I was looking at a large painting of a street in New Orleans on the wall of a bar in New York. The perspective shown was perfect so it created this very photorealistic illusion of depth. I thought, “It’s just math. Perspective is based on mathematical principles.”

And then it’s empowering to broaden that and realize that so many things in life are based on math and formulas can, and should, be applied to achieve the results we seek.

Making money is absolutely, 100% math. There are simple formulas one ought to fix in his head when running any business. These formulas can be constructed fairly intuitively by a business owner based on the various inputs and outputs in your business. Once you map these things out and track them on an ongoing basis you’re able to see the high-level levers that may need adjustment and can use them to strategize. Without a grasp of this, you’re not in control.

To see this and for these formulas to actually be intuitive you do have to step outside your business, have a 30,000-foot view of it, view it as a machine and be able to think abstractly about it. This is when you see that the world can be reduced to formulas and that making decisions about how to spend your time based on an appreciation for the formulas governing your pursuits can multiply the output and reward you get for your input of time.

Here is a good, more detailed guide on the simple math that can be applied to any business selling any product or service (i.e. any business on the planet).