Think and Grow Rich Book Review

Dear Jack,

I’ve been reading more and more self-development books, and one of the classics in that field is one which was originally published in 1937 by Napoleon Hill.  It’s titled Think and Grow Rich and is the work of 20+ years of research that was commissioned to Hill by Andrew Carnegie.  It’s a great book, with a not so great title.  I was originally put off by the “grow rich” part, because of my tendency to raise eyebrows at any easy money-making scheme.

However, I’m glad I got past that part, because the book is full of great insight.  Hill and I disagree, sometimes quite strongly, on certain elements and philosophies, but the overall premise of the book is excellent.  The version depicted is one in which was revised and updated for the 21st century.  It adds to the original text some more modern day examples.

I think to begin my review, I want to revisit the “grow rich” aspect.  Throughout the pages, Hill seems to proclaim the necessity to have materialism and greed – constantly dwelling upon the mass collection of wealth.  Indeed, he calls this the first step to riches.  This encroaches upon my understanding of 1 Timothy 6.1-10, in which Paul commands Timothy to find contentment regardless of net worth, and also that the specific love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.

And so, my understanding of riches – material or not – comes from Hill’s own words, in the Chapter of the Six Ghosts of Fear (Pg 264 of the pictured edition).  “The word ‘riches’ is here used in its broadest sense, meaning financial, spiritual, mental, and material estates.” This is how I understand Hill when I read the words “grow rich,” and it is with this large assumption that I find a lot of value can be taken from the book.

Hill states that there are 13 steps to riches.  Each one builds upon the previous step, and so the order is of utmost importance.

1. Desire – to have a burning intent to achieve whatever your “richness” may be
2. Faith - to have unresolved faith that you will achieve this richness
3. Auto suggestion – the method(s) or regularly reminding yourself of what this richness is
4. Specialized knowledge – becoming exceedingly good at one specific service/product
5. Imagination - having the ability to adapt and find creative ways to resolve problems
6. Organized plan – to have a written out, comprehensive, specific plan on how you will achieve your riches
7. Decision - the resolution to achieve anti-procrastination and determine to move forward with your plan
8. Persistence - to not give up when trials and unforeseen obstacles arrive
9. Masterminds - a group of like-minded individuals who will help you achieve your riches
10. Sex transmutation – (definitely a strange chapter) the redirecting of our sex drive to our riches drive
11. Subconscious - utilizing the power of “un-thought” thought
12. Brain - fully using the capacities of your brain and its connectivity to the world around us
13. 6th Sense – using all of the previous steps together to tap into the 6th sense (those “haunches” you get occasionally)

The book is strange.  I’ll openly admit that – but I really did enjoy reading it.  The basic framework is that riches will develop through steps that originate with thought.  In essence, what we think is what we become.  Hill uses some strange examples of universal ether, which I know very little of, but the principles that can be enacted are very powerful, and useful.

My walkaway from the book is that I already have many of those steps in place.  Where I am lacking is my daily visualization of where I want to be, and who I would like to be.  I’ve written down specific descriptions of how I’d like to be able to describe myself as husband and father, and specific metrics to measure my success as a financial planner.  I dwell on these in the mornings, attaching emotions to the thoughts (as these will cling tighter to the subconscious, according to Hill).

There is a secret throughout the book that Hill says to look for, which is never directly identified as “The Secret.  It’s not hidden – it’s right in the title.  We become what we think – and the key to achieving riches is to think about them.  (Remember my previously defined understanding of riches).

I’d encourage you to read the book, Jack.  I believe it will be one of those books I look back on years from now and can identify as a contributor to my success as a professional and family man.  Till next time, Jack.

Sincerely,
J.

7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Habit 1

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Dear Jack,

One of the best books, and most impacting books, I have ever read is Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.  I loved this book.  I read it this past January, and even as much as I loved it, find myself forgetting a lot of what is included.  It’s with this in mind that I wish to spend the next seven or so letters hashing out these habits and how I’m applying them to my life, with the hope that you’ll too be able to apply them to your life as well.

Basic Overview

The seven habits are as follows:

1. Be Proactive
2. Begin with the End in Mind
3. Put First Things First
4. Think Win/Win
5. Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood
6. Synergize
7. Sharpen the Saw

The sub-title of Habit 1 is “Principles of Personal Vision.”  It relies on the strictly human endowment of self-awareness, our ability to think about ourselves, to have an imagination, a conscience, and an independent will.  Animals don’t have any of these.  And because we have them, we’re able to essentially “write our own programs,” or craft our own plan for life.  With this in mind, being proactive simply means taking initiative.  It means taking responsibility for our own lives, and realizing that our behavior is a function of our decisions, and not our conditions.

Covey points out that the word “responsibility” is really the combination of two words: response and ability.  The ability to choose our response.  My friend Phil Lapp coined a great phrase, something along the lines of “Become a producer of your own environment, and not a product of your environment.”  I’m thinking he read this chapter in Covey’s book.

We can learn a lot about our current psyche of being proactive vs reactive by examining the use of our own language.  A reactive person may say “There’s nothing I can do,” while a proactive person may say “Let’s look at our alternatives.”  Reactive: “He makes me so mad!”  Proactive: “I can control my own feelings.”  “I can’t” vs “I choose.”  “I must” vs “I prefer.”  “There’s no jobs out there” vs “I’ll find a job.”  Covey says that the language comes from a basic paradigm of determinism and responsibility.

The image I included with this letter is a circle of concern (problems at work, national debt, nuclear war, the economy) outside a circle of influence (our behavior, friends, activities) – and these two circles represent things we have control over and others that we really can’t do anything about.  The proactive person spend his time in the circle of influence, and expanding that circle of influence increasingly outward.  Reactive people, on the other hand, focus their efforts in the circle of concern, and because their focus is always in that circle of concern, their circle of influence actually decreases.  The essential lesson of the diagram is simply to work on the things that you have control over.

So – what does this have to do with me?  I applied this directly to my work life.  There are a number of issues flying around that circle of concern that I have no control over.  A chaotic stock market, an uncertain economy, an overall distrust of financial professionals, my young age in a preferably “mature” industry, etc.  These are, obviously, things I have no control over.  And for a part of my career, I focused only on these things, and I was draining myself.  Instead, I focus on my circle of influence.  These things include my behavior at work (work hard, pursue education, get to know everybody), my perspective on the stock market and economy (ebb and flow), and the fact that I embrace my age (fresh ideas, extra level of concern, and access to newer technology).  Complete paradigm shift, Jack.

We can choose to act or to be acted upon.  Covey argues that it’s our nature to act – but I actually disagree.  I think it’s our nature to be acted upon, and we need to fight the urge to be passive.  Take charge of your family, your career, your goals – because if you don’t, someone else will.  Embrace proactivity, and expect good things.  Till next time, Jack,

Sincerely,
J.