Self-Improvement
by Napoleon Hill
Can thinking make you rich?
Napoleon Hill says it can. In Think and Grow Rich, published in 1937, he sets out thirteen steps that he says he drew from Andrew Carnegie and other successful men of his day. His starting premise, in his own phrase, is that thoughts are things.
Hear a sample · read by Laura
Hill's first step is desire, and he means a specific, burning one. He tells readers to write down the exact sum they want, what they'll give in return, a date and a plan, then read the statement aloud twice a day, once at night and once on waking.
Hill's name for two or more people working together in harmony towards a definite aim. He argues that a group like this produces ideas and energy none of its members could alone, and says Andrew Carnegie credited his fortune to the circle of men he gathered round him.
Hill says general knowledge makes little money. What counts is specialised knowledge organised into plans, and you can hire it. When lawyers in a libel case set out to prove Henry Ford ignorant, Ford replied that he could press a button and summon a man with any answer.
Hill names six basic fears, of poverty, criticism, ill health, loss of love, old age and death. He calls them states of mind, which means they can be controlled, and traces them back to indecision, which grows into doubt and then into fear.
Burning desire
Edwin Barnes arrived broke at Thomas Edison's lab, set on becoming his partner. Years later he was.
A definite aim
Decide exactly how much you want, by when, and what you'll give in return. Write it down.
Autosuggestion
Read your goal out loud every morning and night until you believe it.
Knowledge
Knowledge is only useful once you organise it into a plan and act on it.
Master Mind
Surround yourself with a small group who help each other toward the same goal.
A story from the book
Hill tells of R.U. Darby, whose uncle struck gold in Colorado. The vein ran out, they drilled on, then gave up and sold their machinery to a junk dealer for a few hundred dollars. The dealer hired a mining engineer, who found the gold three feet from where they'd stopped.
One thing to try
You can try Hill's exercise with any goal. Write one paragraph naming exactly what you want, by when, what you'll give in return and your first step. Read it aloud tonight and again tomorrow morning, then take that first step.
Knotd has the key ideas from 250+ non-fiction books, each in a few minutes, in plain words. Think and Grow Rich comes with a Spot the Trap case to make it stick.
Get the whole book on KnotdOpen in the appCan thinking make you rich? Napoleon Hill says it can. In Think and Grow Rich, published in 1937, he sets out thirteen steps that he says he drew from Andrew Carnegie and other successful men of his day. His starting premise, in his own phrase, is that thoughts are things.
A definite, burning desire; The Master Mind; Knowledge you can hire; Six ghosts of fear.
You can try Hill's exercise with any goal. Write one paragraph naming exactly what you want, by when, what you'll give in return and your first step. Read it aloud tonight and again tomorrow morning, then take that first step.
Yes. Knotd has the key ideas from Think and Grow Rich in a few minutes, in plain words, plus a Spot the Trap case to test them. It's one of 250+ non-fiction books in the app.
