THINK and GROW RICH BY

NAPOLEON HILL

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Teaching, for the first time, the famous Andrew Carnegie formula
for money-making, based upon the THIRTEEN PROVEN STEPS TO
RICHES. Organized through 25 years of research, in collaboration with
more than 500 distinguished men of great wealth, who proved by their
own achievements that this philosophy is practical.

This book contain the chapters of the complete and original 1937
version of Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, originally published
by The Ralston Society and now in the public domain.

To get the full version of this ebook, please go to:

http://www.christinafong.successuniversity.com/new

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CONTENTS

FOREWORD PUBLISHER'S PREFACE

AUTHOR'S PREFACE

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 2 - DESIRE

CHAPTER 3 - FAITH

CHAPTER 4 - AUTO-SUGGESTION
CHAPTER 5 - SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE

CHAPTER 6 – IMAGINATION
 FOREWORD WHAT DO YOU WANT MOST? Is It Money, Fame,
Power, Contentment, Personality, Peace of Mind, Happiness?

The Thirteen Steps to Riches described in this book offer the shortest
dependable philosophy of individual achievement ever presented for the
benefit of the man or woman who is searching for a definite goal in life.
Before beginning the book you will profit greatly if you recognize the fact
that the book was not written to entertain. You cannot digest the
contents properly in a week or a month. After reading the book
thoroughly, Dr. Miller Reese Hutchison, nationally known Consulting
Engineer and long-time associate of Thomas A. Edison, said— ‘This is
not a novel. It is a textbook on individual achievement that came directly
from the experiences of hundreds of America's most successful men. It
should be studied, digested, and meditated upon. No more than one
chapter should be read in a single night. The reader should underline
the sentences which impress him most. Later, he should go back to
these marked lines and read them again. A real student will not merely
read this book, he will absorb its contents and make them his own. This
book should be adopted by all high schools and no boy or girl should be
permitted to graduate without having satisfactorily passed an
examination on it. This philosophy will not take the place of the subjects
taught in schools, but it will enable one to organize and apply the
knowledge acquired, and convert it into useful service and adequate
compensation without waste of time. Dr. John R. Turner, Dean of the
College of The City of New York, after having read the book, said—
‘The very best example of the soundness of this philosophy is your own
son, Blair, whose dramatic story you have outlined in the chapter on
Desire.’ Dr. Turner had reference to the author's son, who, born without
normal hearing capacity, not only avoided becoming a deaf mute, but
actually converted his handicap into a priceless asset by applying the
philosophy here described. After reading the story (starting on page
52), you will realize that you are about to come into possession of a
philosophy which can be transmuted into material wealth, or serve as
readily to bring you peace of mind, understanding, spiritual harmony,
and in some instances, as in the case of the author's son, it can. help
you master physical affliction. The author discovered, through
personally analyzing hundreds of successful men, that all of them
followed the habit of exchanging ideas, through what is commonly
called conferences. When they had problems to be solved they sat
down together and talked freely until they discovered, from their joint
contribution of ideas, a plan that would serve their purpose. You, who
read this book, will get most out of it by putting into practice the Master
Mind principle described in the book. This you can do (as others are
doing so successfully) by forming a study club, consisting of any
desired number of people who are friendly and harmonious. The club
should have a meeting at regular periods, as often as once each week.
The procedure should consist of reading one chapter of the book at
each meeting, after which the contents of the chapter should be freely
discussed by all members. Each member should make notes, putting
down ALL IDEAS OF HIS OWN inspired by the discussion. Each
member should carefully read and analyze each chapter several days
prior to its open reading and joint discussion in the club. The reading at
the club should be done by someone who reads well and understands
how to put color and feeling into the lines. By following this plan every
reader will get from its pages, not only the sum total of the best
knowledge organized from the experiences of hundreds of successful
men, but more important by far, he will tap new sources of knowledge in
his own mind as well as acquire knowledge of priceless value FROM
EVERY OTHER PERSON PRESENT. If you follow this plan persistently
you will be almost certain to uncover and appropriate the secret formula
by which Andrew Carnegie acquired his huge fortune, as referred to in
the author's introduction.
TRIBUTES TO THE AUTHOR From Great American Leaders ‘THINK
AND GROW RICH’ was 25 years in the making. It is Napoleon Hill's
newest book, based upon his famous Law of Success Philosophy. His
work and writings have been praised by great leaders in Finance,
Education, Politics, Government.

Supreme Court of the United States Washington, D. C. Dear Mr. Hill:—

I have now had an opportunity to finish reading your Law of Success
textbooks and I wish to express my appreciation of the splendid work
you have done in the organization of this philosophy. It would be helpful
if every politician in the country would assimilate and apply the 17
principles upon which your lessons are based. It contains some very
fine material which every leader in every walk of life should understand.
I am happy to have had the privilege of rendering you some slight
measure of help in the organization of this splendid course of ‘common
sense’ philosophy. Sincerely yours (Former President and former Chief
Justice of the United States)

KING OF THE 5 AND 10 CENT STORES ‘By applying many of the 17

fundamentals of the Law of Success philosophy we have built a great
chain of successful stores. I presume it would be no exaggeration of
fact if I said that the Woolworth Building might properly be called a
monument to the soundness of these principles.’
F. W. WOOLWORTH

A GREAT STEAMSHIP MAGNATE ‘I feel greatly indebted for the

privilege of reading your Law of Success. If I had had this philosophy
fifty years ago, I suppose I could have accomplished all that I have
done in less than half the time. I sincerely hope the world will discover
and reward you.’ ROBERT DOLLAR
FAMOUS AMERICAN LABOR LEADER ‘Mastery of the Law of
Success philosophy is the equivalent of an insurance policy against
failure.’ SAMUEL GOMPERS

A FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES ‘May I not

congratulate you on your persistence. Any man who devotes that
much time . . . must of necessity make discoveries of great value to
others. I am deeply impressed by your interpretation of the 'Master
Mind' principles which you have so clearly described.’ WOODROW
WILSON

A MERCHANT PRINCE ‘I know that your 17 fundamentals of

success are sound because I have been applying them in my
business for more than 30 years.’ JOHN WANAMAKER

WORLD'S LARGEST MAKER OF CAMERAS ‘I know that you are

doing a world of good with your Law of Success. I would not care to
set a monetary value on this training because it brings to the student
qualities which cannot be measured by money, alone.’ GEORGE
EASTMAN

A NATIONALLY KNOWN BUSINESS CHIEF ‘Whatever success I

may have attained I owe, entirely, to the application of your 17
fundamental principles of the Law of Success. I believe I have the
honor of being your first student.’ W.M.. WRIGLEY, JR.

PUBLISHER'S PREFACE

THIS book conveys the experience of more than 500 men of great
wealth, who began at scratch, with nothing to give in return for riches
except THOUGHTS, IDEAS and ORGANIZED PLANS. Here you have
the entire
philosophy of moneymaking, just as it was organized from the actual
achievements of the most successful men known to the American
people during the past fifty years. It describes WHAT TO DO, also,
HOW TO DO IT! It presents complete instructions on HOW TO SELL
YOUR PERSONAL SERVICES. It provides you with a perfect system of
self-analysis that will readily disclose what has been standing between
you and ‘the big money’ in the past. It describes the famous Andrew
Carnegie formula of personal achievement by which he accumulated
hundreds of millions of dollars for himself and made no fewer than a
score of millionaires of men to whom he taught his secret. Perhaps you
do not need all that is to be found in the book— no one of the 500 men
from whose experiences it was written did— but you may need ONE
IDEA, PLAN OR SUGGESTION to start you toward your goal.
Somewhere in the book you will find this needed stimulus. The book
was inspired by Andrew Carnegie, after he had made his millions and
retired. It was written by the man to whom Carnegie disclosed the
astounding secret of his riches— the same man to whom the 500
wealthy men revealed the source of their riches. In this volume will be
found the thirteen principles of money-making essential to every person
who accumulates sufficient money to guarantee financial
independence. It is estimated that the research which went into the
preparation, before the book was written, or could be written— research
covering more than twenty-five years of continuous effort— could not be
duplicated at a cost of less than $100,000.00. Moreover, the knowledge
contained in the book never can be duplicated, at any cost, for the
reason that more than half of the 500 men who supplied the information
it brings have passed on. Riches cannot always be measured in money!
Money and material things are essential for freedom of body and mind,
but there are some who will feel that the greatest of all riches can be
evaluated only in terms of lasting friendships, harmonious family
relationships, sympathy and understanding between business
associates, and introspective harmony which brings one peace of mind
measurable only in spiritual values!
All who read, understand and apply this philosophy will be better
prepared to attract and enjoy these higher estates which always have
been and always will be denied to all except those who are ready for
them. Be prepared, therefore, when you expose yourself to the
influence of this philosophy, to experience a CHANGED LIFE which
may help you not only to negotiate your way through life with harmony
and understanding, but also to prepare you for the accumulation of
material riches in abundance. THE PUBLISHER.

AUTHOR'S PREFACE

IN EVERY chapter of this book, mention has been made of the money-
making secret which has made fortunes for more than five hundred
exceedingly wealthy men whom I have carefully analyzed over a long
period of years. The secret was brought to my attention by Andrew
Carnegie, more than a quarter of a century ago. The canny, lovable old
Scotsman carelessly tossed it into my mind, when I was but a boy.
Then he sat back in his chair, with a merry twinkle in his eyes, and
watched carefully to see if I had brains enough to understand the full
significance of what he had said to me. When he saw that I had
grasped the idea, he asked if I would be willing to spend twenty years or
more, preparing myself to take it to the world, to men and women who,
without the secret, might go through life as failures. I said I would, and
with Mr. Carnegie's cooperation, I have kept my promise. This book
contains the secret, after having been put to a practical test by
thousands of people, in almost every walk of life. It was Mr. Carnegie's
idea that the magic formula, which gave him a stupendous fortune,
ought to be placed within reach of people who do not have time to
investigate how men make money, and it was his hope that I might test
and demonstrate the soundness of the formula through the experience
of men and women in every calling. He believed the formula should be
taught in all public schools and colleges, and expressed the opinion that
if it were properly taught it would so revolutionize
the entire educational system that the time spent in school could be
reduced to less than half. His experience with Charles M. Schwab, and
other young men of Mr. Schwab's type, convinced Mr. Carnegie that
much of that which is taught in the schools is of no value whatsoever in
connection with the business of earning a living or accumulating riches.
He had arrived at this decision, because he had taken into his business
one young man after another, many of them with but little schooling,
and by coaching them in the use of this formula, developed in them rare
leadership. Moreover, his coaching made fortunes for everyone of them
who followed his instructions. In the chapter on Faith, you will read the
astounding story of the organization of the giant United States Steel
Corporation, as it 12 13 was conceived and carried out by one of the
young men through whom Mr. Carnegie proved that his formula will
work for all who are ready for it. This single application of the secret, by
that young man— Charles M. Schwab— made him a huge fortune in
both money and OPPORTUNITY. Roughly speaking, this particular
application of the formula was worth six hundred million dollars. These
facts—and they are facts well known to almost everyone who knew Mr.
Carnegie— give you a fair idea of what the reading of this book may
bring to you, provided you KNOW WHAT IT IS THAT YOU WANT.
Even before it had undergone twenty years of practical testing, the
secret was passed on to more than one hundred thousand men and
women who have used it for their personal benefit, as Mr. Carnegie
planned that they should. Some have made fortunes with it. Others
have used it successfully in creating harmony in their homes. A
clergyman used it so effectively that it brought him an income of
upwards of $75,000.00 a year. Arthur Nash, a Cincinnati tailor, used his
near-bankrupt business as a ‘guinea pig’ on which to test the formula.
The business came to life and made a fortune for its owners. It is still
thriving, although Mr. Nash has gone. The experiment was so unique
that newspapers and magazines, gave it more than a million dollars'
worth of laudatory publicity. The secret was passed on to Stuart Austin
Wier, of Dallas, Texas. He was ready for it— so ready that he
gave up his profession and studied law. Did he succeed? That story is
told too. I gave the secret to Jennings Randolph, the day he graduated
from College, and he has used it so successfully that he is now serving
his third term as a Member of Congress, with an excellent opportunity to
keep on using it until it carries him to the White House. While serving as
Advertising Manager of the La-Salle Extension University, when it was
little more than a name, I had the privilege of seeing J. G. Chapline,
President of the University, use the formula so effectively that he has
since made the LaSalle one of the great extension schools of the
country. The secret to which I refer has been mentioned no fewer than
a hundred times, throughout this book. It has not been directly named,
for it seems to work more successfully when it is merely uncovered and
left in sight, where THOSE WHO ARE READY, and SEARCHING FOR
IT, may pick it up. That is why Mr. Carnegie tossed it to me so quietly,
without giving me its specific name. If you are READY to put it to use,
you will recognize this secret at least once in every chapter. I wish I
might feel privileged to tell you how you will know if you are ready, but
that would deprive you of much of the benefit you will receive when you
make the discovery in your own way. While this book was being written,
my own son, who was then finishing the last year of his college work,
picked up the manuscript of chapter two, read it, and discovered the
secret for himself. He used the information so effectively that he went
directly into a responsible position at a beginning salary greater than the
average man ever earns. His story has been briefly described in
chapter two. When you read it, perhaps you will dismiss any feeling you
may have had, at the beginning of the book, that it promised too much.
And, too, if you have ever been discouraged, if you have had difficulties
to surmount which took the very soul out of you, if you have tried and
failed, if you were ever handicapped by illness or physical affliction, this
story of my son's discovery and use of the Carnegie formula may prove
to be the oasis in the Desert of Lost Hope, for which you have been
searching. This secret was extensively used by President Woodrow
Wilson, during
the World War. It was passed on to every soldier who fought in the war,
carefully wrapped in the training received before going to the front.
President Wilson told me it was a strong factor in raising the funds
needed for the war. More than twenty years ago, Hon. Manuel L.
Quezon (then Resident Commissioner of the Philippine Islands), was
inspired by the secret to gain freedom for his people. He has gained
freedom for the Philippines, and is the first President of the free state. A
peculiar thing about this secret is that those who once acquire it and
use it, find themselves literally swept on to success, with but little effort,
and they never again submit to failure! If you doubt this, study the
names of those who have used it, wherever they have been mentioned,
check their records for yourself, and be convinced. There is no such
thing as SOMETHING FOR NOTHING! The secret to which I refer
cannot be had without a price, although the price is far less than its
value. It cannot be had at any price by those who are not intentionally
searching for it. It cannot be given away, it cannot be purchased for
money, for the reason that it comes in two parts. One part is already in
possession of those who are ready for it. The secret serves equally
well, all who are ready for it. Education has nothing to do with it. Long
before I was born, the secret had found its way into the possession of
Thomas A. Edison, and he used it so intelligently that he became the
world's leading inventor, although he had but three months of schooling.
The secret was passed on to a business associate of Mr. Edison. He
used it so effectively that, although he was then making only $12,000 a
year, he accumulated a great fortune, and retired from active business
while still a young man. You will find his story at the beginning of the
first chapter. It should convince you that riches are not beyond your
reach, that you can still be what you wish to be, that money, fame,
recognition and happiness can be had by all who are ready and
determined to have these blessings. How do I know these things? You
should have the answer before you finish this book. You may find it in
the very first chapter, or on the last page. While I was performing
the twenty year task of research, which I had undertaken at Mr.
Carnegie's request, I analyzed hundreds of well known men, many of
whom admitted that they had accumulated their vast fortunes through
the aid of the Carnegie secret; among these men were: —

HENRY FORD WILLIAM WRIGLEY JR. JOHN WANAMAKER JAMES

J. HILL GEORGE S. PARKER E. M. STATLER HENRY L. DOHERTY
CYRUS H. K. CURTIS GEORGE EASTMAN THEODORE
ROOSEVELT JOHN W. DAVIS ELBERT HUBBARD WILBUR WRIGHT
WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN DR. DMTID STARR JORDAN J. ODGEN
ARMOUR CHARLES M. SCHWAB HARRIS F. WILLIAMS DR. FRANK
GUNSAULUS DANIEL WILLARD KING GILLETTE RALPH A. WEEKS
JUDGE DANIEL T. WRIGHT JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER THOMAS A.
EDISON FRANK A. VANDERLIP F. W. WOOLWORTH COL. ROBERT
A. DOLLAR EDWARD A. FILENE EDWIN C. BARNES ARTHUR
BRISBANE WOODROW WILSON WM. HOWARD TAFT LUTHER
BURBANK EDWARD W. BOK FRANK A. MUNSEY
ELBERT H. GARY DR. ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL JOHN H.
PATTERSON JULIUS ROSENWALD STUART AUSTIN WIER DR.
FRANK CRANE GEORGE M. ALEXANDER J. G. CHAPPLINE HON.
JENNINGS RANDOLPH ARTHUR NASH CLARENCE DARROW

These names represent but a small fraction of the hundreds of well

known Americans whose achievements, financially and otherwise,
prove that those who understand and apply the Carnegie secret, reach
high stations in life. I have never known anyone who was inspired to
use the secret, who did not achieve noteworthy success in his chosen
calling. I have never known any person to distinguish himself, or to
accumulate riches of any consequence, without possession of the
secret. From these two facts I draw the conclusion that the secret is
more important, as a part of the knowledge essential for self-
determination, than any which one receives through what is popularly
known as ‘education.’ What is EDUCATION, anyway? This has been
answered in full detail. As far as schooling is concerned, many of these
men had very little. John Wanamaker once told me that what little
schooling he had, he acquired in very much the same manner as a
modern loco-motive takes on water, by ‘scooping it up as it runs.’ Henry
Ford never reached high school, let alone college. I am not attempting
to minimize the value of schooling, but I am trying to express my
earnest belief that those who master and apply the secret will reach
high stations, accumulate riches, and bargain with life on their own
terms, even if their schooling has been meager. Somewhere, as you
read, the secret to which I refer will jump from the page and stand
boldly before you, IF YOU ARE READY FOR IT! When it appears, you
will recognize it. Whether you receive the sign in the first or the last
chapter, stop for a moment when it
presents itself, and turn down a glass, for that occasion will mark the
most important turning-point of your life. We pass now, to Chapter One,
and to the story of my very dear friend, who has generously
acknowledged having seen the mystic sign, and whose business
achievements are evidence enough that he turned down a glass. As
you read his story, and the others, remember that they deal with the
important problems of life, such as all men experience. The problems
arising from one's endeavor to earn a living, to find hope, courage,
contentment and peace of mind; to accumulate riches and to enjoy
freedom of body and spirit. Remember, too, as you go through the
book, that it deals with facts and not with fiction, its purpose being to
convey a great universal truth through which all who are READY may
learn, not only WHAT TO DO, BUT ALSO HOW TO DO IT! and receive,
as well, THE NEEDED STIMULUS TO MAKE A START. As a final word
of preparation, before you begin the first chapter, may I offer one brief
suggestion which may provide a clue by which the Carnegie secret may
be recognized? It is this— ALL ACHIEVEMENT, ALL EARNED
RICHES, HAVE THEIR BEGINNING IN AN IDEA! If you are ready for
the secret, you already possess one 17 18 half of it, therefore, you will
readily recognize the other half the moment it reaches your mind. THE
AUTHOR
 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION THE MAN WHO ‘THOUGHT’ HIS
WAY INTO PARTNERSHIP WITH THOMAS A. EDISON

TRULY, ‘thoughts are things,’ and powerful things at that, when they
are mixed with definiteness of purpose, persistence, and a BURNING
DESIRE for their translation into riches, or other material objects. A little
more than thirty years ago, Edwin C. Barnes discovered how true it is
that men really do THINK AND GROW RICH. His discovery did not
come about at one sitting. It came little by little, beginning with a
BURNING DESIRE to become a business associate of the great
Edison. One of the chief characteristics of Barnes' Desire was that it
was definite. He wanted to work with Edison, not for him. Observe,
carefully, the description of how he went about translating his DESIRE
into reality, and you will have a better understanding of the thirteen
principles which lead to riches. When this DESIRE, or impulse of
thought, first flashed into his mind he was in no position to act upon it.
Two difficulties stood in his way. He did not know Mr. Edison, and he
did not have enough money to pay his railroad fare to Orange, New
Jersey. These difficulties were sufficient to have discouraged the
majority of men from making any attempt to carry out the desire. But his
was no ordinary desire! He was so determined to find a way to carry out
his desire that he finally decided to travel by ‘blind baggage,’ rather than
be defeated. (To the uninitiated, this means that he went to East
Orange on a freight train). He presented himself at Mr. Edison's
laboratory, and announced he had come to go into business with the
inventor. In speaking of the first meeting between Barnes and Edison,
years later, Mr. Edison said, ‘He stood there before me, looking like an
ordinary tramp, but there was something in the expression of his face
which conveyed the impression that he was determined to get what he
had come after. I had learned, from years of experience with men, that
when
a man really DESIRES a thing so deeply that he is willing to stake his
entire future on a single turn of the wheel in order to get it, he is sure to
win. I gave him the opportunity he asked for, because I saw he had
made up his mind to stand by until he succeeded. Subsequent events
proved that no mistake was made.’ Just what young Barnes said to Mr.
Edison on that occasion was far less important than that which he
thought. Edison, himself, said so! It could not have been the young
man's appearance which got him his start in the Edison office, for that
was definitely against him. It was what he THOUGHT that counted. If
the significance of this statement could be conveyed to every person
who reads it, there would be no need for the remainder of this book.
Barnes did not get his partnership with Edison on his first interview. He
did get a chance to work in the Edison offices, at a very nominal wage,
doing work that was unimportant to Edison, but most important to
Barnes, because it gave him an opportunity to display his ‘merchandise’
where his intended ‘partner’ could see it. Months went by. Apparently
nothing happened to bring the coveted goal which Barnes had set up in
his mind as his DEFINITE MAJOR PURPOSE. But something important
was happening in Barnes' mind. He was constantly intensifying his
DESIRE to become the business associate of Edison. Psychologists
have correctly said that ‘when one is truly ready for a thing, it puts in its
appearance.’ Barnes was ready for a business association with Edison,
moreover, he was DETERMINED TO REMAIN READY UNTIL HE GOT
THAT WHICH HE WAS SEEKING. He did not say to himself, ‘Ah well,
what's the use? I guess I'll change my mind and try for a salesman's
job.’ But, he did say, ‘I came here to go into business with Edison, and
I'll accomplish this end if it takes the remainder of my life.’ He meant it!
What a different story men would have to tell if only they would adopt a
DEFINITE PURPOSE, and stand by that purpose until it had time to
become an all-consuming obsession! Maybe young Barnes did not
know it at the time, but
his bulldog determination, his persistence in standing back of a single
DESIRE, was destined to mow down all opposition, and bring him the
opportunity he was seeking. When the opportunity came, it appeared in
a different form, and from a different direction than Barnes had
expected. That is one of the tricks of opportunity. It has a sly habit of
slipping in by the back door, and often it comes disguised in the form of
misfortune, or temporary defeat. Perhaps this is why so many fail to
recognize opportunity. Mr. Edison had just perfected a new office
device, known at that time, as the Edison Dictating Machine (now the
Ediphone). His salesmen were not enthusiastic over the machine. They
did not believe it could be sold without great effort. Barnes saw his
opportunity. It had crawled in quietly, hidden in a queer looking machine
which interested no one but Barnes and the inventor. Barnes knew he
could sell the Edison Dictating Machine. He suggested this to Edison,
and promptly got his chance. He did sell the machine. In fact, he sold it
so successfully that Edison gave him a contract to distribute and market
it all over the nation. Out of that business association grew the slogan,
‘Made by Edison and installed by Barnes.’ The business alliance has
been in operation for more than thirty years. Out of it Barnes has made
himself rich in money, but he has done something infinitely greater, he
has proved that one really may ‘Think and Grow Rich.’ How much
actual cash that original DESIRE of Barnes' has been worth to him, I
have no way of knowing. Perhaps it has brought him two or three million
dollars, but the amount, whatever it is, becomes insignificant when
compared with the greater asset he acquired in the form of definite
knowledge that an intangible impulse of thought can be transmuted into
its physical counterpart by the application of known principles. Barnes
literally thought himself into a partnership with the great Edison! He
thought himself into a fortune. He had nothing to start with, except the
capacity to KNOW WHAT HE WANTED, AND THE
DETERMINATION TO STAND BY THAT DESIRE UNTIL HE
REALIZED IT. He had no money to begin with. He had but little
education. He had no influence. But he did have initiative, faith, and the
will to win. With these intangible forces he made himself number one
man with the greatest inventor who ever lived. Now, let us look at a
different situation, and study a man who had plenty of tangible evidence
of riches, but lost it, because he stopped three feet short of the goal he
was seeking.

THREE FEET FROM GOLD

One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when
one is overtaken by temporary defeat. Every person is guilty of this
mistake at one time or another. An uncle of R. U. Darby was caught by
the ‘gold fever’ in the gold-rush days, and went west to DIG AND
GROW RICH. He had never heard that more gold has been mined from
the brains of men than has ever been taken from the earth. He staked a
claim and went to work with pick and shovel. The going was hard, but
his lust for gold was definite. After weeks of labor, he was rewarded by
the discovery of the shining ore. He needed machinery to bring the ore
to the surface. Quietly, he covered up the mine, retraced his footsteps
to his home in Williamsburg, Maryland, told his relatives and a few
neighbors of the ‘strike.’ They got together money for the needed
machinery, had it shipped. The uncle and Darby went back to work the
mine. The first car of ore was mined, and shipped to a smelter. The
returns proved they had one of the richest mines in Colorado! A few
more cars of that ore would clear the debts. Then would come the big
killing in profits. Down went the drills! Up went the hopes of Darby and
Uncle! Then something happened! The vein of gold ore disappeared!
They had come to the end of the rainbow, and the pot of gold was no
longer there! They drilled on, desperately trying to pick up the vein
again— all
to no avail. Finally, they decided to QUIT. They sold the machinery to a
junk man for a few hundred dollars, and took the train back home.
Some ‘junk’ men are dumb, but not this one! He called in a mining
engineer to look at the mine and do a little calculating. The engineer
advised that the project had failed, because the owners were not
familiar with ‘fault lines.’ His calculations showed that the vein would be
found JUST THREE FEET FROM WHERE THE DARBYS HAD
STOPPED DRILLING! That is exactly where it was found! The ‘Junk’
man took millions of dollars in ore from the mine, because he knew
enough to seek expert counsel before giving up. Most of the money
which went into the machinery was procured through the efforts of R. U.
Darby, who was then a very young man. The money came from his
relatives and neighbors, because of their faith in him. He paid back
every dollar of it, although he was years in doing so. Long afterward,
Mr. Darby recouped his loss many times over, when he made the
discovery that DESIRE can be transmuted into gold. The discovery
came after he went into the business of selling life insurance.
Remembering that he lost a huge fortune, because he STOPPED three
feet from gold, Darby profited by the experience in his chosen work, by
the simple method of saying to himself, ‘I stopped three feet from gold,
but I will never stop because men say 'no' when I ask them to buy
insurance.’ Darby is one of a small group of fewer than fifty men who
sell more than a million dollars in life insurance annually. He owes his
‘stickability’ to the lesson he learned from his ‘quitability’ in the gold
mining business. Before success comes in any man's life, he is sure to
meet with much temporary defeat, and, perhaps, some failure. When
defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and most logical thing to do is to
QUIT. That is exactly what the majority of men do. More than five
hundred of the most successful men this country has ever known, told
the author their greatest success came just one step beyond the point
at which defeat had overtaken them. Failure is a trickster with a keen
sense of irony and cunning. It takes great delight in tripping one when
success is almost within reach.

A FIFTY-CENT LESSON IN PERSISTENCE

Shortly after Mr. Darby received his degree from the ‘University of Hard
Knocks,’ and had decided to profit by his experience in the gold mining
business, he had the good fortune to be present on an occasion that
proved to him that ‘No’ does not necessarily mean no. One afternoon
he was helping his uncle grind wheat in an old fashioned mill. The uncle
operated a large farm on which a number of colored sharecrop farmers
lived. Quietly, the door was opened, and a small colored child, the
daughter of a tenant, walked in and 23 24 took her place near the door.
The uncle looked up, saw the child, and barked at her roughly, ‘what do
you want?’ Meekly, the child replied, ‘My mammy say send her fifty
cents.’ ‘I'll not do it,’ the uncle retorted, ‘Now you run on home.’ ‘Yas
sah,’ the child replied. But she did not move. The uncle went ahead with
his work, so busily engaged that he did not pay enough attention to the
child to observe that she did not leave. When he looked up and saw her
still standing there, he yelled at her, ‘I told you to go on home! Now go,
or I'll take a switch to you.’ The little girl said ‘yas sah,’ but she did not
budge an inch. The uncle dropped a sack of grain he was about to pour
into the mill hopper, picked up a barrel stave, and started toward the
child with an expression on his face that indicated trouble. Darby held
his breath. He was certain he was about to witness a murder. He knew
his uncle had a fierce temper. He knew that colored children were not
supposed to defy white people in that part of the country.
When the uncle reached the spot where the child was standing, she
quickly stepped forward one step, looked up into his eyes, and
screamed at the top of her shrill voice, ‘MY MAMMY'S GOTTA HAVE
THAT FIFTY CENTS!’ The uncle stopped, looked at her for a minute,
then slowly laid the barrel stave on the floor, put his hand in his pocket,
took out half a dollar, and gave it to her. The child took the money and
slowly backed toward the door, never taking her eyes off the man whom
she had just conquered. After she had gone, the uncle sat down on a
box and looked out the window into space for more than ten minutes.
He was pondering, with awe, over the whipping he had just taken. Mr.
Darby, too, was doing some thinking. That was the first time in all his
experience that he had seen a colored child deliberately master an
adult white person. How did she do it? What happened to his uncle that
caused him to lose his fierceness and become as docile as a lamb?
What strange power did this child use that made her master over her
superior? These and other similar questions flashed into Darby's mind,
but he did not find the answer until years later, when he told me the
story. Strangely, the story of this unusual experience was told to the
author in the old mill, on the very spot where the uncle took his
whipping. Strangely, too, I had devoted nearly a quarter of a century to
the study of the power which enabled an ignorant, illiterate colored child
to conquer an intelligent man. As we stood there in that musty old mill,
Mr. Darby repeated the story of the unusual conquest, and finished by
asking, ‘What can you make of it? What strange power did that child
use, that so completely whipped my uncle?’ The answer to his question
will be found in the principles described in this book. The answer is full
and complete. It contains details and instructions sufficient to enable
anyone to understand, and apply the same force which the little child
accidentally stumbled upon. Keep your mind alert, and you will observe
exactly
what strange power came to the rescue of the child, you will catch a
glimpse of this power in the next chapter. Somewhere in the book you
will find an idea that will quicken your receptive powers, and place at
your command, for your own benefit, this same irresistible power. The
awareness of this power may come to you in the first chapter, or it may
flash into your mind in some subsequent chapter. It may come in the
form of a single idea. Or, it may come in the nature of a plan, or a
purpose. Again, it may cause you to go back into your past experiences
of failure or defeat, and bring to the surface some lesson by which you
can regain all that you lost through defeat. After I had described to Mr.
Darby the power unwittingly used by the little colored child, he quickly
retraced his thirty years of experience as a life insurance salesman, and
frankly acknowledged that his success in that field was due, in no small
degree, to the lesson he had learned from the child. Mr. Darby pointed
out: ‘Every time a prospect tried to bow me out, without buying, I saw
that child standing there in the old mill, her big eyes glaring in defiance,
and I said to myself, 'I've gotta make this sale. ' The better portion of all
sales I have made, were made after people had said 'NO'.’ He recalled,
too, his mistake in having stopped only three feet from gold, ‘but,’ he
said, ‘that experience was a blessing in disguise. It taught me to keep
on keeping on, no matter how hard the going may be, a lesson I needed
to learn before I could succeed in anything.’ This story of Mr. Darby and
his uncle, the colored child and the gold mine, doubtless will be read by
hundreds of men who make their living by selling life insurance, and to
all of these, the author wishes to offer the suggestion that Darby owes
to these two experiences his ability to sell more than a million dollars of
life insurance every year. Life is strange, and often imponderable! Both
the successes and the failures have their roots in simple experiences.
Mr. Darby's experiences were commonplace and simple enough, yet
they held the answer to his destiny in life, therefore they were as
important (to
him) as life itself. He profited by these two dramatic experiences,
because he analyzed them, and found the lesson they taught. But what
of the man who has neither the time, nor the inclination to study failure
in search of knowledge that may lead to success? Where, and how is
he to learn the art of converting defeat into stepping stones to
opportunity? In answer to these questions, this book was written. The
answer called for a description of thirteen principles, but remember, as
you read, the answer you may be seeking, to the questions which have
caused you to ponder over the strangeness of life, may be found in your
own mind, through some idea, plan, or purpose which may spring into
your mind as you read. One sound idea is all that one needs to achieve
success. The principles described in this book, contain the best, and the
most practical of all that is known, concerning ways and means of
creating useful ideas. Before we go any further in our approach to the
description of these principles, we believe you are entitled to receive
this important suggestion…. WHEN RICHES BEGIN TO COME THEY
COME SO QUICKLY, IN SUCH GREAT ABUNDANCE, THAT ONE
WONDERS WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN HIDING DURING ALL
THOSE LEAN YEARS. This is an astounding statement, and all the
more so, when we take into consideration the popular belief, that riches
come only to those who work hard and long. When you begin to THINK
AND GROW RICH, you will observe that riches begin with a state of
mind, with definiteness of purpose, with little or no hard work. You, and
every other person, ought to be interested in knowing how to acquire
that state of mind which will attract riches. I spent twenty-five years in
research, analyzing more than 25,000 people, because I, too, wanted to
know ‘how wealthy men become that way. Without that research, this
book could not have been written. Here take notice of a very significant
truth, viz: The business depression started in 1929, and continued on to
an all time record of destruction, until sometime after President
Roosevelt entered
office. Then the depression began to fade into nothingness. Just as an
electrician in a theatre raises the lights so gradually that darkness is
transmuted into light before you realize it, so did the spell of fear in the
minds of the people gradually fade away and become faith. Observe
very closely, as soon as you master the principles of this philosophy,
and begin to follow the instructions for applying those principles, your
financial status will begin to improve, and everything you touch will
begin to transmute itself into an asset for your benefit. Impossible? Not
at all! One of the main weaknesses of mankind is the average man's
familiarity with the word ‘impossible.’ He knows all the rules which will
NOT work. He knows all the things which CANNOT be done. This book
was written for those who seek the rules which have made others
successful, and are willing to stake everything on those rules. A great
many years ago I purchased a fine dictionary. The first thing I did with it
was to turn to the word ‘impossible,’ and neatly clip it out of the book.
That would not be an unwise thing for you to do. Success comes to
those who become SUCCESS CONSCIOUS. Failure comes to those
who indifferently allow themselves to become FAILURE CONSCIOUS.
The object of this book is to help all who seek it, to learn the art of
changing their minds from FAILURE CONSCIOUSNESS to SUCCESS
CONSCIOUSNESS. Another weakness found in altogether too many
people, is the habit of measuring everything, and everyone, by their
own impressions and beliefs. Some who will read this, will believe that
no one can THINK AND GROW RICH. They cannot think in terms of
riches, because their thought habits have been steeped in poverty,
want, misery, failure, and defeat. These unfortunate people remind me
of a prominent Chinese, who came to America to be educated in
American ways. He attended the University of Chicago. One day
President Harper met this young Oriental on the campus, stopped to
chat with him for a few minutes, and asked what had impressed him as
being the most noticeable characteristic of the American
people. ‘Why,’ the Chinaman exclaimed, ‘the queer slant of your eyes.
Your eyes are off slant!’ What do we say about the Chinese? We refuse
to believe that which we do not understand. We foolishly believe that
our own limitations are the proper measure of limitations. Sure, the
other fellow's eyes are ‘off slant,’ BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT THE
SAME AS OUR OWN. Millions of people look at the achievements of
Henry Ford, after he has arrived, and envy him, because of his good
fortune, or luck, or genius, or whatever it is that they credit for Ford's
fortune. Perhaps one person in every hundred thousand knows the
secret of Ford's success, and those who do know are too modest, or too
reluctant, to speak of it, because of its simplicity. A single transaction
will illustrate the ‘secret’ perfectly. A few years back, Ford decided to
produce his now famous V-8 motor. He chose to build an engine with
the entire eight cylinders cast in one block, and instructed his engineers
to produce a design for the engine. The design was placed on paper,
but the engineers agreed, to a man, that it was simply impossible to
cast an eight-cylinder gas engine block in one piece. Ford said,
‘Produce it anyway.’ ‘But,’ they replied, ‘it's impossible!’ ‘Go ahead,’
Ford commanded, ‘and stay on the job until you succeed no matter how
much time is required.’ The engineers went ahead. There was nothing
else for them to do, if they were to remain on the Ford staff. Six months
went by, nothing happened. Another six months passed, and still
nothing happened. The engineers tried every conceivable plan to carry
out the orders, but the thing seemed out of the question; ‘impossible!’ At
the end of the year Ford checked with his engineers, and again they
informed him they had found no way to carry out his orders. ‘Go right
ahead,’ said Ford, ‘I want it, and I'll have it.’ They went ahead, and then,
as if by a stroke of
magic, the secret was discovered. The Ford DETERMINATION had
won once more! This story may not be described with minute accuracy,
but the sum and substance of it is correct. Deduce from it, you who wish
to THINK AND GROW RICH, the secret of the Ford millions, if you can.
You'll not have to look very far. Henry Ford is a success, because he
understands, and applies the principles of success. One of these is
DESIRE: knowing what one wants. Remember this Ford story as you
read, and pick out the lines in which the secret of his stupendous
achievement have been described. If you can do this, if you can lay
your finger on the particular group of principles which made Henry Ford
rich, you can equal his achievements in almost any calling for which you
are suited.

YOU ARE ‘THE MASTER OF YOUR FATE, THE CAPTAIN OF YOUR

SOUL,’ BECAUSE… When Henley wrote the
prophetic lines, ‘I am the Master of my Fate, I am the Captain of my
Soul,’ he should have informed us that we are the Masters of our Fate,
the Captains of our Souls, because we have the power to control our
thoughts. He should have told us that the ether in which this little earth
floats, in which we move and have our being, is a form of energy
moving at an inconceivably high rate of vibration, and that the ether is
filled with a form of universal power which ADAPTS itself to the nature
of the thoughts we hold in our minds; and INFLUENCES us, in natural
ways, to transmute our thoughts into their physical equivalent. If the
poet had told us of this great truth, we would know WHY IT IS that we
are the Masters of our Fate, the Captains of our Souls. He should have
told us, with great emphasis, that this power makes no attempt to
discriminate between destructive thoughts and constructive thoughts,
that it will urge us to translate into physical reality thoughts of poverty,
just as quickly as it will influence us to act upon thoughts of riches. He
should have told us, too, that our brains become magnetized with the
dominating thoughts which we hold
in our minds, and, by means with which no man is familiar, these
‘magnets’ attract to us the forces, the people, the circumstances of life
which harmonize with the nature of our dominating thoughts. He should
have told us, that before we can accumulate riches in great abundance,
we must magnetize our minds with intense DESIRE for riches, that we
must become ‘money conscious until the DESIRE for money drives us
to create definite plans for acquiring it. But, being a poet, and not a
philosopher, Henley contented himself by stating a great truth in poetic
form, leaving those who followed him to interpret the philosophical
meaning of his lines. Little by little, the truth has unfolded itself, until it
now appears certain that the principles described in this book, hold the
secret of mastery over our economic fate. We are now ready to
examine the first of these principles. Maintain a spirit of open-
mindedness, and remember as you read, they are the invention of no
one man. The principles were gathered from the life experiences of
more than 500 men who actually accumulated riches in huge amounts;
men who began in poverty, with but little education, without influence.
The principles worked for these men. You can put them to work for your
own enduring benefit. You will find it easy, not hard, to do. Before you
read the next chapter, I want you to know that it conveys factual
information which might easily change your entire financial destiny, as it
has so definitely brought changes of stupendous proportions to two
people described. I want you to know, also, that the relationship
between these two men and myself, is such that I could have taken no
liberties with the facts, even if I had wished to do so. One of them has
been my closest personal friend for almost twenty-five years, the other
is my own son. The unusual success of these two men, success which
they generously accredit to the principle described in the next chapter,
more than justifies this personal reference as a means of emphasizing
the far-flung power of this principle. Almost fifteen years ago, I delivered
the Commencement Address at Salem College, Salem, West
Virginia. I emphasized the principle described in the next chapter, with
so much intensity that one of the members of the graduating class
definitely appropriated it, and made it a part of his own philosophy. The
young man is now a Member of Congress, and an important factor in
the present administration. Just before this book went to the publisher,
he wrote me a letter in which he so clearly stated his opinion of the
principle outlined in the next chapter, that I have chosen to publish his
letter as an introduction to that chapter. It gives you an idea of the
rewards to come. ‘My dear Napoleon: ‘My service as a Member of
Congress having given me an insight into the problems of men and
women, I am writing to offer a suggestion which may become helpful to
thousands of worthy people. ‘With apologies, I must state that the
suggestion, if acted upon, will mean several years of labor and
responsibility for you, but I am enheartened to make the suggestion,
because I know your great love for rendering useful service. ‘In 1922,
you delivered the Commencement address at Salem College, when I
was a member' of the graduating class. In that address, you planted in
my mind an idea which has been responsible for the opportunity I now
have to serve the people of my State, and will be responsible, in a very
large measure, for whatever success I may have in the future. ‘The
suggestion I have in mind is, that you put into a book the sum and
substance of the address you delivered at Salem College, and in that
way give the people of America an opportunity to profit by your many
years of experience and association with the men who, by their
greatness, have made America the richest nation on earth. ‘I recall, as
though it were yesterday, the marvelous description you gave of the
method by which Henry Ford, with but little schooling, without a dollar,
with no influential friends, rose to great heights. I made up my mind
then, even before you had finished your speech, that I would make a
place for myself, no matter how many difficulties I had to surmount.
‘Thousands of young people will finish their
schooling this year, and within the next few years. Every one of them
will be seeking just such a message of practical encouragement as the
one I received from you. They will want to know where to turn, what to
do, to get started in life. You can tell them, because you have helped to
solve the problems of so many, many people. ‘If there is any possible
way that you can afford to render so great a service, may I offer the
suggestion that you include with every book, one of your Personal
Analysis Charts, in order that the purchaser of the book may have the
benefit of a complete self-inventory, indicating, as you indicated to me
years ago, exactly what is standing in the way of success. ‘Such a
service as this, providing the readers of your book with a complete,
unbiased picture of their faults and their virtues, would mean to them
the difference between success and failure. The service would be
priceless. ‘Millions of people are now facing the problem of staging a
comeback, because of the depression, and I speak from personal
experience when I say, I know these earnest people would welcome the
opportunity to tell you their problems, and to receive your suggestions
for the solution. ‘You know the problems of those who face the
necessity of beginning all over again. There are thousands of people in
America today who would like to know how they can convert ideas into
money, people who must start at scratch, without finances, and recoup
their losses. If anyone can help them, you can. ‘If you publish the book,
I would like to own the first copy that comes from the press, personally
autographed by you. ‘With best wishes, believe me, ‘Cordially yours,
‘JENNINGS RANDOLPH’

Hope you enjoy reading this chapter!

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