Napoleon Hill - What is the 'secret'

M

MarkR

Hi All,
I've just about finished Think & Grow Rich (50 pgs left to go) for the first time & was wondering what the different takes on the 'secret' have been.

There's continual reference in the preface to the 'secret' that the book contains and how it has been used by many to achieve their financial goals. For those who've read the book what was their take on what the 'secret' was ?

Anyone care to comment ?

Given I've raised the question, it's only fair I give you my current take on it which is - there are no secrets, just the implementation of a number of techniques that can all be trained and developed i.e. persistence, auto suggestion, imagination, etc. Perhaps the only secret is that without desire you won't have the will to implement the others, but even desire can be developed i.e. a dream or wish given visualisation and imagination can develop into your burning desire, therefore how can desire be the secret ?

And for you followers of Socrates out there please don't ask me to define 'secret' :p

And for you lovers of English I know I'm not supposed to start a sentence with 'And' :D

Cheers
Mark
 
Hi Mark

This is one of my favourite books. Your question is an interesting one. I don't know that I could put my interpretation of "the secret" into a nutshell however I think you are on the right track.

The book has been true to name for me. I hope it does the same for you!

Regards
Julie
Audentes Fortuna Juvat
Fortune Favours the Bold
 
For most successful people I know who have read that book, they tell me that the book has the techniques but the real secret is how committed are you to using those techniques everyday.
My father for one gives credit to that book for making him so wealthy as he is now, and the secret? He believes in it 100% and he applies it and lives it 100%.

Cos lots of people have read that book and shelved it away in their library somewhere (if they have a personal library!), but only those who apply them consistently have produces results.
 
Hi all,

Mark,
Thousands of people(probably millions) spend vast fortunes every year to a whole range of shysters and hucksters in an effort to obtain the secret to wealth. They all promise to share the secret, but after paying a small fortune, find that the REAL secret will be revealed in the $15000 week long course/black box etc.

Of course the end result is that many people chop and change from one theory of the secret to the next, never quite grasping the holy grail.

One advantage of this forum is that you can always count on someone to give away information that can be sold for thousands elsewhere.

Acey was the most succinct "The secret is that there is no secret".

bye
 
No secret?

Maybe I know something you don't and the best part is only cost me about 20 bucks to buy the book and find out.

Julie
Audentes Fortuna Juvat
Fortune Favours the Bold
 
OK, So Bill.L, Acey, & Rodimus all appear to confirm my original take on this one (as per my first post) BTW I've got Bill & Acey agreeing - do I get a free set of steak knives :p OK, they do agree regularly so I'll let that one slide :cool:

- now simonjulie you've intrigued me would you care to elaborate ? :confused: Or are you leading ?

Cheers & thanks for those who've responded.
 
Mark

Acey and Bill L said that there was no secret, whereas Rodimus had a different response.

I think the real clues here Mark are RESULTS. Rodimus said that his Dad has given the book credit for his wealth and I can tell you it did the same for me. The book had a significant impact on the way I think about money whether or not I can or will define "the secret" it contains.

Think and grow rich is a real gem and it's no wonder that it is still being sold in bookshops 67 years after it was written.

Regards
Julie
 
The secret is to first know what you want, focus on it and take clear action towards achieving it!

Want to be rich, focus on being rich, learn about how to get rich and take action to become rich.

Easy to say....bloody difficult to do, particularly in a consistant manner over the time, it take's lots of time/effort to achive a meaningful result.

Most people dont know what they want, dont focus on anything and take any action that is the most plainless for now.
 
always_learning said:
The secret is to first know what you want, focus on it and take clear action towards achieving it!
Click to expand...

Very true Always Learning.

Many people have read "Think and Grow Rich" but are not yet rich. The real secret is to follow all the clues in the book and one of those is to take action that is in line with your organised planning.

A couple of years ago I spoke to a group of investors. I asked for a show of hands those who had read "Think and Grow Rich". Quite a lot of hands went up. I then asked who had done the exercises in the book eg. Six ways to turn desires into Gold. Only one or two hands went up this time.

Therein lies another clue - most people can't or won't follow simple instructions - they think that reading the book is enough - not so.

Julie
 
Secret, what secret???

Hi all,

Just my 2c FWIW....

I have never read ANY of the so many wonderful titles/authors so often mentioned both in here and at PI.com, and yet I have achieved tremendous wealth. So much so, that if I choose to, I don't ever have to work again.

And the secret is??? Simple.....

Whatever it is, you won't find the answer in a book. Look deeper within, to the hands that are holding its pages, there lies your answer. The book will inspire, motivate and entertain.....it will not make you wealthy; you will make you wealthy!!!

Get out there and act on your desires, and eventually you will become your greatest success!!!

Cheers, :)

Jo
 
The main "problem" with Think and Grow Rich is that it is a little "kooky", the active agent being "infinite intelligence" (or in StarWars Terms "the force") rather than you deciding want you want and taking decisive action toward achieving it over time.

Here are the six step:

  1. Fix in your mind the EXACT amount of money you desire. It is not sufficient to just say "I want plenty of money'.
  2. Determine EXACTLY what you are going to give in return for the money. .
  3. Establish a DEFINITE date when you intend to possess the money you desire.
  4. Create a DEFINITE plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, ready or not, to put this plan into action.
  5. Write out a clear and CONCISE statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, name the time limit for its acquisition, state what you intend to give in return for the money and describe, clearly, the plan which you intend to use to accumulate it.
  6. Read you written statement, aloud, twice daily. Once just before you go to bed at night, and again immediately on rising. As you read - see, and feel and believe yourself already in possession of the money.
...6.5..Do or do not, there is no try - Yoda

Kooky yes, but I suppose it does fall within the zone of "do no harm", all you could waste is a few minutes in the morning and at night.
 
Last edited:
Always_learning,

You will be surprised how many very successful and rich people at the top absolutely believe in what most people term 'kooky'.
I always make it a must to ask rich people how they become so rich and successful, whether its my father's friends or people I meet. Invariably about 95% of them believe in the power of thought, subconscious power, power of belief and faith, and even superconscious/infinite intelligence that helps them to be successful.(as mentioned by Hill)

Even Anthony Robbins, he may try to sound very western logical minded when teaching the masses (eg his massive action, strategy, ultimate success formula) because he doesnt want to spook the masses, but in interviews he always slips out some secrets or 2 that he believes and does all the 'kooky' things. He said, when he was so poor that he was living in his VW car outside 7-11, working as janitor, every day he will do the Napoleon Hill stuff to autosuggest and imagine being a millionaire. And he achieved it in less than 1 year, because he said he did it more than 2 times everyday without miss!

He even said the title "Awaken The Giant within", the Giant he was refering to was the God force within us all that achieves all and knows no obstruction. Also a pun to how big he is phsycally.
 
What works for somer does not work for others.

I found some of Hill's stuff a bit over the top as well- it's not for me.

The fundamental ideas I find OK, but I found them taken too far. I can visualise things, and that will motivate me- but a mantra of a specific amount of money constantly is not something I am comfortable with.

I'm getting a lot of value from Robbins- but if there were ideas I found over the top (like many of his dietary ideas) I simply don't take them on. That doesn't stop me from getting value out of many other ideas he presents.

A "God force" within though is not over the top. We all have a lot more inside ourselves than we realise, and drawing on that (whatever name we give to it) can give us a lot of help.
 
I agree with a lot of what has been said and I must say that I will never apologise for being a little "kooky". Being kooky probably has a lot to do with travelling your own road and not staying with the herd.

I also believe that being a fanatic and a little obsessed with your goals can go a long way towards putting you into that kooky bunch of people who are very successful and sometimes set apart from the crowd.

Julie
Audentes Fortuna Juvat
Fortune Favours the Bold
 
simonjulie said:
I agree with a lot of what has been said and I must say that I will never apologise for being a little "kooky". Being kooky probably has a lot to do with travelling your own road and not staying with the herd.

I also believe that being a fanatic and a little obsessed with your goals can go a long way towards putting you into that kooky bunch of people who are very successful and sometimes set apart from the crowd.

Julie
Audentes Fortuna Juvat
Fortune Favours the Bold
Click to expand...

Then again you could be just 'kooky'. But kooky is relative, i know a peson that is seriously kooky and if they met someone who just thought they were kooky, well....lets just say the person who thought they were kooky would be thinking they better go back to kooky school.

By the direction of this thread, it would seem that being 'kooky' is a prerequisite for being successful. And thats just plain silly.

Who is Napoleon Hill anyway and who cares what his secret is? I consider myself successful and ive never heard of this stuff or a secret but i was tempted to once buy 'Wealth in a Box' for a few grand. :D


As Monopoly says, each persons secret is already in them. You dont get secrets (or success) from a book. By the way Monopoly, what are you doing this weekend?
 
likewow said:
By the direction of this thread, it would seem that being 'kooky' is a prerequisite for being successful. And thats just plain silly.
Click to expand...

Replace "kooky" with "extraordinary". It doesn't matter what terms you use. Ordinary people get ordinary results. To become truly wealthy you need to do your own thing and make your own decisions without someone holding your hand and that is one of the things you can read between the lines in this famous book and many other success books. Whether you read it in a book or figure it out for yourself it doesn't really matter.

To get extraordinary results you need to be more than ordinary.

Julie
 
Hence the secret to great wealthy is to be a bit balmy!

And I am being serious. You have to believe in what others do not...that it IS possible to achieve.

Cheers,

Aceyducey
 
Aceyducey said:
Hence the secret to great wealthy is to be a bit balmy!
Click to expand...
Balmy- "Mild, clement, pleasant, gentle". Hardly welath characteristics.

However- barmy- "crazy, mad, daft, silly".

I can just see the "balmy army" at the cricket in Australia- lying back, enjoying the game quietly :D
 
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