16 min read ⌚ 

MicroSummary: Have you ever wondered why you could not achieve your goals? Do you believe that success depends on your influence and the people you know? This book will change your mind about it! It will show you how to succeed by changing small attitudes and changing your way of thinking! Your success, happiness, health, and wealth only depend on you! Transform your reality with the help of this book! Come with us!

Tired of being an underdog?

No this is not a commercial, it’s a life-altering story that can shift your life in a matter of days.

Who Should Read “Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude”? And Why?

If you are eager to conduct some positive changes and transform from whiner to winner “Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude” is the book for you.

Beyond all these notions lies a “small” person, who’s afraid to dive into the unknown.

Simple as that, trust life and enjoy the ride.

About Napoleon Hill & W. Clement Stone

Napoleon Hill is one of the first in line, self-help authors who wrote dozens of books including The Law of Success, Think and Grow Rich”, How to Raise your Own Salary, The Master-Key to Riches, etc. He was born on October 26th, 1883 and passed away at the age of 87.

William Clement Stone (May 4th, 1902 – September 3th, 2004) is one of America’s greatest self-help writers of the 20th century.

He was born in Chicago, Illinois, and soon after his father’s death, he began developing as a self-sufficient and creative individual.

“Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude Summary”

Let’s cut to the basics:

It’s more than obvious that your mindset shapes not only your professional life but has an immense impact on other aspects as well.

If you develop a positive mental attitude, you’ll immediately start to feel that inner pull, which will get all your goals within reach.

Does it sound appealing?

Apparently, even if it doesn’t, that’s the only route to success!

Did you ever see a successful complainer? – We highly doubt that. Your unhappiness and sense of dissatisfaction affect the entire life flow.

It’s best if we take it up from the top. Is it so hard to adjust your thinking so that sometime soon you’ll witness life-altering changes?!

Start creating and building that inner relationship, that can save you from going unnoticed, and criticized.  

For instance, it’s ignorant to perceive success as “some kind-of-freakish-luck” and not as the end of result of numerous good decisions.

If you are rigid, and not adaptable to change, confrontation with yourself will drag you down even further.

So, first things first. You don’t have to be the next Einstein, but it’s advisable that you approach life with a dose of optimism, and enthusiasm.

Generally speaking, historians are well-aware of the efficiency emerging from these techniques.

Why?  

The greatest asset in one’s endeavor is its mind, or in other words attitude.

In fact, the greatest minds have already brought to light, various inventions, at the expense of such behavior. Don’t run away from being in a tough situation, put your skills and mind to the test.

By all means, our attitude is the key to solving mysteries; it’s our behavior that reflects our inner state.

Make sure that you’re equipped for the “winter,” and don’t run away from challenges. Where is your strength to react when you are being cornered?

Oppose these attacks, with your new “Attitude.”  Don’t throw yourself at the mercy of other, and stand firm! Fix the problems with your creativity and self-esteem, if you don’t know one else will.

In the book, you’ll often encounter the terms “PMA” and “NMA” numerous times. Fortunately, it’s not the time for guessing games, so we’ll enlighten you right away – Positive Mental Attitude; Negative Mental Attitude.

With this in mind, it’s hard to neglect the fact that NMAs are trailing behind all the time. And those people whose ideas were put into action fall into the PMA category.

The productivity awaits, but how can anyone rely on your expertise if you lack creativity and optimism.

In spite of all the nonsense you believe in, it’s all acceptable if you carry the seal of a positive mental attitude.

If you are tired of living in the shadow of other more enthusiastic persons, it’s time to do something about it.

Does it come naturally to you, or not doesn’t matter. In reality, all other elements, and factors are secondary especially if an individual lacks the positive mental attitude (PMA).

People with PMA are “lucky” because they make their own luck, they are success seekers! Something like magnets.

For them, life is something that needs to be exploited, and there are no mistakes only lessons.

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Be that person, be that individual who is not afraid to take a risk, who looks at opportunities as a chance for improvement.

Key Lessons from “Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude”

1.      Don’t be afraid of changes
2.      Be an indispensable member
3.      Beyond the concept of mental nearsightedness

Don’t be afraid of changes

Climb the corporate ladder, and get your fair share of the profits.

Get rid of these negative thoughts and sensations by challenging them, let them be and challenge their trustworthiness. Sooner or later, you’ll realize that you imposed those ideas on yourself.  

Be an indispensable member

Although the people with NMA will fall short to meet deadlines, the real issue is way bigger.

Their contribution is questioned due to their lack of passion, and consequently, they earn less and live less fully.

Don’t be someone’s second choice, go for the “Golden Arrow” and raise your expectations.

Beyond the concept of mental nearsightedness

Nearsightedness simply means that you lack the courage, attitude, or expertise to interpret things differently. It means you are drowning in your shallow views.

Thriving on challenges is not helpful if you are blind to the big picture. Literally, it indicates that you must confront the factors, which contribute to the rise of this phenomenon.

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“Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude Quotes”

Our Critical Review

Although there is plenty of self-help book these days, “Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude” displays something unique, something that can catch your attention. In our opinion, you shouldn’t hesitate; give this classic a quick read.

New / Extended Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude PDF Summary

Develop Your Positive Mental Attitude

For many people, success is a great mystery without a concrete explanation. Do not you have to do anything to succeed? Does it depend on any favorable conditions or luck? Do we need to meet the right people at the right time?

The answer to all these questions is very simple: no! In fact, success comes from a positive mental attitude (PMA). The level of your success is directly related to your PMA – or your rival, the negative mental attitude (NMA).

You can not blame anyone for your lack of success. Do not blame your circumstances too! Keep in mind that you need to work hard to achieve your goals.

People with PMA attract success. They approach life positively, and do not trouble themselves with failures or errors; in reality, they see difficulties as opportunities. For someone with a PMA, every failure is a step that takes you closer to a solution.

Because these people are not afraid to fail, they are not afraid to try, even if success is unlikely. They long to try and are hungry for self-improvement. People who have a positive mental attitude achieve greatness because they are thirsty to reach new goals and grow.

The good news is, it’s never too late to improve your mental attitude. Anyone who starts working at age 25 will work about 100,000 hours before retiring around age 67. And that means you have plenty of time to start cultivating your PMA.

An Example Of Success

Let’s think about the case of Tom Dempsey, who was born without a part of his right foot and his right arm. Tom’s dream was to become a football player, and so his parents encouraged him and made a wooden prosthesis for Tom’s foot.

He was so interested in American football that he trained every day for hours using his wooden prosthesis and an appropriate shoe. He got so good at kicking; he was hired by the New Orleans Saints team.

In a crucial game, with thousands of spectators following, in the last two seconds of game Tom Dempsey gave a 57-meter kick to the goal, which broke several records – with his wooden foot!

At the time, it was the longest goal kick in a professional football game. And that Tom kick gave the New Orleans Saints victory over the Detroit Lions.

And what does this story have to do with you?

The truth is that Tom Dempsey applied some principles in his life that helped him to develop a PMA, regardless of his physical incapacity. He was able to overcome his disadvantages about others and became a successful player, even when no one believed it was possible.

Principles For Cultivating Your PMA

The principles that Tom Dempsey and other successful people who develop a PMA can be applied by anyone regardless of age, gender or level of knowledge. They will help you cultivate and make good use of your PMA. These principles are:

• People who develop an ardent desire to achieve great goals, achieve greatness.
• Success is achieved and maintained by those who seek to maintain PMA.
• To become an expert in any human activity, you need to practice, practice and practice.
• Hard work and effort can be fun when you set specific goals.
• In all adversity, there is a benefit for those who are motivated by the PMA.
• The greatest power of man is in prayer.

Learning To Develop The PMA

You may wonder, is it possible to learn how to use the PMA? Or is this an innate characteristic that some people possess and others not?

Yes, you can learn! Just as any other skill is developed, the PMA can also be learned and improved.

You can develop your PMA by committing to adopt and apply in your daily life the following 17 principles of success:

• A positive mental attitude;
• A sense of purpose;
• Working more than necessary;
• Precise thinking;
• Self-discipline;
• An active mind;
• An applied faith;
• A pleasant personality;
• Initiative person;
• Enthusiasm;
• Controlled attention;
• Group work;
• Learn from defeats;
• Creative vision;
• Controlling time and money;
• Maintaining mental and physical health;
• Using the universal laws (cosmic forces).

These principles have been drawn from years of observations of people who have achieved success in the most different areas. That way, you’ll be able to keep your mind positive.

See Your Problems As Opportunities

Success requires you to confront and solve problems. Think about the great minds of history and about the big business tycoons: Behind every great invention or innovation, there was a problem that someone tried to solve.

And it is precisely our mental attitude that dictates how we are going to deal with problems.

When you encounter a challenge, do you resist failure or try to find the positive side of the problem to fix it? Obviously, successful people adopt an LDC and a more productive approach.

Those with an NMA will give up their goals and concede defeat in the first difficulty – when the prototype fails, for example, or when a potential investor changes his mind.

People who care about developing a PMA can see setbacks as challenges to be faced. So, instead of giving up, they try with even more disposition.

This reaction is known as ‘inspiring dissatisfaction,’ and the people who own it, use it to overcome even the most desperate situations.

Even a prison sentence can be a positive opportunity. That’s what a man named Charlie Ward taught us.

During his time in prison, Ward was able to shift his NMA to a PMA. This change made him respected by the other prisoners and guards, and he climbed the chain hierarchy.

During his time there, he met Herbert Bigelow, who was serving time for tax fraud. Bigelow was so impressed with Ward that he promised him a decent job after he left.

When Ward was released, he accepted that job. And after Bigelow died, Ward became the CEO of the company and died a millionaire.

Live The Present And Plan Your Future

Many people have myopia, farsightedness or some other vision problem. But did you know that some people may suffer from mental farsightedness?

Mental hyperopia is a condition that makes you unable to see the possibilities in your future.

You may not be able to understand the importance of planning and having future goals. Or it may be that you waste all your energy struggling with problems that are in front of you, not being able to see the whole picture.

Being able to plan for the future is one of our greatest evolutionary advantages. Think of Dick Pope, a man who did not have mental hypermetropia.

Pope saw an opportunity to build a tourist attraction on a land around the town of Winter Haven, Florida, where other people saw nothing but an abandoned swamp.

Then he bought an old swamp and made it become the now-famous Cypress Gardens. He also offered photographic equipment and free advice on photography, giving tourists the advantage of returning home with great photos, spreading the fame of Cypress Gardens.

But it’s not just mental hyperopia that can ruin your success: people with mental myopia also have problems.

They want to get to the top and dream about the future, but they forget to work on the important things to get there.

Consequently, they fail to achieve their goals and do not take advantage of the opportunities that are right in front of them every day.

And these daily opportunities are often the most lucrative. Consider the paperclip or Post-it. Both are simple products that have solved a small but widespread problem. People who recognize these daily problems can generate millions. People with mental myopia never take advantage of these opportunities.

Be Determined And Motivated

A PMA will give you a solid foundation for success, but it needs to be accompanied by determination and motivation. Instead of blaming all of your difficulties in the world, you should try to change situations.

When you feel determined to make a difference, your motivation will grow, which will help you achieve great things in your life.

One person who embodied motivation and determination was Farmer Milo Jones.

Thanks to a serious illness, Jones became paralyzed. Although his body was no longer useful to him, his head still worked, and he began to think about how he could accomplish certain tasks more efficiently.

With motivation, determination, and PMA, he managed to convert his small corn farm into an empire called Jone’s Little Pork Sausages, which made him a millionaire.

But know that along with your determination, you also need to have goals. It is best to write down your goals and set timelines for them.

For example, take note of what you want to achieve by the end of the year. The harder your goals, the more you will need to fight for them, and the more you will achieve.

If you have a particularly challenging goal, you can break it into smaller goals that you can obtain in a near time, to reach the ultimate goal.

For example, if your primary purpose is to ‘know the whole world,’ you can break that goal first by ‘Going Latin America in 2 months’, ‘Seeing North America’ and ‘Visiting Europe’ for example. In this way, you break your goal into small goals, which can be accomplished piece by piece.

Internalize Your Positive Mental Attitude

Our attitudes are the result of our conscious decisions, right? Well, not exactly. Our subconscious exerts a powerful influence on us, affecting our dreams, desires, and needs and directing our behavior.

But we can use this mental power to our advantage by using autosuggestion. With self-suggestion, we can connect our desires and goals to our subconscious. And it will influence our thoughts and our lives.

Whether it is about health, finances or relationships, self-help can help us achieve whatever goal we have. So how can you do this?

You can start by reading a sentence out loud twice a day, for example about how much money you want to earn that year.

Your subconscious mind will remember this and will influence your conscious to look for things that will help you get there, such as new job opportunities.

The same method applies to adjusting your mental attitude. If you tell yourself that you are feeling happy every day, that feeling will gain strength, and after a while, your mental attitude will improve and you will even feel more satisfied.

A man named Bill McCall was a master of self-suggestion. McCall lived in Sydney, and he was 21 years old. His business went from bad to worse, and he failed to run for office in the Federal Congress.

But instead of admitting defeat, he decided to use the power of self-suggestion: he wrote that by 1960 he wanted to be a millionaire.

After a few years repeating that goal to himself, McCall not only became the youngest man in history to enter Parliament, but he also became the corporate director of 22 families – he also became a millionaire.

Once you can internalize your positive mental attitude in this way and use self-management effectively, you will be far more equipped to overcome any obstacle with determination and optimism.

Change Your Habits

We have already seen how we can have more control over our mind, but what about our behavior? Good attitudes are what make us real people – and improving the way we act is a matter of right training.

We know that our feelings influence our attitudes. But the opposite is also true: our attitudes affect our emotions.

So by modifying our behavior, we can control and change our emotions. Consider Benjamin Franklin. Franklin worked hard to improve his behavior.

He sought to change his behavior for a certain period – practicing abstinence, or sobriety or moderation until he had mastered that particular virtue.

After he felt competent in one virtue, he sought to dominate the next.

We should all learn a little from Franklin’s book. For example, if you want to live a moderate life, practice moderation for a few weeks. Do not overdo food, and do not get drunk if you’ve already felt good about having a glass of wine.

By changing your behavior in this way, you also change. And the more we work on those virtues, the more they become part of us.

You can even train your preferences. Let’s say you want to stop eating chocolates because you know it’s not healthy. You could start by stopping eating two bars every time you sit on the couch to watch television after work.

This simple change will make you feel even healthier and will help you pay more attention to your body’s needs. Eventually, you will prefer not to eat more chocolates.

You can also train yourself to stop procrastinating. You can do this if you start working immediately rather than spending hours doing unnecessary activities.

Just a few weeks are doing this, and this behavior will become part of your personality. This way you will prevent bad habits from sabotaging your life.

Never Give Up!

Sometimes our plans do not come true because we lost one lost one piece of the puzzle  – that piece that would make your project a great success. People with PMA know that they must always be looking for this piece.

Everyone who can see their ultimate goal on the horizon needs to stop and wonder what that last piece is. If you let a negative attitude get in the way, failure will be accurate.

But if you failed, think about it and try to be frank – what else could have been done? And what could have taken his project further?

The Wright brothers were excellent at it. They succeeded where others failed because they possessed strong positive mental attitudes. Instead of feeling like losers when the plane project failed, they saw the missing piece: movable flaps on the wings of the plane!

These flaps allowed the pilot to change the position of the wings and make the plane stable. This piece would be lost forever if the brothers had a negative mental attitude, and their dreams would never see the light of day.

When you are looking for the missing piece, an unconventional approach may be attractive. When we are trying to brainstorm new ideas, many of us are left waiting with a pen and paper in hand.

So when we get distracted, our focus is lost and potentially good ideas. So why do we not try an unconventional alternative and seek to focus our minds?

For example, Dr. Gates an American inventor had the habit of locking himself in a small, dark, soundproof room so he could focus on a solution to some problem.

He just switched on the bedroom light when he had an idea, and then he thought of a possible solution.

Influence And Motivate Others

When we are talking about motivation, we have two roles – we are motivated by others, and we give motivation to others. But first, you need to be able to motivate yourself.

Motivation is what governs our choices; without it, you will not be able to progress towards success. Therefore, it is paramount for your journey.

To generate your motivation, list all the things you want to achieve and when you want to achieve them. After that, try to change your habits.

There are many ways to get motivated, but the secret is not to stop trying. Do not sit back after reading this. And in the meantime, why do not you try to motivate someone else too?

As an example, let’s look at parent-child relationships. As infants, children motivate their parents to care for them and parents encourage their children by caring for and supporting them, which builds trust.

Thomas Edison, for example, always relied on his mother’s confidence in him, even when he was a lousy and insubordinate student! She defended her son, even when he failed.

To motivate someone with confidence, be it a child or an adult, you need to give that person an active faith. That means you need to tell that person that you believe in her, and that she has your trust and support.

Maintaining a passive confidence is not motivating because the person will not be able to detect it.

So if you want an employee to know that you are giving him or her an important job, talk to them. Tell him that the fate of the project is in his hands because you trust him.

Final Notes:

Are you dissatisfied with your life? Can not reach your goals or get where you want? Think back to how your mental attitude has gotten you in the way.

And remember, we are masters of our attitude, and our attitudes shape our future. Learn how to develop your PMA and achieve the success you want!

Emir Zecovic

Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.