
Success is predictable if you do the right things. It’s not about luck, but about building a system of consistent, high-value actions that compound over time.
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Table of Contents
Meaning
The core message is simple but profound: success isn’t a random event. It’s the direct, inevitable outcome of a specific process you can control.
Explanation
Look, I’ve seen this play out so many times. People think success is this big, mysterious lightning strike. It’s not. Tracy is telling us it’s more like farming. You don’t plant a seed one day and get a harvest the next. You do the right things—prepare the soil, water it, protect it from weeds—every single day. And then, almost like clockwork, you get a crop. That’s the predictability. It’s about process over outcomes. When you focus on executing the right system, the results, the success, they just show up. They have to. It’s cause and effect.
Quote Summary
Reading Level40
Aesthetic Score75
Origin & Factcheck
This comes straight from Brian Tracy’s 2002 book, Be a Sales Superstar. He’s a Canadian-American self-development author, and this is a cornerstone of his philosophy. You sometimes see similar sentiments floating around, but this specific, powerful phrasing is his.
Attribution Summary
Author Bio
Brian Tracy, a prolific author gained global reputation because of his best seller book list such as Eat That Frog!, Goals!, and The Psychology of Selling, and created influential audio programs like The Psychology of Achievement. He is sought after guru for personal development and business performance. Brian Tracy International, coaches millions of professionals and corporates on sales, goal setting, leadership, and productivity.
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Where is this quotation located?
| Quotation | Success is predictable if you do the right things in the right way every day |
| Book Details | Publication Year: 2003; ISBN: 978-1-57675-273-9; Latest Edition: AMACOM, 2003; Number of Pages: 128. |
| Where is it? | Chapter 7: Mastering the Skills, Approximate page from 2003 edition: 52 |
Context
He wrote this for salespeople in “tough markets.” When things are hard, that’s when you’re most tempted to get desperate, to chase shiny objects, to skip the fundamentals. Tracy was saying, “No. The tough market is exactly when you double down on your proven daily disciplines.” It’s about rejecting chaos and embracing a predictable routine.
Usage Examples
This isn’t just theory. Here’s how it works in the real world.
- For a Sales Manager: Instead of just demanding “hit your quota,” you’d coach your team on the right things—making 20 quality calls a day, perfecting the pitch, following up systematically. Do that, and the numbers follow.
- For a Content Creator: The “right way” is creating genuinely helpful content, not just clickbait. The “every day” part is sticking to a publishing schedule. Do that consistently, and audience growth becomes predictable.
- For an Entrepreneur: It’s about focusing on the key business drivers—customer acquisition cost, lifetime value—and working on improving those metrics a little bit, every single day. That’s how you build a real company, not just a project.
To whom it appeals?
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Motivation Score88
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FAQ
Question: What if I’m doing the “right things” but still not seeing success?
Answer: Great question. This usually means one of two things. Either you’re misidentifying the *truly* right things for your specific goal (so you need to audit your process), or you haven’t given the compound effect enough time to work. Consistency is the magic ingredient.
Question: Doesn’t this ignore the role of luck?
Answer: It doesn’t ignore it, it just makes it irrelevant. Luck can accelerate a predictable process or throw a temporary hurdle in its path. But if your system is solid, luck can’t stop you long-term. You’re building a machine that prints success, regardless of the weather.
Question: How do I even know what the “right things” are?
Answer: That’s the million-dollar question, right? You find them by studying the top performers in your field, by testing and measuring everything, and by focusing on high-leverage activities that directly move the needle—not just on being “busy.”
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