Hope
by Dr. Napoleon Hill

“Do the thing and you shall have the power.” —Emerson

The way of success is the way of struggle!

Lincoln wrote the greatest speech ever delivered in the English language, on the back of an envelope, a few moments before it was delivered, yet the thought back of that speech was borne of hardship and struggle.

All down the road of life you will meet with obstacles, many of them. Failure will overtake you time after time, but remember that it is a part of Nature’s method to place obstacles and failure in your way, as hurdles are placed before a horse that is being trained, that you may learn from these, some of the greatest of all lessons.

Every time you master failure you become stronger and better prepared to meet the next one. The moments of trial will come to you as they come to all at one time or another. Doubt and lack of faith in yourself and in your fellowmen will cast their dark shadows over you but remember that the manner in which you react under these trying negatives will indicate whether you are developing power or slipping backward.

“And this, too, will soon pass away.” Nothing is permanent, therefore why permit disappointment, resentment or a keen sense of injustice to undermine your composure, because they will soon eliminate themselves.

Look back over your past and you will see that those experiences of yesterday which bore heavily on your heart at the time, and seemed to end all hope of success, passed away and left your wiser than you were before.

The whole universe is in constant state of flux. You are in a constant state of change. Evolution is removing the wounds left in your heart by disappointment. You need not go down under any difficulty if you but bear in mind that “this, too, will soon pass away.”

I looked back at my heavy load of grief and worry which crowded the happiness out of my heart only yesterday, and lo! they had been transformed in to stepping stones of experience over which I had climbed higher and higher.

Source: Napoleon Hill’s Magazine. September, 1921. Pg. 9.

Terrie

Know Your Own Mind, Live Your Own Life
by Dr. Napoleon Hill

Somewhere along the path of life, every successful man finds out how to live his own life as he wishes to live it.

The younger you are when you discover this mighty power, the more likely you are to live successfully and happily. Yet even in later years, many make the great change—from letting others make them what they are, to making sure that they make their lives to their own liking.

The Creator gave man the prerogative of power over his own mind. It must have been the Creator’s purpose to encourage man to live his own life, think his own thoughts, find his own goals and achieve them. Simply by exercising this profound prerogative you can bring abundance into your life, and with it know the greatest wealth of all, peace of mind, without which there can be no real happiness.

You live in a world filled with outside influences which impinge upon you. You are influenced by other people’s acts and wishes, by law and custom, by your duties and your responsibilities. Everything you do has some effect upon others, as do their actions upon you. And yet you must find out how to live your own life, use your own mind, go on toward the dream you wish to make real and solid. Know thyself, said the ancient Greek philosophers, and this remains key advice for the man who would be in all ways wealthy. Without knowing yourself and being yourself, you cannot truly use the one Great Secret which gives you power to mold your future and make life carry you the way you want to go.

Let us then take off on our trip to Happy Valley!

Do not think of me as a back-seat driver. Rather, you are at the wheel and I merely call your attention to a trustworthy road map whereon the main highway is marked beyond questions. On your journey to riches and peace of mind, the road grows smoother and straighter as you travel.

Source: Napoleon Hill. Grow Rich! With Peace of Mind. Fawcett Edition. 1967. Pg. 9 & 10.

I hope you enjoy Napoleon Hill as much as I do!

Terrie

The concept of masterminding is old…and extremely valuable. At times I have not had people around me that I could mastermind with especially with my work hours…so what did I do? Well, I created a mastermind of people that were no longer with us. I picked famous people that I respected and liked and put them all around my mastermind table and then interacted with them just as if they were alive. It worked like a charm. Your subconscious mind is receptive to so many things that our conscious mind scoffs at.

Read what Napoleon Hill has to say about masterminds:

Truly Great Master Mind Alliances
by Dr. Napoleon Hill

One of the most outstanding master mind alliances you will ever read about was that which existed between Mr. and Mrs. Henry Ford. It had its beginning in the kitchen of their home, in the days when Mr. Ford was experimenting with his first internal combustion engine. It was then that he found out the important part that a wife’s love and devotion play in her husband’s plans. She had a sincere interest in sustaining him through the trying period of inventing and perfecting a mechanical device in order to realize his purpose in life.

The mutual appreciation of each other, and the harmony that bound theme together in the months of patient effort required to make the engine run, were to last a lifetime. Although the world heard little of Mrs. Ford, who preferred to remain inconspicuous, those who know realize that she was largely responsible for the achievements of her famous husband. It was to her that he turned in moments of crisis, for her encouraging smile, her understanding admiration, her ever-fresh hope of achievement, the comfort and care that tided him over.

Their master mind alliance, based on the definiteness of purpose of two people who were willing to work in the spirit of harmony for the fulfillment of that purpose, is an inspiration to all who would achieve greatness. It is needless to elaborate on the tremendous power which grew out of this alliance, and brought into being one of the greatest industrial empires the world has ever seen. Power was generated in the minds of two humble people who knew what they wanted to do, who rendered service on the basis of going the extra mile, and who blended all their forces and concentrated their attention on their major purposes until success was achieved.

Thomas A. Edison used this master mind principle as the basis of his entire career. He did this to bridge the gaps in his own educational back ground by utilizing the special skills and knowledge of his associates. In this way he created the physical invention of his great laboratory. But there was another master mind alliance which was in reality far more important to him than those involving the use of physics, chemistry, and mechanics. That was the alliance with his wife. He had the good fortune to have a wife with a sympathetic understanding of his problems. She always backed him up completely in any undertaking. No matter how late at night Mr. Edison would come home from his laboratory, she was up and ready with a cheerful greeting and an eager anticipation for the recounting of the day’s activities.

Mrs. Edison’s confidence and faith in her husband’s ability and her sustaining love encouraged him over many tough spots and inspired him to carry on against what were sometimes almost overwhelming odds.

In these last two examples you have some very important hints. Perhaps the greatest alliance any man can ever make is with his wife. If you have complete singleness of purpose with the woman you marry, there is nothing in which you cannot succeed. If you lack this harmony in your home, you might as well face the fact that you have a few strikes against you. And this works both ways. Ladies, you must have the harmony and cooperation of your husband, to lighten the burden of your work in life. It must be a two-way arrangement.

Source: PMA Science of Success course. Educational Edition. Pgs. 66, 67, & 68.

Terrie

More from Napoleon Hill (can you tell I really like him?)

The Applied Golden Rule
by Dr. Napoleon Hill

During these times of lack of harmony among men and nations, when the world is rocked with chaos and strife and lack of faith, what greater work could a man engage in than that of planting constructive thoughts where destructive ones grew before?  You have influence with a certain number of people and if you wish to exercise that influence so it will bring you the greatest return in happiness and in fortune you will lay aside all hatred or prejudice which may have fastened itself upon you and devote every ounce of your influence to helping men see the folly of strife and struggle and destructive effort.  In thus wielding your influence for good you may be sure that your efforts will return to you, like a boomerang, not to curse but to bless you and yours, for as surely as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west the world will hand you back that which you hand it.   You can be a man with a grievance or a man with a message; you can be a BUILDER or a DESTROYER, but make sure of this, that you can no more tear down without in turn being torn down, than you could sow wild mustard and reap a harvest of oats.

Source: Napoleon Hill’s Magazine. November, 1921. Back Cover Material.

Terrie

This article by Napoleon Hill is so important. He says it repeatedly in his other articles and books right along side his talking about how you can’t get anywhere without a definite major purpose in life. 

I think when things seem to be going not so great, we feel we are being tossed about on the waves of life like a rowboat in a storm.  But, we must always stay grounded and remember that we are in control of our mind and through our mind we create our circumstances. As hard as that is to sometimes admit, always remember it and then examine the thoughts that are bouncing around in your mind. Along with those thoughts, examine where they came from. Do they represent beliefs that have simply been carried over from your past? Some of those beliefs have helped us get to where we are today but not all of them have been so beneficial. Have you had to ‘struggle’ all your life? Do you feel uncomfortable when things are going well? Why is that?

Read what Dr. Hill has to say about this your own mind and own life….

Know Your Own Mind, Live Your Own Life
by Dr. Napoleon Hill

Somewhere along the path of life, every successful man finds out how to live his own life as he wishes to live it.

The younger you are when you discover this mighty power, the more likely you are to live successfully and happily. Yet even in later years, many make the great change—from letting others make them what they are, to making sure that they make their lives to their own liking.

The Creator gave man the prerogative of power over his own mind. It must have been the Creator’s purpose to encourage man to live his own life, think his own thoughts, find his own goals and achieve them. Simply by exercising this profound prerogative you can bring abundance into your life, and with it know the greatest wealth of all, peace of mind, without which there can be no real happiness.

You live in a world filled with outside influences which impinge upon you. You are influenced by other people’s acts and wishes, by law and custom, by your duties and your responsibilities. Everything you do has some effect upon others, as do their actions upon you. And yet you must find out how to live your own life, use your own mind, go on toward the dream you wish to make real and solid. Know thyself, said the ancient Greek philosophers, and this remains key advice for the man who would be in all ways wealthy. Without knowing yourself and being yourself, you cannot truly use the one Great Secret which gives you power to mold your future and make life carry you the way you want to go.

Let us then take off on our trip to Happy Valley!

Do not think of me as a back-seat driver. Rather, you are at the wheel and I merely call your attention to a trustworthy road map whereon the main highway is marked beyond questions. On your journey to riches and peace of mind, the road grows smoother and straighter as you travel.

Source: Napoleon Hill. Grow Rich! With Peace of Mind. Fawcett Edition. 1967. Pg. 9 & 10.


Terrie