I was reading Tim Ferris’ Tools of Titans book when he mentioned Peter Diamandis as a titan. Peter is a Greek entrepreneur, physician, and engineer who is the founder of the X Prize Foundation and coauthor of The New York Times. Of particular interest to us are Peter’s Laws: The Creed of the Persistent and Passionate Mind. Peter came up with 28 Laws that help people achieve success in life. These laws are unique in how they help you look at life and how to be successful in anything you endeavor. I am going to pull my three favorite laws from the list, share my thoughts, and then provide you the full list at the end for you to read and discover your favorite(s).
Law 2: When Given A Choice, Take Both
When given a choice of two things, we tend to pick the one we want the most and never ask the question, “How can I have both?” We have subconsciously accepted and limited ourselves to our options and never really think outside the box. When given a choice, we need to ask ourselves how we could have both. Be stingy, be courageous, push the envelope and get everything you want in life. You can do this by taking both and not settling for one option.
Law 7: If You Can’t Win, Change The Rules
This kinda sounds like we are saying, “If you can’t win, then cheat.” But that is not what this law is saying. I believe this law is encouraging us to be creative when we feel like we will not be successful as things are. It doesn’t mean we have to cheat to win. It just means that when we hit a wall, we have to find a way around that wall. Or maybe we can find a game where that wall doesn’t even exist.
Law 7 goes hand-n-hand with Law 8: If You Can’t Change The Rules, Ignore Them. Again, I don’t believe this is saying do something negative, like ignore the rules to get ahead, in a negative way. I believe it is saying that you have to question the assumptions of everything. We tend to assume how things are suppose to work and operate. Thus, we never question the rules or assumptions. We just work within them. I believe this law is saying that we need to question the assumptions and work outside of the rules that we all assume we have to follow.
Law 17: The Best Way to Predict the Future Is to Create It Yourself
I love this law as it reminds us that we are in charge of our futures. We have a say in how things go down. You arrived at this very moment by a series of choices you have made through your life. And the choices you make in the future will take you to a specific future. So, imagine the future you want and then create the steps that will get you there. You have to make life happen for you and not to you. Don’t be a ship floating on the current, wondering where you will end up. Turn on the engines and aim for the destination you want!!!
Conclusion
These are just three, well four if you count Law 8, that are my favorites from Peter’s Laws. I find that these laws are concise yet profound in how they make people think. They are truly the laws of anyone who wants to be successful and who have the persistence and passion to see them through. I have attached an image of the laws below so you can read through them and find your favorites. If you are someone with a persistent and passionate mind, find your favorites and live by them. If you love the Creed as much as I do, then print them out and read them regularly. Good luck!!!
[…] and get down to the right numbers, and true, knowing your numbers are important. Remember one of Peter’s Laws: If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it. Knowing your numbers, you can put a plan together to increase your growth by 10%. That is not a […]