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Book Summary – The 10x Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure

The 10x Rule - Book summary

The 10X Rule is the single most important principle or ingredient needed to achieve extraordinary results. This book by Grant Cardone explains how you can use big thinking and massive actions to create unstoppable momentum for phenomenal success. In this free version of The 10X Rule summary, we’ll give an overview of the 10X Rule, its key principles and components.

The 10X Rule: An Introduction

Most of us fail to achieve our goals because:

  • We set sub-par goals that are too low or not motivating enough, and we focus on competing rather than creating real breakthroughs to dominate our sectors; and
  • We underestimate the amount of effort/resources needed to achieve our goals, and the number of challenges we must overcome. We end up getting disappointed, discouraged and quit or shift our goal-posts.

The key to success is to prepare yourself mentally for the actual amount of work needed and build in the buffers for unplanned variables that’ll crop up.

Achieving Massive Success: The 10X Rule

The 10X Rule says that you can only achieve phenomenal success if you upsize your thinking and action: set targets that are 10X bigger and take 10X the amount of action. This single discipline will make the biggest difference between massive success and failure.

DEFINING SUCCESS

Fundamentally, success is about attaining your desired outcomes. It’s subjective as we all define success differently and have varying goals at different points in our lives. Regardless of how you define success, it’s vital that you start with a desire to achieve it. Remember: success is something you create, and there are infinite ways to do so through new innovations, ideas, solutions etc. It’s your duty and responsibility to fulfill your potential.

TAKING 10X ACTIONS

Generally, there are 4 levels of action that all of us use at some point in our lives, though most people stay at the first 3 levels most of the time. To achieve massive results, you need to take massive (Level 4) actions.  Here’s an overview of the 4 levels of action. Do get more details from our full 12-page summary.

The 10X Rule Summary_The 4 Levels of Action

SETTING 10X GOALS

Being “average” is a formula for failure. You don’t gain enough momentum for real success and tend to lose what you have during bad times. Cardone shares statistics and anecdotes to show why the most successful people make hundreds of times more money than average people–because they set 10X goals backed by 10X actions. Make sure your goals are (a) big and exciting and (b) aligned with your purpose, so you’ll feel motivated to think and act on them every day. Benchmark your goals minimally against the top players in the field.

Components & Principles behind The 10X Rule

In the book, Cardone breaks down the 10X Rule further into several components and principles.  You can get a detailed overview of the key ideas and actionable tips in our full book summary. Here’s a glimpse of the 10X Rule components:

  • Take control of your life.
  • Don’t compete. Dominate.
  • Build omnipresence.
  • Go all-in.
  • Expand. Never contract.
  • Build massive momentum.
  • Do what you fear.
  • Don’t manage time. Optimize it.
  • Expect criticism.
  • Go for market share, not customer satisfaction.

Check out our complete summary for specific tips on each of the areas above, e.g. how to take control of your situation and overcome your excuses, dominate your sector and build market share/omnipresence, overcome fears/criticism, optimize (and multiply) your time etc. In the book, Cardone also breaks down 32 traits/habits that define the differences between successful and unsuccessful people. In our full summary, we’ve condensed these into 8 key principles.

Getting Started with The 10X Rule

Start applying the 10X Rule by focusing on your big vision of the future but taking action in the now:

  • Make an initial list of your 10X goals. At this point, don’t reduce the size of your goals nor worry about how you’ll achieve them.
  • List down the actions you can take by asking, “what actions can I take now to move me toward these goals?”
  • Start taking action immediately, regardless of how you feel and don’t prematurely evaluate the outcome of your actions.
  • Review and rewrite your goals daily when you wake up and before you go to sleep. Remember the points above, and keep pushing ahead toward your dreams and goals.

Getting the Most from The 10X Rule

In this article, we’ve briefly outlined some of the key insights and strategies you can use to achieve desired change. For more examples, details, and actionable tips to apply these strategies, do get our complete book summary bundle which includes an infographic, 12-page text summary, and a 24-minute audio summary.

The 10x Rule summary - book summary bundle

In the book, Cardone shares many of his personal observations and experiences about success. Each chapter also includes a short exercise to help you recap what you’ve learnt. You can purchase the book here for the full details, or check out more resources at grantcardone.com.

About the Author of The 10X Rule

The 10x Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure is written by Grant Cardone–an American author, motivational speaker, real estate investor and sales trainer. He has worked with Fortune 100 companies such as Google, Wells Fargo, and Ford to customize sales processes and improve customer experience. He is also the owner of Whatever It Takes Network, a digital network where he hosts, directs, and produces programs that help people do whatever it takes to create success in their lives.

The 10X Rule Quotes

“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.”

“Success is not something that happens to you; it’s something that happens because of you and because of the actions you take.”

“Average never yields anything more than average and usually much less.”

“There are no shortcuts. The more action you take, the better your chances are of getting a break.”

“Forward thinkers don’t copy. They don’t compete—they create.”

Click here for the full summary & infographic

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