believe your mind can achieve develop
definiteness of purpose your progress
towards success begins with a
fundamental question where are you going
definiteness of purpose is the starting
point of all achievement and it slack is
the stumbling block for ninety eight out
of every hundred people simply because
they never really define their goals and
start toward study every person you can
think of who has achieved lasting
success you will find that each one has
had a definite major purpose each had a
plan for reaching that goal and each
devoted the greatest part of his or her
thoughts and efforts to that end Andrew
Carnegie was the man who led me to
formulate my definite major purpose
assembling and publicizing the
principles by which great individuals
achieve enduring success
Carnegie started work as a laborer in a
steel mill because of his definite major
purpose to make and market better
quality steel than anyone else he became
one of the wealthiest men in the country
was able to endow libraries in small
towns all across America his definite
major goal was more than a wish it was a
burning desire only by finding your own
burning desire will you achieve success
the difference between a wish and a
burning desire is crucial everyone wants
the better things in life money fame
respect but most people never go beyond
just wishing for them if you know what
you want from life
if you are determined to get it to the
point that it becomes an obsession and
you back that obsession with continuous
effort and sound planning then you have
awakened and
definiteness of purpose a valuable
secret the most important part of this
book is not written on its pages but is
already in your own mind once you learn
how to harness the tremendous potential
of your mind how to organize the
knowledge you already have you can turn
them into the power necessary for
attaining your definite major purpose
there is a proverb which says if you
would plant for days plant flowers if
you would plant for years plant trees if
you would plant for eternity plant ideas
this book has been written to induce a
flow of ideas through your mind it will
introduce you to your other self the
self which has a vision of your innate
spiritual power will not accept or
recognize failure it will arouse your
determination to go forth and claim the
things which are rightfully yours as
Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote one single
idea may have greater weight than the
labors of all the men animals and
engines for a century put ideas and your
definiteness of purpose to work the
advantages of definiteness of purpose
definiteness of purpose develop
self-reliance personal initiative
imagination enthusiasm self-discipline
and concentrated effort all these are
required for success throughout this
book you will learn in greater detail
just what these qualities and tale how
they are acquired developed and
incorporated into your plan for success
definiteness of purpose also brings a
host of other advantages specialization
definiteness of purpose encourages you
to specialize and specialization leads
to perfection your success in life will
depend a great deal on your ability to
know much about a specific area and to
perform exceptionally within it general
education is important because by
pursuing it
you will discover your basic aptitudes
and
fires once you have discerned them
however you should immediately begin to
acquire specialized knowledge in your
major interest definiteness of purpose
will act as a magnet to attract to you
the specialized knowledge necessary for
success budgeting time and money once
you have determined your definite major
purpose you will begin to budget your
time and your money and all your
day-to-day endeavors so that they will
lead to the attainment of your major
purpose time budgeting always pays
dividends because each moment is made to
progress toward your goal money is also
used to its best advantage ensuring that
you pass the milepost along the road to
success alertness to opportunity
definiteness the purpose makes you aware
of opportunities related to your major
purpose and it inspires the courage to
act on them Edward Bach was an immigrant
to this country who set out to make his
living by writing he began a flourishing
business writing short biographies which
employed six people one evening at the
theatre he noticed that the programs
were large and cumbersome poorly printed
and unattractive on the spot he
conceived the idea of producing a
smaller program easier to hold
better-looking and including a feeling
reading matter next morning he prepared
a sample copy of his proposed program
and presented it to the theater manager
not only would he provide the theater
with a better program but he would do it
free in exchange for the exclusive
rights advertising would pay his costs
and bring him profit the theater agreed
and Bach went into partnership with the
friend Mort experience that he in
publishing and advertising they quickly
signed up all the other theaters in town
to avoid competition the business thrive
and eventually expanded to create
several other magazine
while Bach became the editor of the
Ladies Home Journal if you can see an
opportunity as quickly as you can see
the faults of others you will soon
succeed decision-making capability
successful people make decisions quickly
as soon as all the facts are available
and firmly unsuccessful people make
decisions slowly and they change them
often remember that 98 out of a hundred
people never make up their mind about
their major purpose in life they simply
can’t make a decision and stick to it
how can you overcome the habit of
avoiding decisions start with the very
next problem you face and make a
decision make any decision any decision
is better than none if you make some
mistakes at first pay courage your
batting average will improve knowing
what you want will help in
decision-making of course because you
can always judge whether or not it will
contribute to your goals cooperation
definiteness of purpose develops
confidence in your own integrity and
character which attracts favorable
attention from others and inspires their
cooperation those 98 folks who can’t
determine their major goal will be
inspired by one who can and those few
who like you have embarked on their
journey will recognize and want to aid a
fellow traveler faith the greatest
benefit of definiteness of purpose is
that it opens your mind to the quality
known as faith
it makes your mind positive and frees it
from a limitations of doubt
discouragement indecision and
procrastination these limitations are
some of the greatest roadblocks you will
face later chapters will specifically
address overcoming them but possessing
faith in yourself and in the fact the
universe is constructed to allow you to
achieve your greatest potential will
help you starting now
success consciousness closely related to
faith his success consciousness your
mind becomes sold on success and refuses
to accept the possibility of failure
a young man lived in Salt Lake City many
years ago he was industrious thrifty and
much admired then he did something which
convinced his friends he had taken leave
of his senses he withdrew all his money
from the bank went to an automobile show
in New York and returned with a new car
wurst as soon as he got home he put that
car in his garage jacked it up and
proceeded to take it apart piece by
piece after examining every piece he put
the car back together again the folks
who were watching him thought he was
just plain wacky they were further
convinced that he was mad when he began
the process again and again and again
that man was Walter P Chrysler whose
innovations revolutionized the
automobile industry there aren’t any
major corporations or skyscrapers named
for his Salt Lake City neighbors lack
the insight to see the method in his
madness they had never heard of
definiteness of purpose and they
couldn’t recognize how success
consciousness Destin’s a person for
success the power of the subconscious
any dominating idea plan or purpose held
in your conscious mind through repeated
effort and emotionalize by a burning
desire for its realization is taken over
by the subconscious and acted upon
through whatever natural and logical
means may be available the only thing
over which you have complete right of
control at all times is your mental
attitude rate of control means that you
can control it does not mean that you do
control must learn to exercise this
right as a matter of habit the conscious
mind is where reasoning and thinking
occur it analyzes information and data
and it acts as a guardian of the door
to the subconscious the conscious mind
develops as a result of experience the
subconscious mind does not think reason
or deliberate it acts instinctively in
response to basic emotions the
differences in people are due to the
ways they have trained their conscious
minds subconsciously we are all very
much alike
the subconscious can be compared with a
car while the conscious mind can be
considered the driver the power is in
the car not the driver the driver must
learn to release and direct that power
the subconscious mind receives any image
that is transferred to it by the
conscious mind under strong emotion
think of the pair as a camera the
conscious mind acts as a lens
concentrating the image of your desires
and bringing them to a point on the film
of the subconscious getting good
pictures with this camera is the same as
it is with any other the focus must be
sharp there must be good exposure and
the timing must be right correct focus
requires a clear definition of purpose
the composition of the photo must be
made with care and precision you decide
what to include in the frame proper
timing is determined by the intensity of
your desire at the moment of exposure
experienced photographers rarely take
just one shot of an important image they
work at it again and again until they
get the photo they want this sort of
repeated exposure of the subconscious to
the image of your desire is crucial you
must work at the process repeatedly till
you have transferred the exact image you
want into your subconscious mind don’t
be afraid of working yourself up into a
highly emotional state you are
impressing images upon your subconscious
your purpose is a worthy one you don’t
need to fear this type of auto
suggestion
the intensity with which you impress
your subconscious with a picture of your
plan directly affects the speed with
which the subconscious will go to work
and attract the pictures physical
counterpart by inspiring you to take the
right steps putting definiteness of
purpose to work making your subconscious
work for you is only the first of many
steps we will not succeed of you cannot
convince other people to cooperate with
you and if you do not live in accordance
with strict standards those standards
form the remainder of this book but
let’s assume you have developed the
necessary definiteness of purpose you
are now likely to ask an obvious
question where do I get the resources to
implement my plan first step from
poverty to riches is the most difficult
the key is to realize that all the
riches and all the material goods that
you acquire through your own efforts
begin with your having a clear concise
picture of what you see when that
picture grows to be an obsession with
you
you will find that your every action
leads you toward its acquisition Andrew
Carnegie’s life again provides an
excellent example once he knew he wanted
to make steel he fed that desire until
it was the driving force in his life he
then turned to a friend
similarly broke but smart enough to
recognize that value of his idea because
he was impressed by the power of
Carnegie’s obsession the friend joined
forces with Carnegie their combined
enthusiasm was sufficient to convince
two others these four people became the
nucleus of Carnegie’s Empire they formed
a mastermind group the subject of the
next chapter together they were able to
find the capital necessary to pursue
Carnegie’s obsession and each of them
made a vast fortune as a result it was
not sheer hard work that made these men
successful you’ll probably know several
people who work as hard as you do at
anything they try perhaps
even harder than you and are never
successful education isn’t the reason
either Sam Walton never won a Rhodes
Scholarship but he made more money than
anyone who ever studied at Oxford great
success is the result of one’s
understanding and using a positive
mental attitude
PMA your mental attitude gives power to
everything you do having a positive
mental attitude means that your actions
and thoughts further your ends having a
negative mental attitude means that you
are constantly undermining your own
efforts as you build your desire into an
obsession and develop definiteness of
purpose you will also build and develop
your positive mental attitude it would
be foolish to suppose that having
developed your definiteness of purpose
and PMA you will immediately find that
you have the resources you need the
speed at which you acquire these will
depend on the size of your needs and on
the control you exercise to keep your
mind free of fear doubt and self-imposed
limitations if you need $10,000 for your
definite major purpose you may be able
to marshal it in a few days or even
hours by impressing others with the
quality of your enthusiasm and vision
if you require $1,000,000 it’s likely to
take longer an important variable in
this process is just exactly what it is
you offer in exchange for that ten
thousand or $1,000,000 the time required
to deliver the service or the equivalent
value you intend to supply is also
significant you must be clear about what
it is that you will give before you can
expect to get in return
creating a plan no one gets something
for nothing people who have money to
give will expect to receive something in
return
a product or service an increase in
their own capital you will not be
successful overnight in fact you will
not be successful until you have
returned to
everyone who was aided you everything
that he or she is viewe your definite
major purpose must include provisions
for doing this you may be nodding your
head in agreement with this and deciding
you will surely make this happen but
unless you have an extraordinarily
disciplined mind it is not enough to
envision this part in every other part
of your plan you must write them down
writing out your definite major purpose
forces you to be specific about it it
reminds you of its strengths and will
expose its weaknesses
if you cannot put what it is you’re
going to do into words
it’s probably because you are not as
sure about it as you think once you have
written your plan read it aloud to
yourself at least once every day this
fuels your obsession and reinforces its
nature in your mind when you face a
choice about how to proceed
having your written definite major
purpose to read will clarify your goals
and make sure that you continue to
progress toward them even better once
you have assembled your mastermind group
you ensure that everyone stays focused
on the same ends by use of a written
plan a single mind is complete no one
person can answer every question but two
or more Minds united behind a definite
major purpose and working in harmony to
achieve it will accomplish great things
there are numerous examples of this
power Christ himself made an alliance
with his disciples to carry out his work
the plan was his own but it survived
betrayal and his absence to achieve a
success beyond human comprehension
success is a worthy goal striving for
success has its detractors some people
will argue that those who acquire wealth
do so at the expense of the people who
work for them but if you are going to
achieve success you will do so only by
extraordinary effort effort that most
people are not willing to make people
seldom profit by having money unless
they earn it how many times have you
read about lottery winners who
find themselves bankrupt only a few
years after their windfalls or about
heirs to great fortunes Riordan
atmospheres of indulgence who fall prey
to addictions like alcohol or gambling
the value of the wealth that comes with
success is that it carries with it the
lessons you have learned in acquiring it
you will learn in achieving wealth that
success comes about only because you are
willing to assume great responsibility
and to deliver unfailingly goods and
services which are truly valuable most
people would not choose to be as
dedicated to a definite major purpose as
you must be if you were to accumulate a
fortune then offer it to them on the
condition that they behave exactly as
you have done most would not accept the
responsibility but some would it is the
people who would make such a choice who
will be most helpful to you they can
offer you a dove untold value or above
and beyond the efforts of those who are
easily contented they will become
indispensable to you by their
willingness to assume responsibility and
relieve you of some of the load you are
carrying you must be willing to reward
them generously for their efforts people
like this learned that they set their
own salaries by the quality of their
work everyone in fact does the same a
person’s salary is determined by the
sort of service he or she renders the
quantity and quality of that service
plus the mental attitude under which it
is rendered if millions of people are
struggling to get by on the salaries
they earn it is because their highest
aim is only to hold the jobs that they
currently have they are where they are
and they are making what they make
solely because of the limitations they
have set up in their own minds creating
opportunity there is a theory which pops
up again and again that the
opportunities for success are fewer now
than they were in the past that our
nation has reached the plateau of its
success that the world is dominated by
people who already have money
and that success is a finite realm
already filled to capacity this is
nothing more than a theory there is no
scarcity of opportunity there is only a
shortage of imagination countless people
gain new wealth every year whether the
economy is prospering or ailing the only
limits they recognize are those within
their own minds anyone who cries no
opportunity is simply issuing an alibi
for his or her own unwillingness to
assume responsibility and use
imagination offering a useful good or
service is just as valuable now as it
ever was
and new areas in which to do so open up
every day consider Home Depot which
stood the idea of the corner hardware
store on its head by offering a huge
selection of items at low prices
Bed Bath & Beyond has done the same
thing in its market Robert Johnson
founded Black Entertainment Television
targeting a market that the major
networks only served part of the time
all these were unusual ideas in their
time yet they have been enormous ly
successful in areas no one would have
imagined a decade before there’s a story
about a congressman around the turn of
the century who wanted to introduce a
bill to close the patent office on the
ground that there was nothing else to be
patented everything worthwhile had
already been invented if you laugh at
that idea and laugh again at anyone who
tells you that the days of opportunity
are over the pursuit of opportunity has
given this country its strength if you
lose yourself in an obsessional desire
to make yourself useful to others you
will find yourself through the
recognition of the good you are doing if
you forget that you must make yourself
useful to others you will stray from the
path to success no matter how long you
have already walked it consider for a
moment those great blue chip companies
such as IBM which have learned such a
lesson at their peril for years IBM made
it
self indispensable to business operators
large and small by producing high
quality machines to run their offices
then IBM turned its eyes only to making
big powerful computers while its
customers were looking for small
personal units for each employee profits
plummeted employees were laid off for
the first time in company history and
IBM was faced with completely remaking
itself in an industry it had once
nominated what IBM lost was the desire
for knowledge and the willingness to
earn it it’s people had stopped
wondering what it was their customers
wanted and they didn’t bother to find
out dozens of smaller computer
manufacturers possessed of that quality
stepped in and made fortunes right that
quantity into your definite major
purpose and never overlooked its value
your achievements like a company’s
correspond unerringly to the philosophy
with which you relate to others you
follow through on your willingness to
deliver something useful in return for
what you seek the world will be
compelled to reward you on your own
terms recognition of this fact is at the
heart of what has made America great our
most precious natural resource is not
our mineral deposits or our beautiful
forests it is the mental attitude and
the imagination of the people of every
generation who have mixed experience
with education to deliver goods and
services that improve the lives of both
Americans and people around the world
our real wealth is the intangible power
of thought this is why definiteness of
purpose heads the list of the 17
principles you must master to achieve
can overcome almost any obstacle you
face no matter what your own education
or talents if you use the mastermind
principle effectively no one has ever
attained outstanding success in anything
without applying the mastermind
principle no one mind is complete by
itself all truly great minds have been
reinforced through contact with others
that allowed them to grow and expand
forming a mastermind Alliance for a
model of a mastermind Alliance at work
consider a train crew a conductor you
can take the train to its destination
only because all the other members of
the train crew recognize and respect his
your authority what would happen if the
conductor failed to signal the engineer
that it was time to start passengers
would abandon the train and find some
other way to get where they wanted to go
if the engineer didn’t bother to heed
the signals along the track the
resulting crash could cost lives for
your mastermind Alliance to function
properly you must give clear
unmistakable signals to your crew they
in turn need to be willing to cooperate
fully with you there are four simple
steps to making sure this is the case
step 1 determine your purpose the first
step in putting together a mastermind
alliance is to adopt a definite purpose
for it to attain who would board a train
without knowing where it went
obviously you cannot do this if you have
not yet selected your own definite major
purpose you must be certain that the
purpose of the Alliance is either the
same as yours or very closely aligned if
you have already written off your own
definite major purpose and the means you
will use to attain it this step will be
familiar for you writing out the plan
for your alliances success will make you
aware of every one of the links of the
chain you must Forge inevitably
there will be links you have needed the
skill nor the resources to join yourself
just as the conductor cannot
simultaneously collect fares work the
dining car
and keep a hand on the problem this
brings you to your second step step 2
select the members of your alliance
choosing the people who will help you
obtain your goal must be done carefully
you may initially select some people who
you later decide are not appropriate and
you may discover that there are
unanticipated needs for knowledge that
must be filled
trial-and-error will be a part of the
process but there are two qualities to
keep foremost in your mind that will
help you to avoid too many surprises
the first is ability to do the job do
not select people for your Alliance
merely because you like and know them
such people are valuable to you because
they improve the quality of your life
but they are not necessarily suited to
be a mastermind Alliance your best
friend may not be the most knowledgeable
marketing professional in your area but
perhaps she can introduce you to someone
who is the other quality is the ability
to work in a spirit of harmony with
others without harmony your alliance
will falter perhaps not right away but
at some crucial moment when everything
is about to be won or lost Andrew
Carnegie once told me of a worldwide
search he conducted for his chief
chemist his Scouts found a brilliant man
working for a German firm his ability
was without question Carnegie entered
into a 5-year contract for the man’s
services within a year he had released
the man from the bargain why because the
chemist was so temperamental that he had
an entire department in upheaval none of
the other chemists could work with him
and the fellow was so concerned with
perceived slights that he spent all his
time fuming and accomplished nothing
you must keep any thoughts of discord
out of your alliance there must be a
complete meeting of the minds without
any reservations on the part of any
member personal ambitions must be
subordinate to the fulfillment and
successful achievement of the definite
purpose of the Alliance
this includes your own being clear about
your alliances purpose will give you a
basis for judging someone’s ability to
work in harmony with it you may still
have to make adjustments in the
Alliance’s composition but there are
also steps you must take to build that
harmony step 3 determine your rewards
clearly determined rewards for
participation in your mastermind
alliance are an important factor in its
harmony determine at the outset what
rewards you are offering in return for
the work of others and there will be
little room for later be criminal there
are 10 basic motives toward action that
can be the basis of these reward 1
self-preservation to love 3 fear for sex
5 desire for life after death 6 freedom
for mind and body 7 anger 8 8 9 desire
for recognition and self-expression 10
wealth wealth will obviously have the
greatest appeal for members of your
commercial enterprise but remember that
other motives can play an important role
recognition and self-expression are just
as important as money to many people be
aware that some of these motives anger
hate fear can twist the minds of your
team if you rely upon them your best
motivator wealth must be willingly
fairly and generously divided among your
team the more generous you are the more
help you will get another of the
principles of success is the habit of
going the extra mile you’ll see that in
chapter 5 it will serve you well if you
incorporate it into your Alliance from
the beginning well inspire teamwork with
PMA teamwork is a willing cooperation
and the coordination of effort to
achieve a specific objective when the
spirit of teamwork is willing voluntary
and free it
leads to the attainment of great and
enduring power it is a system which
coordinates all the team players
resources and talents and automatically
discourages dishonesty and unfairness
while it adequately compensates the
individuals who serve honestly and
unselfishly
the principle of teamwork differs from
the mastermind principle in that it is
based on the coordination of effort
without necessarily embracing the
principle of definiteness of purpose or
the principle of harmony two important
essentials of the mastermind teamwork
produces power but the question of
whether the power is temporary or
permanent depends on the motive that
inspired the cooperation if the motive
is one that inspires people to cooperate
willingly the power produced by this
sort of teamwork will endure as long as
that spirit of willingness prevailed
teamwork builds individuals and
businesses and provides unlimited
opportunity for all it is sharing a part
of what you have a part that is good
with others that which you share will
multiply that which you withhold will
diminish stop the tape now and write
your commitment to use this principle in
your life then restart the tape thirteen
learn from adversity and defeat with PMA
every adversity carries with it the seed
of an equivalent or greater benefit for
those who have PMA and apply it defeat
may be a stepping stone or a stumbling
block according to your mental attitude
and how you relate it to yourself it is
never the same as failure unless and
until it has been accepted as such your
mental attitude and respect to defeat is
the factor of major importance which
determines whether you ride with tides
of fortune or misfortune the person with
the positive mental attitude reacts to
defeat in the spirit of determination
not to accept it the person with a
negative mental attitude reacts to
defeat in the spirit of hopeless
acceptance
the worst thing that happens to you
maybe the best thing that can happen to
you if you don’t let it get the best of
you stop the tape now right your
commitment to use this principle in your
14 cultivate creative vision with p.m. a
man’s greatest gift is his thinking mind
it analyzes compare as chooses it
creates visualizes foresees and
generates ideas imagination is your
minds exercise challenge and adventure
it is the key to all of a person’s
achievements the mainspring of all human
endeavor the secret door to the soul of
a person imagination inspires human
endeavor in connection with material
things and ideas associated with
material things imagination is the
workshop of a human mind for old ideas
and established fact may be assembled
into new combinations and put the new
uses it is the act of constructive
intellect in the grouping of materials
knowledge or thoughts into new original
and rational systems a constructive or
creative faculty embracing poetic
artistic philosophical scientific and
ethical imagination creative vision may
be an inborn quality of the mind or an
acquired form where it may be developed
by the free and fearless use of the
Faculty of imagination free division
extends beyond interest in material
things judges the future by the past and
concerns itself with the future more
than with the past
imagination is influenced and controlled
by the powers of reason and experience
creative vision pushes these aside and
attains its ends by basically new ideas
and methods one of the ways to increase
your flow of ideas is by developing the
habit of taking study time thinking time
and planning time be quiet and
motionless and listen for that small
still voice that speaks from within as
you contemplate the ways in which you
can achieve your objectives what can be
conceived and be created with PMA stop
the tape now and write your commitment
to use this principle in your life then
restart the tape
fifteen maintain sound health with PMA
you are a mind with a body in as much as
your brain controls your body recognize
that sound physical health demands a
positive mental attitude
a health consciousness establish good
well-balanced health habits in work play
rest nourishment and study to maintain a
health consciousness think in terms of
good physical health not in terms of
illness or disease remember what your
mind focuses upon your mind brings into
existence whether it is financial
success or physical health to maintain a
positive attitude for the development
and maintenance of a sound health
consciousness use self-discipline keep
your mind free of negative thoughts and
influence and create and maintain a
well-balanced life follow work with play
mental effort with physical effort
seriousness with humor you will be on
the road to good health and happiness a
sound mind and a sound body are
attainable if you will put PMA to work
for you remember you can enjoy good
health and live longer with PMA I feel
healthy I feel happy I feel terrific
stop the tape write your commitment to
use this principle in your life then
restart the tape 16 budget your time and
money with PMA intelligently balanced
your use of time and resources both
business and personal take inventory of
yourself and your activities so that you
discover where and how you were spending
your time and your money engage in study
thinking and planning time don’t waste
your time or your money 10% of all you
earn is yours to keep and invest like
any good business budget your money use
your time wisely toward attainment of
your objectives develop a plan for the
use of your income for expenses savings
and investments you don’t always get
what you expect
unless you inspect with p.m. a stop to
take now and write your commitment to
use this principle in your life then
restart the tape 17 use cosmic habit
force with p.m. a cosmic habit force
pertains to the entire universe and is
the law by which the equilibrium of the
universe is maintained through
established patterns or habits it is the
law which forces every living creature
and every particle of matter to come
under the dominating influence of its
environment including the physical
habits and thought habits of humankind
cosmic habit force –is are the powers
which you apply with PMA when you use
the universal laws or principles cosmic
habit force –is are employed when you
use your mind powers whether they
pertain to your conscious or
subconscious mind that is how you think
and grow richer or achieve anything in
life you desire in principle it doesn’t
violate the laws of God or the rights of
your fellow man all of us are ruled by
habits these are fastened upon us by
repeated thoughts and experiences you
have complete right of control over your
thoughts we create patterns of thought
by repeating certain ideas or behavior
until the law of cosmic habit force
takes over those patterns and makes them
more or less permanent unless or until
acknowledgement many people were very
helpful to me in editing this book I am
particularly grateful for the
inspiration of two men who knew Napoleon
Hill well and whose words reinforced his
W Clement stone and Michael J read there
are many people organizations and
publications dedicated to promoting the
philosophy of success in addition to
those mentioned in the text I found the
following particularly helpful in
selecting examples that highlighted the
wisdom of Napoleon
Advice audacity entrepreneur working
woman smart money sales and marketing
management The New Yorker and minorities
and women in business magazines the
walls around us by David Owen
Michael mahana of Smith Barney Shearson
upon request you may receive an
autographed book plate bearing the
signature of the author address your
request to the Napoleon Hill foundation
1440 paddock Drive Northbrook Illinois
600 62 and enclosed a large
self-addressed stamped envelope with
this book plate you will receive a copy
of one of dr. Hills famous success
essays at 4 set a time and place for
meeting your alliance must be active to
do any good establish a definite place
and time for regular meetings to ensure
that you are making progress and dealing
with the issues you face your early
meetings will likely involve fine-tuning
the plan you have made for your success
drawing upon the specialized skills of
your members as your alliance matures
and harmony grows among the members you
will find that these meetings create a
flow of ideas and to every members mind
as you work together over time more
excitement will greet every meeting and
more harmony will arrive think about a
group of sales reps brought together for
a conference they may arrive in general
agreement about their goals but a day or
a weekend spent reinforcing their
determination listening to and
incorporating their suggestions for the
plan at hand will send them away fired
up and eager to achieve their goals do
not let the regular meetings take the
place of frequent contact between the
members telephone call notes and even
conversations in a hallway will keep the
alliance primed for action when it meets
in full so that certain developments can
be addressed quickly maintaining your
alive
the harmony of your alliance is built
upon the mutual agreement on your
definite purpose but like any
construction it must be preserved with
diligent work that work will be your
task as its leader your attention should
focus on four areas confidence
confidence is reliance or trust based on
proved fidelity which means faithfulness
to duty and loyalty to obligation as the
leader of the Alliance you must inspire
confidence in your members by your
dedication to your definite major
purpose you must also insist within the
group on confidentiality often it is
harmful for members to discuss the
purpose of the Alliance outside the
group some people can give away a secret
without a moment’s thought you don’t
need them in your mastermind alliance
understanding all members of the group
must possess a complete knowledge and
comprehension of the nature significance
and implication of a situation or
proposition that the group faces you may
employ specialists to heighten your
understanding of various fields but
every person involved must be able to
deal with the core issues of every
decision and before a decision is made
each member of your group must be
convinced that it is a good decision one
which he or she can support wholeheartedly