Napoleon Hill’s Golden Rules

Have you ever met someone who exudes total self-confidence and seems to succeed at everything she turns her hand to? Maybe you think she comes across as cocky, or you feel jealous that she seems to know the secrets to success and you don’t.

But here’s the thing: we can all create the life we want. The secret is simply how we use our thoughts.

One powerful method is through autosuggestion, which allows you to shape how you develop as an individual by feeding your mind inspiring thoughts and images.

The author had a regular practice of thinking up imaginary meetings where he’d sit down and chat with such distinguished and inspiring guests as Abraham Lincoln, Socrates, Napoleon and Aristotle.

During these imaginary meetings, Hill would focus on certain characteristics of his guests that he hoped to make his own. In Lincoln’s case, he hoped to take on his ability to be fair, to help others and to be courageous in finding new ways of doing things.

Every night, Hill would spend an hour performing this exercise, adding more inspiring figures to his meetings as he would learn about them.

He found that by using autosuggestion to focus on inspiring thoughts, you can transform your life and find success.

In Hill’s case, autosuggestion allowed him to overcome his fear of public speaking and focus on taking on the qualities of successful orators, such as the abolitionist clergyman, Henry Ward Beecher.

After just a week’s worth of autosuggestion, Hill received a standing ovation and a return invitation after one highly successful speech. A year later, he was touring the country as one of the most sought-after speakers in the US. He even received an award for his 1920 speech at a convention in Pittsburgh from the Associated Advertising Clubs of the World.

And it was all made possible by the power of thought.