the magic of thinking big

Okay, so a bit of a cheat this week, but having read the classic The Magic of Thinking Big in April, there was just way too much for me to condense into 7 things. So instead here’s a dump of the very many nuggets of wisdom that I took away from this absolute classic in self-help and positivity. Despite being 60 years old this year, the book has aged incredibly well (not everywhere, but certainly 95% of it still holds true) and is packed with some timeless pieces of advice. If you are feeling like you are stagnating or not making the progress in life that you should be, this book is a timely kick up the ass to take action and kick your life to the next level.

So without further ado, these are the key things that I took away from David J. Schwartz’s timeless manifesto to grabbing life by the horns and taking positive action…

1. To reach the top, study and observe the behaviour of successful execs
2. Watch how successful people make decisions and approach problems
3. Believe in yourself, believe you will be a success in everything that you do, believe that you will achieve the most positive outcome- thinking success conditions your mind to achieve successful outcomes. Believe big. 
4. The more successful the individual, the less likely he/she is to make excuses 
5. Be glad for your health and don’t complain about your health if you have health issues
6. Be positive, enthusiastic and inspire others
7. Knowledge is power when you use it constructively
8. Luck counts for nothing and never make excuses about how unlucky you are. Hard work is everything 
9. Fear holds people back, it prevents people from getting what they truly want 
10. All confidence is acquired and developed. No one is born with confidence 
11. Be a front seater. Make eye contact. Walk 25% faster. Speak up.
12. When people ask you how you are, say you’re good (NEVER complain).
13. Describe people in positive terms. Be complimentary to others. Promise victory and positive imagery when asking people to do things. 
14. Look at things not as they are, but what they can be. Add visualisation to everything. Visualise and articulate what be done in the future.
15. Ask yourself, “What can I do to make myself more valuable today”
16. When you feel like arguing over something, ask yourself, “is it really important?” if not, leave it
17. Develop an interest in all aspects of the business that you work in
18. Each day before you start work, consider “How can I do things better today”
19. Encourage others to talk, “tell me about your experience with…”, “what do you think should be done about…”, “what do you think is the key point”
20. Always write down your ideas
21. Believe it can be done. With unwavering belief, incredible things can be achieved
22. Don’t let tradition paralyze you, always be open to new ideas
23. Associate with people who can provide new ideas
24. Practice uplifting self-praise, give yourself pep talks
25. Remind yourself of your enthusiasm and drive
26. Don’t let small thinking people hold you back, jealous people want to see you stumble. Don’t give them that satisfaction.
27. Leverage and get advice from successful people
28. Avoid gossip, and if discussing people, stay positive and complimentary about them
29. Enthusiasm is key, it is infectious. be enthusiastic and you will enthuse others.
30. When you meet someone, dig deeper, learn about them, what they do, their family, their ambitions and plans
31. To get enthusiasm about anything, dig into it deeper
32. People will do more for you when you make them feel important. Make someone feel important and he will care about you. When he cares about you, he will do more for you.
33. Add value to people by visualising them at their best. 
34. When you help others feel important, you help yourself feel important too
35. Practice appreciation – Make it a rule to let others know you appreciate their efforts. Practice appreciation with honest, personalised compliments
36. Don’t hog glory, invest it instead – Recognise every one that has contributed to the success
37. Ask yourself every day, what can I do today to make my partner and family happy
38. Put service first, and the money always follows 
39. Always give people more than they expect to get 
40. Ask the question “how can I give more than is expected of me?”
41. Success depends on the support of other people 
42. Remember names
43. Be a comfortable person, there should be no strain to being with you
44. Don’t be egotistical
45. Identify and get rid of the “scratchy” elements of your personality
46. Sincerely attempt to get rid of any grievances you have or have had with people. Get your house in order
47. Practice conversation generosity, let them talk. Conversation generosity is the quickest, simplest and most effective way to win over a friend.
48. Take action, be a doer. The biggest way to combat any fear is action.
49. Refuse to be beaten by any problem, believe that there is a way to achieve it. If you are still struggling, back up and take a fresh look 
50. Have the courage to be your own constructive critic. Seek out your faults and weaknesses and correct them 
51. The most important qualification for a business leader is the sheer desire to get ahead 
52. Energy increases, multiplies when you set a desired goal and resolve to work towards that goal 
53. The individual with a goal and purpose will advance far beyond others without. As you press forward to success, set goals; deadlines, target dates, self imposed quotas. You will accomplish only what you plan to accomplish 
54. Commit this question to memory and use it to evaluate everything you do: “will this help to take me where I want to go?” If the answer is no, back off; if yes, press ahead..
55. The 4 principles of leadership: trade minds with the people you want to influence (put yourself in others shoes); think: what is the human way to handle this?; think progress, believe in progress, push for progress; Take time out to confer with yourself and develop your supreme thinking power

The Magic of Thinking Big can be bought on Amazon here.

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