The 5 am club

awareness
of the opportunities for daily greatness that inspired
them to make the better daily choices that yielded better daily results.”
Mr. Riley pointed to the learning model.
“That’s the power of self-education,” he went on. “As you become aware
of new ideas, you’ll grow as a producer and as a person. As you escalate your
personal and professional development, the level at which you implement and
execute around your gorgeous ambitions will rise. And, of course, as your
ability to make your dreams and visions into reality increases, you’ll be
rewarded with greater income and higher impact,” the magnate spoke as he
tapped a finger onto step three of the diagram. “This is why agreeing to this
training with me was such a smart move. And this is what this framework
here is designed to teach you.”
The billionaire scratched his lean abs. And inhaled a deep breath of ocean
air.
“And may I say that because of the way the remarkable ones saw the
world and how they behaved when it came to their crafts, and because they
showed up in their lives so very differently from the way the mass of
humanity operates, they were called kooks. Misfits. Weirdos. They weren’t!”
exclaimed the billionaire, exuberantly.

---

“They just played at a much higher level—in rare-air. They brought 
rigor
to what they did. They’d spend weeks, months, sometimes years getting the
finishing touches perfect. They forced themselves to stay with the work when
they felt alone or scared or bored. They persisted in the translation of their
heroic visions into everyday reality when they were misunderstood, ridiculed
and even attacked. God, I admire the great geniuses of the world. I really do.”
“‘The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those
that speak it,’” offered the artist succinctly.
The entrepreneur looked at him as she began to rub a bracelet on her
wrist.
“George Orwell said that,” he pronounced. “And ‘Whenever you are
creating beauty around you, you are restoring your own soul,’” the artist
carried on. “Alice Walker said that.”
“The masters produce in a way that ordinary workers would label as
‘obsessive,’” expounded the industrialist. “But the reality of remarkability is
that what The 95% of performers call ‘picky behavior’ surrounding an
important project, The Top 5% of creators know is simply the price of
admission for world-class. Here, look at the model again so we can bring even
more precision to your understanding around it,” instructed the billionaire as
he touched the diagram on the piece of silk.
“The majority of people on the planet today really are trapped in
superficiality,” he confirmed. “Superficial understanding of their power to
rise. Superficial intimacy with the possibilities of their potential. Superficial
knowledge of the neurobiology of mastery, the daily routines of the world-
builders and the very ambitions they wish to prioritize the remainder of their
lives around. The majority is stuck in vague, imprecise thinking. And vague,
imprecise thinking yields vague, imprecise results. A quick example: ask the
average person for directions and most of the time, you’ll discover, their
instructions are unclear. That’s because the way they think is unclear,” said
the billionaire as he picked up a stick from the beach and pointed it toward the
word “granularity” on the framework.
“Legendary achievers are vastly different. They get that amateur levels of
awareness will never lead to the highest grade of professional results. Another
example that I hope will dial in this important insight for you two. I’m a huge
fan of Formula One racing. I was invited to hang out with my favorite team in
the pit area recently. Their attention to the slightest of particulars, their
dedication to the demonstration of extreme excellence and their willingness to
do whatever it took to make things great was not only validating but
tremendously inspiring. Again, to the ordinary person, the suggestion of the

---

need for an obsessive attention to the most minor of details and the
importance of a ridiculously rigorous approach in their pro and private lives
seems odd. But that F1 crew! Their flawless calibration of the race car, their
superhuman speed in executing pit stops and even the way they cleaned the
pit area with an industrial vacuum cleaner after the car roared away so there
wasn’t even a hint of dirt anywhere was fantastic. This is my point. The Top
5% go granular versus applying a superficial mindset to their daily attitudes,
behaviors and activities.”
“They really sweat the fine points so much they removed the dirt from the
pit area after the race car left?” questioned the artist, fascinated.
“Yep,” remarked the billionaire. “They swept and vacuumed the whole
bay. And when I asked them why, they told me that if even a molecule of
sediment got into the race machine’s engine it could cost them a win. Or even
worse—it could result in the loss of a life. Actually, any small failure of even
one team member to act with precision could create a tragedy. One loose
screw left by an unfocused crew member could lead to a calamity. One
checklist item missed by a distracted associate might cause a catastrophe. Or
one missing measurement overlooked by a squad partner leaving some of his
precious attention on the phone he was playing with prior to the pit stop could
cost a victory.”
“I’m beginning to agree with you that the approach you are speaking of is
important,” admitted the entrepreneur. “Very few businesspeople and those in
other fields like the arts, sciences and sports think and behave like this
anymore. It used to be normal, I guess. Developing high awareness around the
things that we do and having a painstaking approach to making our work
perfect. Refining the details. Sweating the little points. Producing with
precision rather than being unprofessional and careless. Underpromising and
overdelivering. Taking immense pride in our craft. Going deep and embracing
—to use your words—granularity versus superficiality.”
“I must give credit where it’s due,” said the billionaire humbly. “This
languaging and this model was taught to me by The Spellbinder. But, yes.
Small things matter when it comes to mastery. I read somewhere that the
space shuttle