What AI Learned After 48 Hours with the 1%
What the Best Do Differently—and How You Can Start Today
Imagine you had the chance to ask the world’s most financially successful individuals - leaders from across industries like business, technology, entertainment, and sports - questions such as:
"If you had only $1,000 and no network, what would be your first three steps to rebuild your success?"
"What’s one mistake you made that taught you the most about how to win in life or business?"
"What unconventional belief do you hold about success that most people would disagree with?"
"If you could only teach one lesson to your 18-year-old self, what would it be?"
"What’s the smallest habit or daily action you credit for your greatest successes?"
To uncover answers to these questions, I turned to ChatGPT and presented a specific prompt:
“I want you to spend 48 hours of constant Q&A with the most financially successful people from every genre across the world and communicate with me what the parallels are, consistent remarks, consistent themes, keywords and concepts. Then, give me the information into actionable pieces that way I can communicate these takeaways via my Substack article to my following to help them grow and learn.”
Before I share the 4 takeaways, it’s important for you to know the process that ChatGPT went through to gather this list. Also, notice how I said “financially successful” because in my opinion, financial success is just one area of success. Anyway, below is the exact response from ChatGPT to my prompt:
“The Approach to Interviewing the Most Financially Successful People”
“To begin, I will simulate an intensive 48-hour Q&A session with the world’s top financial achievers. These individuals come from various industries, including entrepreneurship, technology, finance, real estate, entertainment, sports, and more. By asking deep, thought-provoking questions, we will gather insights that are both broad and specific, focused on personal growth, business success, mindset, overcoming adversity, and actionable advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.
The process will include:
Diving into Mindset and Mental Models: Understand how the top 1% view themselves, their time, and their path to success.
Revealing Strategies for Wealth Accumulation and Preservation: Not just how they made their money, but how they leveraged tools, resources, and time to grow it.
Unpacking Personal Development Insights: What do they do on a daily basis to remain sharp? How do they prioritize mental, physical, and emotional well-being while juggling intense success?
Exploring the Tools They Leverage: Technology, systems, resources, and human capital—what have they used to scale quickly and effectively?”
Wow, that’s a pretty incredible output. The following are 4 takeaways - granted, there were more to choose from, but these were the 4 that resonated with me personally.
Let’s get into it.
1. Start Messy, Focus on Execution
Actionable Advice:
Waiting for the perfect moment to start something is one of the biggest barriers to progress. Whether it’s launching a business, building a personal brand, or diving into content creation, the most critical step is the first one - even if it’s imperfect. Execution breeds momentum, which eventually refines your process.
My Story:
Recently, I’ve noticed that my anxiety levels creep up when I become overwhelmed with my thoughts. I find myself thinking of all the possibilities, all the things I could, and should do or create, my mind does not shut off. Building a YouTube channel, writing Substack articles here, consistently posting on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts, experimenting with up-and-coming platforms, determining a long-term plan for myself professionally, creating and developing an online presence of my personal brand, considering live streaming platforms for content purposes and doing something incredibly unique in my space interests me. Sometimes I find myself frozen by overthinking.
When I wrote my last article, I found myself struggling with anxiety. There were countless thoughts going through my head of what to create, I just decided to take action on one of the many thoughts.
I learned far more through doing than I ever could by planning. As Gary Vaynerchuk says, if you want to get fit, you can’t read about doing push-ups, you have to do the push-ups.
Your Turn:
Today, please take one small, imperfect action today toward a goal you’ve been dreaming about. Action overcomes analysis paralysis every time. Just get the ball rolling.
2. Create 'Compounding Moments' in Your Daily Life
What This Means:
Small, deliberate actions compound over time produce exponential results. This is how the most successful people achieve extraordinary outcomes—not through one massive effort but through consistent micro-actions.
Fresh Perspective:
Compounding isn’t limited to finances; it applies to personal growth, branding, skill-building, and networking. Think of every blog post, video, or social media interaction as a small brick in the foundation of something much larger.
Personal Application:
When I started documenting my golf journey and sharing insights online, I didn’t see immediate results. But after posting this article, I was able to connect with people at The PGA of America and other national golf organizations to discuss my point of view.
Your Turn:
Commit to one daily micro-action that supports your long-term vision. Whether it’s writing a short blog post, connecting with one person on LinkedIn, or developing a new skill, consistency is the key to compounding growth. Take (consistent) action.
3. Protect Your Energy Like a High-Value Asset
What This Means:
Your energy—not just your time—is your most precious resource. High achievers know how to guard it by prioritizing environments, routines, and relationships that recharge rather than drain them.
My Story:
For too long, I undervalued energy management. I’d eat unhealthy, stay up late, pass on my AM or PM routine, or let toxic influences or people occupy my headspace. Once I began prioritizing sleep, exercise, and eliminating negativity, my productivity noticeably improved.
Your Turn:
Identify one source of energy drain in your life and take steps to minimize it.
Add one activity to your routine that consistently energizes you—whether it’s working out, meditating, or spending time in nature.
Consider +EV decisions - Seriously, read this article after you finish mine. I know it’s long, but Bales is incredibly sharp and I can’t recommend his stuff enough.
Also, check out The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon. This book was recommended by Brendan Walsh, PGA to read prior to my second internship at The Country Club and it’s a must read for successful individuals, teams, business leaders, you name it.
4. Master the Art of the Pivot, Not the Perfect Plan
What This Means:
Success often requires adapting to change, not rigidly sticking to a plan. The ability to pivot effectively is what separates those who thrive from those who fail.
Fresh Perspective:
High achievers embrace feedback and unforeseen circumstances as opportunities to refine their approach, not derail their vision.
My Story:
When I started writing content on Substack and posting golf and golf business content on social platforms last winter, I was writing to shed light on us PGA Professionals. While that is still important to me, my content has pivoted to photography/videography, content creation, and developing a personal brand and positioning myself as a thought leader in the golf business space.
Your Turn:
Adjust your outlook from unexpected setbacks to opportunities to pivot. Evaluate the situation → Adjust your plan → Continue executing.
From Ideas to Action: Let’s Build Together
If these insights resonated with you, I encourage you to take the next step:
1️⃣ Subscribe: Join me on this journey as I continue exploring unconventional strategies and actionable advice for building a personal brand, achieving entrepreneurial success, and growing in business and beyond. By subscribing, you’ll get these insights delivered straight to your inbox—no fluff, just value.
2️⃣ Share: Know someone who’s been overthinking their next move, struggling with consistency, or looking to pivot toward something greater? Share this article with them—it might be exactly the spark they need to get started.
3️⃣ Comment Your Thoughts: What’s one takeaway that struck a chord with you? Or maybe you’ve already implemented one of these strategies in your own life—let’s talk about it in the comments! Your story or question might inspire someone else to take action.
Let’s grow together. 🚀
Even though I already follow a routine (most days), hearing you talk about it really resonates with me. It gives me a sense of purpose every day, and it’s something I want to keep doing. Just because your mind or body urges you to hit the snooze button doesn’t mean you should. Instead, hit stop and get up to start your day the right way! Thanks for the morning read, Rich.