Tame Trading an easier way to trade

You can literally think and grow rich, as long as you move your feet, too.

If you enjoy solving a mystery or easily grasp the moral of a story, you're going to love Think and Grow Rich, the third in our series of recommended books by the great wealth-building teacher, Dick Fabian. Why? Because this book contains the extraordinary "success secret" of Andrew Carnegie, but that secret is hidden and you have to discover it.

Carnegie, who made his fortune in steel, was once the richest man in the world. He was also a great philanthropist. When he died in 1919, he had already given away $350 million of his fortune and set aside another $125 million in a trust to continue his charitable work. If you think $475 million is a sizable fortune today, just imagine what it was 87 years ago (by the way, kudos to Warren Buffett who, following in Carnegie's footsteps, recently gave back $31 billion of his fortune).

Carnegie's success principle was the same one used by 500 other highly successful individuals who were interviewed for Think and Grow Rich by its author, Napoleon Hill. Carnegie actually commissioned Hill to write it.

As the story goes, the old Scotsman asked the young journalist if he were willing to embark on perhaps 20 years of research, organizing the world's first philosophy of individual achievement, based on the principles of success Carnegie had used in accumulating his vast fortune. But as Hill later learned, Carnegie was sitting with a stopwatch in hand, and if he had taken more than 60 seconds to give his answer the opportunity would have been lost. Carnegie had learned from his observation of men that those who are slow to make up their minds are also slow in carrying out their decisions.

Hill accepted Carnegie's offer in 29 seconds and a great service was performed for mankind. But...in Think and Grow Rich, Hill never explicitly identifies Carnegie's secret. He does mention it about 100 times in 254 pages, but only within the context of inspirational stories. Nowhere does Hill specifically state, "Here's Andrew Carnegie's secret to success --."

Why did Napoleon Hill do it this way? He was just following orders from Carnegie, who told him that "people would only recognize the value of the secret when they were ready to receive its wisdom." And therefore it was better to demonstrate the 2-part principle in a number of success stories and let folks discover it on their own.

I first read Think and Grow Rich when I was 18, and I remember being aggravated that Hill didn't flat out reveal Carnegie's secret. Of course in my impatience to find it, I read quickly and carelessly, and then quit in frustration when I couldn't easily discern it. To me, the book was a disappointment. And yet many years later, when I read it again, the secret practically jumped off every page. It was so obvious, I couldn't understand why I had missed it before.

Do you think perhaps that, at age 18, I was so smart I didn't need any wisdom? Or so dumb that no wisdom could help me? Don't answer that. Fortunately, I did eventually "get it" and perhaps you have, too. So what is Carnegie's secret to success? The principle that enabled him and countless others to amass great fortunes?

Ha! You didn't really think I would give it away, did you? No way. I'm going to respect both Andrew Carnegie and Napoleon Hill and let you discover it on your own. I will, however, talk around it a bit, and also give you a 6-step guide that will put you on the right path.

Let me start with an observation I made after re-reading The Richest Man in Babylon, Psycho-Cybernetics, and Think and Grow Rich, the 3 books we've been discusing these past few months. It occurred to me that the wisdom in these books is so great, the principles and techniques so practical, and the lessons so valuable that anyone reading and following them could not fail to achieve success, wealth and happiness. And, in fact, no other result would even be possible.

These 3 books have probably sold near 100 million copies, all tolled, but do you think as many people achieved success, wealth, and happiness after reading them? My guess is not even one in five did. But why?

First and foremost, many people truly aren't ready to receive the wisdom. They respond to the ideas in this manner: That's a bunch of baloney...or That's fine for others, but it's not for me...or I don't have time for that. Okay. But if the smartest, richest, most successful people in the world are telling you that this is the way to success and riches, are you better off doing it your way?

Second, applying the principles in these books requires that you take responsibility for your actions and your results. When you can't blame your spouse, external conditions, or George W. Bush it can be emotionally painful. Simply put, a lot of folks aren't ready for the responsibility or the pain.

Third, using these success secrets requires both discipline and elbow grease. You literally have to think and then move your feet. If you're more inclined to sink into a recliner in front of a big-screen TV with a six pack of beer and a jumbo bag of Doritos, you're probably not going to amass a fortune (and that's okay if you really don't have a "burning desire" for wealth).

And yet the amount of work to be done is far less using these tried-and-true principles than if you were to proceed any other way. Why? Because you'll no longer be swimming upstream. These success principles really do work, and they really do make things easier for you. Why reinvent the wealth-building wheel?

Okay, I've teased and lectured long enough. It's time for some pearls of wisdom, straight out of the pages of Think and Grow Rich. You can put this to work for you today, and of course it directly relates to our wealth-building endeavors here at Dow Double Diamond.

In Chapter II, Napoleon Hill tells us that Desire is the starting point of all achievement and the first step toward riches. He goes on to say that there are 6 practical steps by which "desire for wealth can be transmuted into its financial equivalent." Let me give them to you here, excepted from page 36...

6 Steps to turn desire for wealth into concrete wealth

1. Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire. It is not sufficient merely to say "I want plenty of money." Be definite as to the amount. There is a psychological reason for definiteness which will be discussed in a subsequent chapter.

2. Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire. There is no such reality as "something for nothing."

3. Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire.

4. Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action.

5. Write out a clear, concise statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, name the time limit for its acquisition, state what you intend to give in return for the money, and describe clearly the plan through which you intend to accumulate it.

6. Read your written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night, and once after arising in the morning. As you read — see and feel and believe yourself already in possession of the money.

Do you think maybe you've seen these ideas before, albeit in a slightly different form? If you've read my wealth-building articles for May and June 2006, in which we discussed The Richest Man in Babylon and Psycho-Cybernetics, you surely do recognize them, as these same ideas are in those books.

You see, the great success and wealth-building secrets of the world are not really secrets at all, but open ideas that are readily available to everyone. They are certainly not new. Some were "written in stone" many centuries ago. The important thing to know is that these ancient ideas are every bit as effective today as they were on the first day some inspired soul thought of them. They are, in fact, universal truths.

This is great news because it means we do not have to reinvent the WB wheel, but can instead follow in the footsteps of the great wealth builders who came before us. And even though there is some work to do, we can take heart in knowing that we won't be wasting our time, but rather will be on a proven path to success!

Okay, "now listen up" (to quote my old Navy drill instructor). I've been writing these articles every month since January of 2005. This is my 19th article, and if you were to go back through them, you'd be hard pressed to find one in which I didn't harp on setting a specific wealth goal, along with a date for attaining it.

Have you done it? If you haven't, I want 50 pushups right now! Only kidding. But I do want you to set your goal. And there's no better time than right now to do it. To make it really easy for you, I'm providing this link to my WB article on Goal Setting. Look, it really is better to set your goal and attainment date, and to get your plan going now. You can always revise it later if you wish (preferably upwards as you begin to see your unlimited potential).

The only thing I would add to the 6 steps above is a very slight modification to Steps 1 and 6. While it is true you want to be very specific regarding the amount of wealth you want, it won't hurt to add "or more" to your amount, especially when you are reading, speaking, and thinking of that amount. If you want $3 million, just say (and think), "$3 million or more." The reason is that many people underestimate their potential, and by adding "or more" you'll remove the limitation and open the door to $4 million...or even more!

Good news! I just checked Amazon.com on the availability of these books, and you can purchase all three for under $40. Just imagine! Books worth $millions to you for forty bucks! Are you moving your feet yet? Or at least your fingers if you're ordering online?

Next month, I'm thinking we might delve deeper into the psychology of wealth building, what limitations we unwittingly place on ourselves, and how we can eliminate them. Until then, do your homework!

Sincerely,

Dick Sanders