The Gap and the Gain: The High Achievers' Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success

"The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers' Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success" by Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan introduces a simple yet profound concept that has the potential to transform the way individuals, particularly high-achievers, measure and perceive their progress. The central idea revolves around shifting focus from the elusive "Gap" — the space between one's current reality and an idealized future — to the tangible "Gain" — the progress made relative to one's past self.Dr. Benjamin Hardy, drawing on Dan Sullivan's teachings, positions this concept as a masterclass in positive psychology, healthy relationships, mental well-being, and high-performance. The book emphasizes that measuring oneself against an ever-moving ideal often leads to dissatisfaction and unhappiness, especially for ambitious individuals. Instead, the authors advocate for evaluating progress by comparing one's current self to their former self, thereby fostering a sense of appreciation for achievements and creating a positive mindset.The GAP and the GAIN concept, developed through Sullivan's extensive work with successful entrepreneurs, becomes a psychological tool that allows individuals to acknowledge and celebrate their accomplishments. By periodically reflecting on personal and professional achievements, readers can experience a shift in perspective, realizing the extent of their progress that might have been overlooked while constantly aiming for distant goals.The book suggests that this mindset shift carries significant psychological benefits, fostering feelings of gratitude, motivation, and confidence. It is presented as a deceptively simple yet multi-layered concept that can lead to greater fulfillment and success. The authors argue that even during challenging times, understanding and applying the GAP and the GAIN concept can create a positive feedback loop, boosting motivation and paving the way for future accomplishments."The Gap and The Gain" offers readers a transformative mindset shift, encouraging them to measure success not against unattainable ideals but against their own past achievements. With its roots in the coaching practices of Dan Sullivan, this book provides a practical and accessible guide for high-achievers seeking greater happiness, confidence, and success by focusing on the tangible gains made in their journey of personal and professional development.

If you have not read this book you must !! It's amazing how powerful the mind is ! And how far positive thinking can get you! This book taught me a lot on how to think before I react. Great book all around !

I have learned some great principles and insights from this book. It gives you a new perspective on how to look at life

Bloomberg reports that 80% of businesses fail within 18 months. Personal sabotage is one of the many reasons that can make the road to business success a long and winding one. However, success coaches are here to the rescue.Dr. Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan wrote The Gap and The Gain to help entrepreneurs and high-achieving people become successful by recognizing the gap and the gain, the obverse and the reverse of progress created by Sullivan.The book differentiates these two sides of the coin. When you are in the gap, you measure yourself against your ambition or goals that you haven't reached yet. This could cause anguish and unhappiness. On the other hand, being in the gain means being aware of one's achieved goals and focusing on what they have in the present moment, not what should happen in the future.To put their message forward, the authors related stories of real people from an Olympian who won the gold medal in his final race in the Olympics after years of being a top athlete to a stock investor who lost millions of dollars in 2008 after the stock market crashed but turn this painful experience as an inspiration to develop an A.I. that could help make better decisions on trading. The stories served their purpose well but the repetition of the central idea was bothersome.Even though the book was a quick read and repetitive at times, it did change my perspective on how to measure success. I am of those who always see the glass as half empty. Recognizing that the glass is also half full concretizes personal abilities to fulfill dreams. This boosts confidence and happiness.I highly recommend The Gap and The Gain to those who want to start a business, who are already running a business, or who want to improve their mindset and become successful.

Dan and Benjamin have done it again! This book is packed with so many great points of wisdom. It would take days for me to cover them all.The main point I got from “The Gap and the Gain” is that happiness is NOT something you chase or pursue. Happiness is a CHOICE.We can wake up each day and choose to be happy or sad. We don’t need to measure ourselves against any other person or thing. We just need to measure backwards and see how far we have come. Then be very grateful!When I look at my life this way, I see that I am already one of the most successful people on the planet earth. How about that!You will be blessed to learn about Howard Getson, who turned what looked like financial ruins into financial gains.The trials of Richie and Natalie Norton, inspired me. I am definitely starting my “One-Way” ticket lifestyle today! If I cannot work from a clear blue water beach then I ain’t doing it. Yup, I said Ain’t 😀If we learn to practice PROACTIVE GRATITUDE, we will be happier and most likely live longer.Just get this book and read it ASAP. It will change your life if you allow it.

I had a friend who went through a life event where mindset mattered. He recommended it to me, and I really enjoyed the way the Gap and the Gain framed up mindset and the "always measure backward" process. Adapting the 3 wins daily routine works wonders. Highly recommend.

Great book. I stopped reading everything else once I started reading this book - that’s the sign of a five star read for me. Extremely well written. Fantastic information. I’ll most likely reread this one several times. Highly recommended.

Life Lessons that were excellently communicated. Provides a great deal of perspective. I would recommend this book to high achievers of any sort in any aspect of life.

The idea of measuring your progress backward is very powerful and transformative. I highly recommend this book, especially if you have already come very far in your life achievements, but, despite that fact, you tend to feel anxious, unsatisfied or unhappy about your “unreached ideals”. Just go ahead, grab a copy and read the book! I thank the authors for sharing their wisdom and experience.

I am a fan of Mr. Sullivan. Benjamin is brilliant in his own right😎. The central concept is to view your goals in a very different way. Your goal may not yet be achieved but what gains have you made nonetheless? Gains as a person, skills, experience, knowledge, lessons.All this puts you in a positive state of mind!Do not look at the goal only, look at the incremental achievements along the way. This gives you an increasing sense of accomplishment and confidence and happy contentment.When you see the glass as half empty, you live in the gap. The land of unfulfilled dreams and lack of achievement.Here is my personal acronym to help me remember the brilliance of the concept.GAP: Generally Accepted PessimismGAIN: Guided Acknowledgment Increases NirvanaGet into the GAIN and ditch the GAP!

Es liberador reconocerte a ti mismo que el camino que ya has recorrido es impresionante, y que por tanto, no hay motivo para no estar orgulloso de uno mismo.Desde ese punto de alta estima, cualquier reto del futuro es más asequible.Ese estado mental es lo que nos regala este libro, por eso parece de lectura obligatoria.

I loved how this book is quite an easy Read and I even convinced my teenager to read it.

This book is well written. It brought to light what I had always tried to get across to most people I communicate with. I am very glad someone put it out for more people to read. I would recommend it to everyone.