Day 9 - ACTION

Putting plans into effect will achieve one's vision.

"The self is not something ready-made, but something in continuous formation through choice of action." - John Dewey

Why daydreams are so disregarded is the simple fact that they are usually never planned out for actualization, no action is taken on them.

You have now learned to think positively and creatively to expand your vision. The next step is to work out how to achieve it, what steps you want to take to bring this about and start doing something in that direction. A person can dream about becoming a famous artist all she wants – but until she puts a pencil, pen or brush to paper and starts cranking out some artwork that can be sold, she will never be able to have any famous works hung in rich patrons' homes. “A long journey is finally accomplished by first taking a single step.”

This might be too simple, even common sense, but I've never said that these keys to success were anything other than laws or rules which already existed. What has been presented here is hopefully a common sense explanation and a logical process of thought which outline a workable system of self-help, which anyone can apply and use to improve their lives. These laws have existed so long their source can't even be pointed out in time. Plato and Aristotle have run into these; religious scriptures of all types cover these points. This book translates and compiles these into simple modern Western views so you can take advantage of them.

So, in order to achieve anything, you have to do something about it – not just think good thoughts. Nothing new here, or is there? This is, as I've said, the difference between having dreams and accomplishing them, the difference between architectural drawings and the physical buildings existing as a result. One has to act to acquire, achieve or have anything. You can again see the logic showing up here: to have you must do; to do, you must be; to effectively be, you must think. But if thinking doesn't result in doing something, then nothing will ever be achieved.

Napoleon Hill covered this in some detail in his book:

“The event chosen for this illustration dates back to 1900, when the United States Steel Corporation was being formed. As you read the story, keep in mind these fundamental facts and you will understand how IDEAS have been converted into huge fortunes.

“First, the huge United States Steel Corporation was born in the mind of Charles M. Schwab, in the form of an IDEA he created through his IMAGINATION!

“Second, he mixed FAITH with his IDEA.

“Third, he formulated a PLAN for the transformation of his IDEA into physical and financial reality.

“Fourth, he put his plan into action with (a) speech at the University Club.

“Fifth, he applied, and followed-through on his PLAN with PERSISTANCE, and backed it with firm DECISION until it had been fully carried out.

“Sixth, he prepared his way for success by a BURNING DESIRE for success.

“THERE ARE NO LIMITATIONS TO THE MIND EXCEPT THOSE WE ACKNOWLEGE.

“BOTH POVERTY AND RICHES ARE THE OFFSPRING OF THOUGHT.”

Planning is a key point, one that follows your vision. There's an old adage, a version of which is attributed to Western author Louis Lamour, “Plan your work, work your plan – and always carry a spare.”

Part of action is to be personally efficient in what you are doing. Several authors (Covey, Hill, Wattle) mention this point specifically. You can also see that this would be an outgrowth, or logical procession from both a positive outlook, and application of the Golden Rule. One would want to achieve the highest potential possible personally, and as well would want others around him to be efficient and productive when they worked.

Another part of action is to work within your physical limits. While you can exercise to increase your stamina and energy level, don't over-work. This has negative effects mentally and so can slow you down. Pace yourself and work within what you can physically do. This will pay off. Dr. Peale relates one award-winning rowing team was created by being told the secret of winning was to “row slowly.” By keeping to the rhythm of the pace, they could pass other anxious, over-energetic teams which had to stop rowing during the race to get everyone back together and in sync. Many activities at work and play have their rhythm. By learning to work within this rhythm, much more work can be achieved for longer periods than “throwing yourself at it.”

Part of the plan might be achieving an education or training in a new area which you need to master. Reading this book, or any of the others listed, is a form of education. Modern schooling has this common complaint, “I studied their books and took their tests, passed them all, but didn't learn anything.” This problem is because schools have long had the habit of being a brain-dump, where facts and agendas are swallowed wholesale by students to be regurgitated at will, however the students were never enabled with the understanding and practical discipline of being able to organize this data and use that knowledge after they acquire it. You may need to attend school or college to get some of the data you need, but Hill explained it this way, defining the word “educate”:

“That word is derived from the Latin word 'educo,' meaning to educe, to draw out, to DEVELOP FROM WITHIN. An educated man is not, necessarily, one who has an abundance of general or specialized knowledge. An educated man is one who has so developed the faculties of his mind that he may acquire anything he wants, or its equivalent, without violating the rights of others.”

But the key is action. Set your vision, work out the plan that would achieve it and then implement this plan – starting with something today, right now – that you can do which would start achieving that vision. Don't procrastinate. Take your plan and work out when you want to achieve it, work out then by time period (years, months or even weekly) what has to be achieved by when. Then work from this master list of what you need to accomplish today and by what hour you want to get each sub-step done. Even if you simply say that you are going to have to buy that lottery ticket on the way home from work.

But if you never buy that ticket, you can't win that lottery. So if that is your vision, plan it out and do it.

Day 9 Exercise:

Try this –

This exercise is from Chapter two of Napoleon Hill's book. While it has to do with achieving wealth, it could as easily be applied to regaining health, achieving happiness or any other possible self-improvement (again, there is far more detail in his book, which is key to achieving financial wealth):

“The method by which DESIRE for riches can be transmuted into its financial equivalent, consists of six definite, practical steps, vis:

“First, Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire. It is not sufficient merely to say, 'I want plenty of money.'

“Second. Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire. (There is no such reality as 'something for nothing'.)

“Third. Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire.

“Fourth. Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action.

“Fifth. Write out a clear, 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 through which you intend to accumulate it.

“Sixth. Read your written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night, and once after arising in the morning. AS YOU READ – SEE AND FEEL AND BELIEVE YOURSELF AS ALREADY IN POSSESSION OF THE MONEY.”

Day 10 - FAITH

Faith is self-generated, self-created.

"Question: Why are we Masters of our Fate, the captains of our souls? Because we have the power to control our thoughts, our attitudes. That is why many people live in the withering negative world. That is why many people live in the Positive Faith world. And you don't have to be a poet or a philosopher to know which is best." - Alfred A. Montapert

"Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it by the handle of anxiety, or by the handle of faith." (author unknown)

Everything in this universe is based on faith. Even scientists, who are strictly trained in observing things only as they exist, depend upon their faith that the laws and facts that they find today will be there tomorrow and forever after that, something which cannot be proven by any test and must be taken on faith. There is some assumption that such observed phenomenon are true or factual – this assumption is faith.

Faith is self-generated. It isn't a quantity that you can pour out of a container or measure with a spoon. It is completely variable from person to person, from subject to subject within each person. Faith depends on creating a belief in something. While a key point in religion, it isn't only relegated to that use. Self-confidence is faith in oneself. Trust is a form of faith in another. But just as someone else can't change your mind for you, so you can't give your faith to someone else. They must generate it for themselves.

What does this have to do with self-help, self-improvement? In Mr. Hill's example of Charles Schwab and US Steel from Day 9, he mentioned the mixture of faith with his idea in order to generate the plan which he then executed. Faith was a second factor to the idea itself. Part of creating a new environment around you will depend on how much self-confidence you have, how much you can trust yourself. This is not a chicken-and-egg conundrum. Faith is simply generated, much like electrical generators create electricity. If you need more faith to make your dreams come to fruition, then simply create more.

While this seems more complex, or more difficult, Dr. Peale covers many examples of utilizing religious faith to handle worry, barriers, lack of energy, lack of happiness and many other common ailments to this society. He has chapters devoted to examples and methods for handling each of the above ailments and more. His book is a good read on this subject.

How to create faith is simple. Dr. Peale quotes William James who said,

“The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind.”

This relates: if you need more faith, simply consider that you have more. Find something about whatever bothers you that you can have faith in: the object is the same color from day to day; “you can always count on him to ....” Just start thinking down the line of having more faith and more shows up. Consider that you have faith, act like you do, and you soon will be overflowing with it.

All that we have studied through this book brings you up against this next point: By changing your thoughts to creative, positive ones and by changing your attitudes, by creating a vision of what you want to accomplish – you've been creating faith all along, even if starting only with the idea from starting this book that something could be improved – that alone took a great deal of self-generated faith.

For faith is an idea. It isn't tangible, it can't be spent. But it can be invested and get a substantial return. Invest your faith in your vision. The more you put in, the stronger your vision will seem, the more real, and the faster it will accrue for you.

The point of positive thought is that is only works to the exact degree a person commits himself to it. The point of any failure of self-help or self-improvement is the failure to commit. Those who are bad-mouthing some of these books are the one's who will never profit from them, since they cannot invest anything of themselves into it. Some won't even go so far as to read a book on the subject. It's long been said that you can't change anyone else's mind for them. You can, however, set a personal example which others can evaluate their own life against. They can then generate their own faith in the possibility of improving something in their own life.

James Allen put it simply, “The higher he lifts his thoughts, the greater will be his success, the more blessed and enduring will be his achievements.”

Charles F. Haanel said it this way, “In order to secure the larger supply your demand must be increased, and as you consciously increase the demand the supply will follow, you will find yourself coming into a larger and larger supply of life, energy and vitality.”

Hill points out in some detail that one's faith is a habit. Changing the amount of faith one has is determined by auto-suggestion, what one constantly tells oneself. Simply practicing affirming the vision and result as having already occurred brings forward a strength of faith possibly never seen before. There is a simple mental discipline to building faith. Create the attitude, practice it - and then it becomes part of you.

Funny, we've been dealing with faith all along and didn't know it. Quite a sneaker, eh? So faith follows the laws of thought, just like any attitude – if you need it, create it. Put some faith in your vision, your plan, yourself. And then put on some more for good measure. The more you put in, the more you'll get out.

Day 10 Exercises:

Try this –

From Hill's Think and Grow Rich:

"SELF-CONFIDENCE FORMULA

"First. I know that I have the ability to achieve the object of my Definite Purpose in life,
therefore, I DEMAND of myself persistent, continuous action toward its attainment, and I
here and now promise to render such action.

"Second. I realize the dominating thoughts of my mind will eventually reproduce themselves
in outward, physical action, and gradually transform themselves into physical reality,
therefore, I will concentrate my thoughts for thirty minutes daily, upon the task of thinking of
the person I intend to become, thereby creating in my mind a clear mental picture of that
person.

"Third. I know through the principle of auto-suggestion, any desire that I persistently hold in
my mind will eventually seek expression through some practical means of attaining the
object back of it, therefore, I will devote ten minutes daily to demanding of myself the
development of SELF-CONFIDENCE.

"Fourth. I have clearly written down a description of my DEFINITE CHIEF AIM in life, and
I will never stop trying, until I shall have developed sufficient self-confidence for its
attainment.

"Fifth. I fully realize that no wealth or position can long endure, unless built upon truth and
justice, therefore, I will engage in no transaction which does not benefit all whom it affects. I
will succeed by attracting to myself the forces I wish to use, and the cooperation of other
people. I will induce others to serve me, because of my willingness to serve others. I will
eliminate hatred, envy, jealousy, selfishness, and cynicism, by developing love for all
humanity, because I know that a negative attitude toward others can never bring me success.
I will cause others to believe in me, because I will believe in them, and in myself.

"I will sign my name to this formula, commit it to memory, and repeat it aloud once a day,
with full FAITH that it will gradually influence my THOUGHTS and ACTIONS so that I
will become a self-reliant, and successful person."

Day 11 - AFFIRMATION

Affirmations can be used to strengthen faith and achieve your vision.

“Affirmations are like prescriptions for certain aspects of yourself you want to change.” - Jerry Frankhauser

Words can be powerful tools. This has been recognized and repeated throughout history.

Dr. Peale tells it this way in his book:

“The words we speak have a direct and definite effect upon our thoughts. Thoughts create words, for words are the vehicles of ideas. But words also effect thoughts and help to condition if not to create attitudes. In fact, what often passes for thinking starts with talk. Therefore if the average conversation is scrutinized and disciplined to be sure that it contains peaceful expressions, the result will be peaceful ideas and ultimately, therefore, a peaceful mind.”

Affirmations are short-hand statements of your vision. They contain the key point or points that remind you of your whole mental picture you are striving to achieve. These have been given some rough treatment lately, as we went over in Day 7, some have been trying to sing the words without knowing the tune. People can't just idly say they are rich, famous or “improving day after day in every way” unless they have a specific vision, faith and action to back it up. As well, affirmations seem to fail because they are too general. If you are going to keep an appointment at 3:00pm, then you know where and when you have to be there. People tend to use affirmations to each other daily, even as simple as, the office assistant telling you, “You've got a 3 o'clock meeting today,” or your spouse reminding you to bring a pound of hamburger back on your way home.

Affirmations can be far more powerful than the shopping list, though. If you plan out exactly what you have to do to get your vision accomplished, having a short version of that vision can jump-start your attitude at the beginning of the day and keep it in front of you the whole day. This is Napoleon Hill's advice to write that statement out and read it to yourself at least two times a day. But note how he said to do it: “AS YOU READ – SEE AND FEEL AND BELIEVE YOURSELF AS ALREADY IN POSSESSION OF THE MONEY.”

That is the key point. Unless you commit something to that piece of paper, it will be like all the old newspapers that are swept up in cities across this planet each night by sanitation departments and janitors, only to be dumped in refuse bins. These papers have many more words printed on them, far more artfully and professionally than your little piece of paper. Yet they achieve nothing in and of themselves. Take out a business card. It, too, has words on it. Does it do anything? If you lost it today, would it matter – just get another, eh? But that business card could be read as an affirmation of your current job, something that you are actively creating and achieving. Read with feeling, and belief, you can get quite a surge if you do it in a positive attitude.

Affirmations are a short-hand statement of your vision. Your vision is nothing but a daydream unless you are willing to go full-tilt at it, “firing on all eight cylinders” and ready to set the world on fire to get it. That is the power behind those words. That is all the power behind these words. Just what you put into them, nothing more.

Hill sold over 7 million copies of his book and put this above datum in the second chapter of his book, repeating it several times throughout. He considered it that vital.

Haanel covered it this way:

“Words are thoughts and are therefore an invisible and invincible power which will finally objectify themselves in the form they are given.

“Words may become mental places what will live forever, of they may become shacks which the first breeze will carry away. They may delight the eye as well as the ear, they may contain all knowledge; in them we find the history of the past as well as the hope of the future; they are living messengers from which every human and superhuman activity is born.

“The beauty of the word consists in the beauty of the thought; the power of the word consists in the power of the thought, and the power of the thought consists in its vitality.”

Dr. Covey has more insight into this matter:

“In effective personal leadership, visualization and affirmation techniques emerge naturally out of a foundation of well thought through purposes and principles that become the center of a person's life. They are extremely powerful in rescripting and reprogramming, into writing deeply committed-to purposes and principles into one's heart and mind.”

Not all of our self-help authors required affirmations as part of achieving self-improvement. I include it here as an explanation and additional tool which can help you achieve your own improvement in your own life.

Day 11 Exercise:

Try this –

While Napoleon Hill's book and principles are devoted to achieving prosperity, these can readily be converted to improving any area of your life:

“First. Go into some quiet spot (preferably in bed at night) where you will not be disturbed or interrupted, close your eyes, and repeat aloud, (so you may hear your own words) the written statement of the amount of money you intend to accumulate, the time limit for its accumulation, and a description of the service or merchandise you intend to give in return for the money. As you carry out these instructions, SEE YOURSELF ALREADY IN POSSESSION OF THE MONEY.

“Second. Repeat this program night and morning until you can see, (in your imagination) the money you intend to accumulate.

“Third. Place a written copy of your statement where you can see it night and morning, and read it just before retiring, and upon arising until it has been memorized.”

Day 12 - POWER THROUGH PRAYER

Belief in a Supreme Being or Higher Power – tapping into one's relationship with the Supreme Being increases one's own abilities and power.

"My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind." - Albert Einstein

The vast majority of humans on this planet (one recent survey has it as high as 96% in America) recognize some sort of higher power. Factually, atheists are a very small minority. And many of these are agnostics, meaning that for them, the jury is still out on the matter.

The connection between self-help and this higher power is insisted upon in most self-help books and merely recognized as a given in the rest. Haanel and Wattles call this power by different names and give other technical details about the connection. Dr. Peale is very direct in connecting the benefits of self-help directly with God, giving many, many examples and techniques directly associated with New and Old Testament Scriptures. Al Ghazzali also directly links self-improvement with Allah, quoting different parts of the Koran in doing so. (During this search, I did not find any Buddhist or other religion's bestselling self-improvement books that met the requisites for this study; principally this book was written with Western thought on the matter; in the book's Appendix, there is a short summary and conclusion about the books used in the original study.)

Undeniably, then, if a person is to get the most out of his own course in self-improvement, one must take God, or the Universal Mind, or any other phrasing, into account. (While there might be a commonality between religions, this is another study and beyond the scope of this book. For our arguments here, and due to the almost identical approach that the authors mentioned have used, we'll consider that they are all talking about the same Entity.) Probably the most interesting point in writing this chapter is that there are so many different opinions about God – probably as many as there are grains of sand or pebbles on the beach – every person has a slightly different one. Without purposely stepping on anyone's toes on thissubject, let's boil down what these various authors hold in common in relation to God and self-help:

• This Power is everywhere, omnipresent, permeating all forms and matter; all parts of Creation are a part of the whole, we are all part of this Power

• As such, the Power cannot be subjugated or tricked, etc. This Power plays no favorites, makes no exceptions, is not subject to petition or sympathy ploys.

• This Power has a continuing purpose of creating forms and is the source of all supply.

• This Power deals in abundance through all its forms; this concept enables all such creations to have abundance in their own lives.

• It is through creative imagination that one is linked to this Power, which is the source of intuition, hunches, genius and inspiration.

• A person's cooperation with this Power determines one's success.

• Only through a feeling of gratitude will such a cooperative connection be possible.

• Tapping into this power is only possible through a creative, harmonious, non-competitive basis. One will receive only as one gives; what one receives will make it more possible to give.

The various religious texts and scriptures contain words which describe the above relationships and rules regarding our relationship with God, by any name. Dr. Peale, whose book is written entirely from a religious view of self-help, gives innumerable examples of people being able to use the Bible to improve their lives. And innumerable is no understatement. For every story in his book, I'm sure there are a hundred or a thousand more.

Dr. Peale also relates:

“Prayer power is a manifestation of energy. Just as there exist scientific techniques for the release of atomic energy, so there are scientific procedures for the release of spiritual energy through the mechanism of prayer.”

Consider this logically: we can approach, contact and receive gifts from an omnipresent, omnipotent source. We only have to do this in a specific manner to achieve consistent results. This seems more science than religion.

Indeed, Dr. Peale relates a story where two industrialists, perplexed by a problem, decided to pray for a solution, given the formula, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20). Since this didn't get the expected results, they consulted a local preacher who pointed out additional formulaic phrases, namely, “According to your faith, be it unto you.” (Matthew 9:29), and “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” (Mark 11:24). These three prayed accordingly. After several such thorough sessions of prayer, these three all affirmed that their prayers had been answered. Investigation of the results showed that the results were satisfactory and according to their prayers.

We have, then, a precise scientific approach to improving any aspect of one's life. Part of this approach is the recognition of this Power according to the observed and tested rules these various authors have researched and written down for us.

A part of this procedure is prayer, as mentioned above. Now, all these authors do not agree upon any set formula or procedure for prayer. Dr. Peale covers a wide variety of forms that he and others use. What is common between them is that there is an open communication between the person and this Power. Haanel suggests sitting quietly, relaxed and simply opening one's thoughts to this Power, sending one's visualization and desire. Wattles adds that one must be then thankful for having received that gift, continuing along the line that one always acknowledges the receipt of anything requested in the past tense. Even the word “Amen,” according to the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, “is generally used as an adverb of assent or confirmation--fiat, 'so let it be.'”

One of the more interesting points regarding prayer aligns with earlier points we've covered. Were one to completely eradicate non-positive thoughts from one's mind and as well adopt an ethical/moral code to keep this in place constantly in life, one could fall under the description of “living your prayer.” Actually, this is a phrase in the New Testament, “Be always joyful; pray continually; give thanks whatever happens; for this is what God in Christ wills for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Were a person to achieve this level of thought and action, according to the principles we have covered so far in this book, nothing would be impossible to achieve or acquire; all of his/her relationships would be as rewarding as he/she wished.

While this is a book of Western ideas of self-help, and so any discussion of God would bring references to the Judeo-Christian approaches, study of Al Ghazzali's The Alchemy of Happiness shows definite parallels. Though beyond the scope of this book, but given that such writings have continued through the thousands of years the Bible was written and into our current times, it is probable that the principles outlined here are universal in application, regardless of form of religion.

Day 12 Exercises:

Try this –

From Dr. Peale's book:

1.“The formula is (1) PRAYERIZE, (2)PICTURIZE, (3)ACTUALIZE.” ...

2.“To assure something worth while happening, first pray about it and test it according to God's will; then print a picture of it on your mind as happening, holding the picture firmly in consciousness. Continue to surrender the picture to God's will – that is to say, put the matter in God's hands – and follow God's guidance. Work hard and intelligently, thus doing your part to hold the picturization firmly in your thoughts. Do this and you will be astonished at the strange ways in which the picturization comes to pass. In this manner the picture “actualizes.” That which you have “prayerized” and “picturized” “actualizes” according to the pattern of your basic realizable wish when conditioned by invoking God's power upon it, and if, moreover, you give fully of yourself to its realization.”

Day 13 - PEACE

Peace of Mind is attainable through self-control.

"He who is of calm and happy nature will hardly feel the pressure of age, but to him who is of an opposite disposition youth and age are equally a burden." - Plato

Peace of Mind is available to anyone, at any time.

Practically, we've already gone over how to achieve this. Per Haanel, this is simply regaining control over one's own thoughts, as we covered in the beginning chapters of this book. These were the beginning exercises of sitting in a quiet space and relaxing, gaining control over your thoughts. Any skill must be exercised in order to become reasonably adept at it, and so the reason to invoke the now familiar, “Practice makes perfect.” Relaxing one's physical state and being able to rid all possible, accessible non-positive thoughts is a required step, as well as filling it with positive thoughts.

More vital in all these is the ability to simply reach a “silence” or “quietude” internally so that intuition and insight are more readily accessible. It is through these creative thoughts and connections and interchange that all sort of possible improvements can be achieved for our human race.

James Allen put it most eloquently:

“Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom. It is the result of long and patient effort in self-control. Its presence is an indication of ripened experience, and of a more than ordinary knowledge of the laws and operations of thought.

“A man becomes calm in the measure that he understands himself as a thought-evolved being. For such knowledge necessitates the understanding of others as the result of thought, and as he develops a right understanding, and sees ever more clearly the internal relations of things by the action of cause and effect, he ceases to fuss, fume, worry, and grieve. He remains poised, steadfast, serene.

“The calm man, having learned how to govern himself, knows how to adapt himself to others. And they, in turn reverence his physical strength. They feel that they can learn from him and rely upon him. The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his influence, his power for good. Even the ordinary trader will find his business prosperity increase as he develops a greater self-control and equanimity, for people will always prefer to deal with a man whose demeanor is equitable. ...

“How many people do we know who sour their lives, who ruin all that is sweet and beautiful by explosive tempers, who destroy their poise of character and make bad blood! Only the wise man, only he whose thoughts are controlled and purified, makes the winds and the storms of the soul obey him.

“Tempest-tossed souls, wherever you may be, under whatever conditions you may live, know this: In the ocean of life the isles of blessedness are smiling and the sunny shore of your ideal awaits your coming. Keep your hands firmly upon the helm of thought. In the core of your soul reclines the commanding Master; He does but sleep; wake Him. Self-control is strength. Right thought is mastery. Calmness is power. Say unto your hear, “Peace. Be Still.”

And that is the simplicity of peace of mind. Achieve a mental quiet through practice. Then all measure of things are possible, per these texts. Those who cast about for amusement, who plug their ears with loud music, who play the TV incessantly when alone or with family – these are seeking to avoid something, to not face or confront some idea or thought or mental noise that constantly distracts, depresses, angers or intimidates them.

Yet all thought is created. Humankind has simply not been able to routinely enable people to learn to sit quietly and sort these thoughts out, to bring them under control. Rural societies have the advantage of large spaces between themselves and other areas, even other families. So there are long spaces of quiet which must be endured. While now we can fill this void with satellite radio, DVD players and whatnot, perhaps we shouldn't. One friend of mind, a full generation younger, was aghast that I would simply turn off the radio when there was nothing valuable to listen to, that I would use the time driving between rural towns simply completing thoughts to logical conclusions. But he was raised on video games – I grew up in an age where computers ran on tape and punchcards.

My parents can remember plowing and cultivating behind mules, the times when tractors first became popular in farming. Those were truly quiet days for thoughtful people. Yet the trade-off is in these days of high percentage disposable income. We now have the time to think, to philosophize – which for the Founders of this country and historically before that, was the sovereign territory of the rich. Benjamin Franklin, for one, retired at age 40. With few exceptions, those who could put their thoughts in order and take the time to write them down for others had already made their success.

These days, however, one can take a period of time, look up the great masters on the Internet as public domain or order printed books and get them delivered in days from booksellers on this same Internet system. If one can afford the time (and paper to print them off or hard-drive space to store them on), he can have any amount of classic works at his fingertips or as digital recordings.

So it is up to us to do the research and publish our conclusions. It is up to us to find those who have been down these roads before, to stand on the shoulders of these giants to see further, per Isaac Newton, and describe what we see.

The steps I've compiled in this short book show simple steps that anyone can take, an introduction to a very potent subject.

This book makes it possible for anyone to achieve peace of mind and a peaceful existence. One need only read and try, then, through demonstrating its usefulness and application for oneself, create the faith needed to practice and continue improving one's own conditions.

Day 13 Exercise:

Try this –

Dr. Peale received these instructions from the ace pilot Eddie Rickenbacker, who developed an unflappable calm which served him well in life in all sorts of circumstances:

1.“First, collapse physically. Practice this several times a day. Let go every muscle in the body. Conceive of yourself as a jellyfish, getting your body into complete looseness. Form a mental picture of a huge burlap bag of potatoes. Then mentally cut the bag, allowing the potatoes to roll out. What is more relaxed than a burlap bag?

2.“The second element in the formula is to “drain the mind.” Several times each day drain the mind of all irritation, all resentment, disappointment, frustration, and annoyance. Unless you drain the mind frequently and regularly, these unhappy thoughts will accumulate until a major blasting-out process will be necessary. Keep the mind drained of all factors which would impede the flow of relaxed power.

3.“Third, think spiritually. To think spiritually means to turn the mind at regular intervals to God. At least three times a day 'lift up your eyes unto the hills.' This keeps you in tune with God's harmony. It refills you with peace.”

Day 14 - MASTER MIND

Surround yourself with people around you who think as you do. The composite mind will achieve the composite vision shared.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed people can change the world: indeed it's the only thing that ever has!" -Margaret Meade

The “Master Mind” is having a group of people that you support and owe your support to. It is also your use of the earlier principles listed, in order to create that support, both to and from you.

This concept is the reason for churches and their purpose. The faith you create, if shared, can accomplish far more with a group pushing it than the same number of persons pushing that purpose individually.

The same principle works for corporations. Dr. Covey goes over this in his analysis of getting companies to do realistic mission statements. These are realistic in that they involve everyone from the top manager to the “lowliest” employee (if there is such a thing in actuality.) He describes a hotel chain he visited to train their employees. Through various incidents he observed personally, he saw that they had a unique and personal view of service to their customers. Employees would drop whatever they were doing and help the person in front of them, making sure that the customer had whatever he wanted. This wasn't just the bell boy or the steward, but he mentions seeing a window washer come down from his high vantage to help a woman with a walker get into the lobby safely and easily, then return to his window washing. When he asked the manager what his secret was, he pulled out the mission statement. Not just the organization's mission statement, but also then pulled out that particular hotel's mission statement, a version of the first, but developed for that particular hotel. He explained that the hotel staff as a whole had developed it. Further, he pulled out several mission statements, which would go down into departments and sub-departments – each developed by the persons in that area in their own words, each a specialized version of the overall statement. This hotel team built itself and had extraordinarily valuable service as a result, an asset which cannot be bought and installed or repaired, but which must be grown. (Again, get his book. It is extremely well written and sensible.)

A group doesn't just have a purpose, but lives it, grows it. When you see some small country church which is losing its membership, you can see that they could improve on their faith and their vision to attract more parishioners. Similarly, companies that have high turnover problems have probably never truly built a team and do not share a common purpose nor do they truly agree about how to go about getting it.

This applies to self-help in that a person won't get as far on his own as one can with another or several persons having the same dream or vision. Many artists, like Thomas Hart Benton and Charley Russell had wives who were the actual behind-the-scene business partner, making sure they got top dollar for their art, managing the household economics and also the social event calendar to ensure the marketing, sales, delivery and PR functions were covered. A two-person team with one vision.

Larger than that, corporations have been formed based entirely on a single vision. Napoleon Hill tells in his book that Carnegie didn't have to know all there was about steel-making, he had fifty people he trusted to make those day-to-day decisions in running his business. Ray Kroc counted on his managers and franchise owners to deliver superior service to their customers – after he trained them in his “Hamburger U” in the basement of one of his Midwestern franchises. Mr. Kroc made millionaires out of bun, packaging and condiment suppliers because he trusted them to supply his business and kept sending them orders due to that trust; as his business grew, so did theirs. Mr. Kroc supplied the vision, they got on board and pushed this vision. They shared Kroc's faith and became millionaires as a result.

Fully half of Dr. Covey's book covers the finer points of building an effective team. The reasons for doing so are also covered in Hill's book, in addition to Haanel's. One can have a personal vision. But sharing this vision, giving others something to have faith in and push with their own coordinated actions can make the dream far bigger, far more expansive than a single individual could ever attempt on his own. The physical universe reality follows the vision. When the vision is expanded by additional people adding to it, the resulting reality is larger by multiples, as the power increases by factors, not just addition.

Conversely, where a company isn't expanding or running into repeated difficulties, it has gone off purpose (if it ever had truly defined it originally) and the vision shared by the founder is not being participated in by the lower echelon managers and staff. This single datum is covered over and over in various business texts far beyond the scope of this single book. Here we just see that the principles described in this book are basic, fundamental laws of operation for an individual and extend up to the largest corporations and governments.

So, build your team, share your vision, generate trust in each other; there are no limits to expansion providing you follow these fundamental laws we've laid out here.

Day 14 Exercises:

Try this –

1. Take your vision statement and work out how big it factually needs to be to accomplish what you want to achieve.

2. From this, list out the general functions you will need, in sequence, to achieve this vision.

3. Working backward from how many products you intend to produce, sell and deliver, figure out how many people you might need to help you, based on how many of these functions can be handled by a single person or how many persons might be needed for each function (like warehousing and distribution, for instance.) The following steps make this simpler:

4. Take a big piece of paper. Write the vision/mission statement at the top.

5. Write out the functions to achieve this vision in a sequence, each function having a separate spot starting from one side and going to the other.

6. Put a name for each job, depending on how many functions each job holds or vice-versa.

7. Now write a short mission statement for each post of how this job/function relates to the overall vision/mission statement and helps accomplish it

8. Review the whole thing and adjust it until you are happy with it.

9. Now you are ready to form your “Master Mind” by finding people (or they will find you) to help you attain this vision.

Summary

Why this stuff is important.

This book concerns everyone. Essentially, it says that there is a workable system for self-improvement which has been tested and proven through popular subscription – people like it and buy its authors' works. If one believes the data from these books to be true, then all manner of improvement in life is open to that person.

But let me quote this value as seen by the authors themselves:

“The operation of this thought process is seen in those fortunate natures that possess everything that others must acquire by toil, who never have a struggle with conscience because they always act correctly, can never conduct themselves otherwise than with tact, learn everything easily, complete everything they begin with a happy knack, live in eternal harmony with themselves, without every reflecting much what they do, or ever experiencing difficulty or toil.

“The fruit of this thought is, as it were, a gift of the gods, but a gift which few as yet realize, appreciate, or understand. The recognition of the marvelous power which is possessed by the mind under proper conditions and the fact that this power can be utilized, directed, and made available for the solution of every human problem is of transcendental importance.”

Thomas F. Haanel, The Master Key System

and:

“The real battle of life is one of ideas; it is being fought out by the few against the many; on the one side is the constructive and creative thought, on the other side the destructive or negative thought; the creative thought is dominated by an ideal, the passive thought is dominated by appearances. On both sides are men of science, men of letters, and men of affairs.” (ibid.)

“All that a man achieves and all that he fails to achieve is the direct result of his own thoughts. In a justly ordered universe, where loss of equipoise would mean total destruction, individual responsibility must be absolute. A man's weakness and strength, purity and impurity, are his own and not another man's. They are brought about by himself and not by another; and they can only be altered by himself, never by another. His condition is also his own, and not another man's. His sufferings and his happiness are evolved from within. As he thinks, so is he; as he continues to think, so he remains.

“A strong man cannot help a weaker unless that weaker is willing to be helped. And even then the weak man must become strong of himself. He must, by his own efforts, develop the strength which he admires in another. None but himself can alter his condition.”

James Allen, As A Man Thinketh.

and:

“The dreamers are the saviors of the world. As the visible world is sustained by the invisible, so men, through all their trials and sins and sordid vocations, are nourished by the beautiful visions of their solitary dreamers. Humanity cannot forget its dreamers; it cannot let their ideals fade and die; it lives in them; it knows them as the realities which it shall one day see and know. Composer, sculptor, painter, poet, prophet, sage--these are the makers of the after-world, the architects of heaven. The world is beautiful because they have lived. Without them, laboring humanity would perish. He who cherishes a beautiful vision, a lofty ideal in his heart, will one day realize it. Columbus cherished a vision of another world and he discovered it. Copernicus fostered the vision of a multiplicity of worlds and a wider universe, and he revealed it. Buddha beheld the vision of a spiritual world of stainless beauty and perfect peace, and he entered into it.

“Cherish your visions; cherish your ideals. Cherish the music that stirs in your heart, the beauty that forms in your mind, the loveliness that drapes your purest thoughts. For out of them will grow all delightful conditions, all heavenly environment; of these, if you but remain true to them, your world will at last be built.

“To desire is to obtain; to aspire is to achieve. Shall man's basest desires receive the fullest measure of gratification, and his purest aspirations starve for lack of sustenance? Such is not the Law. Such a condition can never obtain: 'Ask and receive.'

“Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so shall you become. Your vision is the promise of what you shall one day be; your ideal is the prophecy of what you shall at last unveil.

“The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn; the bird waits in the egg. And in the highest vision of a soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities.” (ibid.)

“The world in which you live is not primarily determined by outward conditions and circumstances but by thoughts that habitually occupy your mind. Remember the wise words of Marcus Aurelius, one of the great thinkers of antiquity, who said, 'A man's life is what his thoughts make of it.'

“It has been said that the wisest man who ever lived in America was Ralph Waldo Emerson, the Sage of Concord. Emerson declared, 'A man is what he thinks about all day long.'

“A famous psychologist says, 'There is a deep tendency in human nature to become precisely like that which you habitually imagine yourself to be.'

“It has been said that thoughts are things, that they actually possess dynamic power. Judged by the power they exercise one can readily accept such an appraisal. You can actually think yourself into or out of situations. You can make yourself ill with your thoughts and by the same token you can make yourself well by the use of a different and healing type of thought. Think one way and you attract the conditions which that type of thinking indicates. Think another way and you can create an entirely different set of conditions. Conditions are created by thoughts far more powerfully than conditions create thoughts.”

Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Think ing.

I give you here concrete principles which you can use to improve your life in any aspect or on the whole. You can test these as much as you want, they belong to no author as his sacrosanct copyright; they were observed by Plato and Aristotle and many thinkers since. That this Western world has isolated a few of these as important enough to re-publish, re-sell and re-distribute long after their authors have returned to dust is the highest validation of them as basic and true, useful principles for self-improvement.

There are perhaps no factual limits to what can be accomplished in using these principles. Logically, one could see that there are no real barriers to thought and imagination, so conceivably no limit to what could be accomplished in the physical universe.

Even while Haanel above points out that one cannot change another for him, while Wattles warns not to get into occult practices in an effort to change another against their will, Peale also tells us a story where a woman restored her marriage and avoided divorce through the above principles, Covey tells of deciding to handle a disruptive conflict he was having for months with an associate – only to find that the associate wanted to handle it as well. One doesn't know what another wants particularly, but by the tools above – visualization, faith, prayer, action – many, many intersocial and intercultural affairs can be resolved. One doesn't know that the other doesn't want to change or improve – your work would minimally give them that chance.

Several of the authors (Haanel, Peale, Wattles) say to think and visualize as big as you can, that these make the smaller problems fall away as insignificant. With the application of the principle involved in the “Master Mind,” a wide association of individuals with the common ideal will achieve many, widespread – even global effects. One such example is the view of Human Rights, which started with Locke, Jefferson and the Founding Fathers, then was spread through the globe due to the efforts of the United States UN delegate, Eleanor Roosevelt, who drafted and got agreement from other delegates enough to sign it into a UN resolution – all from her New York apartment. Now this is a held standard across the globe, defended and advanced with economic sanctions to those spineless dicto-crats who insist on violating it. One by one, these countries are being forced to accede to this thought, this vision which is shared now by so many internationally.

It is my personal hope that within our own lifetimes we might see world peace. Certainly if the principles that these authors and their reading public found so useful were spread across this globe, the planet and its culture would be a more positive, less strife-driven place. Peace would then be possible, with a decent standard of living and defended liberties for every single member of humankind. But it is up to you and I to carry this torch and to forward these ideals and bring them to real substance.

That is why this stuff is important.