Think and Grow Rich: Six Steps to True Success

Recently I had the honor of seeing the world premier of Think and Grow Rich, The Legacy. This amazing work of Napoleon Hill, directed by Scott Cervine, truly inspired me. So today we’re going to be going over the six steps to success outlined in the beginning of the book. These six steps are instrumental and have been scrutinized over generations of great business men and women. Even if you know the six steps, it never hurts to take a refresher course and to get a deep look into the formula of success.

Step One

“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.”

The first step seems so easy. Just decide how much you want to make. Pick a number, any number. The idea behind this step is when you have a definite goal, there is no wiggle room to say whether you made it or not. If I decide I want to make 100-million dollars, and I end up making 99,999,999.99 I didn’t reach my goal. There is no if, and, or but about it. Believe it or not there is a psychological advantage to having a goal that is specific. Research done by Edwin Locke shows that people who set specific, challenging goals actually did better than those who set vague goals.  Imagining the exact number you want will help you visualize what you have to do to get to that number, keep you more accountable by making your goal measurable, and help you understand just what you are willing to sacrifice for your wealth.

Step Two

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

Determining what you are willing to do to get this amount of money will help you set a timeline, and help you realize how important this is to you. If you have decided to make five million dollars, but you aren’t willing to sacrifice time, effort, or other priorities, it isn’t likely that you are going to make that money. To attain this step you first have to ask yourself what you have to give for this money. Do you have a lot of intelligence, time, a large network? Then you have to decide how much of what you have you are willing to give. If you want that five million and you have a lot of intelligence, but you are only willing to think about how you are going to obtain that goal an hour a week, it will take a lot longer to reach. Once you have decided what you have and how much you are willing to give to get that money, ask yourself whether that is enough to obtain the amount of money you want.

Step Three

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

Setting a definite date is a goal setting technique that should be applied to every goal you set every time. If you don’t have a set date to obtain this wealth, you have unlimited time to work towards it, there is no sense of urgency. Having an end to your goal holds you accountable for what you said you are going to do, just like step one, you have no wiggle room, you either reach your goal, or you don’t. Once you have finished step one and two, it is important to make sure you set a date that aligns with how much you want and what you are willing to do for it. For example, if you say: ‘I want one million dollars but I am not willing to change anything I am doing, and I want it in one week,’ you have just created a completely unrealistic goal.

Recently, I spoke at LeadershipX, and I outlined how I made a seven-figure business in five months. Although this may seem like an unrealistic timeline, I traded my time, expertise, and effort to obtain this goal. Remember, if you set a date that is very close, then there is a good chance you will feel pressured to finish very quickly, which generally cause stress and busy nights. But if you set a date that is very far off, there is a chance you will not feel pressured to finish, and you either give up or wait for the last minute and end up stressed and busy anyway.

Make sure to seek council from those who have accomplished their goals while setting your date. This will make it much easier.

Step Four

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.

Now we are getting to the action part of these steps. When you are creating a plan remember it is alright to not be 100% sure of every step. Having a plan set and in place will help you when you are feeling lost, discouraged, or if you get easily distracted. It is also important that you keep your plan somewhere that you can see it. This will help keep your mind on your plan and your ever-looming deadline.

When you create a plan start with what you know. Write out your starting point and your end goal. Now write out the day you start, and your end date, once you have that you can write the big goals and milestones in between. Once you have your basic outline, write out the dates that you want to finish your big goals by, then write out the steps to get to those goals. Make sure to leave room between your goals because there is a good chance you will want to add to your small steps to reach your goals. The more detail oriented you are laying out this plan the easier it will be for you to follow it. Adding dates to your steps to reach your big goals will help hold you accountable, but isn’t necessary as long as you trust yourself to hit your big goal dates. Now that you have your plan give it to your mentor, business partner, or friend, and ask them to check in with you from time to time.

Remember, no goal is truly met alone. Using other’s strength will only make you stronger.

Step Five

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.

This statement is very literal. Don’t type it out, don’t just think about it, literally write it out. Grant Cardon writes his goals down every day—a constant reminder to what he aims to get done. There is a reason you want to write it down. Look at studies about how people learn and memorize. Those who just hear or read tend to learn less than those who write it out, this is due to the fact that you are also giving yourself a visual symbol while processing each word you write down. So write out everything you have decided so far. Write it as many times as it takes to sink in.

Step Six

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.

You know what they say, seeing is believing. Take what you just wrote out post it everywhere.

Read it first thing in the morning and once again before you go to bed. Have it be the first thing you think about in the morning and the last thing you think about every night. Make it so that the amount of money you decided you were going to make is always in your head, make your plan your obsession. Start to think about what you give every day to better yourself and how much you have overcome to get to that point. When you are constantly thinking about something you will naturally make decisions based on how it will affect your main goal.

Following these principles will help you reach your goals. Think And Grow Rich is based on the study of hundreds of successful people in the world. If you want massive success, Think and Grow Rich is the book for you.