The Law of Attraction is the concept that by thinking of things, you draw them into your life. When you are always thinking of a life of wealth, you will attract it into your life. On the flip side, if you fill your mind with negative thoughts of violence, you will draw violence into your life.
The Law of Attraction is an old concept that arose from the New Thought movement in the 19th century. It was later popularized by As a Man Thinketh, by James Allen (1903), Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill (1937), You Can Heal Your Life, by Louise Hay (1984), and The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne (2006).
At face value, The Law of Attraction looks like useless pseudoscience. But dig deeper, and you can appreciate why it might work. By keeping a thought in your mind, you begin to notice its manifestations around you. Have you ever bought something and started to notice how many other people bought the same thing? It may have seemed like your buying the item made it popular. But they were there all along. Only, you didn’t notice until you started thinking about it. If you think about becoming a millionaire every day, you will begin to see opportunities that lead in that direction.
Napoleon Hill spent his life interviewing thousands of people to discover the secrets of their success. He published Think and Grow Rich in 1937, and it became a classic book among entrepreneurs. The book posits that the common reason for success that every successful person has is having the right mindset. When someone always thinks positive thoughts of success, they will become successful.
But what of those who tried and failed?
The next book Hill wrote attempted to answer that question. But, the answer was so controversial that his wife would not let him publish it. Even after Hill died in 1970 and the manuscript was passed to his surviving family members, it was not published until 2011. The manuscript was published as Outwitting the Devil. I read it and took notes. Here are my top ten takeaways:
What is the Devil?
Positive protons and negative electrons form every atom of matter. Our entire universe is a balance between these positive and negative forces. The force we call God is the sum of the positive forces, while we call the negative forces The Devil.
Drifters are people under control of The Devil.
98% of people in the world are drifters. The most powerful tool The Devil uses to take control of individuals is fear. Fear of poverty, criticism, ill health, loss of love, old age, and death allow The Devil to enter the mind. Among the fears, fear of poverty and death are most powerful.
Nondrifters are people who think for themselves and have no fear.
The Devil cannot control them. You can escape the grasp of The Devil by being confident and having a definite purpose in life. Outwitting the Devil is about transforming your fears into faith.
Your habits become set over time.
Hill calls it The Law of Hypnotic Rhythm. To escape The Devil’s control, you need to learn to think for yourself before your mind becomes set by the hypnotic rhythm. Every person and every physical location also has its own rhythm. That’s why it’s important to stay in positive environments and among positive people.
Our conventional system of education is dooming our children.
Parents, teachers, and religion put the fear of Hell into kids’ minds and remove the need for them to think for themselves. Doing so allows The Devil to control them. Instead, let your children learn things first hand and challenge assumptions. Teach your kids to be definite in all things and find purpose in life.
The mind becomes more powerful when combined with other minds.
Hill calls putting two or more heads together “mastermind.” When you combine your mind with someone else’s through the marriage of mastermind, you cannot be controlled by one of The Devil’s most effective tools: flattery.
The Law of Attraction can get you anything you want.
Your mind attracts what it fears (like poverty). You can force life to provide you with anything if you have definiteness of purpose, mastery over self, learning from adversity, control of environmental influences, time, harmony, and caution.
Have a definite purpose in life.
Any plan definitely put into continuous action in pursuit of a definite purpose may be successful even if it is not the best plan. Your first duty is for your own happiness. Only take on the responsibility of others after making yourself complete.
Master yourself.
A person who is not a master of herself can never be master of others. To master yourself, you must first control your desire for food, desire for expression of sex, and desire to express loosely organized opinions. Wise people keep their plans to themselves and refrain from giving uninvited opinions. The only reliable power available to any human being is their own thoughts. Wisdom only comes with time and thinking positive thoughts.
You’re most likely to gain wisdom through adversity and failure.
Every adversity brings with it the seed of an equal advantage. Failure is a humanmade circumstance. It is never real until someone accepts it as permanent. You can overcome any adversity with the power of thought.
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