with you will mean that you will have to take up a lot of challenges. Suppose you have been told that you have to do 100 meters race in the Olympics for your country, which has been your dream too, then you will work twice as hard to win this race. Won’t you? Now the 10X rule says that you have to make ten times as much effort, only then you will get the first place.
If the plan for this is to practice for one hour every day, then according to the 10X rule, you will have to practice for ten hours. Now this is useful, isn’t it? There will be some challenges in all this like dizziness or any fracture etc. You have to experience all these challenges if you want to be the best in the Olympics. To be honest, it would be difficult to get success without these challenges because these challenges make us more tough and strong.
Condition your mind by defining your objectives
To achieve your dream, first of all clear which way you are going. Because blindfolded you can’t win any race! You cannot be the best without a clear vision. Apart from this, if you want to become a horse of a long race, then setting a simple goal will not work. Imagine you want to be the best on the track and you are only practicing for an hour a day. So how will you become the best like this? If success is water, then you have to leave the easy way. The truth is that there is no easy way to success. It’s just a trick. Whatever the path to the extraordinary, it is challenging, demanding and tiring.
If you want an easy way then this place is not for you. Here we work harder than what is required or even more to achieve success. Its basic principle is that if you want to achieve your goal, multiply it by ten. Your objective should be ten times bigger then go and consider it achieved. Let me tell you that getting success means achieving something impossible and it is your sole responsibility. You have taken the responsibility that no matter what happens, you will continue to achieve what you have in your mind.
Many of us choose the wrong way while defining our objectives. I remember a young and aspiring entrepreneur I knew who wanted to create a product that would make a difference in the world. I can’t remember what product it was but he was always talking about it. Yes, his idea was good but his approach was wrong. When he made that product in the last, it was used only in his own house and in the house of some of his friends, the rest of the people did not even know about it. So where was the mistake? The mistake was that he did not take it to the marketing stage. He made a good product but he didn’t know for whom he made it. Some of the most common mistakes people make while defining their objective are given below:
1. Setting the wrong target
If you set an easy goal, then obviously your target will be wrong. You have to select daring and challenging goals. Here it is not necessary to have wrong target or wrong focus, but it is an average target. Now if you just want to come first in your class then it will be a wrong target. This is not a wrong target because being the best in the class is wrong, but because it is a very average target that anyone can achieve. When your target is wrong, then definitely your objective will also be wrong.
2. Not taking care of complexity
Your objectives will still be wrong if you don’t try to find out how complex your goal is. If you follow the rule of 10X, then complications will automatically come. You should create a plan, with great details, that will take care of any complications. One of the reasons why I was never the best in high school was that I never took care of complexity. I just kept dreaming but I never made a detailed plan. It is simple that my dream never came true. Never underestimate the steps, energy, or resources that will go into helping you reach your goals.
3. Paying too much attention to the competition.
“As far as competition is concerned, there is no standard”. Nowadays whoever you see says “Do something your competitors are not doing”. This type of statement forces people to think big limited and often they reach the level of their competitors or even less. This 10X rule does not charge a premium to the average. If you are entering the market for something, then your aim should not be just to beat your competitors.
Your aim should be that you dominate that thing and become the standard for all. A friend of mine started a business some time back. He also discussed his plan with me. But his only aim was to leave behind the people competing with him. It had nothing to do with how his business would affect people or who his target audience would be. Now you can understand why his business could not run for a long time. Your focus should be on creating something extraordinary and not on your competitors.
4. Having no backup plan
The 10X Rule always comes with challenges. If your plan fails at any time, be prepared for it in advance. For example, keep a backup plan so that it can be useful in case of any misgiving. Hope for the best but at the same time be ready for any failure. A friend of mine who wanted to beat his competitors could get back into business again if he had a solid back-up plan.
Understanding what massive action is
By now you must have understood why so much emphasis is being laid on daring goals, but the matter does not end here. The truth is that despite having daring goals, it may happen that you may not be able to achieve anything if you do not consider the level of activity and level of operation. By this I mean that you should know the actions to be taken to achieve the goals. Like you cannot become the best mathematician in the world unless you know what to do for it. Remember my story which I used to tell, from my high school days. When I wanted to top the whole class. Remember I told you that I could never achieve this goal because I did not take any major action for it.
Now here the goal is to become the best student, but you have not become the best student yet, only you have set the goal. It is necessary to first understand what level of action is required for this. I think you must be getting my point. Our 10X rule demands a very high level of operation from us so that we can achieve our goals, our dreams. If you have ever had a dream, then you need a massive action to make it come true. According to Grant, there are 4 levels of action which are given below:
1. Do Nothing Level
You must have understood from its name itself, Doing Nothing means doing nothing. This in itself is a very enjoyable level because in this the person does not make any effort on his own but does whatever life offers. People at this level are rarely concerned about success, they are happy with whatever they get. The main characteristic of such people is that they don’t work hard at all, they let things go as they go. Just like giving you an example. A man was born in a poor house. He remained poor till his death because he did not make any effort to change his situation, did not take any pen. If seen, such people come in the do nothing level.
2. Hiding Level
Heading level people are afraid of success. When the time comes to take the right step towards success, these people step back. This happened to my younger brother once. My brother used to play football amazingly at home but he never used to participate in sports in school. Because he was very afraid of losing or losing. He used to cry just like a child, used to get very angry. This was the reason why he could not show his potential to anyone, how great a player he was.
If he could have shown his talent to everyone, who knows maybe he would have been selected in some scout and he would have been playing at the international level today. While walking on the road of success, one thing will be found for sure and that is creativity! The people of the hiding level want to avoid this criticism. Have you ever faced such a situation that you have given your best to get something and people criticized you the most? Yes, this is the success because maximum criticism is found in this and that is why people are most nervous at this level.
3. Normal Level
This is the expected level for everyone. This is the level where this society wants to see us. At this level you are doing what everyone else is doing. If I am training for two hours, it means everyone will be training for two hours only. In this level, as long as you keep walking according to the society, no zeal can come in you to become extraordinary.
And if you want success then definitely this level is not for you. My dad comes in this category of people. You might remember I told you his story how satisfied he used to be with his present position and living the same type of life till he retired, doing the same job everyday. This was my dad operating at his normal level. All his life he did what everyone else did and expected them to do as well.
4. Massive Action Level
This is the level where things are achieved! If you are not at this level then definitely you are not walking on the path of success. Here we don’t do what everyone else does, rather we do what helps us achieve our goal. Let’s take the earlier example. You have to become the best student of Mathematical. So you will have to sit whole day and solve math questions. Now even if a difficult question comes in front of you, you will not accept it without solving it. This is where I failed when I aspired to be the best student of my class in high school.
Now let’s take another example. Once upon a time there was a lady who always read while eating during snack time. Even in free time, she was always in the library with books. Now I could not understand this! I just can’t do that! Just reading all day! I wanted to hang out with friends, play soccer with them, gossip and still be the best student. But I could not become the best because I did not do what was required for it. And meanwhile she kept on doing her work. Then when our result came, everything became clear. She was the best in the class and has always been but I could not become the best even if I wanted to, the best was nowhere near her.
Nothing is going to happen until you take massive action. If you want to be the best, do as many actions as possible. It would mean that you are doing more than others. 10 times more than others! As much as no one can imagine. It is implemented as if someone reads one book in a month, then you will read 10 books in a month. Massive Action demands 10 times more effort from you. I can assure you that you will come one step closer to achieving your goal.
I know at this time you must be thinking that how is it possible to do 10 times more than others, are you thinking the same? But yes it is absolutely possible. You are capable of much more than you think. Here we are not talking about concepts like Luck or Opportunity, but we are emphasizing on achieving success through massive action.
How to get exceptional results
Many times we often run after quick results and in this process neither make any plan nor think how we will achieve our goal or objective. It is important to understand the things that you should do or have to do to get the result. Before writing this book, I myself was a person who used to focus only on what to do in the present moment when I should have been planning for the long run. This never benefited me, rather I always remained average.
Ask yourself what do you have to do to get 10X results? You should be clear about what is the demand for exceptional results. Commitment and Discipline are two crucial values that need to be learned and you have to be fully committed to your plan and work on the plan with full discipline. Remember that success is not such a difficult thing that you can’t touch it, rather you can get uncountable success. But your aim should be perfect. While walking this path, you have to take every step with the approach of 10X rule. Just understand it as if your life depends on it.
Take your every step as an important step. If you keep all these points in mind then definitely your result will also be exceptional.
Dealing with Fear Have you ever had a feeling of fear while doing a difficult task? I remember whenever my exams used to happen in college time, my condition used to get worse due to fear. It was not that I was not prepared for the exam, but I think that every person who wants success is a little scared. Meaning that it is a normal thing if you also feel fearful while walking on the path of success, but you have to learn how to deal with this fear, otherwise you will not be able to grow beyond normal.
According to Grant, the fundamental reason for fear is time. The time it takes to achieve any goal can be very difficult for you. Now suppose you are going to have a competition in a week, then you start getting scared thinking that time is less, don’t know whether I will be able to do it or not, don’t know whether I am prepared or not? Such questions start roaming in your mind. Have you ever felt so much pressure before using the toilet that on reaching home, even before entering the bathroom, you feel that you may do poo there? This is exactly what happens when you try to achieve goals.
But carefully! Lest this fear go to your head. Don’t let it get the better of you. Do not stop even for a moment. The moment you stop because of your fear, no matter how hard you try, it will not go from your mind. You will find a thousand excuses not to move forward. Because without action there are only excuses! So the best way is to avoid excuses and take massive action! Don’t give such statement that “First take some rest then I will do it” Don’t take any rest till the goal is achieved because if you want to fight with others then this is the only way.
Dominate your market
Are you in a field where the competition is very high? Because of this, you do not see yourself at this level to become the best, because you feel that there are already more genius people in the market than you? The truth is that there is nothing like that just your fear is dominating you. You have to end this thinking. Yes, remove the fear of competition from your mind. This is all in your mind, not in real. Try changing your mentality, this thing will automatically disappear from your mind. You just have to make more efforts to become the best in your field.
You have to do 10 times more than what your competitors are doing. Most companies do not do anything special that can make them the most successful. All of these operate only up to the level of the society. But you have to be the best, so you kept following the 10X rule. Persistence, consistency and courage are your weapons which will help you to become the best. So do you have it all?
You have to do what others refrain from doing. The clichéd and easy ways to achieve goals don’t work because relaxation has never been an invention. If you want to do out-of-the-box things, use your creativity to the fullest. Leave the horses of your mind free. Only then will something happen.
Do you remember the story of Hair and Tortoise? How did Tortoise win the race despite running so slow and steady? Of course, we all learned from this story that slow and steady is the best way, but in reality you have to be smart too. Rabbit was fast but not smart so Tortoise won the race. Normally he shouldn’t have won because he didn’t do anything special. But you have to be smart if you want to win your race. So go ahead and do whatever is necessary! Whatever you do, do it smartly! Do whatever you can for this!
Getting Noticed in the Midst of Competition
If you want to become a hero of your field, then you have to come in the eyes of people. If you do not come in the eyes of people, then what you do will not make any difference to anyone. You have to come out of the dark and come into the light and your visibility should be 10 times more. You will have to make some preparations for it to be dominated by you everywhere. Show your superiority wherever you go. Apart from this, along with being fast, be persistent.
There are many such cases where people have set a goal to achieve extraordinary leaving the regular thing and have achieved it. Even though he has to face many challenges. You have to move forward with full force in this spirit. Only then people will also notice you.
What Successful People Look Like
• Successful people live with the mindset that nothing is impossible.
• They focus on the available opportunities.
• Successful people believe on the unbelievable.
• They want development of others along with themselves.
• Successful people take massive action to achieve their goals.
• They never give up midway
• Such people who bring change by moving forward with courage are called successful.
• They remain highly motivated and keep an eye on their goals.
• They never like comfort zone.
• They are team players.
Conclusion
There is no doubt that now you must have understood that to become the best in any field, you have to put in 10 times more effort. According to Grant, massive success is not such an easy thing to achieve. If success is water then forget the rules of the society. You have to rise above mediocrity and average. And also you have to leave your comfort zone.
Finally, if you have reached the end of this summary, then Congratulations, there are very few people who invest time on knowledge, otherwise you could have wasted time elsewhere.
Thanks………