From: alexhormozi
We are all one decision away from changing our lives forever [00:00:00]. To gain more power in our lives, it’s essential to understand what power is and how to unlock it through our actions and decisions [00:00:10]. Alex Hormozi, who went from sleeping on a gym floor to living in a penthouse in ten years, attributes much of his success to a series of events and decisions that made massive differences in his life [00:00:32]. His goal for others is to become more powerful to make the world a better place [00:01:06].
Understanding Power and Rationality
Power is defined as the ability to influence or direct events or people [00:04:59]. It is a neutral force that amplifies who we are, whether good or bad [00:02:33]. Therefore, aspiring to have more power is crucial [00:02:50].
A key aspect of effective decision-making, particularly in sales and personal growth, is rationality. While emotions can decrease an action threshold, logic makes decisions stick and creates lasting success [00:06:16]. People who rise higher in business tend to make more logical, rather than emotional, decisions [00:06:38].
Core Beliefs for “Selling” Decisions
The speaker outlines several beliefs about “selling” that apply both to influencing others and to making personal decisions:
- People want to believe you and buy; you must help their logical brains justify the decision they already want to make [00:07:39].
- Selling happens before asking for the sale, while closing happens after [00:07:45].
- It’s easier to handle obstacles before the sale is solicited than objections after [00:08:06].
- Expect and plan for “no”; it is not failure but an expected part of the process [00:08:15].
- Sales is the first step in coaching, as it is the ability to direct or influence others [00:08:44].
- If you didn’t get a “gasp” from a price tag, you didn’t go high enough [00:09:00].
- Selling properly sets expectations and dictates the relationship, leading to long-term success [00:09:43].
- Selling is helping prospects help themselves, empowering them to make decisions [00:09:56].
- Keep the prospect, not the sale, as the priority [00:10:10].
- Seek to understand, not to argue, maintaining childlike curiosity [00:10:35].
- Closing is a dance, not a fight; it’s seduction, not force, selling from a position of wanting to help [00:11:19].
- Selling is a transference of belief over a bridge of trust [00:11:47].
- You can only build trust if you genuinely want to help [01:12:52].
- Belief and trust are a continuum, not binaries [01:13:06].
- Closers ask hard questions because they genuinely care [01:13:32].
- The person who cares the most about the prospect wins the sale [01:13:55].
- Report all your sales to learn from successes and train new people [01:14:14].
- Power is the ability to direct or influence people; understanding this skill is vital to being powerful [01:14:40].
The ability to close (getting someone to commit to a decision) is one of the highest predictors of success in business, making up for many deficiencies [00:15:23].
Overcoming Obstacles to Investing in Education and Skills
People often cast their power to external sources, using distortions of reality to avoid decisions [00:18:10]. These distortions, based on cognitive behavioral therapy, manifest in five common excuses:
1. Time
Excuses like “not a good time,” “too busy,” or “maybe in the future” [00:29:01].
- Macro Perspective (Always Busy): If you want long-term results, and you’ll always be busy, starting now is best because you’ll learn to succeed even in busy periods [00:32:57].
- Micro Perspective (No Time in Day): Often, the issue isn’t lack of time, but how time is currently spent. A good program helps cut out unproductive activities, freeing up time [00:34:25].
- “When… Then” Fallacy: The belief that “when I have X, then I will do Y” is a logical fallacy. For example, waiting to pay for a program that makes money until one has more money [00:35:36].
2. Money/Value
Excuses like “can’t afford it” or “too expensive” [00:37:31].
- Why a Lot is Good: If an investment feels like a lot of money, it means you’ll be more committed and work harder, increasing your likelihood of success [00:38:09].
- Relative Value: If the program achieves its promised results (e.g., adds $10,000/month income), its value far outweighs its cost [00:38:50].
- How You’ll Pay: You’ll spend the money anyway, either directly on a program or indirectly through wasted time and stagnation. Investing in education and skills allows you to buy time by learning from others’ mistakes, accelerating your progress [00:40:53].
- Resourceful, Not Resources: Self-made millionaires and billionaires started with nothing, proving that success is about resourcefulness, not existing resources [00:43:34].
3. Fit
Excuses like “not sure if it’s for me” or “I don’t like certain aspects of the plan” [00:49:09].
- New Identity, New Priorities: Shifting identity (e.g., from someone who wastes money to someone who invests in self-education) leads to new priorities. Your current spending habits reflect your current identity; change is required to align with a desired future self [00:48:12].
- Change the Change: What you’ve been doing has led to your current results. To get different results, you must change what you’re doing [00:49:56]. The pain of staying the same must outweigh the pain of change [00:50:33].
- Hypothetical Agreement: Ask: “If this were perfect, would you do it?” If yes, then discuss what’s missing. This reveals the true objection and helps address it directly [00:52:06].
4. Authority
“I have to talk to my partner/spouse/someone else” [00:53:48].
- Isolate the Objection: If the decision-maker isn’t present, uncover the real concern (e.g., fear of failure) that the individual is projecting onto the partner [00:54:19].
- Support, Not Permission: The core issue is often asking for permission instead of seeking support. It’s your life; taking ownership prevents future resentment [00:55:46]. Explaining how the investment will make you a better partner or more capable can shift their perspective [00:56:16].
5. Avoidance
“I need to think about it” [00:59:07]. This means confronting the self.
- Past:
- This isn’t a fast decision; you’ve been grappling with it for years. Don’t let past struggles or bad investments prevent you from making a good one now. “Don’t let it burn you twice” [01:03:04].
- If past indecision led to your current situation, changing that pattern now is crucial [01:04:20].
- Are you tired of another year of “almost”? The cost of inaction is what you should truly consider [01:04:43].
- Present:
- Thinking about it won’t provide new information if you are the primary source. Make the decision now [01:05:55].
- To make a decision, you need to believe three things: the product will help you achieve your goal, you trust the person offering it, and it will work for you [01:07:11].
- True informed decisions can often only be made once you’ve experienced the product or service, justifying a trial or guarantee [01:08:52].
- The word “decide” comes from Latin “d cadere,” meaning “to cut off” or “to kill off.” Which future are you killing off today: your dreams, or your past patterns of inaction [01:09:37]?
- Future:
- Consider what another five years of inaction will look like. Is that where you want to be [01:10:34]?
- Evaluate options: doing the thing and getting the result; not doing it and not getting the result; doing it and not getting the result (if guaranteed, this option is risk-free). The one that’s risk-free but guarantees no progress is the worst choice [01:10:55].
- If you’re going to eventually address your struggles, why not start now to enjoy the benefits sooner [01:11:53]?
- Does making this decision get you closer to your goal or further away? You don’t need to be perfect; you just need to be directionally right [01:12:35].
Bonus: The Reason Is The Reason
Often, the very reason you tell yourself not to do something is the exact reason you need to do it [01:13:38]. The biggest chain holding you back is the one you’re enslaving yourself to [01:14:02]. Breaking that chain returns power to you [01:14:07].
Investing in Education and Skills
Fortunes are created by taking a lot of risk with a little bit of money [01:14:37]. The speaker states that everything he has made in his life is the result of investing in his own education [01:14:56]. This yields far higher returns than any other investment because no government, divorce, or external force can take your knowledge and skills away [01:15:19].
The Time Tax of Ignorance
The number one “tax” that no one appreciates is the “time tax of ignorance” [01:19:13]. The fact that you don’t know how to achieve a certain income (e.g., a million dollars a year) is literally costing you that amount [01:18:37]. The goal is to pay down this time tax as fast as possible by educating and investing in yourself [01:19:46]. This means specifically investing in experiences that build skills [01:19:56].
Skill development is like building a bridge: each investment is a brick that gets you closer to your goals, even if it’s not the final step [01:17:12]. The speaker’s decision to buy education, even a $10,000 mastermind without a gym, put him on the right path, leading to significant wealth [01:22:46].
Conclusion
To summarize, realize that you are the source of your power [01:18:04]. Every decision you make is a vote towards or against the person you want to be [01:18:09]. By making conscious decisions, implementing rapidly, and taking ownership, you can overcome the distortions of reality that hold you back [01:20:01]. There are no silver bullets, but opportunities that move you closer to your goals should be seized, as you either win or learn, and both bring you closer to your desired future [01:20:25]. The importance of investing in oneself and acquiring skills is paramount for long-term success and personal empowerment.