Think and Grow Rich Review

Subj: Review of THINK AND GROW RICH

Ref: (a) Your memo of September 12, 2007

(b) Think &Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

1. Thank you for the opportunity to work on a project in accordance with reference (a) in which you requested an analysis of Napoleon Hill’s book, Think and Grow Rich. Your request to analyze the text for its applicability and lessons that can be helpful to aspiring entrepreneurs and aspiring managers was personally and professionally quite exciting.

It would be extremely important, useful, and beneficial for a CEO of a high technology start up firm to read this book that was written during the industrial era for several reason. First, no matter what era you are in, the major attributes and principles described in this book do not change. A futurist, Alvin Toffler, wrote a book called The 3rd Wave in the 1980’s describing each era (wave) and because of technology the eras are becoming shorter and coming closer together. The first wave was Agriculture, lasting 3,000 years. The second wave was the Industrial, lasting 300 years. The third wave is Info Technology and it is estimated to only last 30 years. What will be the fourth wave? Biotechnology, possibly Nanotechnology. By analyzing the patterns, this should only last three years. Times change and there is always going to be a shift in power. That is why this book is useful. The key points given are not for a specific era, they are tried and true for empowering ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary feats.

Napoleon Hill was born into poverty in 1883. He began his writing career at the age of 13 as a mountain reporter in Virginia. He achieved great success at an attorney and a reporter. His early career as a reporter helped finance his way through law school. He was given an assignment to write a series of success stories of famous men. His big break came when he interviewed Andrew Carnegie. Mr. Carnegie commissioned Hill to interview over 500 millionaires to find a success formula that could be used by the average person. Hill later became Andrew Carnegie’s advisor. Napoleon Hill spent his lifetime in research of not only Andrew Carnegie, but other 500 wealthy individuals who revealed the sources of their riches to him in order to reveal to ordinary people in all walks of life who are willing to give their organized plans, thoughts, and ideas in return for riches. This is not a “get rich quick” scheme. It is an influential book paving the road for personal achievement.

Describe 15 key points that you feel are the “core” of lessons that Hill is trying to impart to his readers. Give me the bottom line in simple, direct English. Remember, I am NOT a business major nor have I had any courses in business. For each of the 15 points, tell me what relevance this may have to our type of firm at present. The 15 key points Hill is trying to impart is broken down by chapters and expounded upon throughly by examples and explanations.

(a) Thoughts Are Things -- The thought, idea, or vision is the start. It is an impulse of thought that is turned into material rewards by the application of known principles. The principles are discussed below. Push through your set backs, and temporary failures and you will find your thoughts will become reality, a thing. Hill stated, “Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve. Think and Grow Rich.”

(b) Desire-- The first step towards riches. It is not a wish, or a hope. It is a know fact, something within us that if nurtured will lead us to great success.

(c) Faith-- When faith is blended with thought, the subconscious mind instantly picks up the vibration, translates it into its spiritual equivalent, and transmits it to Infinite Intelligence, i.e. prayer. It is a state of mind which may be induced, or created by affirmation or repeated instructions of the subconscious mind, through the the principle of autosuggestion.

(d) Autosuggestion-- Autosuggestion is a process by which an individual trains the subconscious mind to believe something. Autosuggestion is usually accomplished by presenting one's mind with repetitive thoughts (negative or positive), until those thoughts become internalized. Hill using this term for positive thought and belief of a person.

(e) Specialized Knowledge-- General and specialized are the two kinds of knowledge. Knowledge alone will not attract money. It must be organized and directed though a practical plan of action. Specialized knowledge one that is educated not only by school, but mostly by personal experience or observation. An educated man is one who has developed resources to acquire