Think And Grow Rich E-Book

Napoleon Hill

• Herausgeber: sk
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

                       This book contains the secret, after having been put to a practical test by thousands of people, in almost every walk of life. It was Mr. Carnegie's idea that the magic formula, which gave him a stupendous fortune, ought to be placed within reach of people who do not have time to investigate how men make money, and it was his hope that I might test and demonstrate the soundness of the formula through the experience of men and women in every calling.

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Author's Preface

Chapter 1

Introduction

THE MAN WHO "THOUGHT" HIS WAY INTO PARTNERSHIP WITH THOMAS A. EDISON

Chapter 2

Desire: The Starting Point of All Achievement

The First Step toward Riches

Chapter 3

Faith Visualization of, and Belief in Attainment of Desire

The Second Step toward Riches

Chapter 4

Auto-Suggestion: The Medium for Influencing the Subconscious Mind

The Third Step toward Riches

Chapter 5

Specialized Knowledge, Personal Experience or Observations

The Fourth Step toward Riches

Chapter 6

Imagination: The Workshop of the Mind

The Fifth Step toward Riches

Chapter 7

Organized Planning: The Crystallization of Desire into Action

The Sixth Step toward Riches

Chapter 8

Decision: The Mastery of Procrastination

The Seventh Step toward Riches

Chapter 9

Persistence: The Sustained Effort Necessary to Induce Faith

The Eighth Step toward Riches

Chapter 10

Power of the Master Mind: The Driving Force

The Ninth Step toward Riches

Chapter 11

The Mystery of Sex: Transmutation

The Tenth Step toward Riches

Chapter 12

The Subconscious Mind: The Connecting Link

The Eleventh Step toward Riches

Chapter 13

The Brain: A Broadcasting and Receiving Station for Thought

The Twelfth Step toward Riches

Chapter 14

The Sixth Sense: The Door to the Temple of Wisdom

The Thirteenth Step toward Riches

Chapter 15

How to Outwit the Six Ghosts of Fear

THINK AND GROW RICH

by

Napoleon Hill

1936 Edition

A Public Domain Book

Author's Preface

IN EVERY chapter of this book, mention has been made of the money-making secret which has made fortunes for more than five hundred exceedingly wealthy men whom I have carefully analyzed over a long period of years.

The secret was brought to my attention by Andrew Carnegie, more than a quarter of a century ago. The canny, lovable old Scotsman carelessly tossed it into my mind, when I was but a boy. Then he sat back in his chair, with a merry twinkle in his eyes, and watched carefully to see if I had brains enough to understand the full significance of what he had said to me.

When he saw that I had grasped the idea, he asked if I would be willing to spend twenty years or more, preparing myself to take it to the world, to men and women who, without the secret, might go through life as failures. I said I would, and with Mr. Carnegie's cooperation, I have kept my promise.

This book contains the secret, after having been put to a practical test by thousands of people, in almost every walk of life. It was Mr. Carnegie's idea that the magic formula, which gave him a stupendous fortune, ought to be placed within reach of people who do not have time to investigate how men make money, and it was his hope that I might test and demonstrate the soundness of the formula through the experience of men and women in every calling.

He believed the formula should be taught in all public schools and colleges, and expressed the opinion that if it were properly taught it would so revolutionize the entire educational system that the time spent in school could be reduced to less than half.

His experience with Charles M. Schwab, and other young men of Mr. Schwab's type, convinced Mr. Carnegie that much of that which is taught in the schools is of no value whatsoever in connection with the business of earning a living or accumulating riches. He had arrived at this decision, because he had taken into his business one young man after another, many of them with but little schooling, and by coaching them in the use of this formula, developed in them rare leadership. Moreover, his coaching made fortunes for every one of them who followed his instructions. In the chapter on Faith, you will read the astounding story of the organization of the giant United States Steel Corporation, as it was conceived and carried out by one of the young men through whom Mr. Carnegie proved that his formula will work for all who are ready for it.

This single application of the secret, by that young man – Charles M. Schwab – made him a huge fortune in both money and OPPORTUNITY. Roughly speaking, this particular application of the formula was worth six hundred million dollars. These facts-and they are facts well known to almost everyone who knew Mr. Carnegie-give you a fair idea of what the reading of this book may bring to you, provided you KNOW WHAT IT IS THAT YOU WANT.

Even before it had undergone twenty years of practical testing, the secret was passed on to more than one hundred thousand men and women who have used it for their personal benefit, as Mr. Carnegie planned that they should. Some have made fortunes with it. Others have used it successfully in creating harmony in their homes. A clergyman used it so effectively that it brought him an income of upwards of $75,000.00 a year.

Arthur Nash, a Cincinnati tailor, used his near-bankrupt business as a "guinea pig" on which to test the formula. The business came to life and made a fortune for its owners. It is still thriving, although Mr. Nash has gone. The experiment was so unique that newspapers and magazines, gave it more than a million dollars' worth of laudatory publicity.

The secret was passed on to Stuart Austin Wier, of Dallas, Texas. He was ready for it – so ready that he gave up his profession and studied law. Did he succeed? That story is told too.

I gave the secret to Jennings Randolph, the day he graduated from College, and he has used it so successfully that he is now serving his third term as a Member of Congress, with an excellent opportunity to keep on using it until it carries him to the White House.

While serving as Advertising Manager of the La-Salle Extension University, when it was little more than a name, I had the privilege of seeing J. G. Chapline, President of the University, use the formula so effectively that he has since made the LaSalle one of the great extension schools of the country.

The secret to which I refer has been mentioned no fewer than a hundred times, throughout this book. It has not been directly named, for it seems to work more successfully when it is merely uncovered and left in sight, where THOSE WHO ARE READY, and SEARCHING FOR IT, may pick it up. That is why Mr. Carnegie tossed it to me so quietly, without giving me its specific name.

If you are READY to put it to use, you will recognize this secret at least once in every chapter. I wish I might feel privileged to tell you how you will know if you are ready, but that would deprive you of much of the benefit you will receive when you make the discovery in your own way.

While this book was being written, my own son, who was then finishing the last year of his college work, picked up the manuscript of chapter two, read it, and discovered the secret for himself. He used the information so effectively that he went directly into a responsible position at a beginning salary greater than the average man ever earns. His story has been briefly described in chapter two.

When you read it, perhaps you will dismiss any feeling you may have had at the beginning of the book, that it promised too much. And, too, if you have ever been discouraged, if you have had difficulties to surmount which took the very soul out of you, if you have tried and failed, if you were ever handicapped by illness or physical affliction, this story of my son's discovery and use of the Carnegie formula may prove to be the oasis in the Desert of Lost Hope, for which you have been searching.

This secret was extensively used by President Woodrow Wilson, during the World War. It was passed on to every soldier who fought in the war, carefully wrapped in the training received before going to the front. President Wilson told me it wasa strong factor in raising the funds needed for the war.

More than twenty years ago, Hon. Manuel L. Quezon (then Resident Commissioner of the Philippine Islands), was inspired by the secret to gain freedom for his people. He has gained freedom for the Philippines, and is the first President of the free state. A peculiar thing about this secret is that those who once acquire it and use it, find themselves literally swept on to success, with but little effort, and they never again submit to failure! If you doubt this, study the names of those who have used it, wherever they have been mentioned, check their records for yourself, and be convinced.

There is no such thing as SOMETHING FOR NOTHING!

The secret to which I refer cannot be had without a price, although the price is far less than its value. It cannot be had at any price by those who are not intentionally searching for it. It cannot be given away, it cannot be purchased for money, for the reason that it comes in two parts. One part is already in possession of those who are ready for it. The secret serves equally well, all who are ready for it.

Education has nothing to do with it. Long before I was born, the secret had found its way into the possession of Thomas A. Edison, and he used it so intelligently that he became the world's leading inventor, although he had but three months of schooling. The secret was passed on to a business associate of Mr. Edison. He used it so effectively that, although he was then making only $12,000 a year, he accumulated a great fortune, and retired from active business while still a young man. You will find his story at the beginning of the first chapter. It should convince you that riches are not beyond your reach, that you can still be what you wish to be, that money, fame, recognition and happiness can be had by all who are ready and determined to have these blessings.

How do I know these things? You should have the answer before you finish this book. You may find it in the very first chapter, or on the last page.

While I was performing the twenty year task of research, which I had undertaken at Mr. Carnegie's request, I analyzed hundreds of well-known men, many of whom admitted that they had accumulated their vast fortunes through the aid of the Carnegie secret; among these men were:

HENRY FORDWILLIAM WRIGLEY JR.JOHN WANAMAKERJAMES J. HILLGEORGE S. PARKERE. M. STATLERHENRY L.DOHERTYCYRUS H. K. CURTISGEORGE EASTMANTHEODORE ROOSEVELTJOHN W. DAVISELBERT HUBBARDWILBUR WRIGHTWILLIAM JENNINGS BRYANDR. DMTID STARR JORDANJ. ODGEN ARMOURCHARLES M. SCHWABHARRIS F. WILLIAMSDR. FRANK GUNSAULUSDANIEL WILLARDKING GILLETTERALPH A. WEEKSJUDGE DANIEL T. WRIGHTJOHN D. ROCKEFELLERTHOMAS A. EDISONFRANK A. VANDERLIPF. W. WOOLWORTHCOL. ROBERTA. DOLLAREDWARD A. FILENEEDWIN C. BARNESARTHUR BRISBANEWOODROW WILSONWM. HOWARD TAFTLUTHER BURBANKEDWARD W. BOKFRANK A. MUNSEYELBERT H. GARYDR. ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELLJOHN H. PATTERSONJULIUS ROSENWALDSTUART AUSTIN WIERDR. FRANK CRANEGEORGE M. ALEXANDERJ. G. CHAPPLINEHON. JENNINGS RANDOLPHARTHUR NASHCLARENCE DARROW

These names represent but a small fraction of the hundreds of well-known Americans whose achievements, financially and otherwise, prove that those who understand and apply the Carnegie secret, reach high stations in life. I have never known anyone who was inspired to use the secret, who did not achieve noteworthy success in his chosen calling. I have never known any person to distinguish himself, or to accumulate riches of any consequence, without possession of the secret.

From these two facts I draw the conclusion that the secret is more important, as a part of the knowledge essential for self-determination, than any which one receives through what is popularly known as "education."

What is EDUCATION, anyway? This has been answered in full detail. As far as schooling is concerned, many of these men had very little. John Wanamaker once told me that what little schooling he had, he acquired in very much the same manner as a modern locomotive takes on water, by "scooping it up as it runs."

Henry Ford never reached high school, let alone college. I am not attempting to minimize the value of schooling, but I am trying to express my earnest belief that those who master and apply the secret will reach high stations, accumulate riches, and bargain with life on their own terms, even if their schooling has been meager.

Somewhere, as you read, the secret to which I refer will jump from the page and stand boldly before you, IF YOU ARE READY FOR IT! When it appears, you will recognize it. Whether you receive the sign in the first or the last chapter, stop for a moment when it presents itself, and turn down a glass, for that occasion will mark the most important turning-point of your life.

We pass now, to Chapter One, and to the story of my very dear friend, who has generously acknowledged having seen the mystic sign, and whose business achievements are evidence enough that he turned down a glass. As you read his story, and the others, remember that they deal with the important problems of life, such as all men experience. The problems arising from one's endeavor to earn a living, to find hope, courage, contentment and peace of mind; to accumulate riches and to enjoy freedom of body and spirit.

Remember, too, as you go through the book, that it deals with facts and not with fiction, its purpose being to convey a great universal truth through which all who are READY may learn, not only WHAT TO DO, BUT ALSO HOW TO DO IT! and receive, as well, THE NEEDED STIMULUS TO MAKE A START.

As a final word of preparation, before you begin the first chapter, may I offer one brief suggestion which may provide a clue by which the Carnegie secret may be recognized? It is this – ALL ACHIEVEMENT, ALL EARNED RICHES, HAVE THEIR BEGINNING IN AN IDEA!

If you are ready for the secret, you already possess one half of it, therefore, you will readily recognize the other half the moment it reaches your mind.

THEAUTHOR

Chapter 1

Introduction

THE MAN WHO "THOUGHT" HIS WAY INTO PARTNERSHIP WITH THOMAS A. EDISON

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.

A little more than thirty years ago, Edwin C. Barnes discovered how true it is that men really do THINK AND GROW RICH. His discovery did not come about at one sitting. It came little by little, beginning with a BURNING DESIRE to become a business associate of the great Edison.

One of the chief characteristics of Barnes' Desire was that it was definite. He wanted to work with Edison, not for him. Observe, carefully, the description of how he went about translating his DESIRE into reality, and you will have a better understanding of the thirteen principles which lead to riches. When this DESIRE, or impulse of thought, first flashed into his mind he was in no position to act upon it. Two difficulties stood in his way. He did not know Mr. Edison, and he did not have enough money to pay his railroad fare to Orange, New Jersey. These difficulties were sufficient to have discouraged the majority of men from making any attempt to carry out the desire.

But his was no ordinary desire! He was so determined to find a way to carry out his desire that he finally decided to travel by "blind baggage," rather than be defeated. (To the uninitiated, this means that he went to East Orange on a freight train). He presented himself at Mr. Edison's laboratory, and announced he had come to go into business with the inventor. In speaking of the first meeting between Barnes and Edison, years later, Mr. Edison said, "He stood there before me, looking like an ordinary tramp, but there was something in the expression of his face which conveyed the impression that he was determined to get what he had come after. I had learned, from years of experience with men, that 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. I gave him the opportunity he asked for, because I saw he had made up his mind to stand by untilhe succeeded. Subsequent events proved that no mistake was made."

Just what young Barnes said to Mr. Edison on that occasion was far less important than that which he thought. Edison, himself, said so! It could not have been the young man's appearance which got him his start in the Edison office, for that was definitely against him. It was what he THOUGHT that counted. If the significance of this statement could be conveyed to every person who reads it, there would be no need for the remainder of this book.

Barnes did not get his partnership with Edison on his first interview. He did get a chance to work in the Edison offices, at a very nominal wage, doing work that was unimportant to Edison, but most important to Barnes, because it gave him an opportunity to display his "merchandise" where his intended "partner" could see it. Months went by. Apparently nothing happened to bring the coveted goal which Barnes had set up in his mind as his DEFINITE MAJOR PURPOSE. But something important was happening in Barnes' mind. He was constantly intensifying his DESIRE to become the business associate of Edison.

Psychologists have correctly said that "when one is truly ready for a thing, it puts in its appearance." Barnes was ready for a business association with Edison, moreover, he was DETERMINED TO REMAIN READY UNTIL HE GOT THAT WHICH HE WAS SEEKING.

He did not say to himself, "Ah well, what's the use? I guess I'll change my mind and try for a salesman's job." But, he did say, "I came here to go into business with Edison, and I'll accomplish this end if it takes the remainder of my life." He meant it! What a different story men would have to tell if only they would adopt a DEFINITE PURPOSE, and stand by that purpose until it had time to become an all-consuming obsession!

Maybe young Barnes did not know it at the time, but his bulldog determination, his persistence in standing back of a single DESIRE, was destined to mow down all opposition, and bring him the opportunity he was seeking.

When the opportunity came, it appeared in a different form, and from a different direction than Barnes had expected. That is one of the tricks of opportunity. 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. Perhaps this is why so many fail to recognizeopportunity. Mr. Edison had just perfected a new office device, known at that time, as the Edison Dictating Machine (now the Ediphone). His salesmen were not enthusiastic over the machine. They did not believe it could be sold without great effort. Barnes saw his opportunity. It had crawled in quietly, hidden in a queer looking machine which interested no one but Barnes and the inventor.

Barnes knew he could sell the Edison Dictating Machine. He suggested this to Edison, and promptly got his chance. He did sell the machine. In fact, he sold it so successfully that Edison gave him a contract to distribute and market it all over the nation. Out of that business association grew the slogan, "Made by Edison and installed by Barnes."

The business alliance has been in operation for more than thirty years. Out of it Barnes has made himself rich in money, but he has done something infinitely greater, he has proved that one really may "Think and Grow Rich."

How much actual cash that original DESIRE of Barnes' has been worth to him,I have no way of knowing. Perhaps it has brought him two or three million dollars, but the amount, whatever it is, becomes insignificant when compared withthe greater asset he acquired in the form of definite knowledge that an intangibleimpulse of thought can be transmuted into its physical counterpart by the application of known principles.

Barnes literally thought himself into a partnership with the great Edison! Hethought himself into a fortune. He had nothing to start with, except the capacityto KNOW WHAT HE WANTED, AND THE DETERMINATION TO STAND BYTHAT DESIRE UNTIL HE REALIZED IT. He had no money to begin with. Hehad but little education. He had no influence. But he did have initiative, faith, andthe will to win. With these intangible forces he made himself number one manwith the greatest inventor who ever lived.

Now, let us look at a different situation, and study a man who had plenty of tangible evidence of riches, but lost it, because he stopped three feet short of the goalhe was seeking.

*

THREE FEET FROM GOLD

One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one isovertaken by temporary defeat. Every person is guilty of this mistake at one timeor another. 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 thatmore gold has been mined from the brains of men than has ever been taken fromthe earth. He staked a claim and went to work with pick and shovel. The goingwas hard, but his lust for gold was definite.

After weeks of labor, he was rewarded by the discovery of the shining ore. Heneeded 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 relativesand 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 theyhad one of the richest mines in Colorado! A few more cars of that ore would clearthe debts. Then would come the big killing in profits.

Down went the drills! Up went the hopes of Darby and Uncle! Then somethinghappened! The vein of gold ore disappeared! They had come to the end of therainbow, and the pot of gold was no longer there! They drilled on, desperatelytrying 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 fewhundred dollars, and took the train back home. Some "junk" men are dumb, butnot this one! He called in a mining engineer to look at the mine and do a littlecalculating. The engineer advised that the project had failed, because the ownerswere not familiar with "fault lines." His calculations showed that the vein wouldbe found JUST THREE FEET FROM WHERE THE DARBYS HAD STOPPEDDRILLING! That is exactly where it was found!

The "Junk" man took millions of dollars in ore from the mine, because he knewenough to seek expert counsel before giving up. Most of the money which wentinto the machinery was procured through the efforts of R. U. Darby, who wasthen a very young man. The money came from his relatives and neighbors, be-cause of their faith in him. He paid back every dollar of it, although he was yearsin doing so.

Long afterward, Mr. Darby recouped his loss many times over, when he made thediscovery that DESIRE can be transmuted into gold. The discovery came after hewent into the business of selling life insurance.

Remembering that he lost a huge fortune, because he STOPPED three feet fromgold, Darby profited by the experience in his chosen work, by the simple methodof saying to himself, "I stopped three feet from gold, but I will never stop becausemen say v no' when I ask them to buy insurance."

Darby is one of a small group of fewer than fifty men who sell more than a million dollars in life insurance annually. He owes his "stick-ability" to the lesson helearned from his "quit-ability" in the gold mining business.

Before success comes in any man's life, he is sure to meet with much temporarydefeat, and, perhaps, some failure. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest andmost logical thing to do is to QUIT. That is exactly what the majority of men do.

More than five hundred of the most successful men this country has ever known,told the author their greatest success came just one step beyond the point at whichdefeat had overtaken them. Failure is a trickster with a keen sense of irony andcunning.

It takes great delight in tripping one when success is almost within reach.

*

A FIFTY-CENT LESSON IN PERSISTENCE

Shortly after Mr. Darby received his degree from the "University of Hard Knocks, "and had decided to profit by his experience in the gold mining business, he hadthe good fortune to be present on an occasion that proved to him that "No"does not necessarily mean no.

One afternoon he was helping his uncle grind wheat in an old fashioned mill.The uncle operated a large farm on which a number of colored sharecrop farmerslived. Quietly, the door was opened, and a small colored child, the daughter of atenant, walked in and took her place near the door.

The uncle looked up, saw the child, and barked at her roughly, "what do youwant?" Meekly, the child replied, "My mammy say send her fifty cents." "I'll notdo it," the uncle retorted, "Now you run on home." "Yas-sah," the child replied.But she did not move. The uncle went ahead with his work, so busily engaged thathe did not pay enough attention to the child to observe that she did not leave.When he looked up and saw her still standing there, he yelled at her, "I told youto go on home! Now go, or I'll take a switch to you." The little girl said "yas-sah,"but she did not budge an inch. The uncle dropped a sack of grain he was about topour into the mill hopper, picked up a barrel stave, and started toward the childwith an expression on his face that indicated trouble.

Darby held his breath. He was certain he was about to witness a murder. He knewhis uncle had a fierce temper. He knew that colored children were not supposedto defy white people in that part of the country.

When the uncle reached the spot where the child was standing, she quicklystepped forward one step, looked up into his eyes, and screamed at the top of hershrill voice, "MY MAMMY'S GOTTA HAVE THAT FIFTY CENTS!"

The uncle stopped, looked at her for a minute, then slowly laid the barrel stave onthe floor, put his hand in his pocket, took out half a dollar, and gave it to her. Thechild took the money and slowly backed toward the door, never taking her eyesoff the man whom she had just conquered.

After she had gone, the uncle sat down on a box and looked out the window intospace for more than ten minutes. He was pondering, with awe, over the whippinghe had just taken. Mr. Darby, too, was doing some thinking. That was the firsttime in all his experience that he had seen a colored child deliberately master anadult white person. How did she do it? What happened to his uncle that causedhim to lose his fierceness and become as docile as a lamb? What strange powerdid this child use that made her master over her superior? These and other similar questions flashed into Darby's mind, but he did not find the answer until yearslater, when he told me the story.

Strangely, the story of this unusual experience was told to the author in the oldmill, on the very spot where the uncle took his whipping. Strangely, too, I haddevoted nearly a quarter of a century to the study of the power which enabled anignorant, illiterate colored child to conquer an intelligent man.

As we stood there in that musty old mill, Mr. Darby repeated the story of the unusual conquest, and finished by asking, "What can you make of it? What strangepower did that child use, that so completely whipped my uncle?"

The answer to his question will be found in the principles described in this book.The answer is full and complete. It contains details and instructions sufficient toenable anyone to understand, and apply the same force which the little child accidentally stumbled upon.

Keep your mind alert, and you will observe exactly what strange power came tothe rescue of the child, you will catch a glimpse of this power in the next chapter.Somewhere in the book you will find an idea that will quicken your receptivepowers, and place at your command, for your own benefit, this same irresistiblepower. The awareness of this power may come to you in the first chapter, or itmay flash into your mind in some subsequent chapter. It may come in the form ofa single idea. Or, it may come in the nature of a plan, or a purpose. Again, it maycause you to go back into your past experiences of failure or defeat, and bring tothe surface some lesson by which you can regain all that you lost through defeat.

After I had described to Mr. Darby the power unwittingly used by the little coloredchild, he quickly retraced his thirty years of experience as a life insurance salesman, and frankly acknowledged that his success in that field was due, in no smalldegree, to the lesson he had learned from the child.

Mr. Darby pointed out: "every time a prospect tried to bow me out, without buying, I saw that child standing there in the old mill, her big eyes glaring in defiance,and I said to myself, "I've gotta make this sale.' The better portion of all sales Ihave made, were made after people had said "NO'."

He recalled, too, his mistake in having stopped only three feet from gold, "but,"he said, "that experience was a blessing in disguise. It taught me to keep on keeping on, no matter how hard the going may be, a lesson I needed to learn before Icould succeed in anything."

This story of Mr. Darby and his uncle, the colored child and the gold mine, doubt-less will be read by hundreds of men who make their living by selling life insurance, and to all of these, the author wishes to offer the suggestion that Darbyowes to these two experiences his ability to sell more than a million dollars of lifeinsurance every year.

Life is strange, and often imponderable! Both the successes and the failures havetheir roots in simple experiences. Mr. Darby's experiences were commonplaceand simple enough, yet they held the answer to his destiny in life, therefore theywere as important (to him) as life itself. He profited by these two dramatic experiences, because he analyzed them, and found the lesson they taught. But what ofthe man who has neither the time, nor the inclination to study failure in search ofknowledge that may lead to success?

Where, and how is he to learn the art of converting defeat into stepping stones toopportunity?

In answer to these questions, this book was written. The answer called for a description of thirteen principles, but remember, as you read, the answer you maybe seeking, to the questions which have caused you to ponder over the strangeness of life, maybe found in your own mind, through some idea, plan, or purposewhich may spring into your mind as you read.

One sound idea is all that one needs to achieve success. The principles describedin this book, contain the best, and the most practical of all that is known, concerning ways and means of creating useful ideas.

Before we go any further in our approach to the description of these principles,we believe you are entitled to receive this important suggestion.... WHEN RICHES BEGIN TO COME THEY COME SO QUICKLY, IN SUCH GREAT ABUNDANCE,THAT ONE WONDERS WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN HIDING DURING ALLTHOSE LEAN YEARS.

This is an astounding statement, and all the more so, when we take into consideration the popular belief, that riches come only to those who work hard and long.

When you begin to THINK AND GROW RICH, you will observe that riches beginwith a state of mind, with definiteness of purpose, with little or no hard work.You, and every other person, ought to be interested in knowing how to acquirethat state of mind which will attract riches. I spent twenty-five years in research,analyzing more than 25,000 people, because I, too, wanted to know "how wealthymen become that way.

Without that research, this book could not have been written. Here take notice ofa very significant truth, viz:

The business depression started in 1929, and continued on to an all-time record ofdestruction, until sometime after President Roosevelt entered office. Then the depression began to fade into nothingness. Just as an electrician in a theatre raisesthe lights so gradually that darkness is transmuted into light before you realize it,so did the spell of fear in the minds of the people gradually fade away and becomefaith.

Observe very closely, as soon as you master the principles of this philosophy, andbegin to follow the instructions for applying those principles, your financial status will begin to improve, and everything you touch will begin to transmute itselfinto an asset for your benefit. Impossible? Not at all!

One of the main weaknesses of mankind is the average man's familiarity with theword "impossible." He knows all the rules which will NOT work. He knows allthe things which CANNOT be done. This book was written for those who seek therules which have made others successful, and are willing to stake everything onthose rules. A great many years ago I purchased a fine dictionary. The first thing Idid with it was to turn to the word "impossible," and neatly clip it out of the book.That would not be an unwise thing for you to do. Success comes to those whobecome SUCCESS CONSCIOUS.

Failure comes to those who indifferently allow themselves to become FAILURECONSCIOUS.

The object of this book is to help all who seek it, to learn the art of changing theirminds from FAILURE CONSCIOUSNESS to SUCCESS CONSCIOUSNESS.

Another weakness found in altogether too many people, is the habit of measuringeverything, and everyone, by their own impressions and beliefs. Some who willread this, will believe that no one can THINK AND GROW RICH. They cannotthink in terms of riches, because their thought habits have been steeped in poverty, want, misery, failure, and defeat.

These unfortunate people remind me of a prominent Chinese, who came to America to be educated in American ways. He attended the University of Chicago. Oneday President Harper met this young Oriental on the campus, stopped to chatwith him for a few minutes, and asked what had impressed him as being the mostnoticeable characteristic of the American people.

"Why," the Chinaman exclaimed, "the queer slant of your eyes. Your eyes are offslant!" What do we say about the Chinese? We refuse to believe that which we donot understand. We foolishly believe that our own limitations are the proper measure of limitations. Sure, the other fellow's eyes are "off slant," BECAUSE THEYARE NOT THE SAME AS OUR OWN. Millions of people look at the achievementsof Henry Ford, after he has arrived, and envy him, because of his good fortune, orluck, or genius, or whatever it is that they credit for Ford's fortune. Perhaps oneperson in every hundred thousand knows the secret of Ford's success, and thosewho do know are too modest, or too reluctant, to speak of it, because of its simplicity. A single transaction will illustrate the "secret" perfectly.

A few years back, Ford decided to produce his now famous V-8 motor. He choseto build an engine with the entire eight cylinders cast in one block, and instructedhis engineers to produce a design for the engine. The design was placed on paper,but the engineers agreed, to a man, that it was simply impossible to cast an eight-cylinder gas engine block in one piece.

Ford said, "Produce it anyway." "But," they replied, "it's impossible!" "Go ahead,"Ford commanded, "and stay on the job until you succeed no matter how muchtime is required."

The engineers went ahead. There was nothing else for them to do, if they wereto remain on the Ford staff. Six months went by, nothing happened. Another sixmonths passed, and still nothing happened. The engineers tried every conceivable plan to carry out the orders, but the thing seemed out of the question; "impossible!"

At the end of the year Ford checked with his engineers, and again they informedhim they had found no way to carry out his orders.

"Go right ahead," said Ford, "I want it, and I'll have it." They went ahead, andthen, as if by a stroke of magic, the secret was discovered.

The Ford DETERMINATION had won once more!

This story may not be described with minute accuracy, but the sum and substanceof it is correct. Deduce from it, you who wish to THINK AND GROW RICH, thesecret of the Ford millions, if you can. You'll not have to look very far. Henry Fordis a success, because he understands, and applies the principles of success. Oneof these is DESIRE: knowing what one wants. Remember this Ford story as youread, and pick out the lines in which the secret of his stupendous achievementhave been described. If you can do this, if you can lay your finger on the particulargroup of principles which made Henry Ford rich, you can equal his achievementsin almost any calling for which you are suited.

YOU ARE "THE MASTER OF YOUR FATE, THE CAPTAIN OF YOURSOUL," BECAUSE...

When Henley wrote the prophetic lines, "I am the Master of my Fate, I am the Captain of my Soul," he should have informed us that we are the Masters of our Fate,the Captains of our Souls, because we have the power to control our thoughts.

He should have told us that the ether in which this little earth floats, in which wemove and have our being, is a form of energy moving at an inconceivably highrate of vibration, and that the ether is filled with a form of universal power whichADAPTS itself to the nature of the thoughts we hold in our minds; and INFLUENCES us, in natural ways, to transmute our thoughts into their physical equivalent.

If the poet had told us of this great truth, we would know WHY IT IS that we arethe Masters of our Fate, the Captains of our Souls. He should have told us, withgreat emphasis, that this power makes no attempt to discriminate between destructive thoughts and constructive thoughts, that it will urge us to translate intophysical reality thoughts of poverty, just as quickly as it will influence us to actupon thoughts of riches.

He should have told us, too, that our brains become magnetized with the dominating thoughts which we hold in our minds, and, by means with which no man is familiar, these "magnets" attract to us the forces, the people, the circumstancesof life which harmonize with the nature of our dominating thoughts.

He should have told us, that before we can accumulate riches in great abundance,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 definiteplans for acquiring it.

But, being a poet, and not a philosopher, Henley contented himself by stating agreat truth in poetic form, leaving those who followed him to interpret the philosophical meaning of his lines.

Little by little, the truth has unfolded itself, until it now appears certain that theprinciples described in this book, hold the secret of mastery over our economicfate.

We are now ready to examine the first of these principles. Maintain a spirit ofopen-mindedness, and remember as you read, they are the invention of no oneman. The principles were gathered from the life experiences of more than 500men who actually accumulated riches in huge amounts; men who began in poverty, with but little education, without influence. The principles worked for thesemen. You can put them to work for your own enduring benefit.

You will find it easy, not hard, to do.

Before you read the next chapter, I want you to know that it conveys factual information which might easily change your entire financial destiny, as it has sodefinitely brought changes of stupendous proportions to two people described.

I want you to know, also, that the relationship between these two men and myself,is such that I could have taken no liberties with the facts, even if I had wished todo so. One of them has been my closest personal friend for almost twenty-fiveyears, the other is my own son. The unusual success of these two men, successwhich they generously accredit to the principle described in the next chapter,more than justifies this personal reference as a means of emphasizing the far-flung power of this principle.

Almost fifteen years ago, I delivered the Commencement Address at Salem College, Salem, West Virginia. I emphasized the principle described in the next chapter, with so much intensity that one of the members of the graduating class definitely appropriated it, and made it a part of his own philosophy. The young manis now a Member of Congress, and an important factor in the present administration. Just before this book went to the publisher, he wrote me a letter in whichhe so clearly stated his opinion of the principle outlined in the next chapter, thatI have chosen to publish his letter as an introduction to that chapter. It gives youan idea of the rewards to come.

"My dear Napoleon:

"My service as a Member of Congress having given me an insight into the problems of men andwomen, I am writing to offer a suggestion which may become helpful to thousands of worthypeople.

"With apologies, I must state that the suggestion, if acted upon, will mean several years oflabor and responsibility for you, but I am en-heartened to make the suggestion, because I knowyour great love for rendering useful service.

"In 1922, you delivered the Commencement address at Salem College, when I was a member'of the graduating class. In that address, you planted in my mind an idea which has been responsible for the opportunity I now have to serve the people of my State, and will be responsible, ina very large measure, for whatever success I may have in the future.

"The suggestion I have in mind is, that you put into a book the sum and substance of the addressyou delivered at Salem College, and in that way give the people of America an opportunity toprofit by your many years of experience and association with the men who, by their greatness,have made America the richest nation on earth.

"I recall, as though it were yesterday, the marvelous description you gave of the method bywhich Henry Ford, with but little schooling, without a dollar, with no influential friends, rose togreat heights. I made up my mind then, even before you had finished your speech, that I wouldmake a place for myself, no matter how many difficulties I had to surmount.

"Thousands of young people will finish their schooling this year, and within the next few years.Every one of them will be seeking just such a message of practical encouragement as the one Ireceived from you. They will want to know where to turn, what to do, to get started in life. Youcan tell them, because you have helped to solve the problems of so many, many people.

"If there is any possible way that you can afford to render so great a service, may I offer thesuggestion that you include with every book, one of your Personal Analysis Charts, in order thatthe purchaser of the book may have the benefit of a complete self-inventory, indicating, as youindicated to me years ago, exactly what is standing in the way of success.

"Such a service as this, providing the readers of your book with a complete, unbiased picture oftheir faults and their virtues, would mean to them the difference between success and failure.The service would be priceless.

"Millions of people are now facing the problem of staging a come-back, because of the depression, and I speak from personal experience when I say, I know these earnest people would welcome the opportunity to tell you their problems, and to receive your suggestions for the solution.

"You know the problems of those who face the necessity of beginning all over again. There arethousands of people in America today who would like to know how they can convert ideas intomoney, people who must start at scratch, without finances, and recoup their losses. If anyonecan help them, you can.

"If you publish the book, I would like to own the first copy that comes from the press, personallyautographed by you. "With best wishes, believe me,

"Cordially yours,

"JENNINGS RANDOLPH"

Chapter 2

Desire: The Starting Point of All Achievement

The First Step toward Riches

WHEN Edwin C. Barnes climbed down from the freight train in Orange, N. J.,more than thirty years ago, he may have resembled a tramp, but his thoughtswere those of a king!

As he made his way from the railroad tracks to Thomas A Edison's office, hismind was at work. He saw himself standing in Edison's presence. He heard him-self asking Mr. Edison for an opportunity to carry out the one CONSUMING OBSESSION OF HIS LIFE, a BURNING DESIRE to become the business associateof the great inventor.

Barnes' desire was not a hope! It was not a wish! It was a keen, pulsating DESIRE, which transcended everything else. It was DEFINITE.

The desire was not new when he approached Edison. It had been Barnes' dominating desire for a long time. In the beginning, when the desire first appeared inhis mind, it may have been, probably was, only a wish, but it was no mere wishwhen he appeared before Edison with it.

A few years later, Edwin C. Barnes again stood before Edison, in the same officewhere he first met the inventor. This time his DESIRE had been translated intoreality. He was in business with Edison. The dominating DREAM OF HIS LIFEhad become a reality.

Today, people who know Barnes envy him, because of the "break" life yieldedhim. They see him in the days of his triumph, without taking the trouble to investigate the cause of his success.

Barnes succeeded because he chose a definite goal, placed all his energy, all hiswill power, all his effort, everything back of that goal. He did not become the partner of Edison the day he arrived. He was content to start in the most menial work,as long as it provided an opportunity to take even one step toward his cherishedgoal. Five years passed before the chance he had been seeking made its appearance. During all those years not one ray of hope, not one promise of attainment ofhis DESIRE had been held out to him. To everyone, except himself, he appeared only another cog in the Edison business wheel, but in his own mind, HE WASTHE PARTNER OF EDISON EVERY MINUTE OF THE TIME, from the very daythat he first went to work there.

It is a remarkable illustration of the power of a DEFINITE DESIRE. Barnes wonhis goal, because he wanted to be a business associate of Mr. Edison, more thanhe wanted anything else. He created a plan by which to attain that purpose. Buthe BURNED ALL BRIDGES BEHIND HIM. He stood by his DESIRE until it be-came the dominating obsession of his life-and-finally, a fact.

When he went to Orange, he did not say to himself, "I will try to induce Edison togive me a job of some soft." He said, "I will see Edison, and put him on notice thatI have come to go into business with him.

He did not say, "I will work there for a few months, and if I get no encouragement,I will quit and get a job somewhere else." He did say, "I will start anywhere. I willdo anything Edison tells me to do, but before I am through, I will be his associate."

He did not say, "I will keep my eyes open for another opportunity, in case I fail toget what I want in the Edison organization." He said, "There is but ONE thing inthis world that I am determined to have, and that is a business association withThomas A. Edison. I will burn all bridges behind me, and stake my ENTIRE FUTURE on my ability to get what I want."

He left himself no possible way of retreat. He had to win or perish!

That is all there is to the Barnes story of success! A long while ago, a great warrior faced a situation which made it necessary for him to make a decision whichinsured his success on the battlefield. He was about to send his armies againsta powerful foe, whose men outnumbered his own. He loaded his soldiers intoboats, sailed to the enemy's country, unloaded soldiers and equipment, then gavethe order to burn the ships that had carried them. Addressing his men before thefirst battle, he said, "You see the boats going up in smoke. That means that wecannot leave these shores alive unless we win! We now have no choice-we win-orwe perish! They won.