About Start Getting Rich

How effective is Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich" book?

Does Napoleon Hill TAGR really work?

“I have read Think and Grow Rich-but sometimes I wonder whether this stuff will make any difference in my life- If this book worked, there would be seventy million extra-ordinary rich people because the book has seventy million copies sold.”

“I have read a lot about “How to Get Rich”. I have also taken many courses on financial development- but I am still broke. All of my friends are making huge amounts, why can’t I get rich?”

“I shun financial mentors- They themselves have gotten rich by teaching other people how to get rich. Almost every one of them was nothing before teaching such rubbish”

“All these personal and financial development books do is to help people feel better. There is no real format given to follow in order to become successful. Sometimes I think all we are buying is anecdotes in the name of self-improvement”

A lot has been written on “How to Get Rich” and a lot has been read about “How to get Rich” but still such questions are waggling in many minds. People wonder whether such writings really work or the writers have just found a way to get rich by teaching others how to get rich. Many people question the “workability” of Law of attraction, positive affirmations, success consciousness, meditations etc and this blog is the place where this question is answered.

The central topic of this blog is not How to Get Rich for a lot has already been written about this topic. Although, this blog will include content about personal finances however, the main focus of this blog is to discuss the workability and effectiveness of what has already been written about how to get rich.

WHO I AM TO TELL YOU WHAT WORKS AND WHAT NOT?

Surely, as you are reading my blog, you would be interested in knowing what I think about the tons of inspirational content written about getting an abundant and rich life and why I think that way.

I also had to ponder about the aforementioned questions when I first read Think and Grow Rich in 2009. The book is really famous and requires no introduction in the western world but here in Pakistan, where the habit of reading is uncommon and literacy rate is very low, only few people know something about the book. When I turned the last page of the book, my mind was full of doubt and confusion about whether the philosophy really works or not.

One day, I searched the title of the book on Google. I don’t remember why I did that but that search took me to many results with WIKIPEDIA at the top of the list. I clicked on the very top of the list and started reading. “Think and Grow Rich was responsible for the victory of Ken Norton over Muhammad Ali………”
“ W. Clement Stone wrote: "One of the most important days in my life was the day I began to read Think and Grow Rich in 1937”
“'I began to apply the principles of the book in my daily endeavors and I discovered that they work' Charles Stanley”

(unfortunately, much of this content has been edited from the wikipedia, although this all has come from reliable sources)

As I read the abovesaid phrases, it has dawned upon me for the first time that I have not read something ordinary but something famous for which many witnesses are present around the globe. This all gave me a sense of trust in the book for some time but then…. As I searched more about the book and the author, contradictory claims and arguments came to my sight. The doubt which got buried somewhere deep in my mind resurfaced again. I started asking people their opinions about the effectiveness of “Think and Grow Rich”.
I remember my Google searches in those days. I remember my questions from my friends: “Why Napoleon Hill died broke?” “Which millionaires have read Think and Grow Rich?” “Which billionaires have read Think and Grow Rich?” “How many millionaires Think and Grow Rich made?”

There was a civil war going inside me. Sometimes I perceive myself as a most lucky person to read Think and Grow Rich and thought that I could get stick to it in order to get rich. Sometimes, there were clouds of doubt roaming over me, when the thought that “It’s only a product of Napoleon Hill’s mind rather than his research” stuck me. I found some people admiring the book and some people calling it a scam.

At last I got frustrated and started my search for Think and Grow Rich success stories. I started hunt for the stories of people who claimed to have made achievements because of Think and Grow Rich. The main thing upon which I focused was “whether these people’s accomplishments REALLY flow out of Think and Grow Rich or it is something outside the book…and they wrongly perceive the book to play any part in their accomplishment”. In a short span of time, I was full of proofs which made me a fan of Think and Grow Rich.

Remember, that I am not a blind supporter of Think and Grow Rich, and have become a fan of the book after much investigation. I do admit that nothing can be perfect and Think and Grow Rich is no exception. I admit that Think and Grow Rich has some shortcomings but despite of all of them, Think and Grow Rich really has a power to make you extremely rich and this blog is full of proofs in support of my assertion.

After getting encouraged from my findings about ‘Think and Grow Rich’, I moved to tons of other financial literature. I read How rich people think; Rich dad, poor dad; Secrets of the millionaire mind; The science of getting rich; Getting rich your own way; The millionaire mindset ;How is that working; The intelligent investor and read countless articles on Forbes, Yahoo finances, The Zacks Investment, Kiplinger, Economist, Making sense of cents, The financial blogger, wisebread, frugalrules, Budgets are sexy, Budget and the beach, everydollar and many others. I searched for different ways of making money, different businesses which can be started from zero, and any work which can be started as a side-hustle or full time business.

From all these readings, I found that personal finances field has two parts: First part is purely financial in nature. Things like tax savings, risk management, debt management, investing, budgeting, online income, side-hustling and student loans are in this portion. As far as the perception of general public regarding this portion is concerned, they believe it to be technical. Expert advice is respected, if not trusted, in this portion. My interest in finances and ongoing financial and accounting education helped me a lot to understand this part.

The second part is much like general self-help. The central theme of this part is almost the same as that of Think and Grow Rich which includes things like Formal education has nothing to do with your earnings, no one can succeed in a profession which he don’t likes, Never give up for failure is only a temporary defeat, be crystal clear about your goals. These teachings are logical, motivational, thought provoking and I believes that they work but I didn’t find anything scientific, arithmetical, therapical or psychological in them. This have made public skeptical about them and it tend to believe that anyone can write such books to earn money and the books will be sold like hot cakes. This arise the need of psychological and scientific evidence to be attached with this portion to make it reliable.

This moved me to positive, clinical and medical psychology and the way human brain function and I kept searching for things which correlate with self-help fraction of personal finances. I found some clinical psychological articles which are closely linked to human behavior towards money. I will include them in my blog. I also subscribed to latest psychological updates so that I can find something related to mind behaviour towards riches.

I hope this will provide you trustworthy information regarding personal finances.

So, this is what my blog is all about. Wana know something about me?
I am Faizan Ali, a weak and feeble guy of 26. I am a liberal Pakistani and support secular movements in the country. Currently, I am pursuing chartered accountancy from Pakistan and planning to become a chartered financial analyst in future. I am a vicious reader and love to read (and talk) about money. Think and Grow Rich moved me into the field of personal finances and from there on, I am continuously, reading books and blogs about personal finances.

I love yoga, hiking, snowboarding, tennis, reading, writing, travel, investing, blogging and learning about new legitimate ways of making money and sharing them with poor, debt-burdened, penniless and financially struggling people.

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner of ‘Making sense of the cents’ motivated me to start this blog and express my views about money. I believe that IF YOU HAVE STARTED IT, YOU HAVE DONE IT HALF. So, I have just created it and have started blogging. I will write whatever I consider to be right and that is what blogging is. You have the right to disagree, criticize and pass your judgments upon my views and feel free to express.