The Magic of Thinking Big - Azara Feroz Sayed

The Magic of Thinking Big is a 50+ yr old bestseller by David Schwartz about being sucessful using the magic of thinking - the power of belief, attitude and action! It is funny to read the examples of $1000 salary or a handsome salary of $35,000 - one need to keep the perspective of this while reading the 50+ year old book.

David introduces by saying sucess is not determined by the size of one's brain as it is by the size of one's thinking. The size of bank accounts, size of happiness accounts, size of one general satisfaction account is dependent on size of one's thinking.

David talks about study human behaviour to know the rules of success using the fully equipped laboratory of human beings that is around us to study human action. The laboratory provides us with every possible example of human action. We need to observe and experiment - to know more about sucessful people, to know why people act as they do. To get insight into human action by asking questions as Why is XX so sucessful? Why is YY just mediocre? etc

David talks about "walk-watch", watching people walk, to know what is going on in their mind are they troubled, are they happy - one way to use the laboratory that we have at our disposal. I always thought Feroz did this to entertain me. He would try to build up stories on what is going on with the person.

One of the things that David mentions is that confidence determines how we fight our fears. Memory management is the most important thing for building confidence - depositing and withdrawing positive thoughts is the key to confidence. He talks about recalling pleasent experiences to boost confidence (refer post "Mastering your mind" on how this can be used to manage difficult situations). Feroz doesn't listens to news, songs, chat shows etc in the morning to ensure his postive rhythm is not disturbed.

With Feroz, I have learnt the importance of setting a high standard for others to follow. I helped Feroz with the logistics during one of the 'Interviewing Skills' session he conducted. During the session, Feroz tried to capture students responses to most of the aspects mentioned in the book, as part of the interview questions. Stressing students with questions during the interview to check how strong their beliefs were. He played back the video in the class - for the students to know what the interviewer is trying to know about the applicant and what would be the best response and yes importance of appearence!

I have used the review of the book at the site below and added some the ideas that I found interesting in the book
http://www.lifetrainingonline.com/blog/the-magic-of-thinking-big-part-i.htm

Believe You Can Succeed and You Will
Belief and wishful thinking are quite different. Wishful thinking will never spur you to action and as a result, your wishful thought will forever remain a wish. Belief works this way. Belief, the "I'm-positive-I-can" attitude generates the power, skill and energy needed to achieve results. When we truly believe we can do it, the HOW TO DO IT will reveal itself.

Without firm, unwavering belief that man can travel in space, our scientists would not have had the courage, interest and enthusiasm to proceed. Belief in great results is the driving force behind all great discoveries. Belief in success is the one basic, absolutely essential ingredient in successful people.

Disbelif is the -ve power. When the mind disbelieves or doubts, the mind attracts "reasons" to support the disbelief. Doubt, disbelief, the subconcious will to fail, the not really wanting to succeed, is responsible for most failures.

The size of our success is determined by the size of our belief. We can also consider belief to be the thermostat that regulates our accomplishments in life. If we take a look at one who is struggling in mediocrity, he believes he is worth little so as result, he receives little. Contrast this with the person who is advancing in life. They really belief they’re worth a lot, and again as a result they receive a lot.

A person is a product of his own thoughts. Believe Big. Let us adjust our thermostat forward. Let us launch our success offensive with honest, sincere belief that we can suceed. Believe big and grow big.

We know that our mind is a "thought factory", producing countless thoughts in a day. Production in our thought factory is under the charge of two foremen Mr Triumph and Mr Defeat. Mr Triumph is in charge of manufacturing postive thought. He specializes in producing reasons why we can, why we will etc The other foremen, Mr Defeat, produces negative, deprecating thoughts. He is our expert in developing reasons why we can't, why we are inadequate. His speciality is why-we-will-fail thoughts. They both are obedient and snap to attention immediately when required. The more work we give either of these foremen, the stronger they become. Eventually taking the entire thought-manufacturing process. To have strong belief, we need to ignore Mr.Defeat (refe "Taming the Gremlin" post) and strengthen Mr. Triumph.

As Tony Robbins says, Belief is to have faith when nothing in the our environment is supporting us. Generating the feeling of certainity. Operating with Strong Belief, is to operate from faith instead of fear. Belief is about creating certainity in face of fear. When we operate out-of-fear, we constantly focus on worst that could happen. We anticipate in advance and thereby avoid participating. The greatest way in the world not to achieve anything is to not to take the first step. Belief, is to have courage to put ourselves on the line by having faith - faith is the ultimate power.

While recruting, companies often look for candidate who aspires leadership for himself and his company - a determination to undertake a personal program of self development.

Cure Yourself of Exusitus, the Failure Disease
The distinguishing difference between a person who is going places and the individual who is barely getting by is the latter person’s habit of excuses. The more successful the individual, the less inclined he is to make excuses. But the fellow who has gone nowhere and has no plans for getting anywhere always has a boxful of reasons to explain why. Persons with mediocre accomplishments are quick to explain why they haven't, why they don't, why they can't, and why they aren't.
Much like any other disease, this disease of ‘excusitis’, as the author calls it, will get worse if not treated properly.

The problem is, once you’ve selected for yourself a ‘good’ excuse, you end up sticking to it. You then end up using that excuse to explain to yourself and others why you’re not making progress in that area of life; And each time you use that excuse, the more it gets ingrained into your subconscious and the more you begin to believe it is true.

Successful people on the other hand learn how to vaccinate themselves against excusitis instead fertilizing their minds with the seeds of confidence and achievement - making the most of the resources available with them as "the right attitude and one arm will beat the wrong attitude and two arms every time" and being grateful for having the available resources.

Poor health? Lack of education? Too old? Too young? Bad luck? Personal misfortune? he way my family brought me up? are some of the common excuses used by mediocre people. The four most common of this disease are healthy excusitis, intelligence excusitis, age excusitis and luck excusitis.

http://www.seniorsnetwork.co.uk/positivethinking2/excusitis.htm
1."But My Health Isn't Good." - Health excusitis is used as an excuse for failing to do what a person wants to do, failing to accept greater responsibilities, failing to make more money, failing to achieve success. Remind yourself often, "It's better to wear out than rust out."

2."But you've got to have brains to succeed." - Intelligence excusitis or "I lack brains" is common. Unlike most other types of excusitis, people suffering from this particular type of the malady suffer in silence. Not many people will admit openly that they think they lack adequate intelligence. Rather, they feel it deep down inside. Most of us make two basic errors with respect to intelligence: We under estimate our own brain power, and We overestimate the other fellow's brainpower. Because of these errors many people sell themselves short. They fail to tackle challenging situation because it "takes brains". What really matters is not how much intelligence we have but how we use what we do have. The thinking that guides your intelligence is much more important than the quantity of your brain power. Interest, enthusiasm, is the critical factor. With a positive, optimistic, and cooperative attitude a person with an IQ of 100 will earn more money, win more respect, and achieve more success than a negative, pessimistic, uncooperative individual with an IQ of 120. Just enough sense to stick with something-a chore, task, project-until it's completed, pays off much better than idle intelligence, even if idle intelligence be of genius calibre. Stickability is 95% of ability. Negative Thinking is the reason for some brilliant people's failures.
He has a very mediocre job (he's afraid of responsibility).
He has never married (lots of marriages end in divorce).
He has few friends (people bore him).
He's never invested in property of kind (he might lose his money).
These men use their great brainpower to prove why things won't work rather than directing his mental power to searching for ways to succeed. We can't do much to change the amount of negative ability, but we can certainly change the way we use what we have. Knowledge is power- when you use it constructively.
Closely allied to intelligence excusitis is some incorrect thinking about knowledge. We often hear that knowledge is power. But this statement is only a half-truth. Knowledge is only potential power. Knowledge is power only when we put to use - and then only when the use made of it is constructive.
The story is told that the great scientist Einstein was once asked how many feet are in a mile. Einstein's reply was, " I don't know. Why should I fill my brain with facts I can find in two minutes in any standard reference book?"
It is more important to use our mind to think than to use it as a warehouse for facts. The ability to know how to get information is more important than using the mind as a garage of facts. When questioned Henry Ford responded, I don't know the answer to the question but can find a man in five minutes who can do that. The idea is to use the best available resources rather than making yourself a factman. What we want around are people who can solve problems, who can think up ideas. People who can dream and then develop the dream into a practical application; an idea man can make money, a fact man can't.
Never underestimate our own intelligence and never overestimate the intelligence of others. It's not how many brains we've got that matters, rather it's how we use your brains that counts. Reminding several times daily: "My attitudes are more important than my intelligence." using our brain to find ways to win. Remembering that ability to think is of much greater value than the ability to memorize facts. Using our mind to create and develop ideas to find new and better ways to do things. Asking, "Am I using my mental ability to make history or am I using it merely to record history made by others."

3."It's No Use I'm too old (or too young)." - Age excusitis, the failure disease of never being the right age comes in two easily identifiable forms: the " I'm too old" variety and the "I'm too young" brand. How old we are is not important, it's one's attitude toward age that makes it a blessing or a barricade. For too young, don't be age conscious, don't take advantage of new gold bars, get used to having older persons working for us. What matters really is how well we know our job. Age has no real relation to ability, unless we convince yourself that years alone will give us the stuff we need to make your mark. The cure for age excusitis is to look at our present age positively. Think "I'm still young," not "I'm already old." Compute how much productive time we have left. Life is actually longer than most people think. Invest future time in doing what we really want to do. Start thinking, " I'm going to start now, my best years are ahead of me." That's the way successful people think.

4. "But my case is different: I attract bad luck." - Luck excusitis - If luck determined who does what and who goes where, every business in the nation would fall apart. People who rise to the top in any occupation- business, management, selling, law, engineering, acting or what have you- get there because they have superior attitudes and use their good sense in applied hard work. Accept the law of cause of effect. Take a second look at what appears to be someone's " good luck." we'll find not luck but preparation, planning and success-producing thinking preceded his good fortune. Take a second look at what appears to be someone's " bad luck." we'll discover certain specific reasons. Mr. Success receives a set back; he learns and profits. But when Mr. Mediocre loses, he fails to learn. Don't be a wishful thinker. We don't become successful simply through luck. Don't count on luck for promotions, victories, the good things in life. Luck simply isn't designed to deliver these good things.

Build Confidence and Destroy Fear
Other than excuses, fear is another very real hindrance to success. It keeps you from capitalizing on opportunity; it wears you down physically, it also closes your mouth when you want to speak. Fear can even cause you to become sick. Fear — manifested in uncertainty and lack of confidence — explains why millions of people accomplish little and enjoy little. In one way or another fear keeps people from getting what they want in life.

So is there an antidote for fear? Absolutely. The cure is found in action. If indecision and postponement further breed fear, then taking action will kill it off. To conquer fear: Isolate fear. This is where we determine exactly what it is that we are afraid of. Take action. Every type of fear has some type of action which will counter-act it. When deciding what course of action to take, do not hesitate. Hesitation only magnifies the fear. Be decisive and act immediately.

self-conciousness can be a reason for fear at times. It is important for us to put people in proper perspective to get over self-conciousness.
- Get a balanced view of the other fellow - The other fellow is important as every human being is. We are important too. Think, we are two important people sitting down to discuss something of mutual interest and benefit.
- Develop an understanding attitude to the adult bully. Try to think, the adult bully is having some bigger problems and his behaviour towards us is the otcome of that big problem he is struggling with - making him feel inferior - and he is using us to get over it.
- Doing what's right keeps our confidence satisfied. As the guilt pulls down our confidence.

Being confident is another way of banishing fear. Confidence is not something that people are born with, it is developed; And developing it requires a little effort on our part. Much lack of self-confidence can be traced directly to mis-managed memory. Everyday we make thought deposits in our "mind bank". When we settle down to face a problem, ineffect we say to the memory bank, "what do I already know about the problem?". Based on our prior experience our memory bank provides info. If we have a repository of failures deposited as -ve thoughts rather than "learnings from an experience which didn't give us the results we were looking for but some other results for us to work on further" - failure is what the memory is going to provide us a response to us. This is like, if we put dirt in the car crank case every day, the fine engine will surely be messed up - unable to do what we want it to do. -ve thoughts create worry, frusteration, feelings of inferiority.

Before going to bed, recall the good things we saw people do, recall the little victories and accomplishments, count your blessings, go over the reasons why we are
glad to be alive - these will be the positive deposits. When driving or alone recall pleasent experiences, positive thougts - these will be the positive deposits too.

The best way to build confidence is the “fake it ’till you make it” approach. In other words, to think confidently, act confidently. Schwartz quotes the great psychologist, Dr. George W. Crane who said, “Remember, motions are the precursors of emotions. You can’t control the latter directly but only through your choice of motions or actions…Go through the proper motions each day and you’ll soon begin to feel the corresponding emotions!” This example can best be seen with smiling. It’s hard to feel sad if you try to smile as hard as you can. (Go ahead try it ;)) The same holds true with confidence. It’s hard to be shy and uneasy if you’re body is telling you you’re confident. Aren't these thoughts that Tony Robbins talks about in Changing State - to use physical changes to change our mental state.

Some physiological changes boost confidence
- Be a front seater
- Make eye contact
- Walk 25% faster - Throw shoulders back, lift head
- Speak up
- Smile big

How to Think Big
Schwartz explains how big we think ultimately determines the size of our accomplishments. But how can we enlarge our thinking? How do we think big? Maybe by looking at the traits of some big thinkers, we can figure out just how one can expand their thinking
- Big thinkers are really good at crafting positive, forward-looking, optimistic pictures in their own minds and in the minds of others. The words they choose are reflective of this and help others to envision a positive outcome.
"I'm sorry to report we've failed" to "Here's a new approach that I think will work"
"We face a problem" to "We face a challenge"
"We incurred a big expense" to "We made a big investment"
Using big, positive, cheerful words and phrases to describe how we feel ("Just Wonderful!"), to decribe other people, compliment people, to outline plans etc
- Big thinkers have trained themselves to not only see what is in their current reality but to see what could become their reality. Look at things not as they are, but as they can be. Visualization adds value to everything. A big thinker always visualizes what can be done in future. He isn't stuck with the present. The teacher who only thinks of Jimmy as he is - an ill-mannered, backward, uncouth brat - certainly will not aid Jimmy's development. But the teacher who sees Jimmy not as he is but as he can be, she'll get results. Asking questions like "What can I do to 'add value' to my work, home etc", "What can I do to 'add value' to my subordinates?", "What can I do make myself more valuable?"
- Big thinkers see themselves as part of a team. Success does not come alone but by working with others. They help in every way they can, even when there is no direct and immediate compensation. The fellow who shrugs off a problem outside his own department with a comment "Well, that none of my concern, let them worry it", hasn't got the attitude it takes for top leadership. Seeing the company interest as identical with our own. Probably only a very few people working in large companies have a sincere, unselfish interest in the company. But after all, only a relatively few persons qualify as big thinkers.
- Big thinkers do not get bogged down by trivial details or small failings. They learn to keep moving forward, keeping their eyes on the overall objective.
What causes quarells - Little, petty thinking causes arguments so let us eliminate petty thinking. Before complaning, accusing, reprimanding, counter attack in self defense, ask "Is it really important enough for me to get all worked up about". This question works like magic! Keep focus on the big objective while working with employees, marriage, neighbours
What does it to make a good speech - Knowledge of what we are going to talk abiut and an intense desire to tell it to other people as well as a burning desire for other people to hear it. Not letting your mind go over trivial thoughts about standing position, arm position, grammatical mistake but focus over the important task of delivering the speech. Don't fall in the triviality trap while making speeches, solving problems, think of things that really matter - things that make a difference. Don't become submerged under surface issues. Concentrate on important things.
- Big thinkers don't Short Sell - One of the biggest weakness is to sell ourselves short! We are truly bigger than we think! A assessment of our strengths and weaknesses with those we consider sucessful/failure will help us to know how truly big we are and this will be reflected in everything that we do.

How to Think and Dream Creatively
Creative thinking is nothing other than finding new and improved ways to do something. Success in any endeavor is dependent upon using creative thinking to discover these improved ways; And as with confidence, it can be learned.
Schwartz offers six steps to develop and strengthen our creative thinking ability:
Step 1: Believe it can be done. This is pretty self-explanatory. In order for us to do anything, we first must believe it can be done. Once we have that belief, it sets the mind in motion to find ways to accomplish it and paves the way for creative solutions. Belief releases creative powers. Disbelief puts the brakes on them. Eliminate the word "impossible" from vocabulary to help develop creative power through belief. "Man belongs where man wants to go"
Step 2: Don’t get paralyzed by tradition. Too many of us think that something cannot change because that’s the way it always has been and always will be. Instead, experiment. Be open to new ideas. Try out new ways of doing the same thing. Be progressive in all that we do. "Nothing grows on ice. If we let tradition freeze our minds, new ideas can't sprout" Be an experimental person. Break up fixed routines. Do something new - develop interest in distribution if in manufacturing
Step 3: Ask yourself daily, “How can I do better?” Self-improvement in all areas of life come when we ask ourselves this question and take the time to listen to what our mind presents to us. Absolute perfection in all human undertakings from building missiles to rearing children is unattainable. This means there is always room for improvement. Successful people know this and they are always searching for better way. . The successful person doesn't asks "Can I do it better?" they ask "How can I do it better?". Try to implement a weekly improvement program. All during the week make notes about ideas to improve at work, home. Every monday, set aside hours to review and prioritize ideas to be implemented". Each day in the mornings ask Qs "How can I do a better job today?", "What can I do to encourage my employees?", "How can I increase my personal efficiency?", "What can I do to improve my relationships at work, home?".
Step 4: Ask yourself, “How can I do more?” Asking this type of question forces the mind to figure out ways to find intelligent short-cuts. Capacity is a state of mind. How much we can do depends on how much we think we can do. When we really think we can do more, our mind thinks creatively and shows us the way.
Step 5: Practice asking and listening. Take advantage of leveraging others’ knowledge. Encorage others to talk. Test your own views. Listen to other's views. Successful people make profit by exposing ideas to other intelligent people.
Step 6: Associate and surround yourself with people who can help you to think of new ideas and new ways of doing things. Be part of professional group that provides stimulation in your own occupational area. Joining a group outside occupational interests helps to broaden thinking. A oak tree produces enough acorns to populate a good sized forest; yet only one or two acorns become trees the rest don't survive the hard ground, squirrels. The same is true with ideas if we are not on gaurd, the -ve thinking people(squirrels) will destroy them. Ideas require special handling from the time they are born till implemented.

You Are What You Think You Are
If you look around you, you might observe that some people command confidence, loyalty and admiration while others do not. If you look closer, the most respect are also the most successful. Why is that? Well, according to Schwartz, it can be distilled into one word: thinking. Thinking makes it so. Others see in us what we see in ourselves and we receive what we think we deserve.

If you think you are less than someone else, you are. For thinking dictates action. If you feel inferior, you’ll act that way and no amount of bluffing will be able to hide it for long. If you feel you’re not important, you’re not. It’s as simple as that.

On the other hand, when you think you are important, when you really think so; then others will think so too. It really comes down to this: “How you think determines how you act. How you act in turn determines: How others react to you.”

To gain respect of others, we must first think we deserve respect. And the more respect we have for ourselves, the more respect others will have for us.

Look important - it helps you think important . Our appearence talks and ensure it says positive things about you. Never leave home without feeling certain you look like the kind of person you want to be. Use clothing to lift your spirits build confidence. A psychology professor gave advice to students on last minute preps for final examination. "Dress up for the exam. Have your dress pressed. Shine your shoes. Look sharp becuase it will help you think sharp." Our physical exterior affects our mental interior. How you look on the outside affects how you think anf feel on the inside. An executive feels more like an executive if he is dressed like one. Our appearence talks to us and also to others. It helps determine what others think of us. In theory, it's pleasent to hear that people should look at man's intellect, not his clothes. People do evaluate on the basis of appearence. Our appearence is the first basis for evaluation other people have. And first impressions last, out of all proportion to the time it takes to form them. We look at some people and respond with "Hey Mac" and respond with "Yes Sir" attitude.

Think your job is important Job thinking tells a lot about a person and his potential for larger responsibility. How impotant a applicant thinks his present job is - even though there would be something that he doesn't likes - becomes an important considereation while recruitment as the applicant will take the pride to the next job too. Like appearence, the way we think about our work says things about us to superioirs, associates, sub-ordinates - infact everyone with whom you come in contact. Think, I am important. I do have what it takes. I am a first class performer. My work is important. Think about ways to make business better and progress faster - expect to be given a chance to present and implement ideas. A person who thinks his job is important, receives mental signals on how to do his job better. And a better job means more promotions, money, prestige and happiness. The way we think about our job determines how our subordiantes think towards their jobs. Think enthusiastically and show positive attitude, your sub-ordinates will pick-up the right thinking. Ask "Am I worthy in every respect of being imitated?" "Are all my habbits that I would like to see in my subordinates?".

Practice uplifting self-praise rather than belittling self-punishment. Build your own "sell yourself on yourself" commercial.
www.professorprosperity.com/2008/07/how_to_write_personal_aspiration_statments/
Tom Staley, meet Tom Staley - an important, a really important person.
Tom, you’re a big thinker, so thing big.
Think big about Everything.
You’ve got plenty of ability to do a first-class job, so do a first-class job.
Tom you believe in Happiness, Progress, and Prosperity.
So: talk only Happiness, talk only progress, talk only prosperity.
You have lots of drive, Tom, lots of drive.
So put that drive to work. Nothing can stop you, Tom, nothing.
Tom, you’re enthusiastic. Let you enthusiasm show through.
You look good, Tom, and you feel good. Stay that way.
Tom Staley, you were a great fellow yesterday, and you’re going to be an even greater fellow today. Now go to it, Tom. Go forward.”
Practice commercial loud in private at least once a day. It helps a lot to do this before a mirror. Repeat commercial forcefully with determination. Make blood travel faster through body. Get warmed up. Read it before tackling anything that demands courage. Read it every time you fell let-down.

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=249133056&blogID=325390178
In all of life's situations ask yourelf, "Is this the way an important person thinks?" Then obey the answer.
1) Situation - When I worry
Ask Yourself - Would an important person worry about this? Would the most successful person I know be disturbed by this?
2) Situation - An idea
Ask Yourself - What would an important person do if he had this idea?
3) Situation - My appearance
Ask Yourself - Do I look like someone who has maximum self-respect?
4) Situation - My Language
Ask Yourself - Am I using the language of successful people?
5) Situation - What I read
Ask Yourself - Would an important person read this?
6) Situation - Conversation
Ask Yourself - Is this something succesful people would discuss?
7) Situation - When I lose my temper
Ask Yourself - Would an important person get mad at what I'm mad at?
8) Situation - My jokes
Ask Yourself - Is this the kind of joke an important person would tell?
9) Situation - My job or business
Ask Yourself - How does an important person descrive his job to others?

Manage Your Environment: Go First Class
Just as what we eat is reflected in the state of our bodies, what food we choose to feed our minds has just as powerful an effect on our thoughts, habits, attitudes, and personality. The food for our minds that Schwartz is referring to here is our environment.

It’s hard to deny it. Our environment shapes us, and makes us think the way we do. For example, prolonged exposure and association to negative people makes us in turn think negatively. Associating ourselves with people who think big will raise our level of thinking. Our success is largely dependent upon what and who we choose to surround ourselves with.

So when choosing friends, select those who are interested in positive things; friends who really want to see you succeed and willingly encourage you in your plans and ideals. Find those who have common goals and desires, having a support system makes all the difference when your own motivation is in the slumps. Find friends who breathe encourgaement into plans and ideals. If we select petty thinkers as your close friends, we 'll gradually develop into petty thinkers ourselves.

Make Your Attitudes Your Allies
Communication is a lot more than just the words we choose to speak. Someone may say one thing but you know that they mean something entirely different. This is what Schwartz means by ‘attitude.’ To understand someone’s attitude, we don’t listen for the words but instead discover it through expressions, voice tones and inflections. When our attitude is right, our abilities reach a maximum of effectiveness and good results inevitably follow. Need to make the following three attitudes allies in everything we do:
The attitude of I’m activated - To be activated is another way of saying you are enthusiastic about what you’re doing. To get enthusiastic about anything - people, places, things - dig into it deeper. If you ever hope to get someone else excited about something you must first be excited about it yourself. Results come in proportion to enthusiasm applied.
The attitude of You are important - Every person in the world has the desire to feel important. The desire to be important is man's strongest, most compelling non-biological hunger. Headlines that produce sales read like "Persons with distinctive tastes", "You want only the best", "Be the envy of everyone". If we can consciously and genuinely make others feel important, the world is our oyster. Customers will buy more, employees will work harder, others will cooperate more, and boss will do more to help you. Treating someone as second-class will never get us first-class results. Share praise. Don't hog it as when you share praise sub-ordiantes will know we sincerely appreciate their value. Never let anyone feel he is taken for granted. Appreciate everyone's contribution and how much it is important.
The attitude of Service first - We all understand that money is necessary for our survival. Without money we can’t buy the food, clothing, shelter and other things we need. We can’t fully help the poor or enrich our families lives. Money, then, is a desirable objective. However, putting “money-first” in our minds does not increase money. The seed of money is in fact, service. If you have an attitude of putting service first — always giving people more than they expect to get — you’ll create wealth. Put service first and money will take care of itself.

Think Right Toward People
Success depends on the support of other people. The only hurdle between what we want to be is the support of other. Salesmen depend on people to buy their product, writers depend on people to read what they are writing, and politicians depend on people to vote for them. If success is dependent upon other people’s support, how do we get others to support us then?
The answer can be summed up on one phrase, think right toward people. Schwartz relates former President Lyndon Johnson’s ten-point formula from to help you do this:
- Learn to remember names. Inefficiency at this point may indicate that your interest is not sufficiently outgoing.
- Be a comfortable person so there is no strain in being with you. Be an old-shoe, old-hat kind of individual.
- Acquire the quality of relaxed easy-going so that things do not ruffle you.
Don’t be egotistical. Guard against the impression that you know it all.
- Cultivate the quality of being interesting so people will get something of value from their association with you.
- Study to get the “scratchy” elements out of your personality, even those of which you may be unconscious.
- Sincerely attempt to heal, on an honest Christian basis, ever misunderstanding you have had or now have. Drain off your grievances.
- Practice liking people until you learn to do so genuinely.
- Never miss an opportunity to say a word of congratulation upon anyone’s achievement, or express sympathy in sorrow or disappointment.
- Give spiritual strength to people, and they will give genuine affection to you.

We need to improve the "likeability" factor as it is more important than "technical" factor. Being likeable makes it easier to succeed. Sucess is guaranteed if have mastered the technique of thinking only good thoughts about people. Adhere to the suggestions
- Recognize the fact that no person is perfect. Some people are more nearly perfect than others, but no man is absolutely perfect. The most human quality about human beings is that they make mistakes, all kinds of them.
- Recognize the fact that the other fellow has a right to be different. Never play god about anything. Never diskike people because of their habbits are different from your own or because they prefer different clothes, religion, parties etc We don't have to approve of what another fellow does but we must not dislike him for doing it.
- Don't be a reformer. Put a little more "live-and-let-live" into philosohphy. Most people intensely dislike being told "you're wrong". We have right to our opinion but sometimes it is better to keep it to ourselves.
- Recognize how dull it would be if all people were alike and everybody was perfect
- Recognize no person is all good and no person is all bad. The perfect person doesn't exist
- Recognnize that if we let our thinking go uncontrolled, we can find much to dislike in almost anyone. By the same, token, if we manage our thinking properly, if we think right toward people, we can find many qualities to like and admire in the same person
- Recognize that the person who does the most talking and the person who is the most successful is rarely the same person. Encourage others to talk. Listen and Learn
- Recognize that courtsey practiced in every relationship is the finest tranquilizer that can be used. No commercial preparation is 1/10 as effective in relaxing as the little things done for other people. Thinking right towards people removes frusterations and stress.
- Recognize the real test for thinking right towards people comes when things don't go exactly the way we want. How we feel when we are passed up for promotion? Or When criticized for job done. Dont blame others for setback. How we think when we lose will determine how long it will be until until we win!

Get the Action Habit
There is plenty of room at the top. There are many almost qualified people, but there is one success ingredient often missing. The abiity to get things done to get results. Prinicipal Executives looking for a key person demand answers to questions like "Will he do the job?", "Will he follow through?", "Is he a self-starter?", "Can he get results or is he just a talker?"

Ideas and thinking about something is not enough. Everything that we have in this world, from ships to skyscrapers to baby food, is just an idea acted upon.

If you take a comparative study of successful and average people, you’ll find that they fall into two classes. The successful are ones who are active. The average, the mediocre, the unsuccessful are passive. The active person does. The passive person is going to do but doesn’t

The test of a successful person is not an ability to eliminate all problems before they arise, but to meet and work out difficulties when they do arise. We must be willing to make an intelligent compromise with perfection lest we wait forever before taking actions. We can’t wait for everything to be 100 percent favorable before we take action. Most things that really mean anything require some leap of faith. Sure, perfection is highly desirable but hoping for the perfect set of conditions is to hope forever.

Make up your mind to do something with your ideas other than simply dreaming more about them. Ideas are important. We need to have ideas to create or improve anything. But ideas in and of themselves are not enough. Ideas only have value when acted upon.

People that get things done don't wait for the spirit to move them. Rather than thinking about the unpleasent features of the task, jump right in and get going without lot of deliberation so that you can return to tasks that you love to do

Now is the magic word of success, Tomorrow, next week, later, sometime, someday often are synonyms for the failure word, never.

Initiative is the special kind of action. Its doing something wort-while without being told to do it. The person with initiative has a standing invitation to join the high-income brackets in every business and profession. To develop the initiative habit
- Be a crusader. If there is something that we believe ought to be done, pick up the ball and run.
- Be a volunteer. Sometimes we don't vounteer due to be the fear of being laughed at, of being called an eager beaver, of being accused of bucking for a raise. It's natural to want to belong, to be accepted, to have group approval. But asking "Which group do I want to be accepted by the jealous group or progressive group" will help us with the choice. Volunteer for special assignments.

How to Turn Defeat Into Victory
It is not possible to win high level success without meeting opposition, hardship, setback. It is possible to use setback to propel us forward. Defeat is only a state of mind - nothing more.

Civil Aeronautics Administration studies setbacks to pave the way to safer air travel. Doctors use setbacks to pave the way to better health and longer life by using information provided in post mortem. Everyone follows the success principle : Salvage something from every setback

The difference between success and failure is found in your attitude towards setbacks, handicaps, and other disappointing situations. Here are five ways to turn defeat into victory:
- Learn from prior mistakes. When you have a setback, learn why it didn’t work, readjust, and then go on to win next time.
- Don’t just beat yourself up. Learn to be your own constructive critic. Look for your faults and weaknesses not with the intention of putting yourself down but to correct them. This is what being a “professional” is all about. Blaming others is destructive. We gain absolutely nothing from "proving" that someone else is wrong
- Stop blaming luck. This is a cop-out. Instead, research why something went wrong. Blaming luck will never get you where you want to go, it’s only another form of ‘excusitis.’
- Mix up persistence with experimentation. Try to stick to your goal but at the same time, if the route you’re taking isn’t getting you anywhere, try a new approach. Experiment. There’s no sense in banging your head against a wall.
- Remember that there is always something good about every situation. Look for it. This will keep discouragement at bay and help you to learn from all experiences.

Use Goals to Help You Grow
Goals are as essential to success as air to life. The important thing is not where you were or where you are but where you want to go.

A goal is more than a wish or dream. It is a dream acted upon. Without goals, people just wander through life without direction or purpose. Goals are essential to success as air is to life.

Not only do goals give you a sense of purpose and direction, they also give you energy. Energy increases and multiplies when you set a desired goal and resolve to work toward that goal. By surrendering yourself to your desires, and letting yourself become obsessed with a goal, you receive the physical power, energy, and enthusiasm needed to accomplish it.

Like the progressive corporation, plan ahead. We are in a sense a business unit. Out talent, skills, abilities are our products. We want to develop our products so they command the highest possible price.

Schwartz uses the common approach to goals. That is plan where you want to be 10 years from now but work on that plan month by month. Define a plan for how you want life to be 10yrs from now in work, home and social areas. The three department of life are closely related. Each depends on other to some extend. But the one department which has most influence over other department is work.
1) Work
· What income do you desire in ten years?
· What level of responsibility do you look for?
· What prestige does seek from your work or business?
2) Home
· What level of standard do you aspire to?
· What kind of residence do you want to provide for yourself and your family?
· What kind and where will be your next vacation?
· What level of income will you give away to charity?
3) Social
· What kind of friends do you desire to have?
· What social groups do want to join with?
· What community position do you look to hold?
· What worthwhile cause do you want to be champion of?

30 Day Implementation Guide
What not to do?
1) Putting things off till tomorrow
2) Negative language
3) Watching television for more then 60 minutes per day.
4) Gossip
Obtain those habits.
1) Examine your appearance each and every morning.
2) Plan your day's work a day before.
3) Complement people on every opportunity.
Increase value in your work place
1) Do a better jog for your employer
2) Learn more about the company you work for.
3) Make number of suggestions to assist your companies' production.
Increase your value at home
1) Show appreciation to you wife and the family each time they do something for you.
2) Do something special one a month for your family.
3) Set time aside each day to give you loved one each day.
Sharpen your mind
1) Invest two hours per week reading professional magazines or a book in your field.
2) Read one self help book.
3) Make four new friends.
4) Spend 30 minutes daily in quite undisturbed thinking

Invest in education. Real education, the kind of worth investing in, is that which develops and cultivates your mind. How well-educated a person is measuered by how well his mind is developed-in brief how well he thinks.

The most important qualification for an executive is the sheer decide to go ahead. John Wanamaker said "A man is not doing much until the cause he works for possesses all there is of him". Desire when harnessed is power. Failure to follow desite, to do what you want to do most, paves the way for mediocrity.

Surrender to goals. Let them posses us and give us the automatic instrumentation we need to reach the goal.

Use goals to live longer. No medicine in the world is a powerfule in bringing about life as is the desire to do something.

Evaluate everything you do with the question, "Will this help take me where I want to go?"

How to Think Like A Leader
Remember that achieving high-level success requires the cooperation and support of others. And gaining support from others requires the ability to lead. To help you in this ability, Schwartz offers four leadership rules or principles that can cause others to do things for us in the executive suite, in business, in social clubs, in the home, or anywhere else we may find people:
- Trade minds with the people you want to influence. Here’s the key: To get others to do what you want them to do you must learn to see through their eyes. Truly “walking in their shoes” will unlock the secret of how to influence others.
- Think: What is the human way to handle this? People have all different approaches to leading others. One way is to assume the role of dictator, making all decisions without consulting those affected and not listening to subordinates. Dictators don’t last long. Sooner or later unrest begins to happen and their subordinates begin to leave. Another technique of leadership is the cold, mechanical, “I’m-a-rule-book operator” approach. This type of leader does everything exactly according to the book. He fails to understand the spirit of the law and ends up treating his subordinates as machines. This cold, impersonal efficiency alienates his subordinates and fails to ever inspire them. The leader who manages to have tremendous success and results with his followers is the leader who makes them feel human. This type of leader genuinely thinks that everyone under his stewardship is both important and needed in the organization. This builds respect and trust and forms the foundation whereupon they can be inspired and motivated.
- Think progress, believe in progress, push for progress. To develop a progressive mindset, follow these two maxims: Think improvement in everything you do and think high standards in everything you do. Those who are constantly looking to expand, make things more efficient, develop new products and processes, and increase prosperity will naturally develop a following. People tend to follow after those who think, believe and push for progress.
- Take time out to confer with yourself. Like machines, we require a period of maintenance and a “tuning-up.” Check the lives of the great religious leaders like moses, jesus, buddha, mohammed spent time in solitude - away from distractions of life. Many people fail to tap their creative leadership power because they confer with everybody and everything except themselves. This is best accomplished when you take time out in managed solitude. In other words, find a moment every week where you can — in solitude — spend some time just thinking. This is a tool that all great users use. Use this time to confer with yourself, to discover solutions to personal and business problems, and generally tap into a higher consciousness that only solitude and moments of quiet can bring.