Think And Grow Rich - Napoleon Hill

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This is not a finance book, does not teach you how money works; rather it’s a self-help and motivational book; it is more about positive attitude, planning and will power. The author asks you to have a strong desire, a definite plan for achieving it with persistence and a time limit.

If you follow the instructions and not merely read it, the book will atleast help you to do the self-analysis; to know your strong and weak points, fears and areas of improvement. The author suggests positive thinking, of course, followed by actions, as a way to convert your desire into reality. But he emphasizes a lot on positive thoughts considering it as a necessary beginning and a way of communication to the unknown mysterious world.

Positive thoughts

This book emphasizes a lot on power of positive thoughts. Author believes, and it is true, that to become someone or to achieve something great, first thing you need to have is a thought about it. Without thinking about what you need or what you want to become, you really can’t get it. Most people live their daily lives without thinking about what is that they really want, they just live a day at a time.

TRULY, “thoughts are things,” and powerful things at that, when they are mixed with definiteness of purpose, persistence, and a BURNING DESIRE for their translation into riches, or other material objects.

An intangible impulse of thought can be transmuted into its physical counterpart by the application of known principles/steps.

Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire. Be definite as to the amount.
Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire.
Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money.
Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action.
Write out a clear, concise statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, time limit, service you intend to provide for it and plan to carry it out.
Read you written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night, and once after arising in the morning. As you read, see, feel and believe yourself already in possession of the money.

Riches begin with a state of mind, with definiteness of purpose, with little or no hard work.

Success comes to those who become SUCCESS CONSCIOUS.

We can become invictus because…

We are the Masters of our Fate, the Captains of our Souls, because we have the power to control our thoughts.

When you are thinking about something, according to author, there is some divine power (not a white bearded guy) which listens to your thoughts and try to make it a reality. So your thoughts be better positive.

This power makes no attempt to discriminate between destructive thoughts and constructive thoughts, that it will urge us to translate into physical reality.

“Our only limitations are those we set up in our own minds.”

Desire

It will never be enough to only think about having money, you need to also have a strong desire for it.

When a man really DESIRES a thing so deeply that he is willing to stake his entire future on a single turn of the wheel in order to get it, he is sure to win.

Most people don’t desire big; they think small and live small.

One of the main weaknesses of mankind is the average man’s familiarity with the word “impossible.” He knows all the rules which will NOT work. He knows all the things which CANNOT be done.

We must magnetize our minds with intense desire for riches, that we must become money conscious until the desire for money drives us to create definite plans for acquiring it.

And again it need to definite, not just vague desire like a lot of money.

Every person who wins in any undertaking must be willing to burn his ships and cut all sources of retreat. Only by so doing can one be sure of maintaining that state of mind known as a burning desire to win, essential to success.

Faith

Once you desire something, you need to have faith in you as well as in your desire.

Gandhi has accomplished, through the influence of faith, that which the strongest military power on earth could not, and never will accomplish through soldiers and military equipment.

Faith is a state of mind which may be induced, or created, by affirmation or repeated instructions to the subconscious mind, through the principle of auto-suggestion.

One comes, finally, to believe whatever one repeats to one’s self, whether the statement be true or false.

There is a difference between wishing for a thing and being ready to receive it. No one is ready for a thing, until he believes he can acquire it. The state of mind must be belief, not mere hope or wish.

Desire backed by faith knows no such word as impossible.

Plan

Once you know what you want, and you have faith that you can achieve it, next step is to plan for it. How ?

Begin at once to see yourself in possession of the money, demanding and expecting meanwhile, that your subconscious mind will hand over the plan, or plans you need.

Anything will never come to you without you providing something. You just can’t keep thinking about what you want; you need to step up and take a first step which is to plan.

Knowledge is only potential power. It becomes power only when, and if, it is organized into definite plans of action, and directed to a definite end.

Not all of your plans will succeed, but you will have to practice persistence in creating new plans to take the place of those which fail.

Safest plan is not to depend on luck

Opportunity

Once you plan things out, you need to keep eye for an opportunity, because it has a sly habit of slipping in by the back door, and often it comes disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat.

Opportunity can come through help of your friends, colleagues or anybody. You can really benefit from company of good, useful people. Author suggests to surround yourself with people who can do things for you which you cannot.

Why should you clutter up your mind with general knowledge, for the purpose of being able to answer questions, when your can have men around you who can supply any knowledge you require?

More gold has been mined from the brains of men than has ever been taken from the earth.

People are profited by dramatic experiences, when they analyzed them, and found the lessons taught. Both the successes and the failures have their roots in simple experiences. If you are one of those who believe that hard work and honesty, alone, will bring riches, perish the thought! It is not true.

Tolerance, and an open mind are practical necessities of the dreamer of today.

Persistence

Many people start working on something but never carry it to the end, we call them losers ;) .

One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one is overtaken by temporary defeat.

People face impediments, failures, but what you do after that decides what you achieve. Most people give up their dreams on first signs of difficulties and, others don’t and go ahead to achieve it. More than five hundred of the most successful men this country (US) has ever known, told the author their greatest success came just one step beyond the point at which defeat had overtaken them.

Every failure brings with it the seed of an equivalent success. The time to nurse an idea is at the time of its birth.

A quitter never wins, and a winner never quits.

Decision

The person who takes no chances, generally has to take whatever is left when others are through choosing. Habit of reaching decisions promptly, and of changing these decision slowly, if, and when they were changed is very crucial for success.

Procrastination, opposite of decision, is a common enemy which practically every man must conquer. Indecision crystallizes into doubt, the two blend and become fear.

How much you should listen to others is up to you.

Opinions are the cheapest commodities on the earth. Everyone has a flock of opinions ready to be wished upon anyone who will accept them. If you are influenced by “opinions” when you reach decision, you will not succeed in any undertaking.

The world has the habit of making room for the man whose words and actions show that he knows where he is going. Fear, the worst of all enemies can be effectively cured by forced repetition of courage.

Without money, one must take what one is offered, and be glad to get it.

Sex

Sex, relationships consume a lot of your energy; if you can take your mind off it you can focus on your goals. It doesn’t mean you should not be involved in sex, relationships; rather have enough of both, enjoy both, just don’t be overwhelmed by it all the times. Author highlights healthy sex life, and good relationship as important factors for success.

Salesman who knows how to take his mind off the subject of sex, and direct it in sales effort with as much enthusiasm and determination as he would apply to its original purpose, has acquired the art of sex transmutation.

A sex-mad man is not essentially different than a dope-mad man! Both have lost control over their faculties or reason and will power. Through will-power, once may discourage the presence of any emotion, and encourage the presence of any other.

The man who can not be stimiulated to great heights of achievement by love, is hopeless, he is dead, though he may seem to live.

Analysis by author

Causes of Failures

Unfavourable hereditary background : If you are born dumb.
Lack of well defined purpose in life : Major one.
Lack of ambition to aim above mediocrity
Insufficient education : Easy to overcome
Lack of self-discipline : Self control
Ill health
Unfavourable influences during childhood
Procrastination
Lack of persistence
Negative personality
Lack of controlled sexual urge
Uncontrolled desire for “something for nothing” : No shortcuts
Lack of a well defined power of decision
Fear
Wrong selection of mate in marriage
Over caution
Wrong selection of associate in business
Superstition and prejudice
Wrong selection of vocation
Lack of concentration of efforts
Habit of indiscriminate spending
Lack of enthusiasm
Intolerance
Intemperance
Inability to cooperate with others
Possession of power that was not acquired through self effort
Intentional dishonesty
Egotism and vanity
Guessing instead of thinking
Lack of capital

For persistence, you need

Definiteness of purpose
Desire
Self-reliance
Definiteness of plans
Accurate knowledge
Co-operation
Will-power
Habit

Invisible Counselors

One of the things author mentioned which helped him was his invisible counselors. He had nightly meetings, imaginary one, with great leaders like Ford, Lincoln, Darwin, Edison etc, where he would discuss with them his problems at hand, options; and they helped him to make his decisions.

Next big thing being truly great, is to emulate the great, by feeling and action, as nearly as possible.

Public as an employer

This was the future of type of companies that author expected, where public will be and employer, customers will come first. Companies need to take care of their customers so that companies will be taken care by public.

Worry

Worry is a state of mind based upon fear. It works slowly, but persistently. It is insidious and subtle. Step by step it digs itself in until it practically paralyzes one’s reasoning faculty, destroys self-confidence and initiative. Worry is form of sustained fear caused by indecision therefore it is a state of mind which can be controlled. We do not worry over conditions, once we have reached a decision to follow a definite line of action.

Sixth sense

Author totally believes in the sixth sense, through the aid of which you will be warmed or impending dangers in time to avoid them, and notified of opportunities in time to embrace them.

Miscellaneous

Knowledge has no value except that which can be gained from its application toward some worthy end.
The person who stops studying merely because he has finished school is forever hopelessly doomed to mediocrity, no matter what may be his calling. The way of success is the way of continuous pursuit of knowledge.
Both success and failure are largely the results of HABIT!
Every great leader, from the dawn of civilization down to the present, was a dreamer.
Close association with one who refuses to compromise with circumstances he does not like, is an asset that can never be measured in terms of money.
Power may be defined as organized and intelligently directed knowledge.