People are greatly mistaken about how much sacrifice it takes to reach success.

To achieve anything, you need to commit time and energy.

Time + Energy = Achievement

The inputs are easy enough to understand, and many do recognise that any great accomplishment requires effort and time.

However, just how much time and energy is required - many are completely unaware.

They think that if they go to the gym for a week, they will get the six-pack abs and toned physique.

They think that if they start one business, they will be wealthy and successful.

They think that if they approach one girl, she will fall head over heels for him.

But then reality hits and they fail.

And so, without even pondering why they failed, they give up and blame it on other circumstances:

"My parents didn't give me a head start"

"I was born in a poor neighborhood"

"I am not talented like the others"

"I'm just not cut out for it"

"It's my genetics"

You get motivated, and suddenly you have this burning desire to change yourself.

But even after trying your hardest,

• You're still fat

• You're still weak

• You're still anxious

• You've made no money

• You're still stuck in toxic relationships

Why is that?

I mean, you understood the equation for achievement - what else could there possibly be?

Simple.

The Law of Equivalent Exchange.

Let's learn it.

Equivalent Exchange - The Reality of Achievement

Let's return to our equation of achievement.

Time + Energy = Achievement

If you put in the time and effort, you can achieve anything.

However, there is one caveat:

That is what people get stuck on and seemingly seem to disregard.

A great business is not built on 5 all-nighters across the span of a month.

No, it is built on relentless daily effort through multiple seasons of hardship and failure. It is the overwhelming belief in oneself to carry them across months or even years of solitude and destitution.

A great body is not built on a week of elliptical machines and rotisserie chickens.

No, it is built through consistent progressive overload and careful dieting to maximise muscle gain and reduce fat loss. It is the inner will to carry the person across the depressive bouts of body dysmorphia and pain-stricken muscle soreness.

To obtain something, something of equal value must be lost, and in the context of achievement, it is the proportional amounts of time and energy that we input into our goals.

The solution to great achievement can be summed up in 5 words:

But easier said than done of course.

Understanding the law of Equivalent Exchange is one thing, but being able to optimise it and use it for your benefit is another.

We are going to go over three steps we must take to use the force of equivalent exchange for the realistic achievement of our great ambitions.

These are:

1. Time-traveling

2. Doing the day-in-day-out

3. Tinkering your machine

Don't worry - they are a lot easier than they sound.

1) First, We Must Time Travel

Do you know exactly what is required for you to achieve success?

Do you know how long it will be before you see results?

Do you know how much effort it will take?

Grand ambitions with little awareness of what is required will lead directly to disappointment.

What we must do instead is establish early on what exactly it is we are embarking on.

What we must do instead is time-travel early on and find out just what success feels and looks like.

Obviously, we don't have a machine to do that for us.

But we do have a few techniques that can allow us to glimpse into the future:

1. Gather your research

2. Visualise your future

3. Set your goals with the "Just Right" prompt

1) Gather your research

Research and read all you possibly can regarding the topic of your interest:

- Read books, articles, and personal recounts of success.

- Listen to podcasts and audiobooks to extrapolate success in the field.

- Watch videos of key figureheads in the field and how they achieved success.

What you are aiming for is enough information to confidently answer these four questions:

- What does success look like?

- What does success require?

- How long would success take?

- Am I still willing to go forward?

The last is of most importance, because you need to decide whether or not you are still willing to go forward with your pursuit even after learning what it takes to reach success.

2) Visualise your future

Now close your eyes.

Picture yourself in the future, where you have already achieved that success.

• What does it look like and what have you gained?

• What kind of actions did you take to get there?

• How are you feeling?

Describe the situation with a high degree of detail.

Recall the research you had done in Step 1) - simulate the success of those who have already achieved what you desire.

An additional prompt you can use is to imagine you were being interviewed on a podcast, and that the topic of discussion was your story to success.

You may choose to visualise your response, or you may wish to answer it aloud. Be as casual as you want, but make sure you tell the audience your story with as much detail as possible.

3) Set your goals with the "Just Right" prompt

We talked about the SMART goal framework a few letters back, and I would recommend you use it to create clear and distinct goals to work towards.

Recall that goals are the milestones on our journey to success; they represent the points where our achievements crystallize into tangible progress.

Goals translate abstract ideals of success into tangible, real-world outcomes - they are the anchors that bring the metaphysical to reality.

A crucial part when setting goals is the time-horizon aspect, as knowing when you want your goals to be achieved will provide you with the urgency needed to accelerate progress.

A prompt you can utilise is to draw some time horizon and ask if it is adequate and realistic for you.

For example, imagine that my current vision of success is to earn $1000 through online business. I have no previous experience and I have just done all the research and visualisation to know that it will take time to learn the skills, build the projects, and build the traffic.

If I was to use the prompt, I would ask myself:

Can I achieve my goal in 10 years?

 I would answer "Too long."

Can I achieve my goal in 6 months?

I would answer "Too short."

Can I achieve my goal in 1 year?

I would answer "Just right."

It is a matter of gauging your realistic expectations and comfortability with achieving the level of success defined by yourself, with the background knowledge provided by your research.

2) Do the Day-Ins and Day Outs

Ok, we are getting there.

If goals are the milestones, then routines are the building blocks to the path of success.

Routines comprise the habitual tasks you are completing often and always. They are what build the bulk of the progress towards the achievement of a goal (besides administration tasks such as research and setup).

For example,

If I am trying to grow my audience on a social media platform, then my routine would be to engage and post daily during the first hours of the day.

Your success IS your routine, as it is the actions that move the needle.

Time + Energy = Achievement

The routines are what comprise most of the time and energy spent towards achievement.

So we need to get it right...right?

Well, yes and no.

When you start, it is going to be quite difficult to lay down the perfect routine.

- You will have trouble working your existing lifestyle with your routine

- There will be commitments along the way that will impede your routines

- You will have trouble maintaining a high standard of completion with the routines

And that is perfectly normal.

If you are adopting a new routine comprised of habits and tasks that lie outside your comfort zone, it is perfectly normal to not completely adapt initially.

However, we do need to optimise and learn to integrate it to the best of our ability if we wish to maximise our output aka achievement.

Which brings us to the next point.

3) Tinker Your System

You have a routine.

Now, you simply follow it for the expected time horizon.

But you can't simply just set it and forget it, as who knows if your routine will even bring you results.

So you must observe.

- Observe your progress

- Observe how you are feeling

- Observe if there could be improvements

Know that even the slightest of outputs means your system is working -

The Law of Equivalent Exchange is working in your favor.

However, if you find that progress is too slow, such as if you are approaching the deadline and barely any momentum has been made - then you must review and adjust.

Optimally, you would review and adjust on a week-by-week basis just to see how you are tracking along.

You may also review how you are feeling, such as whether you are burning out faster than you can recover.

If you aren't healthy, neither will the system.

If the system isn't healthy, goals won't be achieved.

Ask yourself:

- Do I feel like I can handle it?

- Do I feel like I am working at this sustainably?

- Do I feel like success is worth it if I am feeling this way?

Get a gauge on whether or not your work flow is sustainable. If you do not enjoy the journey, you are missing out on the joy of the process.

Lastly, make improvements where needed.

Adjust the inputs:

• Add more hours or improve workflow efficiency to reduce time spent working

• Extend the time horizon, or even shorten it if you feel confident

• Adjust the workload to improve work efficiency/focus

You are the operator, and your system is completely customisable.

If the output (i.e. achieving success) remains a constant, then the only change that is possible is us.

• We can improve the way we work to feel more joy

• We can shape the way we work to feel more balanced

• We can change the way we work to achieve our goals faster

By understanding and reviewing your progress, you will be able to optimise.

Allow these steps to guide the way you utilise the Law of Equivalent Exchange in the achievement of your successes.

In summary,

- Know where you are going

- Create the routines to take you there

- Review your progress and change if needed

We will revisit these concepts more in the future.

For now, I think it's time for you to get back on the grind.

Your dreams don't work unless you do.

Alchemist, I will see you in the next letter.

— Lachlan