Why thinking bigger isn’t about doing more—it’s about becoming someone completely different
There’s a moment that arrives in every entrepreneur’s journey—a moment I remember with perfect clarity.
It was March 2018. I was sitting in a massive Disney hotel in Orlando, surrounded by 3,000 entrepreneurs from around the world. My business was doing okay. I had passive income. Things were working. But I’d been stuck at the same plateau for 3-4 years, and deep down, I knew it.
I’d flown to Florida hoping for answers. What I got instead was a single sentence that would completely change the trajectory of my business—and my life.
“If you really want to take off, you can’t just think about doing better or going 2X. You need to embody your 10X version.”
The Americans call it “the 10X effect.”
And here’s what happened next:
That summer, my business exploded. By autumn, I was doing a speaking tour. I traveled to Thailand for another mastermind where I designed a live program that crushed it in 2019 and boosted my results for years after.
Even after stumbling in 2022, I made an incredible comeback in 2023 using these same principles—launching Flowtasking™ and embarking on another tour.
There really was a 10X transformation. But it wasn’t what you think.
It wasn’t just about revenue or impact. It was about becoming a better version of myself. The famous “upgrade of being.”
And that’s what most people get wrong about exponential growth.
Let me show you what actually creates transformation—and more importantly, what it will cost you.
The False Promise of Incremental Thinking
Here’s the problem with most business advice, most personal development, most goal-setting:
We’re taught to think incrementally. To aim for “realistic” improvements. To set “achievable” goals.
Double your revenue. Improve by 20%. Get 10% better.
And you know what happens when you think that way?
You stay exactly where you are. You think the same thoughts. You make the same decisions. You remain within your current limits.
Because incremental thinking keeps you trapped in your current paradigm. It’s like trying to solve a problem using the same level of thinking that created it. Einstein warned us about this, but we keep doing it anyway.
But when you aim for 10X?
Everything changes. Because 10X is impossible from where you currently stand.
You can’t get there by working harder. You can’t optimize your way there. You can’t hustle enough hours to bridge that gap.
10X requires you to think completely differently. To become someone else entirely.
And that’s not a bug. That’s the feature.
The Three Questions That Change Everything
When I sat at those mastermind tables in Orlando, surrounded by entrepreneurs who were operating at levels 10X beyond where I was, something shifted.
I could see that they weren’t just doing more of what I was doing. They were playing a completely different game. They thought differently. They moved differently. They inhabited a different reality.
And I realized: If I wanted to reach their level, I couldn’t just improve my current approach. I had to embody the version of me who already existed at that level.
This is where most people get stuck. They focus on the “doing” and the “having” without ever addressing the “being.”
But transformation doesn’t work that way. It starts with identity. With who you’re becoming.
So I asked myself three questions—and I want you to ask them too:
Question 1: Who is the “future me” who is operating at 10X?
Not what they do. Not what they have. Who they are.
What do they believe about themselves? How do they see the world? What kind of person operates at that level?
For me, this meant seeing myself not as “a content creator people respect” but as “a leader with a powerful brand who speaks on stages.” Not as someone hoping to be noticed, but as someone who owns their authority.
That shift in identity changed everything.
Question 2: How does the “future me” at 10X behave?
What are their daily habits? How do they make decisions? What do they say yes to? What do they refuse?
For me, I realized that 10X me:
- Values his time fiercely and is less available (this was really hard)
- Says NO without guilt or explanation
- Delegates and trusts his team (my control-freak tendencies took a beating)
- Invests boldly in what works instead of playing safe
- Takes calculated risks instead of avoiding all risk
These weren’t just new habits. They were fundamental shifts in how I operated.
Question 3: What does the “future me” at 10X possess?
Not just material possessions—though those matter too. But what resources? What relationships? What systems? What knowledge?
This helped me see the gaps between where I was and where I needed to be. And more importantly, it showed me what I needed to start building immediately.
The Decisions That Cost Everything (And Were Worth It)
Here’s what nobody tells you about 10X transformation:
It requires you to make decisions you’ve been avoiding. Often for years.
Decisions that feel impossible. That scare you. That might cost you relationships, comfort, or the version of yourself you’ve been attached to.
For me, the breakthrough required five major shifts:
Shift 1: From respected creator to powerful leader
I had to stop playing small. Stop being “nice” all the time. Stop waiting to be invited and start claiming space. This meant accepting visibility I wasn’t comfortable with and authority I didn’t feel ready for.
Shift 2: Valuing my time and becoming less available
This was excruciating. I had built my entire brand on being accessible, responding quickly, being there for people. But 10X me couldn’t afford that anymore. I had to create boundaries that felt selfish at first but were actually essential.
Shift 3: Learning to really say NO
Not “maybe later” or “let me think about it” or softening the no with justifications. Just… no. Clean. Clear. Final. This simple word became my superpower.
Shift 4: Hiring and trusting others
The control freak in me suffered deeply here. Letting go of tasks I’d always handled. Trusting others to represent my brand. Accepting that things might not be done exactly as I would do them—and that being okay.
Shift 5: Investing bigger and risking more
The masterminds were shocked at how small my advertising budget was. I was playing safe, afraid of a bad ROI. But 10X thinking meant betting bigger on what was already working. It meant calculated risks, not safety.
These weren’t easy decisions. They were terrifying. But they were necessary.
The Tax You Must Pay: Losing People’s Love
Here’s the hardest truth about 10X transformation:
You must accept that not everyone will love you anymore.
In fact, some people who loved you will actively dislike the person you’re becoming.
When you prioritize your time, people will call you selfish.
When you take leadership, people will call you arrogant.
When you say NO, people will call you difficult.
When you create boundaries, people will feel excluded.
When you become more visible, you become more criticized.
This is the tax of leadership. The price of expansion. The cost of growth.
In 2019, I had to learn to protect myself in ways I’d never needed before. The hate comments started. The criticism increased. People I thought were friends became distant or hostile.
I had to accept that upgrading your identity means losing parts of your environment—people who want to keep the old version of you because it made them more comfortable.
But here’s what I learned: That’s not your responsibility. That’s not your problem. That’s not even really about you.
The sorting happens naturally. And it’s ultimately for your highest good, even when it hurts.
The Quantum Leap Paradox
Here’s something strange about transformation that I wish someone had told me:
It doesn’t happen linearly. It happens in sudden jumps—quantum leaps—often preceded by periods of darkness.
You work. You push. You implement. And nothing seems to change. You might even go backward. You doubt everything. You wonder if you made a terrible mistake.
And then—suddenly—everything shifts. You leap to a new level. The plateau breaks. Reality reorganizes around your new identity.
This is why the personal growth industry’s promise of “just fun and ease” is a lie.
Growth is often uncomfortable. Transformation is frequently painful. The biggest leaps usually come after the biggest periods of doubt.
I experienced this viscerally in autumn 2018. After crushing it with my launch and speaking tour, I hit a wall. Everything felt flat. The high was over. The doubt crept in.
I was invited to a mastermind in Koh Phangan, Thailand. Right before leaving, I needed a visible symbol of change—so I bleached my hair blonde, Super Saiyan style. (Yes, really.)
In Thailand, I recorded a video about earning 10X more while working 10X less. But more importantly, I had space to integrate everything I’d been through. To let the dust settle. To prepare for the next leap.
That low period wasn’t a failure. It was necessary. It was integration.
And it taught me the most important lesson about the 10X effect:
It’s not sustained by results. It’s fueled by something deeper: Enthusiasm.
The Energy That Powers Everything: Enthusiasm
Here’s what I discovered about sustainable transformation:
If you’re only chasing results, you burn out. But if you’re driven by genuine enthusiasm for your mission, everything aligns.
The word “enthusiasm” comes from the Greek entheos—meaning “inspired by god” or “having the god within.” It’s not about forced positivity or manufactured motivation.
It’s a deep joy. An inner fire. A connection to something larger than your ego’s desires.
When you’re animated by this enthusiasm, you’re not fighting. You’re not forcing. You’re in flow.
And I know how hard it is to maintain that, especially when:
- Results don’t come as fast as you hoped
- People criticize what you’re creating
- External validation doesn’t arrive
- You doubt whether any of it matters
But here’s the truth: Your enthusiasm doesn’t depend on results. It doesn’t depend on external validation. It’s an internal energy—subtle, precious, and entirely yours.
Creating means moving forward without guarantees. Doing your best. Then letting go, even when it’s hard.
You have the right to be disappointed. You have the right to doubt. The essential thing is to find your thread again. Always.
This is why I built a model that allows me to step back when necessary. To recharge. To create in peace. Without endangering my business.
The more you reconnect to your own momentum, the less you need the noise of the world.
Enthusiasm returns when you create for yourself, not to be validated.
The Integration: Being, Doing, Having
Let me tie this together with a framework that’s served me through every transformation:
Being → Doing → Having
Most people approach it backward:
- “When I have more money, I’ll do what I love, and then I’ll be happy”
- “When I have success, I’ll do bold things, and then I’ll be confident”
But it doesn’t work that way. It never has.
Transformation always starts with BEING.
You must become the person who operates at 10X before you have the results of 10X.
You must embody the identity before the external reality matches it.
This isn’t “fake it till you make it.” This is quantum physics. This is how reality actually works.
Your external world is a reflection of your internal state. Change the internal state, and the external world has no choice but to reorganize around it.
So the question becomes:
Who do you need to BE to create the life you want?
Not what do you need to do. Not what do you need to have.
Who do you need to become?
Answer that question. Then make the decisions—however uncomfortable—that align with that identity.
The rest will follow.
Your 10X Questions
Before you close this and return to your day, I want you to sit with these questions. Really sit with them. Not rush to answers, but let them percolate.
1. Who is the future version of you operating at 10X?
What do they believe? How do they see themselves? What identity are they living from?
2. How does your 10X self behave?
What do they do daily? How do they make decisions? What do they say yes to? What do they refuse?
3. What does your 10X self possess?
What resources, relationships, systems, knowledge do they have? What do you need to start building now?
4. What decisions have you been avoiding that your 10X self would make immediately?
What’s the scary choice you know you need to make but haven’t? What boundary needs to be set? What investment needs to be made? What risk needs to be taken?
5. What are you willing to lose to become who you need to become?
What comfort? What relationships? What version of yourself? What do people think of you?
These questions aren’t comfortable. They’re not supposed to be.
But answering them—truly answering them—is how transformation begins.
The Path Forward
I can’t promise you that 10X transformation will be easy. It won’t be.
I can’t promise you that everyone will support you. They won’t.
I can’t promise you that the path will be clear. It will be messy, nonlinear, full of doubt and dark nights.
But I can promise you this:
If you’re willing to think differently. To become someone new. To make the uncomfortable decisions. To pay the tax of growth.
The plateau will break. The glass ceiling will shatter. Reality will reorganize around your new identity.
Not because of some magical manifestation. But because when you truly embody a different way of being, you naturally make different choices, take different actions, and create different results.
It’s not magic. It’s physics.
And it’s available to you right now.
Take the time to genuinely project yourself into your 10X version—the one full of enthusiasm.
Not the version that’s hustling harder. Not the version that’s just doing more of the same.
The version that’s become someone fundamentally different. The version that’s playing an entirely new game.
That version already exists within you. You just need to give yourself permission to become them.
So ask yourself:
What would change if you stopped trying to improve and started trying to transform?
The answer to that question might be everything.
A Note on Enthusiasm in Dark Times
One final thought before we part:
If you’re reading this during a difficult period—if you’re in the valley before the leap, if you’ve lost your enthusiasm, if the doubt feels overwhelming—know this:
Your enthusiasm is still there. It hasn’t disappeared. It’s just buried under fear, expectation, and the weight of trying to control outcomes.
It returns the moment you remember why you started. The moment you create for the joy of creating, not for validation. The moment you reconnect with the deep YES that brought you here in the first place.
That enthusiasm doesn’t depend on results. It’s yours. Always.
Build a life that protects it. Create space to recharge. Step back when needed. Let yourself integrate.
The leap is coming. The transformation is happening.
Trust the process. Trust yourself. And never, ever lose your thread.
Connect and Continue
If this resonated with you, I’d love to hear: What would your 10X version look like? What’s the one decision you’ve been avoiding? Leave a comment below—your reflection might be exactly what someone else needs to read.
And if you found value here, share this with someone who needs permission to think bigger. Sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is help each other see beyond our self-imposed limits.
Follow for more on conscious transformation, sustainable success, and building a life that honors both ambition and humanity.
About the Author
Johann Yang-Ting is the creator of the Flowtasking™ method and helps entrepreneurs, creators, and multipotentialites break through plateaus and build sustainable businesses aligned with their deepest values. His work integrates neuroscience, philosophy, and practical strategy for exponential growth without burnout.
Follow for insights on 10X thinking, conscious entrepreneurship, and transformation that lasts.
Key Principles
✨ 10X vs 2X Thinking: Incremental goals keep you in your current paradigm. 10X forces complete transformation.
✨ Being → Doing → Having: Transformation starts with identity, not action or results.
✨ The Tax of Growth: You must accept not being loved by everyone. Leadership requires boundaries.
✨ Quantum Leaps: Growth happens in jumps, often after periods of darkness and integration.
✨ Enthusiasm as Fuel: Sustainable transformation is powered by deep joy, not external validation.
✨ Three Essential Questions: Who is 10X you? How do they behave? What do they possess?
✨ Uncomfortable Decisions: Transformation requires choices you’ve been avoiding, often for years.
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