Today I’m going to give you the best analogy for business success I’ve ever heard in my life (and I’ve heard a lot).

I’m no pilot, but my understanding is that when you’re tearing down the runway right before takeoff, you need to push the throttle to 100% power. Only at 100% power can the plane actually leave the ground and get airborne.

If you back the throttle to even 98%, you’ll never take off.

If you keep it at 100%, get off the ground, and then back off the throttle even a little bit less than 100%, you’ll crash.

You’ve got to keep the throttle at 100% until you get to cruising altitude.

Once at cruising attitude, something interesting happens. You can back the throttle down to not 95%, but 10% or even 5%, and stay flying with no problem. Once you’re cruising along in the sky, the engine is barely working as compared to when it was taking off.

Most people work hard at their businesses and careers. They take that throttle and blast it to 95% and keep it there. The problem is they never get off the ground. They just keep chugging away at 95% power on the runway…forever.

The smart people, the ones who want real success and long-term happiness in life, take that throttle and blast it up to just another 5%, to 100%. They keep it there for a few years.

During those years, it’s a little painful. They’re out of balance. Other parts of their life slide or stay on pause. They get a little stressed sometimes.

However, after a few years, when their businesses are configured correctly, they can back off that throttle to just 10% or 5%, if they want, and it’s smooth sailing for the rest of their lives.

They watch all the other people grinding away at 95% forever, while they’re chilling at 10% or less, receiving the same or even better financial results. They know that if those people just cranked things up to 100% for a few years, they could join them in happiness.

Where is your throttle set?

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