Law Of Success - by Napoleon Hill

This page is not the original "Law of Success" by Napoleon Hill. It is my transcription of a video that I found on YouTube. My transcription may not be accurate. I omitted some part. I've also modified my transcription to reflect my own opinion. I recommend that you read the original book by Dr. Hill which contains detail examples.

17 Principles:

  1. Definite of purpose
  2. The Master Mind Alliance
  3. The Habit of Going the Extra Mile
  4. Apply Faith
  5. A Pleasing Personality
  6. Self Discipline
  7. Learn to adjust yourself to other people's state of mind
  8. Enthusiasm
  9. Personal Initiatives
  10. Learn from Adversity
  11. Creative Vision and Imagination
  12. Accurate Thinking
  13. Cosmic Habit Force

1. Definite of purposes. Whatever the mind can conceive, and believe, the mind can achieve. You have the power to take possession of your own mind to direct it to whatever ends you desire. This power is the gift of the creator and it must have been the greatest gift to man kind, because it is the only thing that man has complete un-challengable right of control and direction. All successes begin with a definite purpose. With a clear picture in your mind of precisely what you want from life. If you take control of your own mind, you will have sound health, peace of mind, a labor of your own choice, freedom from fear and worry, a positive mental attitude, a material riches of your own choice and quantity. Procure a pocket size notebook. On page one, write down a clear description of your major desires from life, the one circumstance or thing that you are willing to accept as your idea of success. And remember this before you being writing that your only limitations are those that you set up in your own mind or permit others to set up for you. On page two of your notebook, write down a clear statement of precisely what you intend to give in return for that you desire from life. And then start right where you stand now and begin giving. Memorize both of your statements, what you desire and what you intend to give in return for it, and repeat them at least a dozen times daily, and always end your statements with this expression of gratitude for the blessings for which you were gifted at birth: I ask not, Lord Divine Providence, for more riches, but more wisdoms for which to accept and use wisely the riches that I received at birth in the form of the power to control and direct my mind to whatever ends I desire. If you accept and express this prayer in the same sincerity, then a new world will reveal itself to you, a world in which you see reflected the circumstances and the things which you yourself created.

2. The Master Mind Alliance: It consist of two or more people who work in perfect harmony for the attainment of a definite purpose. It is the principle through which you may borrow and use the education, experience, influence, and perhaps capital of other people in carrying out your own plan in life. It is the principle in which you can accomplish in one year more than you can accomplish without it in a lifetime if you depend entirely upon your effort for success. When you form a true Master Mind Alliance with others, and or work with them in a spirit of perfect harmony, you can draw freely upon the spiritual forces within you in carrying out your plan and desires. The Master Mind Principle can give you absolute protection against failure, provided that your purpose in using this principle is beneficial to all the you influence. If you work for salary or wages, you have a marvelous opportunity to promote yourself into a higher income and a more responsible position by forming a Master Mind Alliance with your associate workers including the management. First, decide definitely where you wish to be and what you wish to be doing in the next three years. Second, decide how much money you desire to be making and what you are going to do to earn it. Third, form a Master Mind Alliance with one person in your immediate family, and at least one person among those to whom you are selling your services. By taking these three steps, you would have gone a long way toward appropriating the Great Master Key to Success. But there is no such as something for nothing. Everything, including your personal success, has a price that must be paid. The only price that you are requested to pay for now is the effort required to do those three things. Before you begin to take the three steps, there is one important fact to remember, and it is this: Control your mental attitude. Make yourself friendly, and agreeable to everyone whom you are closely associated if you expect friendly collaboration in return. Differences cannot create a Master Mind Alliance for you. A negative mental attitude can bring you nothing but failure. Remember that you are where you are and what you are because of your mental attitude in which you relate yourself to other people. Remember also that your mental attitude is the one and only thing that you have complete control over. Success is something that has to be planned, and success is something which has to be earned. There is such thing as luck. But remember that luck is something that you can create for yourself if you know the rules and follow them as I've given them to you. Remember too that success in a higher bracket of achievement is something that can be had only by taking others along with you. And the best definition of success: Success is the knowledge to get anything you want from life without violating the right of others and by helping others to acquire it. Remember that your only real limitations are the ones that you accept and set up in your own mind.

3. The Habit of Going the Extra Mile: The habit of going the extra mile means the habit of rendering more services, better services than one is expected to render, and doing it in a positive mental attitude. You must follow this principle if you want to write your own price tag and be sure of getting it. This is also known as the QQMA formula. This means the Quality of service you render, the Quantity of service your render, the Mental attitude in which you render the service, determine the space you occupied in your chosen calling and the compensation you get from your services. The benefits that you enjoy by going the extra mile: One, this habit will bring you to the favorable attention of those who can and will provide you with opportunity to promote yourself into a better circumstance. Two, it will place back of you that great natural law of increasing return through which the service you render will bring back greater than average compensation. Three, following this habit will make you indispensable in your chosen occupation or calling therefore it will place you in a position to write your own ticket. Four, this ticket will help you to excel in your line of work because each time you render your service you are endeavored to do a better job than you did previously. Five, if you work for salaries or wages, this habit will give you preference when work is slack and others are laid off. Six, it will help you to benefit by the law of contrast because others around you are not going the first mile let alone the second mile. Seven, following the habit of doing the your very best in all of your efforts, and doing it in a pleasing mental attitude will improve your personality and make you liked by others. Eight, it will help you to develop a keen alert imagination because you will be continuously seeking new and better way to render useful services. Nine, it will inspire you to move on your own personal initiatives instead of waiting to be told what to do, the habit in which the first step in leadership in all calling. The habit of going the extra mile definitely develop greater self-reliance and give one more courage to move ahead without the fear of criticism. It help you to master the destructive habit of procrastination, the one habit which heads the list of causes of failure. Twelve, going the extra mile influence other people to respect your integrity, and inspire them to go out of their way to co-operate with you in a friendly spirit. Thirteen, this habit help you develop a definiteness of purpose which is the starting point of all personal success, and it stop you from drifting through life without knowing what you want or where you are going. Fifteen, it provides you with the one and only excuse for asking for a promotion. Obviously, if you are doing no more than you are being paid for, then you are receiving all the pay for which you are entitled, and you have not a single excuse for asking for more pay or a better position. The habit of going the extra mile condition your mind to maintain the Master Mind Alliance with others. If your circumstance or position does not allow you to go the extra mile, change your position, and market your services where you can go the extra mile. First, start tomorrow, with whatever occupation you are engaged, to render some form of useful service to someone near you which you are expected to render and for which you neither expected or asked for compensation, and two, render this service in a pleasing mental attitude which show clear that you enjoy doing it, and three, following this practice for seven consecutive days and notice the changed atmosphere you will enjoy in associate with those nearest you. In carrying out this instruction, do not make known your plan to anyone, but carry out your plan quietly in the most natural way possible. By the end of the seventh day, you will find yourself so much happier and so much better liked by those around you that you'll never give up the habit.

4. Apply Faith. It is the mental attitude where you may clear your mind of all fear and doubt and direct it at the attainment of whatever you desire. Think about the riches that you at birth, the riches that you will receive if you choose to take control of your mind and direct it at whatever ends you desire. One, know what you want and believe that you can and will get it. Two, give expression of gratitude many times daily for having receive that which you want even before you actually get physical possession of it. Possession starts first in the mind. Three, keep your mind open for hunches within and when you are inspired to action, do not wait but move on your personal initiatives at once. Remember that there can be no application of Apply Faith without action. Fourth, whenever over taken by defeat, as you may be many times, remember that man's faith is tested many times before he is crowned with final victory, and accept your defeat as nothing more than a challenge to keep on trying. Five, a burning desire for things or circumstances you want is the starting point of all apply faith. Be definite, believe, and act (do), and keep on acting (doing) yet at first you meet with defeat. Six, when doubt creeps into your mind, remember that whatever a man believe, that shall he reap. Faith is not something you get. Faith is something you already have, but you may be using it in reverse gear by believing in circumstances and things that you do not want, the thing that you fear. Remember also that faith is guidance only. It is not a power that bring you what you want, but a power that can guide you to go after what you want and get it. Remember too that your faith is limited only by your own capacity to believe. You can do whatever you make up your mind to do. Believe and you shall receive. Your life is exactly what you make it by your own mental attitude.

5. A Pleasing Personality. Your personality determines whether people will be attracted to you or shy away from you. It is the show window in which you display your characters to the world and it is the one thing that distinguish you from all other human being. It is your trademark by which people recognize you, and it is the thing that determine your success or failure in selling yourself through life. Therefore, you should see your personality just as others see it so that you can improve it where it needs improvements. Your personality consist of more than 30 different factors, traits, or characteristics. Every traits that go into your personality is under your control, and you can improve it so that it can be whatever you want it to be. Let us start with the most important trait of your personality, your mental attitude. This is the trait which you attract people to you and cause them to like you or repel them and cause them to dislike you. Your mental attitude must be positive if you want to attract people to you. The next most important trait of your personality consist of the flexibility of your mental attitude of your lack of it. If you have flexibility, you'll adjust yourself to all the circumstance in relation with others without loosing your composure or allowing yourself to become irritable or angry. Just remember if you have flexibility of your mental attitude, it will be impossible for anyone to make you angry or irritate you without your consent or cooperation. This is worth knowing isn't it? You cannot control the action of other people which might justify you becoming irritated by them, but you can control your reaction to all such circumstances by exercising your trait of flexibility. And you will observe all the people in the higher bracket of success have this flexibility and they do control their reaction to the influence of other people. The third most important trait of a pleasing personality is the ability to control and direct your emotion of enthusiasm. Enthusiasm is one of the mean by which you can give force to your work but you must be able to turn it on and off at will as definitely as you can turn on or off water. Uncontrolled enthusiasm often make people bore some. It also may open wide the window to one's mind through which people may enter and influence one's in way you do not wish to be influence. The fourth most important trait of a pleasing personality is a sincerity of purpose. The person who is not sincere in all relationships with others is soon detected and rejected because no one is attracted to the person who endeavor to deceive others. Sincerity is one quality of character which cannot be successfully hide. Insincerity carry with it some warning signs which other people recognized. There are 26 other important traits. Read the book. And now let us turn our attend to some of the common habits which destroy the pleasing personality. One, the most destructive habit which your personality objectionable is breaking in and run away with the conversation which other people are speaking, and two, sarcasm expressed by insinuation and wise cracks which are not so wise is near the head of the list of habits which gives you a negative personality. Third, vanity expressed by either words or actions is sure to make you unpopular. Fourth, in-differences in listening while others are speaking is sure to be noticed and resented. It is more profitable to be a good listener than to be a good talker because you will always learn something after listening to others, but never learn anything from hearing yourself talk. Five, the attempt to flatter where flattering is obviously not deserved will bring quick resentment from others. Also, it will put them on notice if they are wise that the flatter want something he perhaps should not get. Six, the habit of finding flaw with the world at large and people in general is never a popular habit, and it is no part of a pleasing personality. It is far better to direct conversation to the circumstances and to the things which are right than to complain of those which one believe to be wrong. Seventh, one of the very worse habits which destroy a pleasing personality is that on open land directly challenging those which whom you may not agree where there is no obviously reason for doing so except the desire to be on the opposite side. Eight, the habit of volunteering unsolicited advice to others who have not requested it can make one an intolerable bore. Free advice is usually considered just worth what it costs which is nothing but just the patience to listen to it. Nine, the habit of speaking of one physical illness, worries, or personal problems may be tolerated by others but this habit will never make you welcomed or pleasing. If you wish to make yourself welcome in your relation with others, manage to talk about things that interest or concern those to whom you are speaking. You will never be bore some to the person to whom you are speaking of himself and the things which interest him, a truth which all master salesman understand and respect. Tenth, the habit of endeavoring or conveying an impression of superiority through the use of words or topics unfamiliar to others is a sure fire to destroy your popularity. If you wish to sell yourself to others successfully, you must negotiate with them on their own level through terms which they understand. Eleventh, envy of those who are successful is a trait that destroy a pleasing personality. The truly great men and women have all been known to be generous, sympathetic, and joyous in connection with others. Twelve, sovereignment in body posture and clothing never attract but always repel others. Cloth make not the man, as it has been said, but they surely give him a mighty good start if they are appropriate and properly worn. Carelessness in body carriages and posture is immediately traceable to a negative mental attitude. If you are free from these twelve common habits which make you unpopular, you probably have a very pleasing personality. There are five other negative habits which makes a man unpopular. Read the book. If you are not liked by other people, you may be sure that there is a reason which you can detect and correct. It is unnatural for one to dislike another without a cause. Before you can make full use of the master key to success, you will need to make your personality pleasing. This will require courage on your part and honesty with yourself. A pleasing personality stand near the head of the list of assets which make you truly rich.

6. Self Discipline. This references not only your mastery of the negative habits which stand in your way of success, but more particularly your development and enforcement of the positive habits you will need in order to avail yourself to the six assets you brought over with you in that seal envelope. Now, let me give you a list of the most important things over which you will have to exercise self-discipline before you can embrace and use the great master key to riches. One, you will have to gain mastery over your tongue by acquiring the habit of thinking first and then speaking after you are sure that what you are about to say will benefit you and not injure others. A loose tongue is often a greatest liability. Two, you will have to exercise self-discipline and master the common tendency to strike back at those whom you have a cause real or imaginary for a grievance. You must remember that everything you do to or for another, you do to or for yourself, because your every thoughts and every act which benefit or injure another person come back to you in time, greatly multiplied. If you feel that you must slender another person, do not speak it but write it, write it in the sand near the water edge then move away from it until the tide has flown. Three, you will have to exercise self discipline over all of your emotions particularly your emotion of love, hate, fear, and sex, as these are the big four of your emotions, and they can make you or break you according to the extent of discipline you exercise over them. Four, your mental attitude need discipline and control at all times. Lacking this discipline, it can and often does drive away friends, destroy opportunities to get ahead, bring on physical and mental illness, develop stomach ulcer and make peace of mind impossible. Five, failure to exercise discipline over sex head the list of causes of all personal failure. The emotion of sex is the most powerful emotion and it is the nature's great creative instrument with which all species of living things are perpetuated. The proper mean of self discipline of the emotion of sex is transmutation. The control and direction of this great emotional feeling toward the attainment of worthy purposes such as one's fulfillment of major purpose in life. The great leaders, artists, authors, industrialists, and professional people have learn the art of sex transmutation through the proper system of self discipline. Read the books. Six, your stomach also need discipline through the proper habit of dieting and fasting. Information on dieting and fasting should come from your own doctor. Seven, you will need to exercise self-discipline in relation to religions and politics because our country consists of people of varying believes in connection with both of these subjects. To be happy and prosperous in our country, we must learn to live and to let live, to give other privileges we asked and demanded for ourselves. This often call for strict discipline over self. No one ever become very wise without the aid of self discipline, and no one ever find peace of mind and happiness without the strict exercise of self discipline. Self discipline is the only mean of transmuting sorrow into faith. It is the only mean by which we may transmute hatred of others into a milder emotion of sympathy for them. It is the only mean by which we may reveal and profit by the seed of equivalent benefit which comes with every adversity and every defeat. It is the only mean by which we may shut out of our mind the deadly effect of past experiences of suffering and unpleasantness. Self discipline is the mean by which we may think our own thoughts, live our own life, as we wish to live them, and remain forever free from the evil of fear and the limitations which we have inherited from the dark ages before the dawn of civilization. The creator never give one an asset or a benefit without passing along with it the mean by which it may be embraced and used. Self discipline is the mean by which the creator provided us with a method of embracing and using the only thing of which we have unchallengeable control, the power of our own thoughts. The habit of taking the line of least resistance make all rivers and some men crooked.

7. Learn to adjust yourself to other people's state of mind, and difficulties so as to get along peacefully with them and to refrain from taking notice of trivial circumstances in your relation with other people by refusing to allow them to become controversial incidents. Great people always avoid small incidents of controversy when possible. Two, establish for yourself a definite fixed system of conditioning your mind at the beginning of each day so that you will keep it positive under all circumstances. Three, learn the art of selling yourself to other people by indirection, such as by asking leading questions which bring up reaction which you desire, and do not permit yourself to be drawn into arguments over un-important subjects. Four, adopt the habit of having a good-hearted laugh every time you become irritated or angry, and it will help you if you begin each day with one minute of hearty laughing. This will change the chemistry of your brain and start you out with a positive mental attitude. However, you better get out of sight whenever you take your laughing exercise. Five, start each day with an expression of gratitude, for all the adversities, defeats, failures you have experienced in the past, and search for the seed of equivalent benefit these yielded you through the passing of time. Then, give thank to the blessing you expecting to receive during the day. Six, learn to concentrate your attention on the can-do portion of all of your problems and desires and start action where you stand in carrying out this portion. No matter what may be your problems or desires, there is always something you can do right now that will help you. Find out what this something is and do it. Seventh, learn to transmute all unpleasant circumstances into immediate actions which cause for a positive mental attitude and make this a fixed habit. For example, when you are angry, switch your mind into some sort of actions in connection with your hobbies or your major purposes in life, and keep it busy with that subject for five minutes. Eight, recognize that every circumstances which include your life whether is is pleasant or unpleasant circumstances is risk for your better life. So, use it to pay dividend in one form or another. Remember meanwhile your strength grows out of your struggles. Follow this instruction and you will soon learn that there is no such thing as an unprofitable experience. Nine, look upon your life as a continuous process of education of learning from all of your experiences, good and bad, and always be on the alert for gains of wisdom which comes to you little at a time, in both of your pleasant and unpleasant experiences. Ten, make the world fit your own pattern if you so choose, but begin with yourself with some sort of self-improvement which will make you more open-minded, patient and generous in your relation with others. Eleventh, express gratitude twice daily for recognition of the fact which you have been given complete control over your own mind and ask for guidance in order you may use this profound gift wisely in all your thoughts and acts. Twelve, go out of your way daily to comment enthusiastically on the good quality of those whom you live and work, but do not mention their negative qualities. Then observe the benefit to yourself how quickly others will begin to concentrate on good qualities. Thirteen, accept all criticism of yourself as occasions for self-examination to determine how much of it is justified and you'll be sure to make startling discovery about yourself which will help you through the remainder of your life. Fourteen, do not accept from life or anyone else anything you do not desire, and remember that Ghandi prove himself to be more powerful than the great British military forces by this method of passive resistance. Fifteen, remember always that there are two kinds of circumstances which cause you to worry, those that you can do something about, and those that you can do nothing about, nothing that is except to use passive resistance and refuse to permit them to worry you. Sixteen, keep your mind eternally engaged in thinking of that you desired most, your major purpose in life, so that no time is left for you on thinking of those that you do not want. Seventeen, If you should ever been so unfortunate to feel sorrow for yourself, look around until you find someone who is worse off than yourself, and start where you stand and give him help. Make this procedure a habit and you will witness of the great miracle of life because that what you do to or for others, you do to or for yourself. Eighteen, choose some person whom you consider to be the sort of person you would like to be, then go to work and emulate that person in every way possible. Great people have always been hero or worshippers, but they picked the right sort of people to emulate. Nineteen, cultivate your tone of voice so that your words have a pleasing musical sound, and remember that the sound of your voice is an open window which other people look into your very sole. It will be a profitable investment if you will get a tape recording machine and record a sample of your voice daily while you practice the art of expressing yourself through a friendly sounding voice. If you engage in selling, this will quickly pay of in monetary dividends. Twenty, write out this sentence and paste it in a prominent place where you work or on a mirror where you see yourself in your home "Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve". Remember also that you are the only person who can provide you with a positive mental attitude.

8. Enthusiasm. Knowledge is power. That is only a half-truth. Knowledge becomes power only when it is put into action for the attainment of a definite objective. Enthusiasm is one of the more powerful mean by which we may put into action our education, experience, and knowledge. Spoken words without enthusiasm are often ineffective and sometimes they can actually be bore some. As you of course know as you notice the effect a speaker without enthusiasm has on his listeners. Your brain and every other person brains is both a broadcasting and a receiving station, which send out thought vibration and pickup those sent out by other people. When you turn on your enthusiasm, you step up the vibration of thoughts which go out from your brain so that they reach and affect other people more quickly. As a matter of fact, you can send out thought which have been so stepped up with silenced enthusiasm that they will reach and influence other people to whom you direct your thought. This is a fact which has been known to psychologists for ages, and it is also known to most master salesmen who use this method to condition the mind of the prospective buyers before they ever talk with them. You must have observed that enthusiasm is very contagious that it engage the attention of those that come up under its influence and cause them to response in a spirit similar to enthusiasm. Enthusiasm is one of the most important trait for leadership. The most successful lawyers are not necessarily those who know most about the legal system but they are those who know how to influence the judge and the jury with the believe in their cases, and have the capacity for expressing themselves with enthusiasm. When you are introduce to a person, you have a marvelous opportunity to sell yourself favorably to that person by the extent of the enthusiasm you express and accepting the introduction. When you shake hand with another person you have also a fine opportunity to make a favorable impression by the warm of enthusiasm that you put into that handshake. One, a firm handshake and say "How do you do? I am very glad to meet you." Three, and then if you begin a conversation, be sure that you direct it at some subject of interest to the other person. Four, follow by eagerly asking questions which will keep attention focus on the other person, then when you are ready to have the other person hear what you have to say about yourself or your interest or your business, he will be prepared to listen attentively. The best way to sell yourself to the other is to first sell the other to themselves. Enthusiasm is an expression of a positive mental attitude, and it has long been known to doctors that a positive mental attitude stand high on the list of influences which give you sound health. Only one thing cause stomach ulcer, and that is worry or a negative mental attitude. Prayer expressed with intense enthusiasm bring much quicker result. Read out loud to yourself for ten minutes per day. Practice speaking to your family and your business associates. Develop a method to cultivate your enthusiasm. Write down a list of ten subjects, things, or circumstances that you have keen interest and use this list for your practice purpose, and you'll have no difficulty reading in a tone of enthusiasm in connection with the things that you like best. Enthusiasm is easily expressed when you are inspired by a burning desire for something or any motives associated with your closest interest. Three basic motives are: the emotion of love, the emotion of sex, the desire for financial gain.

9. Personal Initiatives. Personal Initiative is a dynamo which start the faculty of imagination into action. In the process of translating your definite major purpose into its physical or financial equivalent. You will need to learn to act on your personal initiatives because your success is something that you must achieve for yourself without someone telling you what to do or how to do it. There are two kind of men who never amount the mud, those who cannot do as they are told, and those who can do nothing else. Those who amount something worthwhile are those who move on their own initiatives, without being told what to do or why they should do it. The men who stand out in the eye of the public as the greatest successes are those who chose their own occupation, business or profession and move on their own personal initiatives to achieve their purposes. Those that are getting ahead most rapidly today no matter what position they began are those who promote themselves to a higher place in life by acting on their own personal initiatives. The habit of personal initiatives not only inspire you to move on your own responsibilities, but it also influence him to carry it through until he complete that which he undertake in a manner pleasing to all concerns, because he knows that a winner never quit, and a quitter never win. A big success is made up of a number of little circumstances, each of which is so small and seemingly insignificant that most people pass by as not worthy of notice. Some may think for example, that the habit of personal initiatives is unimportant but only to take a look at the record of some of our greatest successes to recognize that personal initiatives was an important factor without which they would never have achieved success. Personal initiative is one quality which inspire you to form friendships and to make contact with people who can be of help in time of need. One, the person who follow the habit of Personal Initiatives has a definite major purpose in life and a plan for entertainment. Two, a master mind alliance with those whose help is essential in achieving his or her major purpose. Three, he has the necessary persistence and the will to win to carry him along when the going is hard and he meets with obstacle. Four, he make decision promptly when he has the necessary facts on which to base them, and change them slowly if at all. Five, he follow the habit of doing more than he is paid for, and he do so in a positive pleasing mental attitude. Six, he accept full responsibilities for everything he undertake and never pass the buck when things go wrong. Seven, he can take friendly criticism without resentment because he've learn how to profit by it. Eight, he know the nine basic motives are which inspire all human endeavors, and never request anyone to do anything for him without giving that person an adequate motive for doing so. Nine, he never express an opinion about anything unless he has thought the subject through and prepare to state how he came by his opinion. Ten, he follow the habit of listening much, and talking only when he has something to say which may benefit himself or others. Eleven, he has a well developed sense of observation of small details, and know his jobs from the smallest details to the greatest. Twelve, he never tell anyone to do anything without suggesting why it should be done and how it may be done best. Thirteen, he follow the habit of concentrating his fullest attention on one thing at a time. Fourteen, his mental attitude is positive at all time when he is communicating with other people. Fifteen, if you ask him a question, he will give you a direct answer, even if he has to tell you that he does not know the answer. Sixteen, he never put off until tomorrow that which should have been done today, because he knows that the habit of procrastination is near the top of the list of the causes of failure. When you examine yourself on the subject of personal initiatives, just remember that your success or your failure depends very largely on the action you take in connection with your occupation. No one will tell you what you should do. No one will tell you what not to do. The decision must be your own and you must follow through and carry out your decision on your own personal initiatives. If you work for wages or salaries, you should decide to promote yourself through your own personal initiatives to the top of the scale in your occupation, and remember that your promotion is entirely in your hand.

10. Learn from Adversity. This principle makes it possible for you to transmute all your past failure and mistakes in to an asset which help you achieve outstanding success in the future. Your positive mental attitude is the only mean by which you may convert adversities, defeats, and failures into assets. It seems to have been intended that everyone should experience adversities, defeats, and even failures as a part of nature's method of disciplining people to learn how to take possession of their own mind. In every situation, and every adversity, if you cannot continue to do what you plan, perhaps, it is time to tweak your plan to fit your present circumstance. Keep a positive mental attitude. Nothing is ever so bad or so unpleasant that it may not yield some benefit if we keep a positive mental attitude and make it a habit to look for that seed of equivalent benefit. You have the responsibility toward yourself, your love ones, and the creator to take control of your own mind and direct it at your own desires. This responsibility is yours and no one can rob you off it or fulfill it for you. Neglect to keep in contact with your friends and cultivate them, and you'll loose them.

11. Creative Vision and Imagination. This principle is responsible for the building of all of our plans, themes, aims, and purposes. It has been said that imagination is the workshop in which we fashion the purpose of our brain and the ideal of our soul. The are two form of imaginations. Synthetic imagination consist of organizing and putting together recognized ideas, concepts, and facts arranged in a new combination. Very seldom that anyone create an idea or anything else absolutely new. Nearly everything known to civilization is combination of something that is old. Secondly, there is creative imagination which operate through the sixth sense and has its base in the sub-conscious section of the brain, and serve as the exclusive medium through which basically new idea or fact are revealed. Imagination is a trait which becomes alert only by constant actions based on the success principles mentioned. You are the one that must supply these actions.

12. Accurate Thinking. Accurate Thinking is the foundation of all success achievements. First of all, Accurate Thinking is based on two simple fundamentals. They are called inductive reasoning and deductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning is used when the necessary facts on which to base your thinking are not available. In this case you act on hypothesis or what you assume the fact to be. Deductive reasoning is used when you have the facts or what appear to be the facts on which to base your thinking. The next step in accurate thinking is to separate facts from fictions, and determine whether you are dealing with hypothesis or real facts. When you are sure that you have dependable facts on which to base your thinking, you take the second step by separating these facts into two classes, one is the important facts, and the other one is the unimportant facts. When you do this, you may be surprised that the overwhelmingly greater number of unimportant facts you deal with daily than there are important facts. Important fact is any fact which will aid you to any extent what so ever in obtaining the object of your major purpose in life. All other facts, as far as you concern, are unimportant, and you should waste no time with them. The more successful that a person is, the less he is inclined to express wild unjustified bias opinions about anything. Everything should be based on facts and accurate thinking. Becareful with people opinions. Think about it, use your judgement. Avoid being misled by unsound opinions expressed by other people. When you hear someone make a statement which your reason can not accept as being sound, ask a simple forward question "How do you know?", then stand firm on that question and force the speaker to identify the source from which he got the information, or reject the statement entirely as it has not been made. And do this no matter who is speaking or what may be his reputation for truth and varacity. Remember that you are given your richest birth right the privilege of controlling your own thoughts. Therefore, treat this divine gift with a profound respect to which it is entitled and do not allow anyone to do your thinking for you, or influence your thinking in any manner accept by facts and the rule of accurate thinking. There are seven rules to practice to become accurate thinker. One, never accept the opinions of other people as being fact until you have learn the source of those opinions and satisfy yourself of their accuracy. Two, remember that free advices, no matter from whom that is received, will by the process of examination before it is acted upon as safe, and generally speaking, this sort of advice is worth exactly what it cost. Three, alert yourself immediately when you hear anyone speaking in a discourtesy or slanderous spirit because this very fact should put you on notice that what you are hearing is biased to say the very least about it and it may be an out-and-out misstatement. Four, when asking others for information, do not disclose to them what you wish the information to be because most people have the bad habit of trying to please under such circumstances. Well measured tactful questions can be of great benefit to you to think accurately. Five, remember that anything which exists anywhere throughout the universe is capable of proof and where no such proof is available, it is safer to assume that it does not exist. Six, one of the great unexplainable miracle consist in the fact that both truth and falsehood, no matter by what mean they may be expressed, carry with them a silent invisible mean of identifying themselves as such. Therefore, remember this truth and begin developing the necessary intuitive faculty to enable you to sense what is false and what is true. Seven, follow the habit of asking "How do you know?" when anyone make a statement that you cannot identify as true. Follow this habit faithfully and you will see that many people squirm and turn red in the face, when you insist upon a direct reply. The most accurate thinkers are the scientists. They investigate with an open mind and never allow their wishes to become the father of facts, but deal with each fact as it is, and not as they would like it to be. Study yourself carefully and you may discover that your emotions are your greatest handicaps in the business of accurate thinking. It is easy for you to believe that you wish to believe and unfortunately that is precisely what most people do. This is the method by which many people convince themselves to eternal failures and defeats, and this is the method that open wide the sealed envelop that contains the list of penalties that they must pay for neglecting to take possession of their own mind.

13. Cosmic Habit Force. This is the law that give definite action to everything that move throughout the entire universe. It keeps the stars and planets in their custom places. And it fixes the life pattern of every living things from the smallest insects to the largest animals, excepting only men who have been gifted the mean by which he may use this law to establish his own habits and determine his own desires and movements throughout life. Cosmic Habit Force bind every living things lower in the scale of intelligence than men with what is called instinct but men can rise above this fix patterns by which lower forms of life live and establish his own patterns. This privilege is the only thing which men has complete power of control, and direction. And it is interesting to observe that the creator never give men any form of riches without sending along with it the mean by which men may do whatever he pleases with those riches. Like every other natural law, Cosmic Habit Force has both negative and positive potential applications. The negative application of this law is called hypnotic rhythm, which means, among other possible results, it fasten upon individuals by neglects to fix our thoughts upon the things that we desire in life and thereby gain the power of Cosmic Habit Force in attaining these desires, the law automatically acts in the negative hypnotic rule in feature and fix our mind on the things that we do not desire, and attract to us the physical counter part of these desires. Understand this principle of the law of Cosmic Habit Force and obviously you will have a better conception as to how essential it is to keep your mind occupied with the things and circumstances that you desired. Until this pattern is taken over and make permanent by Cosmic Habit Force. Cosmic Habit Force is the watchdog so to speak which looks over your shoulders all through life, examine every thought you release, every act which you engage, and forces upon you the penalties or the rewards in those two sealed envelops. When you understand the principle of Cosmic Habit Force, it is clear enough that you cannot go through life without using the power of this law to carry out the circumstances and the desires you voluntarily choose or by your neglects allow the same law to force you to pay the penalties. You have the power of choice here, the same as in all the other things, but your neglects to exercise this power will bring certain if not always swift retribution upon you. The nearest to the description of the law of Cosmic Habit Force is the Emerson's law of compensation in which he clearly establish the truth that nothing ever just happens by luck but every effect has it definite cause or be it that we often observe the effect because of which we can not isolate or understand. If you will read Emerson's essay on compensation again in view of what I have said about the law of Cosmic Habit Force, you may get much more from it than you absorb from it previously. You are on the beam if you can truthfully say that I know precisely what I want from life and I have faith I shall get it.

How to live a truly rich and happy life / The list of twelve things that make a man rich:

Everyone desires to be rich, but not everyone knows what constitute enduring riches. Most people believe that riches consist of only material things that money can buy. Here is a list of 12 things that constitute real riches:

1. Positive mental attitude
2. Sound physical health
3. Harmony in human relation
4. Freedom from fear
5. Hope of future achievement
6. Capacity for apply faith
7. Willingness to share one's blessings with others
8. To be engage in a labor of love (being able to do what you love)
9. Opened mind on all subjects toward all people
10. Complete self-discipline
11. Wisdom of which to understand people
12. Financial security

Observe if you will, that money comes at the end of the list of twelve things that make a man rich.

Ten Rules for Profitable Self Discipline:

1. Keep cool when other people get hot
2. There are 3 sides to an arguments: your side, the other side, and the right side
3. Never give directives to a sub-ordinate when you are angry.
4. Treat all people as though they are your rich relatives of who you expect to be remembered in their will.
5. Look for the seed of equivalent benefit in every unpleasant circumstances no matter how unpleasant the circumstance is. Start looking in the connection to the circumstance. Don't wait a week. The lessen the blower, the lessen the wound.
6. Learn the almost forgotten art of asking questions and listening for the answers instead of getting the other fellow turn off. When somebody make a statement that you not sure about, ask a four words question "How do you know?"
7. Never say or do anything that may influence another person without first asking yourself this question "will it benefit him or hurt him?". If it hurt him, don't do it. Don't do anything or say anything that may hurt another person regardless of how much he deserves it. Exercise self-discipline. Don't do that, because if you hurt another man, you are going to hurt yourself 10 times as much at least.
8. Learn the difference between friendly analysis and unfriendly criticism.
9. A good leader, in any calling, is one who can take order as cheerfully as he give them.
10. Tolerance in human relation is just as important as in operation of mechanics.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleon_Hill
http://www.naphill.org/
http://www.amazon.com/Napoleon-Hill/e/B000APAMYE
http://www.success.com/article/rich-man-poor-man

Law of Success (1928):
Law of Success in Sixteen Lessions
https://moya-public-domain-books.s3.amazonaws.com/law-of-success-intro.pdf

Think and Grow Rich (1937):
http://www.soilandhealth.org/03sov/0304spiritpsych/030413.hill.think.and.grow.rich.pdf
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guQI7Ieek_Q
Napoleon Hill - Think And Grow Rich - Original Full Length

Outwitting The Devil: The Secret to Freedom and Success:
http://www.pdfarchive.info/pdf/H/Hi/Hill_Napoleon_-_Outwitting_the_devil.pdf

Master Key to Riches (1968):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJBQL0MHqg4

Success Through A Positive Mental Attitude (1960):
http://media.brunnegard.com/2012/01/Success-Through-Positive-Attitude.pdf

You can work your own miracles
Succeed and Grow Rich through Persuasion (1970)
Selling You!: A Practical Guide to Achieving the Most by Becoming Your Best
The Magic Ladder to Success
Think Your Way to Wealth
Napoleon Hill's Keys to Success: The Principles of Personal Achievement
Napoleon Hill's Positive Action Plan: 365 Meditations For Making
The New Think & Grow Rich by Ted Ciuba
The Science of Wealth
Fifty Two Lessons for Life
Grow Rich with Peace of Mind (1967)
A year of growing rich
How to Be Rich
How To Sell Your Way Through Life
Poems That Inspire You to Think and Grow Rich
The Secret Law of Attraction as Explained By Napoleon Hill
Napoleon Hill's Magic Seeds for Success: Reflections for Personal Growth
Napoleon Hill's Daily Inspiration for Everyday Men
The Ultimate Resource for Making Money and Getting Rich
Napoleon Hill's keys to positive thinking

What Would Napoleon Hill Do?
http://www.pdfarchive.info/pdf/H/Hi/Hill_Napoleon_-_Hartley_Bill_-_Hartley_Ann_-_What_would_Napoleon_Hill_do.pdf

http://learnandshareall.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/napoleon-hill-golden-rules-the-lost-writings1.pdf
http://www.mikelitman.com/joe.pdf

http://www.audible.com/
http://www.learnoutloud.com

http://www.motivationalwellbeing.com/motivational-poems.html
http://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/how-to-sell-if-you-hate-selling.html

http://nhsuccessscrolls.com/nh

W. Clement Stone
Og Mandino
Andrew Carnegie
Charles F Haanel
Dale Carnegie

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