The 5 am club

The 20/20/20 Formula
to move through and
release it all. This skill alone is one of the reasons I’m so full of wonder,
gratefulness and peacefulness, most of the time. And how I’ve been able to
achieve so much. Living in the past steals so much energy from most people,
you know? This is a massive explanation for why most people are so
unproductive. The Spellbinder’s the only person I’ve ever met who made the
link between poor performance and emotional turbulence. But think about it.
It’s totally true. So imagine what doing your Daily Diaries each morning will
do for your accomplishment and the success of your business, especially as
you navigate what you’re going through.” The billionaire spoke with palpable
empathy as he placed one lean arm around the entrepreneur and the other over
the shoulder of her new boyfriend. “And for your art,” he added, turning to
the artist.
“And carrying past pain is so exhausting,” the artist agreed. “We all get
defeated—and sometimes nearly devastated by life.”

---

The billionaire kept on with his discourse. “I also encourage you to find at
least a few moments during the second pocket, between 5:20 and 5:40 
AM
, to
meditate. The Spellbinder taught me how to do so, and it has profoundly
helped my concentration, my confidence, my performance and the calm that I
feel, while running a sophisticated business portfolio. 
And calm performers
are the highest achievers
. There’s nothing crackerjack about meditation, so
get over any biases you might have around the skill and go ahead and lock it
in. It’s simply one of the world’s best ways to strengthen your focus, preserve
your natural power and insulate your inner peace. There’s a lot of wonderful
science confirming the value of a regular meditation ritual, so, even if you
want to dismiss the method, the data says it works—phenomenally—as a
human optimization habit. Current research proves that regular meditation
helps lower levels of cortisol, thus lowering your stress. It’s also a strong way
to grow the relationship you have with yourself. You need to make more time
for 
you
. To scale your fluency and intimacy with your higher nature. To
reconnect with your best part, that side of you that understands the impossible
is mostly the untried and that knows of your hidden reservoirs of luminosity,
audacity and love. That portion of you that still can see the greatness in
others, even when they behave badly, and that models positivity in the world
—even when such virtues are not replied to you. Yes, go into this twenty-
moment sanctuary of silence and stillness each morning and 
remember all you
truly are
. Truth speaks in the solitude of the day’s earliest light. And then
carry this breathtaking knowledge with you, through the remaining hours of
the gift we call a day.”
The billionaire fell to the ground. And did a series of rapid push-ups.
Then, a plank pose followed. You’re now very familiar with this quirky
tycoon’s bizarre maneuvers.
“I need to get on to the third pocket of 
The 20/20/20 Formula
so we can
wrap up today’s mentoring session. I’ve got a series of meetings set up for
later, and then I’m off to a splendid dinner with Adriano, The Spellbinder and
a few other old friends,” the billionaire said cheerfully.
“Sure,” said the artist. “No sweat.”
“Of course,” said the entrepreneur. “We heard about a restaurant close to
Campo di Fiori that makes great carbonara. We’re trying it tonight.”
“Yummy,” acknowledged the billionaire, sounding more like a five-year-
old than a captain of commerce. He then continued his discussion on the
morning routine of empire-builders, superachievers and the saviors of our
civilization.
Suddenly, the billionaire clutched his stomach, wincing in pain.

---

“You okay, Mr. Riley?” the entrepreneur asked as she rushed toward her
mentor.
“Absolutely,” he replied, pretending everything was fine. “Let’s keep
moving. I’m totally committed to making sure you learn everything that was
taught to me about The 5 
AM
Club before I leave you. Please, just make sure
you share The Spellbinder’s teachings with as many people as you can. You’ll
be improving the world as you do. I might not be able to,” he said as his voice
trailed off.
“Okay,” the industrialist carried on. “Let’s keep going. Pocket three of
The 20/20/20 Formula
is designed to help you ‘Grow’ daily. Remember 
The
2
x
3
x 
Mindset
: to double your income and impact, triple your investment in
two primary areas, your personal mastery and your professional capability.
So, 5:40 to 6:00 
AM
, the final segment of The Victory Hour, is when you
deepen your base of knowledge, increase your acumen, improve your
expertise and outlearn your competition.”
“Leonardo da Vinci said, ‘One can have no smaller or greater mastery
than mastery of oneself,’” said the artist.
“I love you even more today,” the entrepreneur said.
“Well, I adore you more every day,” he replied with a grin.
“Oh, brother,” laughed the billionaire. “I’m caught in a love fest. Right
here on the Spanish Steps.”
He closed his eyes and recited these words of stoic philosophy by Seneca,
the Roman statesmen: “‘Each day acquire something that will fortify you
against poverty, against death, indeed against other misfortunes as well; and
after you have run over many thoughts select one to be thoroughly digested
that day.’”
The billionaire opened his eyes and stated simply, “Leadership on the
outside begins within.” He added, “During the final pocket, from 5:40 to 6
AM
, of 
The 20/20/20 Formula
, work on becoming more valuable, to your
industry as well as to society. See, you don’t receive success and influence
only because of what you want. You attract it into your life 
based on who you
are
—as a person and as a producer. Private desire without personal
development is like dreaming of having a gorgeous garden but not planting
any seeds. 
We magnetize ourselves to excellent rewards by raising the value of
our selves.
I made my fortune from this idea. As I improved, my capacity to
improve the lives of more people improved through the elevated quality of
my service. As I made myself more knowledgeable, I became more valuable
to the fields in which I conducted my businesses, which lifted my income and

---

my impact. Here’s a concept fairly foreign in today’s age: read a book. Study
the lives of the greatest men and women of the past by consuming their
autobiographies during the ‘Grow’ pocket. Learn about the latest
advancements in psychology. Devour works on innovation and
communication, productivity and leadership, prosperity and history. And
watch documentaries on how the best do what they do—and grew into who
they are. Listen to audiobooks on personal mastery, creativity and business-
building. One of the traits all my billionaire friends and I have in common is
we absolutely love to learn. We grow—and capitalize on—our gifts and
talents relentlessly. We invest in expanding ourselves—and our pro games—
constantly. We are all totally into reading, improving and feeding our limitless
curiosity. Fun for us is going to a conference together. We go to one, at least
one, every three months so we stay inspired, excellent and absolutely
switched on. We don’t spend much time on meaningless entertainment
because we’re just too invested in endless education.
“Life is very equitable, you know,” said the mogul, sounding quite
philosophical and now looking much stronger. “You’ll receive from it what
you give to it. Key natural law there. So, give a lot more by becoming a lot
better.
“Okay. So now you have it,” Mr. Riley summed up exuberantly. “A
beautifully engineered, flawlessly calibrated morning routine for a world-
class business and personal life. Embrace it fully, run it daily, or at least five
days a week, and your productivity, prosperity, sense of joy and serenity will
accelerate potently along with the value you are able to deliver to our world.”
“What’s next?” inquired the artist.
“We’ll now go visit the dead,” was the billionaire’s only reply.

---

“You cannot imagine the craving for rest I feel—a hunger and thirst. For six long days, since my work
was done, my mind has been a whirlpool, swift, unprogressive and incessant, a torrent of thoughts
leading nowhere, spinning round swift and steady.”