Most people don’t need more ambition — they need a better system.
I’ve worked with hundreds of high-performing CEOs and founders. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: being driven doesn’t guarantee direction. We sprint through the quarter, solve problems on instinct, and push hard towards outcomes — but rarely stop to ask if we’re growing in the right way.
That’s exactly why I created the 10x Routine.
Every 90 days, I ask myself five questions. They’ve changed how I lead. More importantly, they’ve helped me change my life — not through grand resolutions, but through consistent reflection and course-correction — and can change your life too. Each time I do this ritual, I walk away feeling grateful for how far I’ve come, focused on what matters next, and confident about how to move forward.
This isn’t about filling out a worksheet. It’s about choosing to operate with clarity — every quarter, on purpose.
If you want to change your life in a meaningful, measurable way, don’t wait for some breakthrough moment. Start here, with five questions. Ask them consistently, and you’ll start to notice your trajectory shifting.
Let me show you how.
Why Most People Stay Busy but Stuck
The biggest risk to growth isn’t failure. It’s stagnation disguised as progress. We’re often so caught up in execution that we never take time to assess whether our energy is pointed in the right direction. I’ve seen it happen to teams, companies, and especially to CEOs — myself included.
That’s why this routine exists: to break the pattern of unchecked busyness and get intentional about where we’re headed.
The illusion of progress without reflection
It’s alarmingly easy to confuse activity with progress. Most weeks, we’re so deep in meetings, emails, decisions, and to-dos that we never stop to consider whether the things we’re doing are actually moving us forward — or just keeping us occupied.
I know this pattern well because I used to fall into it too. If I didn’t intentionally step back, I got swept up in the day-to-day. And while I might have been productive on occasion, I wasn’t always purposeful. It’s like climbing a ladder without checking if it’s leaning against the right wall.
This is one of the biggest traps I see high-performing leaders fall into. We’re wired for action, but without reflection, action becomes reactive. We lose the bigger picture. We mistake momentum for direction.
And that’s the danger — because if you can’t see where you’re going, you can’t change your life. You just end up circling the same loop, quarter after quarter.
High performers aren’t immune — they’re just better at course-correction
The truth is that high performers aren’t exempt from this. They just build systems that help them catch it earlier. They install checkpoints in their calendar. They don’t wait until something breaks to zoom out — they make zooming out a ritual.
That’s exactly what the 10x Routine is for me. It forces a pause. It gives me a structure to think deeply about what worked, what didn’t, what needs to change, and what deserves double-down focus. It brings intention back into the driver’s seat.
When I do this, I stop reacting and start realigning. I get clearer. I make better decisions. And most importantly, I feel less scattered and more grounded — like I’m actually building something instead of just staying busy.
If you want to change your life in a sustainable, non-dramatic way, this is where it starts: with a quarterly system that helps you reflect, refocus, and reset.
What Is the 10x Routine?
We all know the importance of working on the business, not just in it. But what about working on yourself as the leader? That’s what the 10x Routine is designed to do. It’s a quarterly reflection framework I created to help me reset, refocus, and re-energize every 90 days — and it’s been a game-changer in how I lead and grow.
The origin story
The idea came from noticing a personal pattern. At the end of every quarter, I’d feel like I’d just survived a marathon — without being entirely sure what I’d accomplished. Wins were blurred by stress. Lessons from setbacks got buried under to-do lists. And my goals for the next quarter felt more like a wish list than a strategic plan.
Unless I intentionally stepped out of the chaos, I’d default to short-term decisions, reactive leadership, and incremental progress. So, I built a ritual. Five questions. Every 90 days. No excuses.
It started as a personal check-in. Then I shared it with clients. Now it’s one of the most powerful tools in my coaching arsenal — and a core part of how I help people change their lives without burning out or blowing things up.
Why it works
Because it simplifies what most people overcomplicate. The 10x Routine blends strategic review with personal reflection — in a way that’s fast, repeatable, and shockingly effective.
It doesn’t take hours. You can do it in 30–45 minutes. But the impact is disproportionate. Every time I complete the routine, I feel more grounded, clearer, and in greater control of where I’m going — not just in business, but in life.
And that’s the real goal: to create a simple, high-leverage ritual that helps you make better decisions, focus your energy, and, ultimately, change your life.
The 5 Questions That Can Change Your Life
This is the heart of the 10x Routine: five questions that force clarity, strip away the noise, and reconnect you to what actually matters. They’re designed to pull you out of autopilot and into a place of conscious leadership. And they work — not because they’re clever, but because they’re brutally honest.
If you do nothing else but ask and answer these five questions every 90 days, you will change your life. Not overnight, not in some dramatic reinvention, but gradually and powerfully, through repeated focus and alignment.
1. What were your 3 biggest wins?
Most people skip this. They’re too busy planning what’s next. But without taking a moment to acknowledge progress, you risk carrying forward a warped sense of how effective you really are.
So, stop. Ask yourself: What am I genuinely proud of from the past 90 days? Not just the outcomes — but the effort, the growth, the moments where you showed up fully. What would a “best of” highlight reel include?
This isn’t about self-congratulating. It’s about perspective. Celebrating wins reminds you that you’re not starting from scratch. It’s reassuring and immensely motivating.
2. What challenges stretched you, and what did they teach?
We tend to either ignore our challenges or let them define us. This question does neither. Instead, it reframes challenges as fuel — because every tough moment comes with a lesson, if we’re willing to look closely.
Where were you stretched? What situations made you uncomfortable or tested your limits? And most importantly, what did those moments reveal about how you lead, what you avoid, or what you’re ready for?
Your biggest growth almost always comes just beyond your comfort zone. But only if you take the time to reflect, extract the learning, and integrate it.
3. What would a “replacement CEO” stop or start doing immediately?
This one hits hard — and it’s meant to. It’s the question that cuts through all the rationalizations and excuses.
Imagine you were fired today and someone else took your place. They step into your role with fresh eyes and full authority. What would they immediately change? What priorities would they drop? What would they double down on? What dead weight would they shed?
Chances are, you already know the answers. You just haven’t acted on them because of fear, habit, or inertia. This question surfaces those truths. And when you name them, you can begin to lead more decisively — like the kind of CEO you’d want to replace you.
4. How would you 10x your growth — and what’s missing?
This question forces you to think beyond incrementalism. If you had to 10x your results — in revenue, reach, impact, or personal growth — what would need to change?
This isn’t about hustle. It’s about leverage. What activities are squarely in your zone of genius — the things that feel like play to you, look like magic to others, and drive the biggest results? Are you spending enough time there?
And what are the “whos” that are missing from your world? Often, the thing holding us back isn’t a what — it’s a who. Who could help you move faster, think bigger, or take the non-essential off your plate?
To change your life at scale, you don’t just add more. You design smarter.
5. What are your top 3 goals — and how will you overcome the obstacles?
It’s not enough to set goals. You have to anticipate resistance. That’s what makes this final question so powerful: it forces you to pair ambition with reality.
What do you actually want to achieve in the next 90 days? And for each goal, what’s the most likely obstacle? Time? Resources? Fear? Lack of clarity? Then — and this is key — you map a plan to overcome it.
When you do this, your goals become grounded. They’re not theoretical. They’re executable. You stop wishing, and you start engineering outcomes.
How to Change Your Life With the 10x Routine
It’s one thing to understand the questions. It’s another to build them into your operating system. That’s where the 10x Routine becomes transformative — not as a one-off reflection exercise, but as a recurring practice that reshapes how you lead, think, and grow.
This isn’t about adding another task to your already overloaded schedule. It’s about creating a short, powerful pause — just once every 90 days — that keeps you aligned with the life and business you actually want to build.
Quarterly journaling cadence for self-motivated CEOs
If you’re a self-starter, this will be easy to implement. Block off 30 to 45 minutes at the end of every quarter. Treat it like a non-negotiable meeting with yourself. No phone. No Slack. Just space to think, reflect, and write.
I do this every quarter without fail. And every time, I’m struck by how much clarity it gives me. Not because I stumble on some breakthrough idea — but because I zoom out just enough to see the bigger picture again. That’s how you change your life: by reorienting yourself before you drift too far off course.
Combine with your operating rhythm for maximum impact
If your company runs on OKRs, EOS, V2MOMs, or any strategic planning system — this slots in perfectly. Do the 10x Routine before your leadership planning session. It acts like a personal pre-mortem. You walk in clearer on what matters, what to stop doing, and where to focus your limited energy.
On that note, I break down the pre-mortem in greater detail in this infographic that I put together on the 5 mental models that every CEO should master:
It also makes your professional goals more personal. Because when you’ve already reflected on what stretched you and what you really want, your quarterly priorities won’t just be numbers on a slide — they’ll be rooted in actual insight.
Tools that make reflection a habit
You don’t need anything fancy. A journal works. So does a Google Doc. I’ve also seen clients build it into Notion templates, share answers with their coach, or even discuss them with their teams.
The point isn’t the tool — it’s the rhythm. Create a recurring calendar event. Set a reminder. Print the questions. Whatever helps you stay consistent. Because the more consistent you are, the more momentum you build. And that’s when the 10x Routine really starts to change your life — not as a moment of reflection, but as a quarterly system of recalibration.
Why the 10x Routine Works Can Change Your Life
When people think about how to change their life, they often look for dramatic shifts — a new job, a new city, a new routine. But lasting change rarely comes from one-off decisions. It comes from consistent recalibration. From paying attention. From building the habit of reflection into the rhythm of your leadership.
That’s what the 10x Routine does. It’s not magic. It’s not motivational fluff. It’s a simple tool that helps you see yourself more clearly every 90 days — so you can make better decisions, lead with more focus, and grow in ways that actually matter.
Reflection builds clarity; clarity drives execution
Most leaders aren’t short on ambition. They’re short on clarity. And without clarity, all the hustle in the world won’t move the needle in the right direction.
That’s why this routine starts with looking back. When you acknowledge your wins, extract lessons from challenges, and get honest about what’s working and what’s not, something shifts. You stop operating from noise and emotion — and start acting from insight.
And once you have that clarity? Execution gets easier. Focus sharpens. Energy returns. You’re no longer guessing what matters most — you know it.
The behavioral science behind ritualizing insight
There’s strong science behind this. In behavioral psychology, repetition is what turns effort into identity. When you reflect regularly, you reinforce the belief that you are someone who learns, adapts, and grows — not just reacts.
Stanford University professor BJ Fogg talks about tiny habits — the small, consistent actions that create outsized results over time. James Clear calls it identity-based change. The 10x Routine is both: a habit that reinforces a powerful identity. You stop seeing yourself as someone who’s trying to change your life, and start showing up as someone who already is.
Real-world transformations I’ve seen with CEOs
I’ve seen this play out with dozens of CEOs I coach. One client used the 10x Routine to finally step back from operations and focus on vision. Another realized — through the “replacement CEO” question — that she was holding on to low-leverage tasks out of fear. Once she let go, her company’s growth doubled in six months.
In almost every case, the change didn’t come from adding more. It came from subtracting — from getting clear on what mattered most and cutting the noise. As I often say, if you wish to truly grow, you need to learn to kill as much as you create.
That’s the power of this routine. It doesn’t add pressure. It releases it. And that’s how it helps you change your life: by creating space for better thinking, better leadership, and better results — quarter after quarter.
Final Thought: If You Want to Change Your Life, Design a System
Everyone wants to change their life at some point. But most people approach it with short bursts of motivation, vague intentions, or grand plans that fizzle out by week three. What actually works — especially for high-performers — is systems.
And that’s what the 10x Routine really is: a simple system that prompts better thinking, drives intentional action, and compounds over time.
Routines beat resolutions
It’s easy to get fired up by big goals — especially in January, or after a tough quarter, or when you read something that hits home. But goals without structure are just wishes. The 10x Routine gives your ambitions a backbone. It turns vague desires into specific plans, rooted in reality, reviewed every quarter.
And it doesn’t just make you more productive — it makes you more aligned. More honest. More in control of how you show up in business and in life.
Let Q1 2026 be your launchpad
If you’ve been running on autopilot, if you’re feeling a bit disconnected from the bigger picture, or if you simply want to lead with more clarity in 2026 — start here.
Grab 30 minutes. Ask yourself these five questions. Get quiet. Get real. You’ll be amazed at what shows up when you stop long enough to listen.
You don’t need to overhaul your life. You just need to build in a system that keeps you focused on what matters most. That’s how you change your life — not once, but again and again, every 90 days.
If you want support implementing powerful routines like this — and scaling both your company and your leadership in the process, check out The Founder & CEO Accelerator, where high-performers turn into world-class CEOs.
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