The Leapfrog Theory – Winning Through Intimidation Explained
The Leapfrog Theory from Robert Ringer’s book ‘Winning Through Intimidation’ states,
“No one has an obligation—moral, legal, or otherwise—to ‘work his way up through the ranks.’ Every human being possesses an inalienable right to make a unilateral decision to redirect his career and begin operating on a higher level at any time that he, and he alone, believes he is ready.”
Excellence is your God-given right.
You never have to settle for the crumbs; you don’t need permission to operate at the highest level.
The real estate agent selling single-family homes can stop playing small and get into the luxury homes market.
The entrepreneur who owns a single laundromat can go international and start a chain.
The YouTuber stuck at 1,000 subscribers can grow by a million subscribers in a single year.
High performers realize excellence isn’t about permission, it’s about choosing to play bigger.
Even nature agrees with this theory.
Electrons don’t ask for permission before making a quantum leap.
Permission Programming
Since our earliest days, we have been programmed to seek permission before progression.
In school, you needed to pass grade 1 before you could move up to grade 2.
I studied extension 2 mathematics during my time in high school.
To get into extension 2, you needed to be in extension 1.
To be in extension 1, you needed to do advanced mathematics.
To be accepted in advanced mathematics, you needed to have done well in normal mathematics.
There was a logical progression and permission was needed to ascend up the rung.
Things got worse during university.
I remember attending interviews to explain to faculty members why I was a good fit for engineering.
Why I should pay thousands of dollars for the privilege of watching recycled PowerPoint slides!
The honour of getting textbooks recommended to me (you gotta pay for those too).
*sigh*
This permission programming is also omnipresent in workplaces.
To get a promotion you need to do the demeaning Hula dance for your master.
You need to show why you deserve the raise.
Killing the permission programming With The Leap Frog Theory
It was only when I got into entrepreneurship that I saw this permission programming is wrong.
In the game of business, you see many people who ‘shouldn’t’ be successful absolutely killing it.
People who dropped out of high school, former heroin addicts, and other hooligans making 9 figures a year.
My boy Zachary Babcock is covered in tats, came out of prison and struggled to get a job.
He started a successful podcast business a few years ago and is crushing it.
I see these stories all the time.
The rules get broken constantly in the business world, because there are no gatekeepers sniffing down your neck.
As long as you pay your taxes, you are free to do as you wish.
Success is determined by how well the market responds to your product.
The market doesn’t care if you’re black, white, gay, purple or a jellyfish.
As long as you provide the goods you get paid.
While killing permission programming might be easier in the field of business, it is still possible in all endeavours of the soul.
The key is to give yourself permission rather than wait for someone else to tell you it’s okay to go for it.
The biggest difference between massive success and mediocrity is often due to mindset.
Successful people work hard to remove subconscious blocks.
They don’t ask for permission, they just go after it.
Beware of Projections
When you start going after what you deserve, you will face external resistance.
Family, friends and colleagues will look at you with disgust.
“What makes them think he is better than us?”
They have been brainwashed by the permission programming and see your rebellion as arrogance.
Their mental limits do not have to be yours.
Here is the definition of arrogant.
The key word is ‘exaggerated’.
Who is the arbiter of what’s exaggerated and what’s considered reasonable?
Social programming.
However, social programming was meant to keep the masses in a sheepish state and only have a few ruling above them.
It makes sense to create a framework which demeans success.
Control Negative Emotions – Leapfrog Frog Theory Tip
“I also recognized that once I proclaimed myself to be above the pack—i.e., announced to the world that I had leapfrogged to a new level—I would be the target of much derision, even outrage. Having developed a pretty good understanding of human nature at Screw U., there was little doubt in my mind that my audacious decision to leapfrog over my peers in the real estate business was an almost certain invitation to jealousy, resentment, and scorn.”
— Robert Ringer
Guilt, embarrassment, shame and fear are the favourite tools of the oligarch.
Most people follow the herd mentality and will never question these methods of control.
If you want to be great, you need to leave such concerns behind.
Allow others to project their insecurities, societal programming and jealousy.
Allow them to be uncomfortable.
Don’t succumb to these negative emotions which are used to manipulate you into settling for crumbs.
The best way to do this is through practicing Stoicism, so you can control your emotions and not be controlled by them.
Look the part – Leapfrog Theory Tip
To properly execute the Leapfrog theory and to be taken seriously, you need to ‘look the part’.
In business you can’t just increase the price and expect people to pay more money.
You need to refine your brand and improve the quality of your products, so you can increase your ‘posture’.
Robert Ringer explained how he did this in the book.
One of the most comical examples was his use of the ‘Earth Brochure’.
Instead of handing out business cards like other mediocre real estate agents, Ringer gave people the fabled Earth Brochure.
“My calling card was a spectacular, full-color, hardcover brochure costing nearly $5 a copy. The black cover had a high-gloss finish, and the brochure opened from bottom to top rather than the more traditional right-to-left format. Centered on the glossy, black front cover was a breathtaking, full-color photo of the earth as seen from one of the Apollo spaceships.”
This brochure made it difficult for prospective clients to forget about him.
It allowed him to leapfrog into their minds.
Think of ways you can stand out and compete in a blue ocean.
Ways for you to create your own lane so you won’t be compared against others.
You can leapfrog the competition by following a unique path.
The book ‘Blue Ocean Strategy’ famously highlights how Cirque du Soleil leapfrogged the circus industry by creating something new.
Instead of using animals jumping through hoops, they focused on beauty and theatre.
This allowed them to gain a new and more sophisticated audience which normally wouldn’t have been drawn to the circus.
Leapfrogging is easy when your prospects have no one to compare you to.
Do this, and you will be one step closer to living and dying well.