The first time I heard of “The Law of Success” was in year 2010. My mentor asked me to buy this book (Physical Copy!). I did, I read it about x10 and I’m still carrying it with me to this day!
At the end of this post, you can download your FREE ebook version of the original Law of Success in 16 lessons and there will be a link to the physical copy on Amazon.
Success in life depends upon happiness, and happiness is found in no other way than through SERVICE that is rendered in a spirit of love. –Napoleon Hill
Who is Napoleon Hill
One HUGE Thick Manual
In 1927, the book called “The Law of Success in Sixteen Lessons” was written by Napoleon Hill. Most people had never heard of this book. Most people had never read this book. It never became popular because it’s two books in one HUGE thick manual.
At the turn of the century, Hill was hired by a man named Andrew Carnegie. If you don’t know who Andrew Carnegie is, he was (at one time) the richest man on planet Earth and the guy who owned U.S. Steel.
In 1901 Andrew Carnegie was convinced to sell his company to J.P. Morgan for $480M. The value of the transaction in contemporary funds varies between $14.5 billion, if calculated using the cost-of-living index, to as much as $336 billion if calculated as a percentage of GDP.
After the funds were distributed to the small group of private shareholders, Andrew Carnegie personally received around $230M (range between $7 billion to $160 billion, again, depending on how it’s calculated).
The Secrets To Wealth
Andrew Carnegie knew the secrets of creating wealth without working hard. He went to work at 9 in the morning and he left the office at 4 in the afternoon, Monday through Friday. He did not work Saturdays, Sundays or evenings.
He took off June, July and August, to go to Scotland and said, “Don’t bother me!”. This all happened during a time with no phones, iPads, emails or ways to communicate with his office everyday. He did this technique right from the beginning, (meaning he didn’t work like a maniac – 24/7), because he understood the real secret of making money was not working hard, it was using a different power. He understood this, and he became the richest man in the world.
Andrew Carnegie wrote that it was his belief you should spend the first third of life getting all the education you can. You should spend the second third making all the money you can, and the last third should be spent giving it away to worthwhile causes.
“It’s a shame that each new generation must find the way to success by trial and error when the principles are really clear-cut”. -Andrew Carnegie
“Are You Out Of Your Mind?”
Other people at the time understood this power as well. Tomas Edison, Henry Ford, and virtually every millionaire. Andrew Carnegie decided that he wanted to share this secret with the world. He was the only millionaire in the “circle” that wanted to share it. Every other millionaire in the circle said, “Are you out of your mind? We are not sharing the secret! This is ours and we don’t want more competition.”
So Andrew Carnegie hired a young man named Napoleon Hill. He said, “I’m going teach you the secret and I’m going introduce you to the richest people on planet Earth. You’re going to observe them, question them and so forth. You are going to put together all the common denominators of success and compile them in a book!”
Hill wasn’t quite sure how he would manage it, he reaffirmed his commitment to take on the project and see it through to the end. It took Hill exactly 29 seconds to accept Carnegie’s proposal. Carnegie told Hill afterward that has it taken him more than a minute to make the decision, he would have cancelled the proposal.
20 Years For a Book
It took Napoleon over 20 years to put together the “Law of Success in Sixteen Lessons”. It was published, revealing for the first time in history, the secret to wealth.
Everybody went crazy in the millionaire circle. “They” forced it to be pulled off the market within 12 months. 10 years later in 1937, a “watered down” version came out called “Think and Grow Rich” (which some of you are familiar with!)
Think and Grow Rich is a good book, but all the secrets are taken out! That’s why when some people read it, the majority it doesn’t work for. For some people it does work, because they are accidentally using the “secret” that’s not in it.
There’s never been a book published since that reveals the “real secret” that was published in the original Law of Success in Sixteen Lessons.
The Original Manuscript
My mentor’s “education” in 1979 was in the form of an original manuscript of the Law of Success in 16 Lessons. He had flunked high school and never went to college. The book became his “college education”. He studied it, he read it (probably 100x), and he still travels everywhere with it! That’s how powerful it is! “Every time I read a page or chapter, I get something more out of it!” (The scanned copy of this first original manuscript is available in the bonus section at the end of this post)
Napoleon Hill did some speeches back in the 30s and there is a foundation called the Napoleon Hill foundation. At that time, the foundation archives were in Chicago in a locked basement requiring a key. The archives included the original writings of Napoleon Hill and many tape recordings. The recording sound quality was really poor, so they’ve never been published. (People would return it because they couldn’t hear it at all).
“Break In” To The Foundation Facility
My mentor told me he used to “break in” to this facility and listen to these recordings (with very poor sound quality!), transcribe them by hand and store them in a safe.
In one particular recording, Napoleon Hill was speaking to the members of Congress at a meeting in Washington, DC. At that time, this group was comprised of an outrageously prestigious group of “business men” (there weren’t many business opportunities for women back then). These were the captains of industry at the time (very powerful people).
In the recording, Napoleon Hill said to the group “When I learned the ‘secret’ from Andrew Carnegie and began sharing the principles, it frightened me at how fast and how powerfully it worked (keyword! he emphasized ‘frightened’). When people applied the simple principle, the money came so fast, and in such large quantities, it frightened me at the power of this secret.”
“It Was Too Simple”
But he also told the group, “I stopped being frightened, because almost no one used the secret because it was too simple!”.
Think about it, how many people actually apply what they learned in life?
These sixteen lessons are:
The Master Mind: Telepathy, ether, vibration, and how it all is the basis for how the world functions. A master mind is the alliance of two minds joining in a harmonious way. The power that is formed from two or more minds coming together is more powerful than one alone. This is strictly for minds who trust each other and are interested in the good success of all parties involved.
Your Definite Chief Aim: Do not underestimate the value of this due to its simplicity. You need to set an objective before you can achieve it. Not having a solid aim to focus on can not possibly get you to it. You have to know what you want so that you can start receiving it.
Self Confidence: Believe that you are worthy of success and that you can attain it. Without this simple understanding- truly understanding it- you will probably get nowhere with most of your goals. If you are not confident, then you cannot sell yourself in life.
The Habit of Saving: Stop trying to get a Cadillac if you feel more comfortable paying for a Ford. You are on the path to easily affording a Cadillac.
Initiative and Leadership: Addresses the importance of leadership skills (yes, they can be habituated and you don’t have to be a born leader). Here, Hill acknowledges the penalties of leadership. Leaders are not always spoken of sweetly. This should not deter you from becoming a leader. It is only “genius” that attracts the attention of critics. Nobody bothers slandering a person who isn’t somewhere near the upper rings of the ladder of success.
Imagination: Dream, and use your imagination to help lead you to the attainment of your goals. The making good decisions comes with use, and your intuition will always lead you toward your dream. Dreams and actions are closely related.
Enthusiasm: Compels you to act. Mix enthusiasm with your work- do something you are enthusiastic about- and you will not get tired nearly as quickly. Hill explains the things that can contribute to enthusiasm, one being to wear nice clothes. Basically, if you look like a million bucks, you’ll feel like a million bucks, and you will likely find yourself around a million bucks. The opposite is also true, and this is to be avoided. Feel good about your appearance, because it also affects the first impression of you on others who can be instrumental in your path to success.
Self Control: Auto suggestion is like reprogramming your subconscious mind to believe what you want it to believe- to replace your old beliefs with new ones that will serve you better. This takes self control. Have you ever tried to change a habit? It makes sense. When you take control over the thoughts you are thinking, then you can take control of your success. Make these thoughts the ones you want to believe, and see yourself the way you want to see yourself.
Habit Of Doing More Than Paid For: If you are going to whine about your work, then you are not going anywhere. Do the work you have in front of you, then ask what else you may do. By doing this, you make yourself valuable, and you will surely reach a point where you are being paid handsomely. Valuable employees are… valuable. This is also and especially true when you are working for yourself.
Pleasing Personality: Have one. Don’t point things out on people, don’t hang your head and say “I’m tired.” Mediocrity does not care if you are pleasant or not. Success does.
Accurate Thought: Sort “facts” from “information”, and use auto-suggestion in conjunction with focused thoughts.
Concentration: “Concentration is the act of focusing the mind upon a given desire until ways and means for its realization have been worked out and successfully put into operation” (p 438). That about covers it.
Cooperation: The implementing of cooperation between you and others who are going to help you get to your goal (the top of the ladder of success is never lonely, because you can’t help but bring others with you). Cooperation must also exist between your conscious and subconscious mind so that they may work harmoniously in your favor.
Failure: Yes! Fail, and be happy that it is bringing you one step closer to success. Failure is inevitable, and it is a great step towards the right direction. Replace “failure” with “temporary defeat”.
Tolerance: Don’t practice prejudice or racism. It is ignorance, and it is a barrier to success. Just see the best in people and situations, and focus only on your goal and the good for all.
The Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you wish them to do unto you.” Also, “Think of others as you wish them to think of you.”
“Watered Down” Version
Think and Grow Rich 1937 table of contents:
Desire
Faith
Autosuggestion
Specialized Knowledge
Imagination
Organized Planning
Decision
Persistence
Power of the Master Mind
The Mystery of Sex Transmutation
The Subconscious Mind
The Brain
The Sixth Sense