10X is Easier than 2X: How World-Class Entrepreneurs Achieve More by Doing Less

| Dan Sullivan with Dr. Benjamin Hardy, 2023

What’s It All About?

I love when a book’s title makes its core message clear—and 10X is Easier than 2X: How World-Class Entrepreneurs Achieve More by Doing Less does exactly that! In his book, leading entrepreneurial coach Dan Sullivan shares valuable, strategic insights on why it’s better to strive for 10X growth instead of 2X growth, and why achieving more doesn’t necessarily equal doing more.

In 10X is Easier than 2X, Sullivan explains why 10X isn’t an outcome. Instead, it’s a process you can apply to your own life by focusing on four important freedoms:

Time
Money
Relationships
Purpose

By building a mindset around these key freedoms, you can reach your full potential in all areas of your life, including more productive connections, increased profits, and positive growth in both your professional and personal relationships. We all have the ability to grow our potential and find success... and in 10X is Easier than 2X, Sullivan gives you the objectives, mindset, and motivation you need to get started on achieving more by doing less.

Favorite Quote

“As you become increasingly valuable, people will pay you increasing amounts of money in exchange for your value.”

Biggest Takeaway

I’ve implemented the practices of Sullivan’s book in my own professional life. In particular, I start my day with three objectives that tie directly to my goal of growing the professional speaking side of Manufacturing Greatness. Instead of working on anything that comes my way or getting distracted by shiny new objectives, the 10X principal keeps me grounded. By sticking to my objectives, I’m able to set boundaries, stay focused, productively organize my time, and find new ways to practice intentionality and hold myself accountable for my goals and growth.

Bonus Information

When you know your goals — and are clear and committed in your mindset and intentions—it gives you the freedom to say no to objectives that don’t fit your goals... and the room to say yes when you want to do something. Even if your goals feel impossible, commit to them. By focusing on four objectives in the 10X principal, you get out of your current mindset and shift into a new one, which can help you get rid of old assumptions and boost your level of knowledge.

Reviewed by: Trevor Blondeel, February 26, 2024

At Manufacturing Greatness, Trevor Blondeel works with manufacturers to connect the top to the shop. If you’re ready to improve your own organization, contact Trevor to learn how Manufacturing Greatness can help you build stronger leaders and develop a dynamic, high-performing workplace.

Mindfulness Manufacturing

Our show is about providing listeners with real stories that come from a place of experience, transparency, and authenticity. Most importantly it’s about what we learn from these stories and applying Mindfulness in our everyday work and personal lives.
Our intention is to create an environment where people can learn through open honest discussions on how we apply Mindfulness. Although our experiences and stories come from time in a manufacturing environment hence the title “Mindfulness Manufacturing”, we still see our discussions and topics relatable to any organization or profession.

When a mistake occurs on the plant floor, your mind might jump to one question: who caused this issue, and should I write them up for their mistake? But there’s a more productive approach you could be taking—and in this episode of Mindfulness Manufacturing, guest Dr. Jake Mazulewicz breaks it all down!

With a background as a firefighter, EMT, and military paratrooper, Jake knows the challenges of high-hazard industries, and works with organizations to reduce errors and create safer, more reliable workplace environments. In this episode, Jake shares why you can’t procedularize everything, including the way you handle errors and accidents, and offers great insights and stories about how to use connection and curiosity to improve safety, address errors, and strengthen your organization.

3:35 – Procedures and policies are the work that is imagined, and on the floor is how the work actually gets done

4:19 – The work as-done is almost always radically different than the work as-imagined

5:20 – Even when you have standards and people show up wanting to do a good job, you can still see issues that need to be addressed

6:44 – There will always be areas that absolutely need to have procedures in place

8:02 – There are also adaptive jobs, which leans less into procedures and more intro troubleshooting and tacit human knowledge

10:56 – In an ideal environment, both mechanistic and adaptive models are used and respected and needed

12:11 – There are four levels, ranging from strict procedurals to looser guidelines that show what to do, but not how to do it

15:36 – Tacit knowledge gets shared through conversations

16:22 – A way to share important information is to have frontline experts record videos sharing their insights to problems, especially those that are not covered in procedures

19:44 – Through conversation and connection, more knowledge is shared

21:58 – Debriefing also plays a central role

23:45 – If you have strong discipline, you’ll find more freedom

25:31 – In most situations, errors are signals, not defects

27:07 – When an error occurs, be curious and find the deeper cause of the problem

Connect with Jake Mazulewicz

Find him on Linkedin

Visit his website