1.  A Positive Mental Attitude

2.  Definiteness of Purpose

3.  Going the extra mile

4.  Accurate thinking

5.  Self-discipline

6.  The master mind

7.  Applied faith

8.  A pleasing personality

9.  Personal initiative

10.  Enthusiasm

11.  Controlled attention

12.  Teamwork

13.  Learning from defeat

14.  Creative vision

15.  Budgeting time and money

16.  Maintaining sound physical and mental health

17.  Using cosmic habit force (universal law)

Success Through a PMA is a really helpful book…although I wouldn’t mind seeing a shorter list.  What 5 principles from this or any other list would you consider to be most essential?

I’m reading through Success Through A Positive Mental Attitude this week.  It’s a classic by Napoleon Hill and W. Clement Stone.  I just finished a particularly fascinating section on creative thinking.  I’m curious to hear feedback on these thoughts…

Dr. Elmer Gates, in response to a Napoleon Hill question, gave these as “the sources of all ideas:

1.  Knowledge stored in the subconscious mind and acquired through individual experience, observation, and education.

2.  Knowledge accumulated by others through the same media, which may be communicated by telepathy.

3.  The great universal storehouse of Infinite Intelligence, wherein is stored all knowledge and all facts, and which may be contacted through the subconscious section of the mind.”

Gates showed Hill the small barren room that he often spent hours in “sitting for ideas.”  For whatever reason, I seem to get many of my ideas while getting ready in the morning–I haven’t found waterproof paper for the shower.  Where do you get your best ideas?  And what do you think of Gates’ sources of all ideas?

I just finished Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers.  The basic premise is that a series of fortuitous circumstances rather than amazing talent enabled the Beatles, Bill Gates, hockey stars, and others to reach high levels of success.  Gladwell believes that high levels of excellence require at least 10,000 hours of practice.  So far, so good.  Then Gladwell explained that unique opportunities were the reason those hours were available to the successful.  The case studies made very interesting reading, but didn’t help the kids at home who weren’t born in a certain month!

Ready, Set…

Aside from the 10,000 hour rule, I was disappointed by the lack of actionable points in Outliers.  I believe the subtitle should have been A Story of Success or Parts of Stories of Success rather than The Story of Success.  Gladwell seems to attribute the source of success largely to luck.  Kind of a downer to those of us not terribly lucky yet no less desirous of our own level of success.

What if?

While I enjoy stories like Susan Boyle, who just “needed a chance”, it seems that many success stories I hear and read about are of people who pushed through countless obstacles and made their own luck.  The stars did not just one day align for them.  What if we all have opportunities throughout our lifetimes that we are unprepared for or do not recognize that could move us closer to success?  Also, what could December-born children do to make it to the NHL?