The 10x rule ffirs indd I 3/14/11 10: 22: 47 AM ffirs indd II 3/14/11 10: 22: 47 am the 10x rule The Only Difference Between Success and Failure Grant Cardone John Wiley & Sons, Inc

The First Degree of Action
“Doing nothing” is exactly what it sounds like: no longer 
taking actions to move yourself forward in order to learn, 
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Four Degrees of Action 
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achieve, or control some area. People who do nothing in their 
career, relationships, or whatever they want have probably 
given up on their dreams and are now willing to accept pretty 
much whatever comes their way. Despite how it may sound, 
do not assume that doing nothing requires no energy, effort, 
and work! Regardless of which degree of action you operate in, they 
all require work in their own ways. Signs that you are doing 
nothing include exhibiting boredom, lethargy, complacency, 
and lack of purpose. People in this group will fi nd themselves 
spending their time and energy justifying their situations—
which requires as much work as the other actions. 
When the alarm goes off in the morning, the “do-
nothing” group will not respond at all. Although it may 
appear that they’re not taking action, it actually takes a lot of 
energy not to get up in the morning. It takes work to lose a job 
because of lack of production. It is work to be overlooked for a 
promotion and have to wait another year to be considered and 
then go home and explain it to your spouse. It takes tremen-
dous effort to exist on this planet as an underappreciated and 
underpaid employee—and even more energy to make sense of 
it. The person not taking action has to make excuses for his or 
her condition; this requires tremendous creativity and effort. 
Salespeople who do nothing and then lose the sale more often 
than they win the sale have to explain to themselves, their 
spouses, and their bosses why they are not hitting their quo-
tas. It’s also interesting to note that those who do nothing in 
one area of their lives will fi nd something they love to do and 
spend time doing those things—something for which they’ll 
often take massive action. It could be online poker, gaming, 
biking, watching movies, reading books. Whatever it may be, 
I assure you that some area of life receives their full energy 
and attention. Those who do nothing will insist to their 
friends and family that they are happy and content and that 
all is right with them, which only serves to confuse everyone 
because it is evident that they are not living up to their full 
potential.
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