Friday 9 January 2015

Think and Grow Rich Summary - Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Persistence – The Sustained Effort Necessary to Induce Faith

1.       Persistence is an essential factor in the procedure of transmuting desire into its monetary equivalent.
2.      The basis of persistence is the power of will.
3.      The starting point of all achievement is desire.
4.      Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat.
5.      If you find yourself lacking in persistence, this weakness may be remedied by building a stronger fire under your desires.
6.      Start immediately to carry out the instructions given in Chapter 2. Eagerness with which you follow these instructions will indicate clearly, how much, or how little you really desire to accumulate money.
7.      Fortunes gravitate to men whose minds have been prepared to attract them, just as surely as water gravitates to the ocean.
8.     Are you money-conscious or poverty conscious?
a.      Poverty conscious will voluntarily seize the mind which is not occupied with the money consciousness.
b.      Without persistence, you will be defeated, even before you start. With persistence you will win.
9.      Be persistence no matter how slowly you may, at first, have to move. With persistence come successes.
10.  Those who have cultivated the habit or persistence seem to enjoy insurance against failure.
11.   Believe me, there were times when, between the needling of my relatives and the hardships I endured, it was not easy to maintain a positive mental attitude and persevere. Sometimes, I almost believed my family was right. The thing that kept me going was my conviction that one day I would not only successful completes my work but also be proud of myself when it was finished.
12.  The Persistence Inventory:
a.      Definiteness of purpose à knowing what you want is the first and most important step toward the development of persistence.
b.      Desire à it is comparatively easier to acquire and maintain persistence in pursuing the object of intense desire.
c.       Self-reliance
d.      Definiteness of plans à organized plans encourage persistence.
e.      Accurate knowledge à Knowing that your plans are sound, based upon experience or observation, encourage persistence; guessing instead of knowing destroy persistence.
f.        Cooperation à sympathy, understanding and cooperation with others tend to develop persistence.
g.      Willpower à the habit of concentrating your thoughts on making plans to attain your definite purpose leads to persistence.
h.     Habit
13.  Measure yourself point by point, and see how many of the previous 8 factors of persistence you lack.
14.  Study the list carefully, and face yourself squarely if you really wish to know who you are, and what you are capable of doing:
a.      Failure to recognize and to clearly define exactly what one wants.
b.      Procrastination, with or without cause.
c.       Lack of interest in acquiring specialized knowledge.
d.      Indecision, the habit of “passing the buck” on all occasions, instead of facing issues squarely.
e.      The habit of relying upon alibis instead of creating definite plans for the solution of problems.
f.        Self-satisfaction à there is but little remedy for this affliction, and no hope for those who suffer from it.
g.      Indifference, usually reflected in one’s readiness to compromise on all occasions, rather than meets opposition and fights it.
h.     The habit of blaming others for one’s mistakes, and accepting unfavorable circumstances as being unavoidable.
i.        Weakness of desire.
j.        Willingness, even eagerness, to quit at the first sign of defeat.
k.      Lack of organized plans, placed in writing where they may be analyzed.
l.        The habit of neglecting to move on ideas.
m.   Wishing instead of willing.
n.     The habit of compromising with poverty instead of aiming at riches.
o.      Searching for all the short-cuts to riches à gambling
p.      Fear of criticism – the majority of people permit relatives, friends, and the public at large to so influence them that they cannot live their own lives, because they fear criticism.
15.   The starting point is definiteness of purpose, and success come through the application of persistence.
16.  Luck:
a.      The lucky people tended to remember the good things that had happened in their lives, and those that thought they were unlucky tended to dwell on the bad things.
b.      You can influence lucky breaks in 2 ways:
                                                  i.      You have to intentionally put yourself in luck’s way
                                               ii.      You must make people want to help you – because they believe that you deserve their help
c.       People who are lucky make it a point to impress their gatekeepers so that they will be the first to come to mind when opportunities arise.
d.      If you are believed to be a lucky person your chances of receiving lucky opportunities will increase, partly because others hope some of your luck will rub off on them.
e.      There are people waiting to make a difference in your life if you show them you are willing to make an effort and that you are enthusiastic.
17.   Riches do not respond to wishes. They respond only to definite plans, backed by definite desires, through constant persistence.
18.   4 simple steps which lead to the habit of persistence:
a.      A definite purpose backed by burning desire for its fulfillment.
b.      A definite plan, expressed in continuous action.
c.       A mind closed tightly against all negative and discouraging influences, including negative suggestions of relatives, friends and acquaintances.
d.      A friendly alliance with one or more persons who will encourage one to follow through with both plan and purpose.
19.  As one makes an impartial study of the prophets, philosophers, miracle men, and religious leaders of the past, one is drawn to the inevitable conclusion that persistence, concentration of effort and definiteness of purpose, were the major sources of their achievement.

20. The most interesting thing about a postage stamp is the persistence with which it sticks to its job.

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