Synopsis of Content:
Wallace D. Wattles spent a life time studying and writing about the laws of success. He studied the great philosophers and contemporary writers. Wallace was convinced that wealth is attracted, as is poverty and every other condition. He taught that barriers could be overcome and success attained by mental discipline. He also advocated building wealth through creation and not competition. His book was first published in 1910.
Wattles insisted that one must first lose any reservations about getting rich and accept one's right to be rich. He dispels many of the myths about wealth and teaches how it can be used for the good of man, especially when it is the result of creative work rather than competitive work. He insists there is a science of getting rich and that many have discovered its laws. Rich people are not necessarily brilliant - they simply understand the laws of the science of getting rich while poor people do not.
He dispels the myth that opportunity has been all snatched up and teaches that for those who observe and are open to what the world had to offer there is a great deal of opportunity. In fact he says that opportunity is unlimited, or limited only by your imagination.
Wallace then sets forth the principles of getting rich. Those principles are:
? Thought is the only power which can produce tangible wealth from formless substance.
? Man can form things in his thought and by impressing his thoughts upon formless substance (raw materials) he can cause the things he imagines to be created.
? A man's way of doing things is the direct result of the way he thinks about things.
? To think what you want is to think truth, regardless of appearance. There is a thinking stuff from which all things are made, and which, in its original state, permeates, penetrates and fills the interspaces of the universe.
Wattles then urges the reader to reject the idea that we are dependent upon a deity to accomplish our aims. Here he may leave the devout a bit cold and although one need not accept this aspect of his teaching to benefit from what he says over all it is true that he is stressing the power of the individual mind to change reality.
Wattles insists that as long as your intent is harmonious with the universe it will support you and your purpose. That is, as long as you intend no one any harm you will be well served by all of nature in your pursuits. And he stresses the importance of gratitude in one's pursuit of wealth and success.
He describes with particularity the way you must form clear pictures in your mind of what you want to attain it. He teaches the strength and the power of focused and disciplined intent.
Wattles' teaching was not new in 1910 and we recognize in it much of the "new age" thinking on manifesting and creating that is common in thousands of books today. He taught visualization, pioneered by William James and others, and the power of intent, attitude and the disciplined mind. You see his influence in the work of Napoleon Hill and others including many of today's leading authors, philosophers and teachers.
While he is didactic and somewhat narrow in his theory and advocacy, insisting for example that the reader read no other works on success or wealth building other than his book, he has a lot to offer the contemplative mind and was truly a pioneer in many areas of self improvement teaching.
Readability:
Wattles wrote in the common style of the early 20th century. He wrote reasonably well but the text tends to be somewhat pedantic. It lacks the outline format of modern nonfiction literature. If you put a bit of effort forth it is well worth it. If you do not want to work at all at reading this may not be for you.
Overall Rating: Good
Daniel R. Murphy writes on success and how you can build wealth. Would you like to learn how others have been successful in business and in life? For a free success ebook and much information which can help make you successful and financially independent visit http://www.bookstowealth.com/. Begin your self-education today learning how others have become successful and rich! Do it today!
