Virtual Book Club: "The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure"

(reproducing the article that i wrote for Citrix newsletter, with some changes)

With the unprecedented times of today demanding that all of Citrix work from home, it’s been a great relief and at the same time a challenge too. A relief because staying at home lends safety not only to us but also for our families and everyone else in the society. It’s a challenge because all of us have been fast-tracked into learning a new skill i.e. how to effectively work from home.

So, what can we do to best simulate the face-to-face interactions and ease of engagement while being at home?

Looking around the slack channels and some related updates, it is evident that the teams are coming up with some great ideas in this context. In my team, Steve Wilson (Vice President, Products) launched a unique initiative called as ‘Virtual Book Club.’ The premise of this initiative was simple- Steve suggested two books to his entire org to read through (both books relevant to team’s charter) and promised a book discussion forum inviting whole of his org. The two chosen books were-The Power of Habit and The 10x Rule.

The one that I took to reading and lead the team discussion was "The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure" (referred to as ‘The 10X Rule’ hereon) and I provide the summary of the same below.

Let’s take a look at some of the stories to begin with:

• One of my favorite stories from the Olympics is that of an Hungarian shooter named Károly Takács. He was the first shooter to win 2 Olympic gold medals (1948 & 1952). Though winning an Olympic gold is an achievement of highest order but his claim to greatness was not just that. In 1938, when his shooting career was on the rise he lost his right hand (shooting hand) in an accident. Rather than playing a victim, he went back to where he began & started practicing with his left-hand. He continued relentless practice & slowly made his left hand as skillful as his right hand earlier was. Years later won the Olympic glory.

• Colonel Sanders, who created Kentucky Fried Chicken, pitched his idea more than 80 times before anyone bought the concept.

• Walt Disney was laughed at for his idea of an amusement park, and yet now people all over the world spend $100 a ticket and save up their whole lives just to have a family vacation at Disney World.

These stories are remarkable examples of human grit, single-mindedness pursuit of excellence but how would you dissect the success that Károly Takács, Colonel Sanders, Walt Disney achieved?

I found an answer in the book ‘The 10X Rule’ duly authored by Grant Cardone.

About 10X Rule:

·        Simply put 10X Rule is: 10X Rule = 10X Goals + 10X Actions

·        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.

·        Average goal setting cannot and will not fuel massive 10X actions.

·        Think massive and broad when setting your goals.

·        Over-commit and Over-deliver: Why not overcommit in your promise — and then exceed by over delivering as well.

About 10X Actions:

·        When it comes to actions, your four choices are:

·        Do nothing

·        Retreat

·        Take normal levels of action

·        Take massive action

·        Compare your actions to having to carry a 1,000 - pound backpack that you will wear every day into a 40 - miles - per - hour wind on a 20-degree upward slope. Prepare for massive, persistent action, and you will win!

·        How do I know if I am doing enough action? If you don't create new problems, then you're not taking enough action.

Pointers to inculcate the 10X Rule:

·        Massive thoughts must be followed by massive actions.

·        Never reduce a target. Instead, increase actions.

·        The extent of desire or hunger to do something:

·        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.

·        Never act like a victim:

·        The 10X Rule refers to massive amounts of action taken persistently over time.

·        In order to make good things happen more often, you cannot afford to act like a victim.

·        Once you start to approach every situation as someone who is acting — not being acted upon — you will start to have more control over your life.

·        Success is a moral obligation

·        It is our ethical obligation to create success for self, family, company, and our future.

·        Successful individuals approach success as a duty, obligation, and responsibility — and even a right!

·        Success is not something that happens to you; it's something that happens because of you and because of the actions you take.

·        10X Rule and Luck

·        Luck is just one of the byproducts of those who take the most action.

Sketchnote summary:

LinkedIn post:
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/anujmagazine_excellence-success-book-activity-6653651942813855744-kk7A

Twitter post:
https://twitter.com/anujmagazine/status/1247568439381647367?s=20