The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure

Chapter 9

10X Goals

I believe that one of the major reasons why people don't stick to their goals and fail to accomplish them is because they fail to set them high enough from the beginning. I have read many books on goal setting and have even been to seminars on this topic, and I constantly see people set goals and then either never get started or bail on them. Frequently and regularly, most of us have been warned against setting goals “too high.” The reality is that if you start small, you are probably going to go small. People's failure to think big enough usually means they will never act big enough, often enough, or persistently enough! After all, who gets excited about so-called realistic goals? And who can stay excited about anything with an—at best—average payoff? This is why people begin to bail on projects when they experience any kind of resistance; their goals are not big enough. To maintain your enthusiasm, you have to make your goals substantial enough that they keep your attention. Average and realistic goals are almost always a letdown to the person setting them—who is then unable to fuel his or her goals with the actions necessary.

Indeed, most people are so apathetic about their goals that they only write them down once a year. As far as I'm concerned, nothing worth doing is done only once or twice a year. The things upon which your life depends most are based on the actions you take daily. That is why I make sure to always do two things: (1) I write my goals ...