The Mindset Mentor - Everything I Learned From Being Around The Top 0.01%

Episode Date: February 26, 2026

Why do the top 0.01% get extraordinary results while most people stay stuck? In this episode, I break down the five principles I’ve learned from being around the highest performers in the world—how they protect their time, think long-term, say no, and operate differently than everyone else. Start applying these today, and you can begin changing the direction of your life for the next 5, 10, or 20 years. Feeling stuck? It's time to take back control. If you're ready to master your mind and create real, lasting change, click the link below and start transforming your life today. 👉 http://coachwithrob.com   The Mindset Mentor™ podcast is designed for anyone desiring motivation, direction, and focus in life.     Past guests of The Mindset Mentor include Tony Robbins, Matthew McConaughey, Jay Shetty, Andrew Huberman, Lewis Howes, Gregg Braden, Rich Roll, and Dr. Steven Gundry.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Welcome to today's episode of the Mindset Mentor podcast. I'm your host, Rob Dial. If you have not, you've done so, hit that subscribe button so you never miss another podcast episode. And if you're free this Thursday, I'm going to be running a free one-night workshop on how to build yourself into a high performer. I'm going to teach you the real life tools to stop procrastinating, to take action, and to get the results that you know that you can in this life. If you want to join me, it's absolutely free. You can go to 2026 Workshop.com. Once again, 26 Workshop.com. Today, I'm going to be talking about everything that I learned from being around the top 0.01% of people in the world. Because if you operate the way that most people operate, you're going to get the results that most people get. And most people will never get anywhere close to being in the top 0.01% of earners or of people in the world. And it's not because they're not smart enough. It's not because they don't work hard enough. It's because they're living their life off of the wrong principles.

And so I've spent time with people that are in the top 0.01%. And it shocked me that they're not really honestly the smartest people in the world. They're not the most outgoing. They're not the most charismatic. It was just kind of the way that they think and the way that they operate was different than everybody else in society. They operate on what I broke down into five specific principles. And these principles are not taught in school.

Most people don't really have this taught to them by their parents. And it's definitely not taught by society. And so I want to teach you these five principles because if you can understand these five principles and then implement them into your life, you would actually start making completely different decisions in your life. And it would turn the destination of your life into a completely different place, five, 10, 20 years. And so let me show you what those five principles are.

The first one that I have found with the most highest performers in the world is that they are absolutely ruthless with their time. I mean, when I say ruthless, like, I mean ruthless. Like they protect their time way more than they protect money. Like, and when I talk about money, like, sure, you know, they have more digits in their bank account, but it doesn't make them a better person just so you know. It doesn't mean that they're more honorable or more special or anything like that. So when I looked at it, in order to be the top, like, 0.01%, you need to be making about $5 million per year. And so when people are at that level, at least $5 million, up to, you know, hundreds of millions a year, obviously.

But in order to get to that level, you have to get really good at deciding what you're going to do with your time. Like they don't hop on quick calls. They don't just grab coffee with somebody for no reason. They don't just like go do something and see what happens. Their time is treated like oxygen. And if something is not aligned with like their highest leverage work or their highest vision for what they're trying to create in their life, then they just say no to it. They protect their time ruthlessly to the point where a majority of them have somebody

who is a executive assistant or assistant that is the gatekeeper to that person and to their time as well. And here's the thing that I notice about, like when you look at it psychological, they don't feel guilty about protecting the time in any sort of way. Like most people feel guilty about protecting their time. Like they feel bad for saying no to other people. They feel bad for saying that they don't want to go do something when everybody else is going. Most people feel bad for prioritizing themselves. But like the highest performers in the world understand something that most people do not. Every yes is a no to something bigger. So every time you say yes to something,

you're saying no to something else. And so if you're saying yes to just going to grab coffee with some random person who send you an email, you're saying no to something that could be a much bigger thing to do in your life or your business. And so they don't like just manage their time. They defend their time. Like they protect their time. And when you start to think of your life differently, you start to think of your time differently,

your life will start to shifts. And so what I want you to take from this principle is like look at all of the leaks that you have in your schedule and in your life on a daily and weekly basis. You know, you're going to like the most successful person that I know doesn't have Instagram. He doesn't have Facebook. He's nowhere. Like you're not going to find him wasting time on the internet looking at what other people are doing. Like he is so protective of his time that every moment is just like he defends every single moment. And so I want you to start to think about that.

When you think about your daily and your weekly time throughout the entire week, what are you doing? Where are you wasting time? Where are you wasting time that you could be doing something that is of much higher leverage to you? Like your calendar is your future. If you look at your calendar, what does it say about your future? So that's the first thing. Get absolutely ruthless. The second thing is that I have found is that they think in decades and not years.

And this is really important for a couple of reasons. number one, from a business, from an investment, from a money standpoint, but from a psychological standpoint, it's really big as well. Like, this one really hits for me because most people think about, like, what they're doing and what they want today and what they want this week. Maybe some people think about what they want this month or this year, but most people think about, like, very, very short term. When you look at the highest performers in the world, they think about where they want to be in 10 years. They think about what industries will be running and existing and be dominating the market 10, 20, 30 years down the road. They think so much further ahead than anybody

else. They think about relationships, not of like, oh, I'm going to go meet this person for 30 minutes. They think about relationships that they have in their life that are the most important relationships that will compound over decades. And so they don't, when you start to think in decades and not just days, like they don't chase quick wins. Like they're not really the type of person that focuses on like a media gratification. They think about building a life. They think about building a legacy. They think about building an empire. And another big thing is that they will also, you know, when you really start to think about this, it will really start to change the way when you think in decades and not just days. It'll change the way that you think of failure. It'll change the way you think of

challenges. You know, when you're thinking in decades, you don't panic about this week. And this is something that's been really big for me, especially in my own business. When you're thinking in decades, you don't spiral over a bad month. Like I've had years ago where I would be like, we have a terrible month. But it's like, now if we have a bad month, no big deal. Like, it's not the end of the world because I'm building towards something way more long term. And we will be right back. And now, back to the show. You know, when you're thinking in decades, you don't think about how other people are judging you or arguing people online or you're not spiraling over a bad moment. What I want you to take from this is

when you really start to think really long term and stop going for like short, quick, immediate gratification, tiny little wins. When you do that, your psychology gets better because what you could see as a setback right now, you can see as like it's not a complete failure. You know, when you think in long term, you can think, okay, well, I mess this up right now, and this isn't working the way that I wanted it to, but this is just a redirection in the direction I want to go. When you think in long term, the best way I can describe is when you think in long term, it creates emotional stability. So it's not just a great strategy for business. It is. It's not just great jobs for relationships and investments. It is. It's also really, really good to protect your mental health, to think way

more long term than you currently are. And so they think in decades. And that's the thing that I've really found that makes them different. Okay. That's number two. Number three is that they are really good at saying no. And obviously I spoke about time a minute ago, but like they're good at saying no. And this is an uncomfortable one for a lot of people, especially if you're a people pleaseer. Like, they say no a lot. They say no to a lot of opportunities. When you start getting to a certain level of influence or wealth, people come out of nowhere and they want to have time with you and they want to show you their business and they want you to invest in their business. So they say no to a lot of opportunities. They say no to a lot of invites and parties, partnerships, all of those things. Say no to press. They say no to

great ideas because they understand that distraction is really, really expensive. So if they're working on something, they have their one thing. Anything that's coming away from that one thing is a distraction for them. Sure, like maybe someone has a great idea, but that great idea is a distraction from the one thing that they're working on. And so I want you understand, like, they don't say no from a place of like ego, like I'm better than everybody else. So nobody deserves my time. They're saying no because it doesn't line up with what they're trying to do in their life. It's not, it might be 90% there, but it's not 100% there. And so, you know, when you're really crystal, crystal clear on your direction and your life and what you're doing in this world, a no becomes very easy. And so when

you're when you're unclear of what it is that you're doing and what you want in this world, you say yes to everything. I've done that before. You say yes because you're afraid of missing out or you're afraid, oh, my shiny object syndrome. Maybe this is going to be better what I'm currently doing. And so I talk about this all the time with you guys, like, and also with my coaching clients as well is you need a North Star in your life. Like I always ask people, what do you want? And people can't answer the damn question, clear and concise. Like what do you want in your life? What's your purpose? Why are you here? What are you building towards? When you have a North Star, it's easy to say yes to something that aligns, and it's easy to say no to something that doesn't fully align.

And so, as I always say, if it's not a fuck yes, it's a fuck no. And so when it doesn't align, it's a no, move on, don't feel bad, don't second guess yourself. And so the highest performers in the world, they don't fear on missing out. They fear on getting distracted from their main goals in life. And that's a huge thing I think a lot of people should take from them. So that's number three. The fourth thing is I have found that they are very comfortable being misunderstood. And I love this one because most people want to fit in. Most people want to have everybody like them.

They want to be everybody's cup of tea. But the highest performers in the world know that if you're going to be one of the highest performers in the world, you're going to stand out. Like you're going to be different. And there's an ancient like Native American. I was the brightest lights get the arrows. And it's like when you're, you're shining and everybody seeing you, that gives you the opportunity for people seeing. I'm like, oh my gosh, you're doing such amazing things. But it also makes you more open to people attacking you. And so these people are

completely okay with people not getting them. Like they're okay with people talking about them or people judging them or people misinterpreting them in some sort of way. And so they're not like optimizing their life and their actions for other people's approval. Like they're optimizing for outcome. You know, most people shape themselves and their behavior and what they do around how it's going to be perceived from other people. But like the highest performers in the world,

they shape their behavior around whether it moves the needle in their life in the direction that they're trying to go because, of course, they have that north star of where they're trying to go. And so these are two very different. things, right? So when you get very clear on what you want, which is what I just spoke about a minute ago with having a North Star, you're very clear on who you need to be. And when you are clear on who you need to be, you start acting like it. And if someone doesn't understand this person that you're becoming, this person that you're building yourself into, this life that you're

building, if they don't understand it, you don't mind. Why? Because you understand it. You understand you. Like you know why you need to be that way and why you need to be the person because you understand where it's going to get you in your life, how it's going to move the needle and how your life is going to be different, your children's life is going to be different, your spouse's wife, your family, your business, the people who work in it, everybody. And so if somebody who wants to judge you or misunderstand you, not really a big deal. You have to be okay with being misunderstood. Because if you need everyone to understand you, you'll never like move boldly in this world. You'll never make any bold moves. Like you have to get past this fear

of being misunderstood or judged. You know, if you need everyone to approve you, you'll never take real risks in this life. And so the top people in the world have trained themselves to tolerate this like this social friction. Some people won't get you. Some people won't agree with you. It's very human to shun the outcasts. That happens all the time. But in order to do something amazing in this world, you kind of have to be an outcast because you have to do something different

what everybody else is. So that's number four. And number five, and I love this one, is they don't need to prove that they're rich. Like this is the exact opposite of what most people think that it would be. It's so funny when you see like Instagram, people flexing and trying to act so rich

and people are YouTube trying to act so rich. The wealthiest people that I've been around, they don't look rich in any sort of way. They don't like have any logos or, you know, they're, they're not just like constant flexing on other people. They're not trying to say like, like, look at me. The wealthiest person that I know looks like a normal 65 year old grandpa. That's it. But he's worth over $4 billion.

Like I've gone to, like, he'd prefer people don't know who he is and don't know that he, like, people don't know that he exists, right? Like I've gone to San Antonio Spurs games and sat in his floor seats with him. And although he can afford the front row right in the middle, he has for years and years and years season tickets, the second row behind the basket. Now you might be like, why would he do that? That's not as good of the seat. The reason why is because when you watch it on TV, you can't see him. He wants to be as close as he can be, but just outside of the camera view. Why? Because he doesn't want to be seen. He doesn't want people to know he's rich. Like most people with extreme wealth want to blend in. They don't want to show off. They don't want people to know that they have massive amounts.

They're not wearing, like I've never seen him wear a fully diamond watch before. I've never seen him pull up in a Lamborghini before because they don't want people to, they don't want to show up because they don't want people to use them. And so what's really interesting is when you actually have it, you don't need to perform. Like, insecure wealth is very loud. But like secure wealth, very quiet, invisible, you know, not flexing. Most flexing is insecurity in some sort of way. And so they're not showing off at all for seeking any external validation from anybody else. The people at the top don't need validation from strangers. Like, their scoreboard is internal. And that's the thing that I found. It's internal. Like, they have the,

this internal sense of, it was almost like for most people that I know that with extreme wealth is like wealth was a byproduct of them becoming who they wanted to be and building something amazing. So that's why people are always like, oh, well, you know, if they have so much money, why don't they retire or why don't they like quit or sell their company? Most of them just are doing what they love to do and they don't want to stop doing it because if they sold their company or whatever might be, they'd stop doing what they love to do. So it was never really about for most of them that I have found. It was never really about money. Money was just a byproduct of them like stepping into their greatest self and challenging them and having a

business that challenged them and force them to grow. It wasn't about like, hey, I want to flex with people and, you know, be all social and show everybody they have such extreme wealth. And so being around like the top 0.01% or whatever that percentage might be, it didn't make me obsessed with money in any sort of way. It made me obsessed with thinking about life differently. It made me obsessed with my time. It made me obsessed with getting me. more clear in what I want. It made me obsessed with long-term thinking. It made me obsessed with emotional regulation, with privacy, with leverage, with just protecting my time at every point that I possibly could. And so for you listening to this, you don't need $100 million to operate like this.

Like you can adopt all five of these principles right now into your life. You can protect your time. You can think long-term. You can say no more often. You can stop trying to be understood. by everybody and you can stop trying to show off and prove yourself to people. And so wealth is often just a result of action and identity. And identity and action, those are choices. So when you look at that, what I want you to take from this is how can you take those five principles and start adding them into your week this week? So that's what I got for you for today's episode. If you love this episode, please share it on your Instagram stories and tag me in it, Rob Dial Jr. And once again, this Thursday, I'm running a free one-night workshop on how to build yourself into a high-performance.

I'm going to teach you the tools to stop procrastinating, take action, and get the results that you want to. If you want to join us, it's absolutely free. It's 2026 workshop.com. Once again, 2026 workshop.com. And with that, I'm going to leave the same way I leave you every single episode. Make it your mission to make somebody else's day better. I appreciate you, and I hope that you have an amazing day.