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Napoleon Hill was one of the first self-help authors of the 20th century. He wrote about personal success, the law of attraction, and motivation. Today, his work is still widely known and quoted by many thought leaders.

Most of Hill's work was dedicated to studying successful people of his time and figuring out what they had in common. He’s particularly known for his book Think and Grow Rich, which is considered one of the ten best selling self-help books of all time.

In total, his books were sold more than 20 million times and inspired people all over the globe.

“Do not wait: the time will never be ‘just right’. Start where you stand, and work whatever tools you may have at your command and better tools will be found as you go along.”

Most people waste their entire lives waiting for the perfect time.

The perfect time to start the business of your dreams, ask your crush out, move out of that apartment you hate, leave that frustrating job, and start living your dreams.

However, the problem with that perfect moment is that it doesn’t exist.

Outstanding results are always tied to risks, and if you aren’t willing to take calculated risks to live your dream, you’ll likely be stuck in your current reality.

How to apply it:

Whenever you‘re working on an ambitious goal or want to make a significant change in your life, start by evaluating the status quo.

Ask yourself what you could do right now to get one step closer to your dreams.

Most of the time, you’ll realize there’s a lot you can do with the resources you already have and that you don’t need to wait for anyone or anything to get started.

“If you can’t do great things, do small things in a great way.”

Too often, we think of massive outcomes and get discouraged from making small moves.

So many people have great ideas and big dreams, but they don’t start taking action because they feel overwhelmed.

Yet, the only “secret” to achieving tremendous results is by taking small steps for long enough.

Sometimes, it’s not about doing a hundred different things but about doing one thing that really matters.

How to apply it:

Whenever you don’t know whether a task or activity is worth your time and energy, ask yourself the following question:

Does it make the boat go faster?

If the activity helps you speed up your boat, it’s the right thing to do, and you can focus on doing it in the greatest possible way.

If the answer is no, you should probably ignore that task and try to figure out what other activity you should focus on.

“The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desire brings weak results, just as a small fire makes a small amount of heat.”

Most people tiptoe through their lives, hoping to stay safe. They don’t dare to play it big and feel overwhelmed once they’re forced to adapt to changes.

Yet, at the latest 2020 taught us that there’s no way to be safe in life anyway.

You can try to minimize risks and play it safe in all areas of your life, yet when unpredicted situations happen, you’ll be affected just like anyone else.

And if you don’t even desire to create great things, you’ll never show up as a person who can achieve such results.

How to apply it:

Instead of halfheartedly aiming to achieve a dozen things, focus your time and energy on just a few goals you really want to achieve.

Ask yourself what kind of reality you seek, look at beautiful images that represent your desire, and believe that you deserve to live your dreams.

Focus is the superpower of the 21st century and those who manage to deal with great desires eventually end up being the ones who achieve what they dream of.

If you want to build great things, you first need to be clear about what you desire. Only if you know the what can you focus on figuring out the how.

“You are the master of your destiny. You can influence, direct, and control your own environment. You can make your life what you want it to be.”

The majority of our world’s population prefers being a victim over taking responsibility for their life.

Instead of accepting failures as a lesson and moving on, most people allow others to dictate their lives.

And they do so because being a victim and complaining about the status quo is more comfortable than taking control over your life.

How to apply it:

You can’t aim to achieve great things if you lack the courage to make bold moves.

You didn’t choose where you’ve been born and how you spent the first decades of your life, but the fact that you’re reading this text right now indicates you have the power to turn the rest of your life into a masterpiece.

By having access to the internet, you have everything you need to change your current reality and create the life of your dreams.

So stop blaming others for your misery and start changing your game one small step at a time.

“Great achievement is usually born of great sacrifice, and is never the result of selfishness.”

Whenever we see someone who’s ahead of us and is already living the life we dream of, we’re tempted to think that they’ve been luckier than us.

We try to find excuses in order to justify why we didn’t achieve similar results.

Yet, most of the time, the truth is that those with great achievements made great sacrifices and took massive, determined action.

As long as you put less effort into achieving your goals than somebody else, you can’t compare your results to theirs.

And even though life should never be about comparing ourselves to others, that’s what it often turns out to be.

How to apply it:

Ask yourself which goals you genuinely want to achieve and which sacrifices you might need to make to get there.

If you want to lose weight but aren’t willing to minimize junk food on your plate, you’ll fail.

If you want to build your own business but aren’t willing to hustle on the weekends until you can quit your 9-to-5 job, you’ll fail.

Quite often, life is pretty fair and you reap what you sow. So ask yourself what you’ve been planting in the past years and what you could do differently to see different results in the future.

“Tell me how you use your spare time, and how you spend your money, and I will tell you where and what you will be in ten years from now.”

How you use your resources tells more about you than you’d ever be willing to expose.

If you spend all your spare time watching nonsense tv shows, you can’t be surprised about not moving forward.

Similarly, you can’t expect your financial situation to change if you continuously spend money on redundant products.

The way you manage your time and money tells more about yourself than you’re probably aware of.

How to apply it:

If you want your life to look different than your current reality, you need to start changing the way you use your resources.

Start investing your time, energy, and money in activities and people who help you move forward instead of backward.

“You may be hurt if you love too much, but you will live in misery if you love too little.”

Quite often, we’re afraid of showing love and affection because we don’t want to be vulnerable.

Instead, we refrain from showing our emotions, hoping that the other person appreciates us as much as we do.

Yet, the reality is that by holding back our emotions, we also hold ourselves back from living life to the fullest.

There’s nothing more beautiful than sharing our love with the world and revealing our emotions.

How to apply it:

You can’t influence whether someone appreciates you as much as you do, but you can ensure to be the one who openly communicates their emotions.

In her book The Top Five Regrets of the Dying, Bronnie Ware summarizes the most common regrets of people on the deathbed. One of them is I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

Most elderly people genuinely regret that they suppressed their emotions and settled for less than they desired.

Quite often, our ego is holding us back from showing affection and enjoying life with people we appreciate. And sometimes, you can create a more fulfilled and joyful life just by putting your ego aside and openly communicating your feelings.