The Habit of Saving may seem like the most simple lesson in Napoleon Hill’s “Law of Success” fifteen lessons, yet it might be the most difficult. The fact that everything that is simple is not always easy. The current state of America dictates that the majority of the population does not even have $1000 in their savings account. The lesson is not about the amount that is saved, but in fact it gauges the discipline and character of the individual. When you are making less money it is easy to dream about what you would do when you have money. A wise man once said that it is not having money that gives you attitude, but in fact it is the attitude that allows you to acquire money.

A direct quote from the “Law of Success” states that “Expenses increased with every increase in my income, which is a habit,…”. This is not the habit that Napoleon wants readers to derive from this lesson. Many people live by this habit of being spendthrift to the fullest. The concept of keeping money for a rainy day is lost on deaf ears. I am reminded of a story that my mother told me as a child. The way I remember the story is that a man was waiting for a windfall. The time that he was waiting for the money to come he boasted about how much he would give to “charity”. The day came and he received his monies and the charity saw none of it. He was later heard saying that when he did not have the money he had the mind, but once he received the money he did not have the mind. The moral of the story is that you must always have the mind to save money.

I have read a number of different books told by storytellers far better than my mom. The knowledge gained from her has not been overshadowed by those of Og Mandingo and Napoleon Hill. Og Mandingo “The Richest Man in Babylon” discussed seven cures for a lean purse and it was very informative and enlightening. He told this story in the simplest narrative that you could not help, but learn his lessons. The one that stand out for me is the same concept that Napoleon Hill is highlighting in “Law of Success”.

Og Mandingo setting for his book was many hundred years ago. Napoleon Hill and Og Mandingo both believed that saving some of your earning is very important. Saving a percentage of your “salary” allowed you to be ready if any opportunity that required investing money. The opportunity to live your dreams comes unexpectedly. The saying is that when opportunity knocks many people are at the back door. The fact that you don’t have your investment ready could be detrimental to your success. The person with a saving is in a better position to invest than a person with no saving at all. The more disciplined you are in saving for the future the better you are view by others. The act of saving consistently is view as a very strong character trait. The people who do not save are view in a totally different light.

Napoleon Hill tells different stories about people who did not have the discipline to save money. The problem that plague many people is that the more they make the more they spend. This habit is sometimes very difficult to overcome. Napoleon Hill defines a habit as “any act indulged in a few times”. He further states that “the mind appears to be nothing more than a mass of motivating forces growing out of our daily habits.” I draw from this that if our habits are not controlled or directed to better acts, then your future may be ruin extensively. I am in concert with Og Mandingo, and Napoleon Hill, as we say save consistently no matter how small.

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Self Confidence is lesson #2 in Napoleon Hill’s Law of Success and I will put my twist on it.  The concept of good and evil is a very easy concept to relate to.  We remember the old familiar picture of two beings resting on our shoulders whispering into our ears.  The one being dress in red is trying to get you to take evil actions, while the other being dress in white is trying to get you to do the right thing.  The one you listen dictates your destiny.  Our thoughts do determine our destiny most of the time.  This can be likened to building your self-confidence to achieve whatever your heart desires.  Fear is one the most detrimental opponent to achieving success in life.

The red dress being attacks your mind with a constant “you can’t do it-you are afraid to try—…” in your ear.  Fear can lead you to do some weird things in your life.  The telephone is a small instrument that can bring the strongest and biggest man to his knees.  It is amazing that when the telephone is your main source of your livelihood and just the thought of picking it up and dialing a prospect could lead you to failure.  Self-confidence is one of the greatest proponents to counteract fear.  The main six fears are listed below:

1. Fear of Poverty
2. The Fear of Old Age
3. The Fear of Criticism
4. The Fear of loss of  Someone
5. The Fear of Ill health
6. The Fear of Death

Most human beings are attacked by these fears in one way or another.  Napoleon Hill states “that nothing brings man so much suffering and humiliation as doe’s poverty.”  Napoleon Hill states that man gets satisfaction out of eating a fellow man out financially while animals eat each other physically.  The combination of these facts makes it one of the most dangerous fears.  You must have confidence in yourself to achieve your goals and aspiration in life, business and relationship.

I will continue with this topic in my next article.  Please comment or provide any feedback.

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The twelfth steps to riches in Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich seem to be the shortest chapter in this book, yet it is the most important.  Napoleon Hill describes the brain as the twelfth step to riches. Why is the brain the twelfth step and not the first?  Desire is the first step to riches and originates in the brain.  Emotional feelings are normally associated with the heart.  Most people would say that your heart is where desire develops, but this desire started in the brain.  The seed to increase riches was planted in the brain and cultivated in the heart.

The Brain should truly be the first step and not the twelfth step.  The space between our ears is the true power of what we can achieve in life.  The better you are at using your brain the better chance you will succeed.  What we learn in school or synthetic imagination is taught at an early age would like to your true success.  A teacher teaches that 1+1=2, yet that is not the only knowledge you need to succeed.  Intangible concepts such as autosuggestion, the subconscious mind and creative imagination are used to stretch the power of the brain.

Micheal Jordan is one of the greatest basketball players of all time.  Some basketball enthusiast would think that record was what made him great.  I believe that it was his intangibles that made him the greatest.  Micheal practiced more than any other person on his team.  He truly mastered both imaginations to be one of the greatest basketball players ever.

Synthetic imagination works in conjunction with creative imagination to help you achieve your riches.  Your intangibles are useless until you take action.  The Winner’s Creed states that the person who wins is the one he thinks he can. The steps that Napoleon Hill outlines so far are stemming from thinking and growing rich but without action all thoughts are wasted.  Knowledge is said to be power, but it is actually the proper application of knowledge in the right order that is power.

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The subconscious mind holds many mysteries for all of us yet Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich states that this is the eleventh step to riches.   The subconscious mind is the link between the conscious mind and implementation of any ideas and plans.  Have you ever waked up in the middle of the night with the solution to a problem that you had been wrestling with all day?  It could be a person name that for the life of you, you could not remember.  When you laid your head down the subconscious took over.  The fact that you gave attention to that problem was enough acknowledgments for your mind to go to work on the solution.  I might not know how the subconscious mind works, but I know that I work.

I enter a room and turn on the light switch and the majority of the time the lights comes on.  The average person might not know how electricity but they are not going to go out their way to learn why.  They will continue to enjoy these illuminations in total unknowing bliss; the subconscious mind is just like that.  When we tap into our subconscious mind we don’t need to know exactly how it works.  The main requirement is that we must tap into it.  The subconscious mind is a link between your conscious mind and your desires.  It is a medium that we know a small fraction of how it works, but we get evidence of it everyday.  The operation of the subconscious mind is a mystery, but left to its own vices will take your plan, desire or purpose to fruition.

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My initial understanding of Napoleon Hill describing the tenth step to riches, Sex Transmutation, in his famous book “Think and Grow Rich” has evolved into a deeper understanding.  It is proven fact that when you read a book over and over again you will get different nuggets from it.  “Think and Grow Rich” is one such book.  I have now read this concept about six times now and my understanding is deeper. Transmute is the changing or transferring of one element or form of energy into another.

Watch the video below to learn more about my initial impression:

I thought originally that the tenth step to riches of Sex Transmutation was about abstaining from sex and using that power to achieve your goals.  I have expanded my thinking to include harnessing that power achieving a higher plane and then attacking your endeavors with a renew concentration.  I think that these concepts are similar to long distance runners and marathoners who push their bodies beyond what the average person can do.  Runners get into what is called a zone where they feel they can run forever.  These runners achieve a level where speed and comfort are maximized.

The runner has to fight internally when they reach the “wall” where the desire to quit becomes stronger and stronger.  As a runner you have to go deep to overcome ultimate failure.  Willpower is easier said than done, but the ultimate reward is substantial.  The stronger your power to will yourself to the finish line the closer you will be to being successful.  Sex transmutation is an excellent example of having to get into that “zone” to combat something that is so natural.

Sexual expression is a natural part of your life and can never be destroyed.  The choice is either finding a constructive outlet for it or indulging in the purely physical aspect of it.  An animal becomes docile after their sex organs are castrated so imagine a man without this source of power.  A transmutation of this energy will help you in the long term when you have the power to overcome the will to indulge in sexual activity.

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Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich” discusses the 6 six most common fears that are destroying our success in life, business and relationships.  These super fears may be the single most cause of many failing businesses or people never even attempting a business. These fears appear in many different forms such procrastination, staying within the box, easily influenced, etc. You may be ridden by one or more of the following 6 common fears as listed below:

1. Fear of poverty
2. Fear of criticism
3. Fear of Ill Health
4. Fear of loss of love of someone
5. Fear of old age
6. Fear of death.

All other fears are of minor importance and can be grouped under these six fears. The good thing is that we are normally not afflicted by all of them at once. These fears or in any combination could stop you in your tracks when it come to succeeding in your life and business. When you have fears that are paralyzing and hindering you from achieving success in your life, relationships and businesses, then you must overcome these fears to succeed. The fear of poverty is the very first one I will discuss in this article and the others in subsequent articles.

Poverty is a crippling fear that a majority of the masses suffers from. The current state of The Economy has everyone running scared. We are seeing an increased in violence, neglect and excuses among other things. If I had a dollar every time someone says to me I am not succeeding because of the economy, I would be a billionaire. Poverty is a state of mind, yet it has enough power to destroy a person chance to succeed in life and business. This state of mind fundamentally annihilates the ambition of a person before they even take his or her first step to riches.

There are a number of symptoms of this fear such as indifference, indecision, doubt, worry, over caution and procrastination. If you are stricken with all or some of these symptoms, then how are you going to make the necessary changes? The first step to riches is desire, but before that you have to the right mind set. Our thoughts determine our words, words determine our actions, actions determine our habits, habits determine our character and our character determines our DESTINY.

Our thoughts therefore control our destiny in life so therefore, the best way to overcome our fear of poverty is to control our thoughts. When you are in control of your state of mind, then you would be able to rejuvenate your ability to reason. You would therefore have a renewed enthusiasm towards succeeding and taking the initiative to change your state of mind aggressively. You would only take actions that will be conducive to your success in life and business; thereby indirectly you would be in control of your destiny.

Personal Development is another method that you can use to help you embark on your journey to control your state of mind. Personal Development will help you eliminate those limiting beliefs and thoughts that are holding you back from achieving your riches in life and business. Riches are defined on an individual basis from one person to the next. Some people define riches as money, status, power and for others it might simply be gratitude. The fear of poverty must be broken immediately to prevent future generation from being afflicted with it.

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The Law of Compensation states that your income is determined by how many people you serve and how well you serve them.  The way it works normally is if you work for an hour, then you get paid for an hour worth of work.  Compensation is normally what we receive for performing a specific service at our job.  A server in a restaurant serves many people so you would expect them to be over compensated for their job.  .  The server is expected and requires pay and tips to perform her duties.  The Law of Compensation is all about helping others selflessness, without an expectation of something in return.

The simple act of doing for others is a tough concept for many people.  We live in a society where you are expected to be paid for everything that you do for someone. For many years Mother Teresa ministered to the poor, sick and orphans, an excellent candidate for the Law of Compensation.  The difference is that the “income” that she received was intangible.  Mother Teresa helped people because of her visibility and reputation.  The more people she helped the more she was able to attract people who believed in her cause.  As a nun she did not have a need for material or monetary things.

Do you work in a job that you feel that the Law of Compensation should apply?

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The Law of Reciprocity is about giving and being open to receive without expectations or obligations.  My two sons were part of the AAU Easter Classic which is a basketball tournament for ages 7 to 17 years old.  I witnessed the law of reciprocity in action live.  The “give and go” is a very great play that when use effectively add points to the overall team score.  The person bringing the ball up the court, with a defender on him, passes the ball to an open teammate on either side of the baseline.  The teammate immediately passes the ball back to him as he cut quickly to the hoop.  The final execution of the play is scoring the two points.  The better teams were the ones that the player did not have a problem passing the ball to the open man.  I think that sometimes we want to do it all alone, but in a basketball game that definitely defeats the purpose of having four other players on the court with you.

The teams that won consistently had no issue with passing the ball to someone else who did not have 3 defenders surrounding him.  The teams that lost had the underlying team of individuals not trusting their teammates and wanting to carry the team on his back.  No one player is better than the team working in unison.  The team is only as effective as the sum of all the parts working together for particular goals and objectives.  The game of basketball is just one area of life where this law is king, what other area of your life do you see The Law of Reciprocity in action?

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The gems of knowledge that you get from Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich” are endless. The previous articles we discussed Napoleon Hill’s leadership’s philosophies of unwavering courage, self control, definiteness of decision and definiteness of plans.  We will discuss of a leader who has a habit doing more than he or she is paid for. This leadership philosophy in correlation with his other ideas gives you different ways to achieving success in life and business. The question of who makes a great leader is an idea that is dependent on the person. Leadership means different things to different people. A person who you respect is a leader in your eyes might be a nuisance to others.

People are more prone to keep following a leader that goes above and beyond the call of duty. The ideal world is prone to perfect execution and flawless execution of all plans. We don’t live in the ideal world so a leader who can roll with punches and succeed no matter the obstacles is truly appreciated.  Successful leaders do whatever it takes to accomplish their goals. When you have goals that are not on track someone has to do extra work. Leaders sometimes take it upon themselves to put the extra time necessary to get back on track.

Michael Jordan was always the first one at practice and the last one to leave. Michael wanted to make sure that he was prepared to win every game. Michael work ethics made many of his team mates improve their game. He did so much more than was required of him that he inspired many others to do the same. Michael Jordan’s commitment to excellence led to many NBA Championships and the respect of millions of people. Some followers believe that it is their job to pick up the slack and don’t like to see the leader do the extra lifting.

A leader has to able to get down in the trenches and do the “dirty” work sometimes. When your subordinates know that you have no problem rolling up your sleeves and getting to work they have no issues doing more than is expected of them. We are not talking about the people who do it to further their own agenda. The followers who truly believe in the ideals of the leader and are committed to helping him or her accomplish these goals are the one deserving of the praise. If the habit of doing more than is expected of you becomes viral, then your business may explode beyond belief. If you start applying this leadership philosophy and the others in the previous article that Napoleon Hill writes about you will see a change in your business in a relatively short time.

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