5x1: The Counterintuitive Case for Bigger Goals | Friday, May 29th, 2026

by Monti Pace

The​ 5x1 newsletter​ is a concise and insightful resource around a simple concept: systems achieve goals.

sys·tem [ˈsistəm]
a set of things working together as parts of a mechanism or an interconnecting network.
a set of principles or procedures according to which something is done; an organized framework or method.

1 x Principle of Systemization

Last week I finished 10x Is Easier Than 2x by Dan Sullivan and Benjamin Hardy. The title is quite intriguing, so I was excited to finally get around to the book. In theory, the concept makes sense. As with most things, though, putting it into practice is the challenge.

Mindset is the biggest hurdle. It’s terrifying to set a goal 10x larger than where you are now. It feels selfish, silly, and impossible. However, 2x just means doing more of what you’re already doing. 10x forces you to think and operate in a completely different way. It demands that you eliminate 80% of what you’re currently doing to go all-in on the 20% that actually moves the needle (the Pareto Principle). 2x is scaling what exists. 10x is changing what you do and who you are.

Here are the core concepts from the book that stuck with me most:

1. Unique Ability | Your Unique Ability is the specific thing you do better than almost anyone and that energizes you. 10x means structuring your life and business entirely around that — and delegating or letting go of everything else, even the things you’re good at.
2. Wanting vs. Needing | 10x people operate from wanting — genuine desire and vision — not needing (fear, scarcity, obligation). When you operate from want, you make bolder decisions and attract better people. 10x people aren’t afraid of their own ambitions.
3. The Gap and the Gain| This one is about how you measure progress. Most people measure themselves against where they want to be — the Gap. Sullivan argues you should measure against where you were — the Gain. One fuels confidence. The other fuels perpetual dissatisfaction.
4. Identity Shifts Are the Mechanism | Every 10x leap is primarily an identity change, not a strategy change. You have to become the person who operates at 10x before the results show up — which means releasing past versions of yourself. This is something I have been trying to do for a while, and let me tell you, undoing old narratives and self-talk is hard work.
5. Transformational vs. Transactional | 10x relationships are transformational — built on mutual growth and shared vision. 2x relationships are transactional — an exchange of effort for output. Getting to 10x means shifting your team, clients, and partnerships toward the former.

If any of this resonates, I’d highly recommend picking up the book. The concepts aren’t new — but Sullivan and Hardy make a compelling case for why thinking bigger is actually the more sustainable path forward. The real question isn’t whether 10x is possible. It’s whether you’re willing to let go of enough to get there.

1 x Systemization Quote

"10x isn't about more. It's about less. Michelangelo understood this clearly. When the Pope asked about the secret of his genius, particularly in regard to the statue of David, Michelangelo explained, 'It's simple. I just remove everything that is not David.' Going 10x is the simplification of your focus down to the core essential. Then you remove everything else." — Dan Sullivan, 10x Is Easier Than 2x

1 x Reflection Question

Is the version of success you’re working toward actually yours — or is it just the next logical step from where you already are?

1 x Personal System Idea

The 80% Offload: Most people outsource work tasks before they ever think to outsource their personal life. But your Saturday morning doesn’t know the difference between a meeting and a chore — it costs you the same hours either way.

The system:

1. For one week, write down every personal task you do that isn’t something only you can do — lawn care, groceries, cleaning, laundry, oil changes, waiting on hold, returns, meal prep. Don’t filter. Just log.
2. At the end of the week, look at the list and calculate roughly how many hours it consumed.
3. Set your personal hourly rate. Not what you currently earn — what you want to earn. Divide your target annual income by 2,000 working hours. That’s your number. Write it down.
4. For each task on the list, ask: could someone or something else do this for less than my hourly rate? In most cases, the answer is yes — and by more than you’d expect. Grocery delivery runs $10–15. A lawn service in most markets is $30–50 a visit. A bi-weekly cleaner often costs less than a dinner out. The math is almost always in your favor.
5. Start offloading — one task at a time. The goal isn’t luxury. It’s reclaiming hours.
6. Here’s the part most people skip: protect the time you get back. Block it before anything else fills it. If the reclaimed hours disappear into scrolling or low-value busywork, you’ve paid for nothing. The offload only works if what replaces it is actually your 20%.

Keeping these tasks isn’t responsible or humble; it’s expensive. You’re spending your highest-value hours on work anyone could do, which leaves less of you for the things that actually require you.

1 x Business System Idea

The SOP-As-You-Go System: Most business owners wait until they’re ready to hire before they document anything. By then they’re scrambling, onboarding someone while still doing the work themselves. The fix is to build the library before you need it.

The system:

1. Starting today, any time you do a task you’d eventually like to delegate or eliminate — onboarding a client, sending invoices, scheduling content, handling a common inquiry, running a weekly report — hit record before you start. Narrate what you’re doing as you go.
2. When you’re done, generate your SOP. I would recommend a tool like Loom, that does this automatically in one click — just copy and paste. Otherwise, drop a transcript or summary into an AI tool and prompt it: “Turn this into a clean, step-by-step SOP a new hire or VA could follow with no prior context. Include tools used, decisions to make, and where to find relevant files.”
3. Save it immediately — a dedicated Google Drive folder, a Notion page, wherever you already live. The location doesn’t matter. Consistency does. Every SOP goes in the same place.

When you’re ready to bring on a VA, subcontractor, or first hire, you won’t be starting from scratch. The library is already built. You hand them a folder and get out of the way.

Stop thinking of documentation as extra work. It’s the work, done once, that pays you back every time someone else does it instead.