Napoleon Hill (1883-1970) was an American author in the
area of the new thought movement who was one of the earliest producers of the
modern genre of personal-success literature. Hill said, “One comes to finally
believe whatever one repeats to one’s self, whether the statement be true or
false.”
If this is true, and I personally believe that it is, we
must be very careful about our thoughts!
In line with Hill’s philosophy, one of the terms you run
into over and over again if you read books on personal development is, “What Am
I Thinking Right Now,” a question the reader is advised to ask herself
throughout the day.
Are we thinking positive and empowering thoughts? If so, they are likely producing good feelings? If however, we are thinking negative
or constricting thoughts, we likely are not feeling so great.
Thoughts affect feelings .If we think limiting or
negative thoughts long enough, it becomes our reality.
Hill’s most famous work, Think and Grow Rich (1937), is
one of the best-selling books of all time. He became an advisor to President
Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1933 to 1936. "What the mind of man can
conceive and believe, it can achieve" is one of Hill's hallmark
expressions. How achievement actually occurs, and a formula for it that puts
success in reach of the average person, were the focal points of Hill's books.
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Today's philosophy-of-success teachers still use the research formulas taught by Hill to expand their students' knowledge of personal development.
While many have read the book with the goal of increasing
monetary wealth, the principles outlined in the book reach far beyond achieving
personal riches. The philosophies contained therein are a guide for personal
enrichment, organizing our lives, understanding how our brains work and letting
go of limiting behavior.
It is reported that many readers of the book felt that
Hill never explicitly identified this secret, but he offers these words about
20 pages into the book:
“If you truly desire money so keenly that your desire is
an obsession, you will have no difficulty in convincing yourself that you will
acquire it. The object is to want money, and to be so determined to have it
that you convince yourself that you will have it. . . You may as well know,
right here, that you can never have riches in great quantities unless you work
yourself into a white heat of desire for money, and actually believe you will
possess it.”
Desire and Belief. Want something so badly you can taste it and Believe you will have it!
Substitute your own goal for the word “riches” above, or
keep it in place if riches are your goal.
Today I am asking myself, "What Am I Thinking Right Now."
Please share your thoughts on this subject.
Interesting that Hill was on to this so early. It seems like such a contemporary idea with all the various books currently about it. I do believe what you think effects you. Maybe in a more general way, like trying to focus on positive things, trying not to dwell in the negative areas.
ReplyDeleteDarla
I have read that Hill was a great influence on Andrew Carnegie. I believe the positive thinking philosophy has been around since the mid-19th century, with contributions by Ralph Waldo Emerson and William James, who stated, "The greatest discovery of my generation is that man can alter his life simply by altering his attitude of mind."
DeleteThinking positive thoughts is wonderful advice. I don't agree that "you can never have riches in great quantities unless you work yourself into a white heat of desire for money", which seem to be the opposite of doing what you love and following your passion which has worked to make multimillionaires and billionaires of people the likes Bill Gates or Martha Stewart, to name a few.
ReplyDeleteMay be that the likes of Gates and Stewart worked themselves "into a white heat of desire for the pursuit of what they believed in; their passion" and the end result was a fortune. I'm sure this is a very complicated subject, but I do believe one must have a real passion for "something" before success can come in achieving the goal.
DeleteWhat am I thinking about today?
ReplyDeleteAll kinds of things cross my mind. I might think about what to blog while cleaning the house.
I might think about what food needs to be shopped when I open the fridge.
But I am not obsessed with one single thing all day long. I don´t have the patience for that.
Likewise your topic, it is said that you can convince e.g. black is white to people, if you are convincing, skillful enough.
What a horrifying thought, when one stops to think of the power some of us have.
Good topic Sanda!
I just wished to add, that - being totally honest - my mind is mostly on the calm side.
DeleteI am not positive all the time, negative thoughts only pass through occasionally and when they do, I work them through, search for the why, which is found quite quickly, and if they are beyond my " repair ", I´ll leave them and forget them.
My time of self-mourning is past, have done it more than enough in the past.
I´m realistic, excluding the use of my money,lol.
Some thought provoking ideas here. I truly am an "obsessive thinker" but its not always on the positive side - some days it's negative; thankfully it swings back to the positive side and replaces those negative thoughts. I truly believe our thoughts and attitude control both our mental and physical health.
ReplyDeleteThe power of the mind is a fascinating subject. While I haven't read this book, I have been introduced to the concepts. I am inclined to be an obsessive thinker, and it is good to have a technique to stop oneself and focus on positive ideas or thoughts. This has been of particular interest to me since being diagnosed with breast cancer. Sometimes I have to dig myself out of a bit of a black hole. As for the rich bit, no, don't have the energy!
ReplyDeletePatricia, if you have special techniques that have worked for you in the realm of positive, I would love to hear about them. Because you seem to be an extremely positive-minded person!!
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