When you ask anyone closely linked to the success and personal development industry what book influenced them the most you’ll often hear one book’s title come up over and over again. That book is Napoleon Hill’s 1937 ground-breaking release titled, Think and Grow Rich. The book’s genesis was planted 20-years before its release when a young Hill was offered an opportunity by US Steel magnate, Andrew Carnegie, to interview and chronicle many of the top business leaders at the time.
In the last two blog posts we shared the first couple of reasons why Think and Grow Rich is still important 75 years later. Here’s the third and final reason:
#3. He takes a look at ‘The Six Ghosts of Fear’ and how to address and deal with them.
I agree with Hill near the end of the book when he mentions that the combination of indecision and doubt often blend together to form what we call fear. The ‘Six Ghosts of Fear’ are:
*The fear of poverty
*The fear of criticism
*The fear of ill health
*The fear of loss of love of someone
*The fear of old age
*The fear of death
We have a massive media and government complex that peddles fear and doubt on a constant, minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, and daily basis. Risk is marketed as being dangerous and falling in lock-step with the status quo is seen as the right thing to do. Innovation is often initially feared, demonized, and criticized mercilessly by those who dislike or don’t understand that change is the only constant in this world. History doesn’t lie.
Look at the great minds in any field and you’ll often find that they were often misunderstood but they didn’t let fear or others negative opinions stop them. They didn’t stop inventing or creating because they were worried about “job security” or what others –often times even family members- said about them. Instead, they pressed onward with bull-headed intensity and laser like focus to advance the human condition with their gifts and talents. I’m very concerned that we’re becoming a nation of security seekers at a time when this is the exact opposite of what’s needed in a time of great economic change globally.
In addition, in the age of instant communication we have become what I call a ‘gotcha’ society. There are entire industries within the media (particularly the entertainment industry) seeking out the latest ‘breaking news’ to capture something wrong, a misquote, a blunder, something shocking so they can talk about it, tweet it, and amplify it on the web and through other channels. I call these people the ‘Merchants of Doubt’ and they are very good at stirring up emotions, fears, jealousy and envy all under the cleverly disguised name of ‘entertainment.’ Let’s call it what it is: gossip!
Now that I’m off my soap box, let’s bring it back to center as to why Hill was such a profound thinker. He identifies the many challenges we face and then offers up multiple ways to confront and manage these Six Ghosts of Fear. He does something very rarely seen which is offering up multiple solutions based on his own observation and the thousands of people he met, interviewed and learned from while he was an up close student of both success and failure. They are both interconnected and instructive.
So there you have it. Three key reasons why Think & Grow Rich is still important and relevant 75-years later after the book was originally released.
If you’re a fan of Napoleon Hill or personal development I invite you to attend a special event I’m hosting this year to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the release of the book Think and Grow Rich. Here are the details: http://bit.ly/OJ4Bkd
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