The Ten Times Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure

not there
yet. Each of these goals is valuable, and each will require a different way of
conceptualizing and acting upon them in order to attain them. All of them can be
defined as extraordinary if they exceed what you have come to know as ordinary.
While it might not be “exceptional” compared with what others are seeking, the
goal you set should always move you to a better place—or toward an objective
you've not yet achieved.
Others might have an opinion about your success—but only you can decide if
it is extraordinary. Only you know your true potential and whether you're living
up to it; no one else can judge your success. Remember: Success is 
the degree or
measure of attaining some desired object or end
. Once you attain this desired
end, the issue then becomes whether you can maintain, multiply, and repeat your
actions in order to sustain that result. Although success can describe an
accomplished feat, people usually don't study success in terms of something they
have done. They go at it with a mind toward something they are seeking to do.
An interesting thing about success is that it's like a breath of air; although your
last breath of air is important, it's not nearly as important as the next one.
No matter how much you've already achieved, you will desire to continue
making accomplishments in the future. If you stop trying to succeed, it's like
trying to live the rest of your life off the last breath of air. Things change;
nothing remains as it was—for things to be maintained, they require attention
and action. After all, a marriage cannot maintain itself off the love felt on the

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wedding day.
But people who are highly successful—in both their professional and personal
lives—continue to work and produce and create even after they've flourished.
The world watches these people with amazement and confusion, asking
questions like, “Why do they keep pushing?” The answer is simple: Extremely
successful people know that their efforts must continue in order for them to
realize new achievements. Once the hunt for a desired object or goal is
abandoned, the cycle of success comes to an end.
Someone said to me recently, “It is clear you have made enough money to live
comfortably; why are you still pushing?” It is because I am obsessed with the
next breath of accomplishment. I am compulsive about leaving a legacy and
making a positive footprint on the planet. I am most unhappy when I am not
accomplishing and most happy when I am in quest of reaching my full potential
and abilities. My disappointment or dissatisfaction with where I am at this
moment does not suggest that something is wrong with me but rather that
something is 
right
with me. I believe that it is my ethical obligation to create
success for myself, my family, my company, and my future. No one can
convince me that there's something wrong with my desire to achieve new levels
of success. Should I be happy with the love I have for my children and wife
yesterday—or should I continue to create and pour it on in new amounts today
and tomorrow?
The reality is that most people do not have whatever they define as success;
many want “something more” in at least one area of their lives. Indeed, these are
the people who will read this book—the unsatisfied who yearn for something
more. And really, who doesn't want more: better relationships, more quality time
with those they love, more momentous experiences, a better level of fitness and
health, increased energy, more spiritual knowledge, and the ability to contribute
to the good of society? Common to all of these is the desire to improve, and they
are qualities by which countless people measure success.
Regardless of what you want to do or be—whether it is to lose 10 pounds,
write a book, or become a billionaire—your 
desire
to reach these points is an
incredibly important element of doing so. Each of these goals is vital to your
future survival—because they indicate what's within your potential. Regardless
of the goal you are striving to accomplish, you will be required to think
differently, embrace a die-hard level of commitment, and take massive amounts
of action at 10 times the levels you think necessary—followed by more actions.
Almost every problem people face in their careers and other aspects of their lives
—such as failed diets, marriages, and financial problems—are all the result of

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not taking enough action.
So before you say to yourself for the millionth time, “I would be happy if I just
had . . .” or “I don't want to be rich—just comfortable” or “I just want 
enough
to
be happy,” you must understand one vital point: Limiting the amount of success
you desire is a violation of the 10X Rule in and of itself. 
When people start
limiting the amount of success they desire, I assure you they will limit what will
be required of them in order to achieve success and will fail miserably at doing
what it takes to keep it.
This is the focus of the 10X Rule: You must set targets that are 10 times what
you think you want and then do 10 times what you think it will take to
accomplish those targets. Massive thoughts must be followed by massive
actions. There is nothing ordinary about the 10X Rule. It is simply what it says it
is: 10 times the thoughts and 10 times the actions of other people. The 10X Rule
is about pure domination mentality. You never do what others do. You must be
willing to do what they won't do—and even take actions that you might deem
“unreasonable.” This domination mentality is not about controlling others;
rather, it's about being a model for others' thoughts and actions. Your mind-set
and deeds should serve as gauges by which people can measure themselves. 10X
people never approach a target aiming to achieve just that goal. Instead, they're
looking to dominate the entire sector—and will take unreasonable actions in
order to do so. If you start any task with a mind toward limiting the potential
outcome, you will limit the actions necessary to accomplish that very goal.