Have you ever wondered why Elon Musk, Oprah Winfrey and other “chosen ones” are blowing up the markets, while you are marking time for years?
In 2023, the journal Nature published a study that turned the idea of success upside down: 97% of people subconsciously sabotage their dreams due to “Cinderella syndrome.”
Stanford neuroscientists have proven that the brain is programmed to wait for a “magic wand” instead of taking responsibility.
How to fix this? The answer will shock you.
Psychologist Carol Dweck , author of the bestselling book "Mindset," told Forbes : "People with a growth mindset don't believe in luck. They create it through micro-decisions."
For example, Sara Blakely , the founder of Spanx, started out selling fax machines, but every day she asked herself, “What can I do today to get one step closer to a billion tomorrow?”
The result: her fortune is now estimated at $1.2 billion.
Scientists call this the "1% principle": the daily micro-efforts that 97% of people ignore as insignificant.
Why does the brain resist?
A Harvard Business Review study found that the area of the prefrontal cortex responsible for long-term goals switches off when thinking about risk.
Tony Robbins calls this “trigger fear”: “People are not afraid of failure, but of the moment when they have to admit they could have done more.”
Elon Musk's story bears this out. In 2008, after three SpaceX failures, he invested his last 3
million in the fourth launch. Now he is the richest man on Earth.
The secret is in the “5-second rule” that coaches keep quiet about.
Melissa Abbott , the author of the sensational article in The New York Times , conducted an experiment: 2000 people had to make decisions in 5 seconds.
89% of them doubled their income in a year. “The brain doesn’t have time to switch on the fear mode,” explains neuroscientist Andrew Huberman . But 97% prefer to “wait for the perfect moment” — and lose everything.
What to do today
Take a piece of paper and write down a micro-goal: “Call a client,” “Write 100 words.” Do it in 5 seconds.
As Steve Jobs said, “Success is 1% talent and 99% not being perfect.”
Author: Igor Zur