For some people, the title of this article may seem confronting, and as some would say, 'in your face'. However, I feel it is important to look at ourselves, and be honest. After all, more often than not, it is only us who will be so. You may have friends or colleagues who do not want to offend you, may not know more themselves, or simply, be more concerned about their own problems.

Either way, it is important to decide, and act. Your life is your own, and it is up to you to make the best of it. Many times, I have come across people who simply were so deeply bedded in a rut, doing the same things everyday, they lost their perspective, or ability to look beyond the next few hours. Having said this, I can assure you there is a much better way to approach this, and even though I may have achieved shock value to begin with, I now want to get down to the business of providing you with some ideas, and action points.

I always recommend starting with a list, and really making it your own. Take a few hours, and just start writing down everything that comes to mind, in terms of your abilities and talents. Don't judge anything yet, or reject any thing. Just start writing.

The act of letting your mind and hand wonder, and just write is not only very therapeutic, but also very revealing. The secret here is not to judge anything. Just write down everything you have ever dreamed of, and wanted to do, no matter how distant or seemingly impossible an idea it may be. This is the key to starting this process, and getting the result you want later. It can be thought of as planting seed, to start the plant in your mind growing.

Once you have started this, you will find that it is easy to continue for several hours. I have even heard of someone spending over five hours, and writing pages and pages, only then realising they had so many ideas, and things they wanted to do. Following the advice above is not only therapeutic, but very revealing, and will kick start your brain's thinking.

After a day or two, you may start to edit, and prune your ideas. However, it is important to just write, to begin with, as this will massively increase your generation of ideas, and allow you to better express your deepest inner wants and ideas.

In addition to the above list, it is worth taking the time to just relax your mind, and then, reflect and think about your list. I have personally found that going for a long walk is very helpful, as the creation of endorphins from the exercise, as well as the fresh air, help me to formulate my ideas better.

I must admit the first time I read “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill I wasn’t exactly sure of what I was getting into. Was this “secret” of his a real concept or some kind of “voodoo”?

As a matter of fact, it wasn’t until I had read more books by different authors on the same theme that I finally was able to get a perspective on his “secret”.

To me, and this is merely my opinion, Mr. Hill is basically saying a person can accomplish anything if they first put their mind to it. Notice it’s first put their mind to it. Completion of the task requires the application of the “thirteen steps”.

For those who have trouble believing in his concepts and conclusions I offer this example as a way of clarifying what he is saying. Again this is only my opinion and only concerns the first chapter, or introduction concerning thought.

Far from being some kind of far out, mind over matter concept, Mr. Hill’s insights into thoughts, I believe, are valid. One point of difficulty is that it’s sometimes harder to explain a concept than it is to give an example.

For instance, all of us probably know of someone who always believes the worst, looks for the worst and usually gets the worst. Then they will tell you that they think and believe and act in a certain way because that’s the way that they “are”.

In reality according to Napoleon Hill, the exact opposite is true. Our thoughts set everything in motion. As we think, we come to believe, then act accordingly and reap certain results. That may be why we sometimes tell people, “You brought that on yourself”.

According to “Think and Grow Rich”, that is basically what happens for better or for worse. Negative thoughts work in exactly the same way as positive thoughts. It’s strange to me how much easier it is to understand the negative power of thought rather than the positive.

The power of positive thought is the way I can most easily understand the idea. Positive thought creates a positive energy and will yield a positive result.

There are, according to Mr. Hill, thirteen steps involved in the whole process. One thing he consistently denies is the idea of merely thinking and not taking action.

Personally, I believe my preconceptions of where I “thought” he was going with his “secret” caused some initial doubts and misgivings. I’ve found that if I take the “voodoo” out of it, everything becomes a lot easier to grasp, and it works.

“Think and Grow Rich” is a fascinating study, worthy of many readings. The concepts Napoleon Hill presents are almost a prerequisite for marketing and other forms of business and would definitely be recommended for anyone desiring a positive, successful life.