From: alexhormozi
Success in any endeavor, particularly business, hinges on continuous growth and learning. The speaker emphasizes that personal success is not dependent on the quality of the teaching or system, but rather on the individual’s commitment to making it work [00:00:49]. This perspective highlights the importance of personal responsibility in achieving desired outcomes [00:02:46].
Personal Investment in Education
The speaker has invested over $500,000 in business education through courses, masterminds, coaching programs, and workshops [00:00:00]. Despite the quality of instructors, he consistently became the top student and often surpassed the teachers [00:00:06]. This underscores the idea that self-education and active participation are key. He claims to have never had a negative return on investment (ROI) from any educational purchase, even from “bad teachers” or “scumbags,” because he always made the purchase yield results [00:01:04].
The Fundamental Question: “How do you know it’s going to work?”
According to the speaker, asking “How do you know it’s going to work?” fundamentally implies it won’t work [00:00:43]. The success is not inherent in the program or teacher, but in the individual’s effort and mindset [00:00:49].
Five Levels of Competence
The speaker outlines a “top-down approach” to competence, categorized into five levels, which impact an individual’s ability to learn and succeed [00:01:34].
1. Positive Active (Highest Competence)
Individuals at this level believe that if no one has proven something cannot be done, then it is possible [00:02:22]. They challenge others to prove why they can’t achieve a goal [00:02:24]. Their mindset is “I will be the best student, no matter how incompetent the teacher; I will make it happen” [00:02:31]. This means they internalize the decision-making power for their success [00:02:48]. Examples include Elon Musk’s first-principles thinking and Roger Bannister’s first 4-minute mile [00:03:16]. “Winners will win” regardless of the system [00:03:11].
2. Positive Passive
These individuals are motivated by seeing others succeed. They say, “Okay, he did it, so I can do it” [00:03:49]. This is still a strong position for success, focusing on replication before iteration [00:04:15].
3. Neutral Passive
The majority of people fall into this category. They adopt a “let’s see if it works for me” approach [00:04:36]. They passively accept whatever happens, making them “mediocre customers” or participants [00:04:52].
4. Negative Passive
These individuals believe a system “might work for other people, but it probably won’t work for me” [00:05:24]. They often “half-ass” the process and blame the system when it doesn’t work [00:05:31]. A salon owner blamed a gift card campaign for not working, but admitted he didn’t follow the instructions correctly [00:05:37]. This illustrates a lack of personal responsibility.
5. Negative Active (Bottom of the Barrel)
This is the lowest level of competence, characterized by actively trying to prove that something won’t work for them [00:07:54]. They claim unique circumstances or “bad luck” [00:08:01]. This mindset is often tied to identity, making it difficult to accept personal fault [00:09:03]. Examples include individuals who believe their body defies physics regarding weight loss, or that their marriage is “special” and communication frameworks won’t apply [00:08:07].
Potential for Transformation
Interestingly, the speaker finds Negative Active people have the highest potential to jump directly to Positive Active [00:09:41]. If their active energy can be redirected from proving something wrong to proving it right, they can become “absolute animals” and “brand champions” [00:10:00]. Stories include a gym owner who transformed his business after shifting from negative active to positive active, and a client named Autumn who lost weight after deciding she wanted to be “thin” more than she wanted to be “right” about her unique metabolism [00:10:07], demonstrating overcoming societal and personal challenges to achieve success.
The Philosophy of “Do, Not Try”
The speaker emphasizes the difference between “trying to succeed” and “succeeding.” Like Morpheus telling Neo “Stop trying to hit me and hit me” [00:13:22], the point is to engage in the action of winning rather than merely going through the motions [00:13:30]. Yoda’s quote, “There is no try, there is only do or do not” [00:14:21], reinforces this. “Try” allows for the possibility of failure; true commitment to winning eliminates that possibility because success becomes an inevitability [00:14:27].
Bottom-Up Approach: The Role of Skills and Building a Bridge
Unequal outcomes in educational processes are often predicted by the number of skills someone has before entering the program [00:16:02].
The “Last Brick” Phenomenon
People often attribute all success to the most recent program or “last brick” in building a bridge to an outcome, overlooking previous foundational learning experiences [00:16:33]. Just as algebra builds on simple addition, advanced business concepts build on prior skills [00:16:56]. Success with an advanced teacher is possible because of the basic skills taught by a previous one [00:17:13].
Meta-Skills and Foundational Education
The more skills and “meta-skills” (e.g., learning how to learn, critical thinking) an individual possesses, the more successful they are likely to be [00:17:43]. This is because a higher skill set allows individuals to bridge gaps where instructions are vague [00:18:12]. Education often assumes a baseline of knowledge; if an individual lacks a remedial foundational skill (like literacy), a program “won’t work” for them, but the fault lies in their own prerequisite skills, not the program [00:18:40]. This highlights the role of socioeconomic background in education choices and access to foundational learning.
Learning from All Experiences: Inversion Thinking
Even in the most “dog shit” experiences, there is always something to learn [00:19:17]. By using “inversion thinking”—identifying what made an experience horrible and doing the exact opposite—one can still gain value and “ROI” from every experience [00:19:44]. This ensures a “no-fail situation” as a student, as you learn either what to do or what not to do [00:20:20].
Conclusion: Champions Create Success
Champions achieve success regardless of conditions [00:21:16]. They do not blame the education system, teachers, or vendors. Instead, they “just win no matter what” [00:21:31]. This is exemplified by athletes like Tom Brady, who can change teams and still lead to championships by forcing winning [00:21:35].
The speaker’s personal approach involves:
- Desire to be Number One: A strong drive to be the best student in any learning situation, ensuring personal growth regardless of teaching quality [00:22:37].
- Replicate Before Iterate: First, meticulously follow proven steps to achieve the same results, understand why they work, and then seek ways to improve them [00:23:09]. Trying to innovate before understanding the basics (iterating before replicating) often leads to failure [00:23:40].
Ultimately, the goal is to prove to yourself that you can win no matter what, rather than sacrificing your own success to prove a teacher or system is bad [00:25:20]. This reinforces self-respect and personal development through a relentless pursuit of victory.