In order to become 10 times richer and more successful, people do not have to work 10 times more and get beyond their limits. They just need to use the rule of 1% - here is the advice from one of our writers.
The Power of Cumulative Advantage
Imagine two trees growing nearby. They compete for light and water every single day. If one tree grows even a bit faster than the other, then it will grow a bit higher and get more sunrays and rainwater for itself. Then, it will grow higher next day, thanks to the additional energy it had got previously. With time, it will dominate its neighbor, and get the biggest part of rays and useful materials from the soil.
Such tree will produce more seeds, and this means there are going to be more trees of the same kind in the next generation. This process will be repeated until trees that were just slightly higher than their competitors occupy the forest totally.
Scientists call the situation when a slight advantage increases with time as the cumulative advantage.
The Winner Gets Everything
Same things happen with humans. They compete for same resources, just like trees in the forest. Politicians compete for electoral voices, writers – for a place in the list of bestsellers, sportsmen – for gold medals, companies – for potential clients, TV-channels – for time and attention of viewers.
The effect, when a small difference in results leads to great rewards is called “the winner gets everything”.
It is enough to have one percent, one cent, one second of advantage in order to get 100% of a reward.
Any decisions connected to limited resources (like time and money) naturally lead to a situation when the winner gets it all.
The Winner Gets the Biggest Part
The previous effect that is fine for individual competitions, can be the reason of positive changes in other fields of one’s life.
When getting to a suitable position (after winning a gold medal or getting a chair of a company’s chief), the winner begins to accumulate advantages allowing them to win again, and again, and again. A slight dominance at the start continues to bring dividends.
One victory increases your chance to get others. And each new success only makes the winner’s position stronger.
With time, all the rewards and advantages come to those who were a bit better than the competitors, while those who were slightly behind have almost nothing.
Now let’s come back to the beginning. Why only some people and organizations have the biggest part of all the advantages and goods?
The Rule of One Percent
Even a slight difference in work can lead to unequal privileges with time. That is why right habits are so important.
It is enough to be only 1% better than your competitors. But if to support your advantage today, then tomorrow, and day after day, you’ll win because of that advantage. And each victory will bring better results.
This is the rule of one percent. You don’t need to be two times better to get two times more. You need to be only 1% better.
