For David III
Our six-year-old son, David, felt mighty big when he was graduated from kindergarten.
"Well, Dad," he replied, "I think 1 want to be a professor of happiness."
'Aprofessor of happiness! That's a pretty wonderful ambition, don't you think?"
To David, then, a fme boy with a grand goal, and to his mother, this book is dedicated.
.
Preface 1
What This Book Will Do for You 5
1 , Believe You Can Succeed an-d You Will 9
2, Cure Yourself of Excusitis, the Failure Disease 25
3, Build Confidence and Destroy Fear 49
4, How to Think Big 75
5, How to Think and Dream Creatively 100
6, You Are What You Think You Are 126
7, Manage Your EnvironmeHt: Go First Class 146
8, Make Your Attitudes Your Allies 166
9, Think Right Toward People 192
10, Get the Action Habit 212
11 , How to Tum Defeat into Victory 235
12, Use Goals to Help You Grow 252
13, How to Think like a Leader 275
Preface.
Why this big book? Why a full-scale discussion of The Magic of
Thinking Big? Thousands of-books will be published this year. Why ·one more?
Permit me to give yon just a little background.
Several years ago I witnessed an exceptionally impressive
sales meeting. The vice president in charge of marketing for this company was tremendously excited. He wanted to drive home
a point. He had with him on the platform the leading represen-
~ative in the organization, a vety ordinary-looking fellow, who earned in the year just ended just a little under $60,000.
The earn-ings of other representatives averaged $12,000.
The executive challenged the group. Here is what he said:
"I want you to take a good look at Harry. Look at him! Now, what's Harry got that the rest of you haven't?
Harry earned five times the average, but is H
Harry five times smarter? No, not according
to our personnel tests. I checked. They show he's about avet:age in that department.
' did Harry work five times harder than you fellows?
No-not according ro the reports. In fact, he took more time off than most of yon.
"Did Harry have a better territory? Again I've got to say no.
The accounts averaged about the same. Did Harry have more
education? Better health? Again, no. Harry is about as average as
an average guy could be except for one thing.
"The difterence between Harry and the rest of you," said
the vice president, "the difference is that Harry thought five
times bigger."
Then the executive proceeded to show that success is deter-
mined not so much by the size of one's brain as it is by the size of one's thinking.
This was an intriguing thought. And it stayed with me. The
more I observed, the more people I talked with, the deeper I dug
into what's really behind success, the clearer was the answer.
Case history after case history proved that the size of bank
accounts, the size of happiness accounts, and the size of one's
general satisfaction account is dependent on the size of one's think-
ing. There is magic in thinking big.
"If Thinking Big accomplishes so much, why doesn't every-
one think that way?" I've been asked that question many times.
Here, I believe, is the answer. All of us, more than we recognize,
are products of the thinking around us. And much of this thinking
is little, not big. All around you is an environment that is trying
to tug you, trying to pull you down Second Class Street. You are
told almost daily that there are "too many chiefs and not enough
Indians." In other words, that opportunities to lead no longer exist,
that there is a surplus of chiefs, so be content to be a little guy.
But this "too many chiefs" idea simply doesn't square with
the truth. Leading people in all occupations will tell you, as
they've told me, that "the trouble is, there are too many Indians
and not nearly enough chiefs."
This pettily petty environment says other things too. It
tells you; "Whatever will be will be," that your destiny is outside
your control, that "fate" is in complete control. So forget those
dreams, forget that finer home, forget that special college for the
children, forgft the better life. Be· resigned. Lie down and wait
to die.
And who hasn't heard the statement that "Success, isn't
worth the price," as if you have to sell your soul, your family
life, your conscience, your set of values to reach the top. But, in
truth, success doesn't demand a price. Every step forward pays
a dividend.
This environment also tells us there's too much competi-
tion for the top spots in life. But is there? A personnel selection
.executive told me that he receives 50 to 250 times as many
applicants for jobs that pay $10,000 per year as for jobs that pay
$50,000 a year. This is to say that there is at least 50 times as much
competition for jobs on Second Class Street as for jobs on First
Class Avenue. First Class Avenue, U.S.A., is a short, uncrowded
street. There are countless vacancies waiting there for people like
you who dare to think big.
The basic principles and concepts supporting The Magic of
Thinking Big come from the highest-pedigree sources, the very fm-
est and biggest-thinking minds yet to live on planet Earth. Minds
like the prophet David, who wrote, '1\.s one thinketh in his heart,
so is he"; minds such as Emerson, who said, "Great men are those
who see that thoughts rule the world"; minds like Milton, who in
Paradise Lost wrote, "The mind is its own place and in itself can
make a heaven of hell or a hell of heaven." Amazingly perceptive
minds like Shakespeare, who observed, "There is nothing either
good or bad except that thinking makes it so."
But where does the proof come from? How do we know
the master thinkers were right, Fair questions. The pl'Oof comes
from the lives of the select people al'Ound us who, thl'Ough win-
ning success, achievement, and happiness, pl'Ove that thinking
big does work magic.
The simple steps we have set down here are not untested
theories. They are not one man's guesses and opinions. They are
proven appl'Oaches to life's situations, and they are universally
applicable steps that work and work like magic.
That you're reading this page pl'Oves you are interested in
larger success. You want to fulfill your desires. You want to enjoy
a fine standard of living. You want this life to deliver to you all
the good things you deserve. Being interested in success is a
wonderful quality.
You have another admirable quality. The fact that you're
holding this book in your hands shows you have the intelligence
to look for tools that will help take you where you want to go.
In building anything-automobiles, bridges, missiles-we need
tools. Many people, in their attempt to build a successful life,
forget there are tools to help them. You have not forgotten. You
have, then, the two basic qualities needed to realize real profit
from this book: a desire for greater success and the intelligence
to select a tool to help you realize that desire.
Think Big and you'll live big. You'll live big in happiness.
You'll live big in accomplishment. Big·in income. Big in friends.
Big in respect.
Enough for the promise.
Start now, right now, to discover how to make your think-
ing make magic for you. Start out with this thought of the great
philosopher Disraeli: "Life is too short to be little."
WHAT THIS BOOK
WI LL DO FOR YOU
In every chapter of this book you will fmd dozens of hardheaded,
practical ideas, techniques, and principles that will' enable you to
harness the tremendous power of thinking big, so as to gain for
yourself the success, happiness, and satisfaction you want so much.
Every technique is dramatically illustrated by a real·life case history.
You discover not only what to do, but, what is even more important,
you see exactly how to apply each principle to actual situations and
problems. Here, then, is what this book will do for you; it will show
you how you can ...
Launch Yourself to Success with
the Power of Belief 9
Win Success by Believilig You Can
Succeed 19
Defeat Disbelief and the Negative
Power It Creates 12
Get Big Results by Believing Big
14
Make Your Mind Produce Positive
Thoughts 18
Develop the Power of Belief 20
Plan a Concrete Success·Building
Program 22
Vaccinate Yourself Against
EXCllsitis, the Failure Disease
29
Learn the Secret That Lies in Your
Attitude Toward Health 27
Take Four Positive Steps to Lick
. Health Excusitis 31
WHATTHIS BOOK WILL DO FOR YOU
Discover Why Your Thiuking
Power Is More Important Than
Mere Intelligence 32
Use Your Mind for Thinking-Not
Simply as a Warehouse for Facts
37
Master TItree Easy Ways to Cure
Intelligence Excusitis 38
Overcome the Problem of Age-
BeiHg "Too Young,» or "Too
Old" 39
Conquer Luck Excusitis and Attract
Good Luck to You 45
Use the Action Technique to Cure
Fear and Build Confidence 50
Manage Your Memory so as to
Increase Your Store of Confi-
dence 55
. Overcome Your Fear of Other
People 61
Increase Selfconfidence by Satisfy-
ing Your O\vn Conscience 64
Think Confidelttly by Acting Confi-
delttly 68
. Learn the Five Positive Steps to
Build Confidence and Destroy
Fear 74
Discover That Success Is Measured
by the Size of Your Thinking
76
Measure Your True Size and Find
Out What Assets You Have
77
Think as Big as You Really Are
79
Develop the Big Thinker's Vocabu-
lary with These Four Specific
Steps 81
Think Big by Visualizing What
Can Be Done in the Future 82
Add Value to Things, to People,
and to Yourself 89
Get the "TIlinking Big" VieW of
Your Job 90
Think Above Trivialities and Con-
centrate on What's Important.
77
Test Yourself-Find Out How Big
Your Thinking Really Is
97
Use Creative Thinking to Find New
and Better Ways to Get Things
Done 100
Develop Creative Power by Believ-
ing It Can Be Done 105
Fight Mind-Freezing Tra4itioual
Thinking, 106
Do More and Do It Better by Turn-
ing on Your Creative Power
Use the Three Keys to Strengthen-
ing Creativity by Opening Your
Ears and Your Mind 118
Stretch Your Thinking a/1d Stimu-
late Your Mind 118
Harness and Develop Your
Ideas-the Fruit of Your Think-
ing 120
Look Important, Because It Helps
You Think Important 127
Become Important by Thinking
Your Work Is Important 132
Build Your Own "Sell-Yourself to-
Yourself" Commercial 141
Upgrade Your Thinking-Think
Like Important People Think
144
Make Your Environment Work for
You 117
Prevent Small People from Holding
You Back 151
Manage Your Work Environment
154
Get Plenty of Psychological Sun-
shine During Leisure Hours
157
Throw Thought Poison Out of
Your Environment 161
Go First Class in Everything
You Do 163
WHATTHIS BOOK WILL 00 FOR YOU 7
Grow the Attitlldes That Will Help
You Win What You Want 168
Get Activated; Get Enthusiastic
168
Develop the Power of Real Enthusi-
asm 169
Grow the "You-Are-Important"
Attitude 177
Make More Money by Getting the
"Put-Service-First" Attitllde
186
Win the Support of Other People
by Thinking Right Toward
Them 192
Become More Likable by Making
Yourself "Lighterto LijI" 194
Take the Initiative in Building
Friendships 197
Master the Technique of TIlink-
ing Only Good Thoughts About
People 202
Win Friends by Practicing Conver-
sation Generosity 207
Think Big, Even Wheil You Lose or
Receive a Setback 209
Get the Action Habit-You Don't
Need to Wait Until Conditions
Are Perftct 212
Make Up Your Mind to Do Some-
thing About Your Ideas. 221
WHATTHIS BOOK WILL DO FOR YOU
Use Action to Cure Fear and Gaia
Confidence 222
Discover the Secret of Mind Action
223
Capitalize on the Magic of NOW
226
Strengthen Yourself by Getting the
"Speak Up" Habit 228
Develop Initiative, a Special Kind
of Action 229
Discover That Deftat Is Nothiug
More Than a State of Mind
236
Salvage Somethingfrom Every Set-
back 237
Use the Force of Constructive Self-
criticism 243
Achieve Positive Results Through
Persistence and Experimenta-
tion 245
Whip Discouragemel1t by Finding
the Good Side to Every Situa-
tion 249
Get a Clear Fix on Where You
Want to Go in Life 252
Use This Plan to Build Your Tw-
Year Goal 255
Avoid the Five Success-Murdering
Weapons 259
Multiply Your EnClg)' by Setting
Definite Goals 260
Set Goals That Will Help You Get
Things Done and Live Longer
261
Accomplish Your Goals with This
30-Day Improvement Guide
268
Invest in Yourself for Future Profit
270
Learn the Four Rules of Leader-
ship 275
Develop Your Power to Trade
Minds with the People You
Want to fllIluence 280
Put the "Be-Human" Approach to
Work for You 282
Think Progress, Believe in Progress,
Push for Progress 288
Test Yourself to Learn Whether
You Are a Progressive Thinker
293
Tap Your Supreme Thinking Power
295
Use the Magic of Thinking Big in
Lift's Most Crucial Situations
1
9. BELIEVE YOU CAN SUCCEED AND YOU WILL
Success means many wonderful.positive things. Success means personal prosperity: a fine home, vacations, travel, new
things, fmandal security, giving your children maximum advan-
tages. Success means winning admiration, leadership, being
looked up to by people in your business and sodallife. Success
means freedom: freedom fium worries, fears, frustrations, and
failure. Success means self-respect, conrinually fmdirig more real
happiness and satisfaction from life, being able to do more for
those who depend on you.
Success means winning.
Success~achievement~is the goal of life!
Every human being wants success. Everybody wants the
. best this life can deliver. Nobody enjoys crawling, living in medi-
ocrity. No one likes feeling second-class and feeling forced to go
that way.
Some of the most practical suq:ess-building wisdom is found
in that biblical quotation stating that faith can move mountains.
Believe, really believe, you can move a mountain, an~ you
can. Not many people believe that they can move mountains. So,
as a result, not many people do.
10 BElIEVE YOU CAli SUCCEED AIID YOU WILL
On some occasion you've probably heard someone say
something like "It's nonsense to think you can make a mountain
move away just by saying 'Mountain, move away.' It's simply
impossible."
People who think this way have belief confused with wish-
ful thinking. And true enough, you can't wish away a mountain.
You can't wish yourself into an executive suite. Nor can you
.wish yourself into a five-bedroom, three-bath house or the
high-income brackets. You can't wish yourself into a position of
leadership.
But you can move a mountain with belief. You can win suc-
cess by believing you can succeed.
There is nothing magical or mystical about the power of
belief.
Belief works this way. Belief, the 'Tm-positive-I-can" atti-
tude, generates the power, skill, and energy needed to do. When
you believe I-can-do-it, the how-to-do-it develops.
Every day all over the nation young people start working in
new jobs. Each of them "wishes" that someday he could enjoy
the success that goes with reaching the top. But the majority of
these young people simply don't have the belief that it takes to
reach the top rungs. And they don't reach the tOp. Believing it's
impossibl~ to climb high, they do not discover the steps that lead
to great heights. Theil' behavior remains that of the "average"
person.
But a small number of these young people really believe they
will succeed. They approach their work with the 'Tm-going-to-
the-top" attitude. And with substantial belief they reach the top.
Believing they will succeed-and that it's not impossible-these
folks study and observe the behavior of senior executives. They
11. BELIEVE YOU CAli SUCCEED AND YOU Will 11
learn how successful people approach problems and make deci-
sions. They observe the attitudes of successful people.
The how-to-do-it always comes to the person who believes
. he can do it.
A young woman I'm acquainted with decided two years
ago that she was going to establish a sales agency to sell mobile
homes. She was advised by many that she shouldn't-and
couldn't-do it.
She had less than $3,000 in savings and was advised that the
minimum capital investment required was many times that.
"Look how competitive it is," she was advised. "And besides,
what practical experience have you had in selling mobile homes,
let alone managing a business?" her advisors asked.
But this young lady had belief in herself and her ability to
succeed. She quickly admitted that she lacked capital, that the
business was very competitive, and that she lacked experience. '
"But," she said, "all the evidence I can gather shows that the
mobile home industry is going to expand. On top of that, I've
studied my competition. I know I can do a better job of merchan-
dising trailers than anybody else in this town. I expect to make
some mistakes, but I'm going to be on top in a hurry." ,
And she was. She had little trouble getting capital. Her
absolutely unquestioned belief that she could succeed with this
business won her the confidence of two investors. And armed
with complete belief, she did the "impossible" -she got a trailer
manufacturer to advance her a limited inventory with no money
down.
Last year she sold over $1,OOO,pOO worth of trailers.
"Next year," she says, "I expect to gross over $2,000,000."
Belief, strong belief, triggers the mind to figure ways and
12 BELIEVE YOU CAlI SUCCEED AlID YOU WILL
means and how-to. And believing you can succeed makes others
place confidence in you.
Most people do not put much stock in belief. But some, the
residents of Successfulville, U.S.A., do! Just a few weeks ago a
friend who is an oftlcial with a state highway department in a mid-
western state related a "mountain-moving" experience to me.
"Last month," my friend began, "our department sent
notices to a number of engineering companies that we were
authorized to retain some firm to design eight bridges as part of
our highway-building program. The bridges were to be built at a
cost of $5,000,000. The engineering firm selected would get a 4
percent commission, o'r $200,000, for its design work.
"I talked with twenty-one engineering firms about this.
The four largest decided right away to submit proposals. The
other seventeen companies were small, having ,only three to
seven engineers each. The size of the project scared off sixteen
of these seventeen, They went over the project, shook their
heads, and said, in effect, 'It's too big for us. I wish I thought we
could handle it, but it's no use even trying:
"But one of these small firms, a company with only three
engineers, studied the plans and said, 'We can do it. We'll submit
a proposal.' They did, and they got the job,"
Those who believe they can move' mountains, do, Those
who believe'they can't, cannot, Belief triggers the powe'r to do.
Actually, in these modern tim~s belief is doing much bigger
things than moving mountains. The most essential element-in
fact, the essential element-in our space explorations today is
belief that space can be mastered, Without firm, unwavering
belief that man can travel in space, our scientists would not
have the courage, interest, and enthusiasm to proceed. Belief
Page 13
that cancer can be cured will ultimately produce cures for can- .
eel'. Currently, there is some talk of building a tunnel under
the English Channel to connect England with the Continent.
Whether this tunnel is ever built depends on whether responsible
people believe it can be built.
Belief in great results is the driving force, the power behind
all great books, plays, scientific discoveries. Belief in success is
behind every successful business, church, and political organiza-
tion. Belief in success is the one basic, absolutely essential ingre-
dient of successful people.
Believe, really believe, you can succeed, and you will.
Over the years I've talked with many people who have
failed in business ventures and in various careers. I've heard a lot
of reasons and excuses for failure. Something especially signifi-
cant unfolds as conversations with failures develop. In a casual
sort of way the failure drops a remark like "To tell the truth,
I didn't think it would work" or "I had my misgivings before I
even started out" or '1\ctually, I wasn't too surprised that it didn't
work out."
The "Okay-I' ll-give-it -a -try-but -I -don't -think-it -will-work"
attitude produces failures.
Disbelief is negative power. When the mind disbelieves
or doubts, the mind attracts "reasons" to support the disbelief.
Doubt, disbelief, the subconsciolls will to fail, the not really wanting
to succeed, is responsible for most failures.
Think doubt and fail.
Think victory and succeed.
A young fiction writer talked with me recently about her
writing ambitions. The name of one of the top writers in her field come up.
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