Think and Grow Rich and Napoleon Hill have inspired millions on to success.  One of the biggest reasons people succeed in life is because they are optimists.  They get up and look at where they are going with perhaps an unreasonable belief that they will succeed.

With Only A Dream

Often with only a dream they push forward and when an obstacle appears they ask: how?  How do I solve this, how can I get to where I want to be?  They look for the solution believing it is there.

Most people don’t have the habit of asking how.  How can I?  Where is the solution?  They don’t ask how and if they do they don’t expect an answer?

Success Motivation

“One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one is overtaken by temporary defeat.”  –Napoleon Hill

Napoleon Hill in Think and Grow Rich tells the story of being “Three Feet From Gold.”

One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one is overtaken by temporary defeat. Every person is guilty of this mistake at one time or another.

Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed on an equal or greater benefit.

All achievements, all earned riches, have their beginning in an idea.

Action is the real measure of intelligence.

All the breaks you need in life wait within your imagination, Imagination is the workshop of your mind, capable of turning mind energy into accomplishment and wealth.

An uncle of R. U. Darby was caught by the “gold fever” in the gold-rush days, and went west to DIG AND GROW RICH. He had never heard that more gold has been mined from the brains of men than has ever been taken from the earth. He staked a claim and went to work with pick and shovel. The going was hard, but his lust for gold was definite.

After weeks of labor, he was rewarded by the discovery of the shining ore. He needed machinery to bring the ore to the surface. Quietly, he covered up the mine, retraced his footsteps to his home in Williamsburg, Maryland, told his relatives and a few neighbors of the “strike.” They got together money for the needed machinery, had it shipped. The uncle and Darby went back to work the mine.

The first car of ore was mined, and shipped to a smelter. The returns proved they had one of the richest mines in Colorado! A few more cars of that ore would clear the debts. Then would come the big killing in profits.

Down went the drills! Up went the hopes of Darby and Uncle! Then something happened! The vein of gold ore disappeared! They had come to the end of the rainbow, and the pot of gold was no longer there! They drilled on, desperately trying to pick up the vein again–all to no avail.

Finally, they decided to QUIT.

They sold the machinery to a junk man for a few hundred dollars, and took the train back home. Some “junk” men are dumb, but not this one! He called in a mining engineer to look at the mine and do a little calculating. The engineer advised that the project had failed, because the owners were not familiar with “fault lines.” His calculations showed that the vein would be found JUST THREE FEET FROM WHERE THE DARBYS HAD STOPPED DRILLING! That is exactly where it was found!

The “Junk” man took millions of dollars in ore from the mine, because he knew enough to seek expert counsel before giving up.

Hill goes on to talk about the fact that before success comes to anyone that person will meet with temporary success many times.  Welcome these problems, embrace them, use them to train your mind to see past them at your desired outcome and then ask how?  How can I?  How do I?  Ask with an expectation of an answer.

In the story above, R. U. Darby, who had invested in the mine lost a lot of money – but he took the lesson of  “Giving Up When Thee Feet From Gold” and made a great success by resolving not to repeat the mistake of giving up when a temporary roadblock was in his way.

Personal Motivation Strategies

That is a lesson we can all take.  A problem presents itself, instead of going home and pulling the covers over our heads we ask ourselves what can we do next, how can we go over, around, or through?

Your mind has greater power than you may know – it is your connection to the infinite and yet most of us keep it focused here on the earth plane rather than on the infinite where the solutions lie.

Think and Grow Rich and Napoleon Hill have turned the minds of many from ordinary reactive thinking into believing in the possibility of great success, turning those minds from being reactive to being visionary.  Turning those minds from not believing that “All Things Are Possible” into being extreme optimists.

Can you look at a problem or temporary failure and ask yourself “what is good about this.”  Remember Pollyanna?  A great book and Disney movie where Pollyanna comes to live with her aunt out of the tragedy of her parents death.  Through her optimism and looking for the good turns a cranky closed minded town into a community of understanding and possibility.  I recommend that you get the movie and watch it again or read the book.  These are great attitudes to take in and make a part of you.

Become a believer, this is really what Napoleon Hill is writing about in Think and Grow Rich.  Believe in the power of your intentions and of your ability to affect a desirable outcome in your life.

Success Resources: Learn More About Napoleon Hill And His Work

Napoleon Hill discusses the principals of Think and Grow Rich

• Napoleon Hill – Grow Rich! With Peace Of Mind- Napoleon Hill – Grow Rich! With Peace of MindIn this exciting book, the renowned author of THINK AND GROW RICH, Napoleon Hill, reveals his latest.
• Book review: Think and grow rich by Napoleon Hill – Background to Think and grow rich Think and Grow Rich is based on Napoleon Hill’s earlier work The Law of Success, the result of more than twenty years of research based on Hill’s close association of more than 500 men of great wealth.
• Napoleon Hill – Three Feet From Gold ! – Keep on keeping on. Git ‘er done. Winners never quit and quitters never win. Don’t stop now! Keep plugging away… We’ve all been there – times we would have choked on any combination of the words above.

• Was Napoleon Hill Crazy? – If you have read a newer “censored” version of Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich you may not be aware but in Chapter 14 Entitled – “The Sixth Sense The Door To The Temple of Wisdom,” Hill describes how he held imaginary cabinet meetings in his mind with “Invisible Counselors.”

• Napoleon Hill — Think and Grow Rich - Hill’s 1937 classic is perhaps the best known and best selling success book of all time.

  

  “What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve”

Napoleon Hill and Think and Grow Rich is named by numerous successful people as providing the seed and plan for their success.  Thus it seems that reading the book and taking the message to heart is one of the first things you should do to get your financial freedom card punched.

“Ideas are the beginning point of all creation of wealth.” –Napoleon Hill

An electronic copy of Think and Grow Rich along with four other success classics are available at no cost here.

Other views about Think And Grow Rich and getting your financial freedom card punched:

• Hypnotic Thoughts.: Book Review: “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon … – “Be prepared… when you expose yourself to the influence of this philosophy, to experience a CHANGED LIFE which may help you not only to negotiate your way through life with harmony and understanding, but also to prepare you for wealth.
• Book Review: Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (Blogcritics.org) – The Grandfather of All Motivational Literature Reveals The Secrets To Real Wealth and Lasting Success. Originally posted here: Book Review: Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (Blogcritics.org)
• Book review: Think and grow rich by Napoleon Hill – Background to Think and grow rich Think and Grow Rich is based on Napoleon Hill’s earlier work The Law of Success, the result of more than twenty years of research based on Hill’s close association of more than 500 men of great wealth.
• Book Review – Think and Grow Rich – This book has sold millions of copies and is a ‘Bible’ for people who search for financial freedom. It was twenty years in the making, and though it’s over 70 years since the book was first published, it is as relevant today as it was when Hill wrote it.
• Out of the Mouf! Book Review: Think and Grow Rich – I thought I’d start this series out by reviewing an old classic that I happen to be re-reading at the moment, Think and Grow Rich by Dale Carnegie. I’m not sure if I like Think and Grow Rich more for it’s early-twentieth century charm.

The Thirteen Steps to Riches, Napoleon Hill – A Brief Look at Each

By Kathy Munslow

In his book “Think and Grow Rich”, Napoleon Hill talks of the Thirteen Steps to Riches. This information is still as relevant today as it was at the time of publication. This article looks at each of the steps briefly.

Step 1: Desire

You need to have a burning desire to achieve success. If you are tentative and timid, then it is not true desire. Have a definite and specific goal for what you want to achieve, and stick to it. Have a plan for how you are going to achieve that goal.

Step 2: Faith

Have faith that you really can achieve what you desire. If you have truly believe it, then it is more likely to manifest itself.

Step 3: Autosuggestion

Have a mental picture in your mind that you have already achieved what you desire. By replaying this consistently in your mind, you will gain the faith that you need to achieve it.

Step 4: Specialized Knowledge

Knowledge is not power, it is potential power. It becomes power if that knowledge is used, and put into definite plans of action. Take the time to learn what you need in order to become an expert in your field of expertise. Associate with others who are already experts and learn from them.

Step 5: Imagination

Albert Einstein said “Imagination is everything. It is the preview to life’s coming attractions”. This sums it up beautifully. If you can visualise what you want in life, and then focus on it, it should become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Step 6: Organized Planning

Once you know what your goal is, you need to have a definite and practical plan for how you are going to achieve it. Put the pieces in place that will help you achieve your success.

Step 7: Decision

Come up with a firm decision and stick to it. Don’t let others make your decision for you, and don’t delay your decision or procrastinate.

Step 8: Persistence

Lack of persistence keeps many people from great accomplishment. Keep working towards your goal, no matter what obstacles get in your way. Many people give up the minute they reach the slightest obstacle. You have to keep rising above the challenges thrown at you, and keep focusing on your end goal.

Step 9: Power of the Master Mind

Often those that are close to us will send us off course with their opinions and ridicule. Surround yourself with like minded people, who are all working towards a common goal. By doing this you create synergy, which is an unstoppable force.

Step 10: the Mystery of Sex Transmutation

There are a number of different stimulants that increase the intensity of our thought way beyond the realms of ordinary thought. For example love, a burning desire for fame or financial gain, music, fear. The most powerful of these stimulants is that of sex.

Step 11: the Subconscious Mind

The thoughts you have determine what you get in your life. Focus on your plan, and imagine that you have already achieved it.

Step 12: the Brain

It has been said that we only use somewhere between 5 and 10 percent of our brain. The rest of our brain power forms the subconscious mind, which is what we need to tap into in order to achieve the successes we desire.

Step 13: the Sixth Sense

The ability to use the sixth sense is gained when you apply and master all the previous steps. It takes time to develop it, and it is not something that can be switched on and off at will.

Kathy Munslow is an internet marketer and mentor, who loves helping others achieve greater levels of success in their lives. To find out more about Kathy and what she does, visit http://www.onlinesaleswiz.biz

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kathy_Munslow

If you have a longer time here is a YouTube playlist of video’s about Napoleon Hill and his principals.  It includes a section about W. Clement Stone.

Reading Think and Grow Rich Is A Great Place To Start If You Want To Get Your Financial Freedom Card Punched.

Many look at Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich as a get rich quick guide.  In fact it has been used by the unscrupulous as a part of their sales pitch to pull people into money making schemes and programs that are less than sound.  For many this may have been their first introduction to Hill and his book and that is unfortunate since these people, having been burned by the business, may put the book down forever, and that is unfortunate.

And yet others take the book, regardless of their experience in the business, and take it to heart and are able to put it’s principals to work and achieve something fine, even great.  Years before Think And Grow Rich Hill had his beginnings writing for magazines, and eventually his own magazine: “Hill’s Golden Rule Magazine”  and “Napoleon Hill’s Magazine.”

Napoleon Hill on Concentrated Action

Some of Hill’s earliest writing in these magazines dealt with the lack of concentrated action, moving from one idea or job to the next without ever fully fleshing out the first.  Thus there is no concentrated effort, little action and no success.  Hill is a big proponent of finishing what you start.  Take your idea and stick with it – don’t jump from one thing to the next simply because the first does not pour out dollars when you first take it up.

“Nearly every man has intellegence enough to create ideas in his mind, but the trouble with most is that those ideas never find expression in action.  The finest locomotive on earth is not worth a shilling nor will it pull a single pound of weight, utill the stored up energy in the steam dome is released by the throttle.

You have energy in that head of yours — every human being does — but you are not releasing it at the throttle of action!  You are not applying it through the principal of concentration to the tasks which if completed, would place you on the list of those who are regarded as successes.”  –Napoleon Hill from  Napoleon Hill’s First Editions

This idea of concentrated action is why Hill and so many success authors talk about writing not only goals, but a short list of what you should do the next day.  It keeps you focused, it keeps you in a state of concentration on the ideas, on the goals, it also facilitates visualization which Napoleon Hill covers in detail in Chapters 3 and 4 of Think and Grow Rich.

Napoleon Hill on Persistence

From Chapter 9 of Think and Grow Rich:

PERSISTENCE is an essential factor in the procedure of transmuting DESIRE into its monetary equivalent. The basis of persistence is the POWER OF WILL.

Will-power and desire, when properly combined, make an irresistible pair. Men who accumulate great fortunes are generally known as cold-blooded, and sometimes ruthless. Often they are misunderstood. What they have is will-power, which they mix with persistence, and place back of their desires to insure the attainment of their objectives.

Henry Ford has been generally misunderstood to be ruthless and cold-blooded. This misconception grew out of Ford’s habit of following through in all of his plans with PERSISTENCE.

The majority of people are ready to throw their aims and purposes overboard, and give up at the first sign of opposition or misfortune. A few carry on DESPITE all opposition, until they attain their goal. These few are the Fords, Carnegies, Rockefellers, and Edisons.

Napoleon Hill and Others on Procrastination

This brings us to procrastination.  Procrastination is a form of fear.  Procrastination often results when there is anxiety over something you want to do or need to do.  Wikipedia has this to say:

The psychological causes of procrastination vary greatly, but generally surround issues of anxiety, low sense of self-worth, and a self-defeating mentality^[4]. Procrastinators are also thought to have a lower-than-normal level of conscientiousness, more based on the “dreams and wishes” of perfection or achievement in contrast to a realistic appreciation of their obligations and potential.

Napoleon Hill had this to say about procrastination:

Procrastination is the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow what should have been done the day before yesterday.

Persistent action carried out now.  These ideas are two of  the primary keys to success.  W. Clement Stone had a saying:

“Do it now.”

And why not, why not now?  Do we have genuine reasons or are they procrastination and hidden fear?

Napoleon Hill was writing about periodic self examination when he wrote the first quote above.  That if you are jumping around from one thing to the next then you will never put forth the concentrated effort that you need to really put the thing over.  And if you have a good idea and are not going forward with it – with persistence and with belief in it – then perhaps there is some hidden fear that you need to understand that is causing you to procrastinate.

Napoleon Hill’s writings are timeless and remain some of the foremost success liturature that we have.  That the unscrupulous would use it to manipulate those seeking to better their lives is unfortunate but that should not stop us from taking and using Hills literary works for our betterment.