Chapter 7

Four Degrees of Action

One question that I've received over the years is, “Exactly how much action is necessary to create success?” Not surprisingly, everyone is looking for the secret shortcut—and equally unsurprising is the following fact: There are no shortcuts. The more action you take, the better your chances are of getting a break. Disciplined, consistent, and persistent actions are more of a determining factor in the creation of success than any other combination of things. Understanding how to calculate and then take the right amount of action is more important than your concept, idea, invention, or business plan.

Most people fail only because they are operating at the wrong degree of action. To simplify action, we are going to break down your choices into four simple categories or degrees of action. Your four choices are:

1. Do nothing.

2. Retreat.

3. Take normal levels of action.

4. Take massive action.

Before I get into describing each of these, it is important to understand that everyone utilizes all four degrees of action at some time in their lives and especially in response to different areas of life. For instance, you might use massive action in your career but then completely retreat when it comes to your civic duties and responsibilities. Another person might do nothing when it comes to learning about social media, even retreat from it. Another might only take normal levels of action when it comes to eating healthy and exercising but then overexcel ...

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