Based on today's prompt, Literature, Poetry, Free Writing, I decided to share a book called "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill. I confess that before reading this, and of course, I only really feel like reading when I'm out of internet and have some PDF books downloaded on my phone, so at first, I was kind of skeptical because I've seen many books promising magic formulas to get rich, and I always thought that was just a pipe dream. But, just like I made that mistake, don't take the book's title literally. Just like the title of this post haha.
Firstly, the book wasn't exactly what I expected, as I mentioned in the introduction above. It's not like a cake recipe that, if you follow it exactly, will surely work out, well, not always even if we follow the recipe our cake turns out good, (I've managed to burn a cake, even though I was watching it closely). Back to the book, it's more about how our mindset influences our actions and how these actions can lead us to success or failure. The author interviewed various "successful" people and tried to find patterns in the way they think and act. I put "successful" in quotes because this might seem like a gloss over what he meant by interviewing these people, who knows who they really are, and what they do? I don't know.
One of the concepts that really caught my attention was the idea of the mastermind, which basically is a group of people who come together to achieve a common goal. The idea is that by bringing together different minds, with different skills and experiences, you can achieve results and ideas that you might not have on your own. I found it interesting because it shows that no one does anything alone, we always need others in some way. That is, we can always try to do something alone, but in a group, it becomes easier, or harder, depending on the environment you're in.
Another part I liked was about setting clear goals and having a well-defined plan to achieve them. The book talks a lot about the importance of knowing exactly what you want, because if you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there, right?
Remember the saying: Don't follow me, I'm lost.
And that's something I notice a lot, many people, including myself sometimes, live kind of on autopilot, without stopping to think if what we're doing will really take us where we want to go. There's also a part about persistence and how most people give up right before achieving success. This made me think about how many times I've given up on things in my life because I thought it wasn't working out or because it was too hard. The book kind of slaps you in the face (in a good way, not trying to shake your emotions or anything like that) to wake up and keep fighting.
Now, about the part on positive thinking, which is a big theme of the book, I was a bit divided since on one hand, I understand that having a positive attitude can help you tackle problems in a better way, but on the other hand, just thinking positive without acting gets you nowhere, right?
But the author of the book emphasizes a lot that the thought needs to be accompanied by actions, so I think he's covered in that aspect.
I just understood it in this way: It's not enough to think, let's act.
Think and Grow Rich is not a book that will tell you do this and you will get rich, damn those deceptive course sellers. It's more about how to organize your ideas, how to strengthen your determination, and how to use the help of others to achieve your goals. It made me reflect a lot on how I am conducting my life and my projects, although I have put them aside for a long time, specifically my participation in investments through cryptocurrencies.
In my personal opinion, it's worth the read. Even if you don't get rich, I think the ideas in the book can help improve the way you face challenges and how you plan your future. And who knows, with the right mindset, wealth might come as a consequence, right?
Text created for the InLeo Monthly Prompt, check in April Inleo Monthly Calendar Now Here! Day 17: Literature and Poetry
Have you robbed a bank today? 💸