Twelve Pillars

by Jim Rohn

“The only way things are going to change for you is when you change.”

first Pillar of Success is to work harder on yourself than you do on your job.”

Success comes when you develop yourself beyond where you currently are. So you have to work harder on yourself—improving yourself—than you do on your job.”

as long as you stay at the same skill level, you will never go beyond that level of pay and promotion.”

‘Every life form seems to strive to its maximum except human beings.

the only way things are going to change for you is when you change. What are you going to change that will in turn change your life? If you keep on living like the way you are now, you will continue to produce the same life that you already have. That’s the way it works.”

2: Live a Life of Health

“You should make sure that the outside of you is a good reflection of the inside of you.”

“Pillar number two is Total Well-Being.

‘three-dimensional health.’

a person is made up of three parts: the body, the soul, and the spirit. Three dimensions.”

The spiritual is at the core, and it is the most important. Then the second layer is the soul, and the outer layer is the physical—the body. Each part rests on the one below it, and it is only as strong as the layer below. Make sense?”

3: The Gift of Relationships

Success is to make the most of the Gift of Relationships.”

‘Your family and your love must be cultivated like a garden. Time, effort, and imagination must be summoned constantly to keep any relationship flourishing and growing.’

You need to spend time with someone if you want a relationship with them. And the time you spend must be quality. The more and the better the time, the better the relationship.

People are hard. You are hard to be around. I am hard to be around. It is a fact of life. People aren’t perfect. That makes it hard to deal with them.

“It takes effort to make the time. It takes effort to put up with another person’s faults. It takes plain-old effort!”

“Imagination just means that you have to see with your imagination what the relationship could be.

4: Achieve Your Goals

advice: Write it down. Write your goal down.”

first goal: to write down your one hundred goals.”

the major reason for setting a goal is for what it makes of you to accomplish it.

‘Make a million dollars, not for the million dollars, but for what you will have to become to make a million dollars.’

‘You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.’

“Start by changing your direction. You are where you are, but you don’t have to stay there. Choose where you want to go, and then build out your plan for getting there.”

“How do I do that?” “That is where goals come in. Let’s say, for example, that you want to have a certain life, a certain income, or job, in ten years. Would you be able to dream something big for yourself to achieve in ten years?” “Sure.” “Okay, then that is your long-range goal. Or you could make your long-range goal five years. Whatever is out there in the future that you want to achieve. Then you choose somewhere in the middle for your midrange goal, say five years on a ten-year goal. And then a short-range goal for a year or two out. You might even have what Mr. Davis calls ‘micro-goals’ that are just months out. The key is that each one leads you to the final goal.”

“Just decide what you want to do and then get started. That is one of the most powerful lessons in life.”

5: The Proper Use of Time

“Every day has many opportunities, but only one best opportunity.”

‘We must all suffer from one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons.’

There is one certainty, and that is that the end of your life will come, and sooner than you want.

“days are expensive. When you spend a day, you have one less day to spend. So make sure you spend each one wisely.”

“Mr. Davis would tell you that your day is being spent wisely if it is being spent in the best way possible. Every day has many opportunities, but only one best opportunity. Your best opportunities are those that align with your overall goals and should be what you spend your time on.

the time-management trap that most people get into. They spend their time on the urgent rather than the important.

something will master and something will serve. Either you run the day or the day runs you. Either you control your time or it controls you. Take your pick.”

6: Surround Yourself with the Best People

“Don’t join an easy crowd; you won’t grow. Go where the expectations and the demands to perform are high.”

Surround yourself with winners, successful people who exhibit and live consistent to values and skills you want to acquire and develop.

you must constantly ask yourself these questions: Who am I around? What effect are they having on me? What have they got me reading? What have they got me saying? Where do they have me going? What do they have me thinking? And, most importantly, what do they have me becoming? Then ask yourself the big question: Is that okay?”

place every person you meet into one of three categories: disassociation, limited association, and expanded association. You simply ask yourself whether each person is someone you should stop associating, limit your association with, or expand your association.”

“Are they friends of convenience?”

“I wonder if they aren’t your friends because it was easier to continue the relationship with them than it was to pursue new relationships.”

Successful people look for relationships with other successful people who will push them, challenge them, and encourage them to become better.”

‘To attract attractive people you must be attractive. To attract powerful people, you must be powerful. To attract committed people, you must be committed. Instead of going to work on them, go to work on yourself. If you become, you can attract.’ ”

‘Attitude is greatly shaped by influence and association.’ ”

Who you hang around with will be a major determining factor in what your attitude becomes.

7: Be a Lifelong Learner

“Formal education will make you a living. Self-education will make you a fortune.”

‘If someone is going down the wrong path, he doesn’t need motivation to speed him up. He needs education to turn him around. Learning is the beginning of wealth. Learning is the beginning of health. Learning is the beginning of spirituality. Searching and learning are where the miracle process all begins.’ Well, that education is self-education. Most of life is lived after your formal education. That means the rest is up to you. The state makes you go to school through twelfth grade, then most people choose to go through college, but the truly successful decide to learn for the rest of their lives.”