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Some years ago, the late Nobel prize-winning Dr. Albert Schweitzerwas asked by a reporter, “Doctor, what’s wrong with men today?” Thegreat doctor was silent a moment, and then he said, “Men simply

don’t think!”It’s about this that I want to talk with you. We live today in a golden age.

This is an era that humanity has looked forward to, dreamed of, and workedtoward for thousands of years. We live in the richest era that ever existed onthe face of the earth ... a land of abundant opportunity for everyone.

However, if you take 100 individuals who start even at the age of 25, doyou have any idea what will happen to those men and women by the timethey’re 65? These 100 people believe they’re going to be successful. Theyare eager toward life, there is a certain sparkle in their eye, an erectness totheir carriage, and life seems like a pretty interesting adventure to them.

But by the time they’re 65, only one will be rich, four will be financiallyindependent, five will still be working, and 54 will be broke — dependingon others for life’s necessities.

Continued on Page 56

The

STRANGESTSECRET

By Earl Nightingale

55www.advantedgemag.com November/December

Know what will happen to 100 individuals who start even at the ageof 25, and who believe they will be successful? By the age of 65, onlyfive out of 100 will make the grade! Why do so many fail? Whathappened to the sparkle that was there when they were 25? Whatbecame of their dreams, their hopes, their plans ... and why is theresuch a large disparity between what theses people intended to do andwhat they actually accomplished? That is ... The Strangest Secret.

Only five out of 100 make the grade!Why do so many fail? What has hap-pened to the sparkle that was therewhen they were 25? What has becomeof the dreams, the hopes, the plans ...and why is there such a large disparitybetween what these people intendedto do and what they actually accom-plished?

THE DEFINITION OF SUCCESS

First, we have to define success andhere is the best definition I’ve everbeen able to find: “Success is the pro-gressive realization of a worthyideal.”

A success is the school teacher whois teaching because that’swhat he or she wants todo. A success is the entre-preneur who start hisown company becausethat was his dream —that’s what he wanted todo. A success is the sales-person who wants tobecome the best salesper-son in his or her companyand sets forth on the pur-suit of that goal.

A success is anyonewho is realizing a worthy predeter-mined ideal, because that’s what he orshe decided to do ... deliberately. Butonly one out of 20 does that! The restare “failures.”

Rollo May, the distinguished psy-chiatrist, wrote a wonderful bookcalled Man’s Search for Himself, andin this book he says: “The opposite ofcourage in our society is not cowardice… it is conformity.” And there youhave the reason for so many failures.Conformity — people acting likeeveryone else, without knowing whyor where they are going.

We learn to read by the time we’reseven. We learn to make a living by thetime we’re 30. Often by that time we’renot only making a living, we’re sup-porting a family. And yet by the timewe’re 65, we haven’t learned how tobecome financially independent in therichest land that has ever been known.Why? We conform! Most of us are act-ing like the wrong percentage group —the 95 who don’t succeed.

GOALS

Have you ever wondered why somany people work so hard and honest-

ly without ever achieving anything inparticular, and why others don’t seemto work hard, yet seem to get every-thing? They seem to have the “magictouch.” You’ve heard people say,“Everything he touches turns to gold.”Have you ever noticed that a personwho becomes successful tends to con-tinue to become more successful?And, on the other hand, have younoticed how someone who’s a failuretends to continue to fail?

The difference is goals. People withgoals succeed because they knowwhere they’re going. It’s that simple.Failures, on the other hand, believethat their lives are shaped by circum-stances ... by things that happen tothem ... by exterior forces.

Think of a ship with the completevoyage mapped out and planned. Thecaptain and crew know exactly wherethe ship is going and how long it willtake — it has a definite goal. And9,999 times out of 10,000, it will getthere.

Now let’s take another ship — justlike the first — only let’s not put acrew on it, or a captain at the helm.Let’s give it no aiming point, no goal,and no destination. We just start theengines and let it go. I think you’llagree that if it gets out of the harbor atall, it will either sink or wind up onsome deserted beach — a derelict. Itcan’t go anyplace because it has nodestination and no guidance.

It’s the same with a human being.However, the human race is fixed, notto prevent the strong from winning,but to prevent the weak from losing.Society today can be likened to a con-voy in time of war. The entire societyis slowed down to protect its weakestlink, just as the naval convoy has to goat the speed that will permit its slow-est vessel to remain in formation.

That’s why it’s so easy to make a liv-ing today. It takes no particular brainsor talent to make a living and support

a family today. We have a plateau ofso-called “security.” So, to succeed,all we must do is decide how highabove this plateau we want to aim.

Throughout history, the great wisemen and teachers, philosophers, andprophets have disagreed with oneanother on many different things. It isonly on this one point that they are incomplete and unanimous agreement— the key to success and the key tofailure is this:

WE BECOME WHAT WETHINK ABOUT

This is The Strangest Secret! Now,why do I say it’s strange, and why do Icall it a secret? Actually, it isn’t a

secret at all. It was firstpromulgated by some ofthe earliest wise men,and it appears again andagain throughout theBible. But very few peo-ple have learned it orunderstand it. That’s whyit’s strange, and why forsome equally strange rea-son it virtually remains asecret.

Marcus Aurelius, thegreat Roman Emperor,

said: “A man’s life is what his thoughtsmake of it.”

Disraeli said this: “Everythingcomes if a man will only wait ... ahuman being with a settled purposemust accomplish it, and nothing canresist a will that will stake even exis-tence for its fulfillment.”

William James said: “We need onlyin cold blood act as if the thing inquestion were real, and it will becomeinfallibly real by growing into such aconnection with our life that it willbecome real. It will become so knitwith habit and emotion that our inter-ests in it will be those which charac-terize belief.” He continues, “ ... onlyyou must, then, really wish thesethings, and wish them exclusively,and not wish at the same time a hun-dred other incompatible things just asstrongly.”

My old friend Dr. Norman VincentPeale put it this way: “If you think innegative terms, you will get negativeresults. If you think in positive terms,you will achieve positive results.”

George Bernard Shaw said: “Peopleare always blaming their circum-stances for what they are. I don’t

56 November/December 2004 www.advantedgemag.com

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“People are always blaming their circum-stances for what they are. I don’t believe incircumstances. The people who get on inthis world are the people who get up andlook for the circumstances they want, and ifthey can’t find them, make them.”

— George Bernard Shaw

Learn to Think Like a

Billionaire!Before Donald Trump built his first building ...

He had already built it in his mind.

Before Bill Gates created his first computer program ...He was already running it in his thoughts.

As you’re reading these words, there areabout 200 people in the United Stateswhose net worth exceeds one billiondollars ...

There are an undetermined number ofpeople who are destined to join theranks of the very, very wealthy ...

There are also many millions of peoplewho will never become rich. Theirhopes and dreams are just as importantto them as those of the future billion-aires, but their plans will not turn intotangible realities.

The only question is:Which group do you want to join?

Learn how to Think Like aBillionaire — Starting Now!Call 1.800.288.3396 today!

©2004 Nightingale-Conant Corporation

A Nightingale-Conant audio publication. Available while supplies last.Nightingale-Conant reserves the right to discontinue production andsale of any product or service. Nightingale-Conant delivers an uncondi-tional 30-day satisfaction guarantee on all its products and services.

“Martin Fridson

documents the essential

principles inherent in

every billionaire’s su

ccess.”

— Gordon Bethrune,

Chairman and CEO,

Continental Airlines

believe in circumstances. The peoplewho get on in this world are the peo-ple who get up and look for the cir-cumstances they want, and if theycan’t find them, make them.”

Well, it’s pretty apparent, isn’t it?We become what we think about. Aperson who is thinking about a con-crete and worthwhile goal is going toreach it, because that’s what he’sthinking about. Conversely, the personwho has no goal, who doesn’t knowwhere he’s going, and whose thoughtsmust therefore be thoughts of confu-sion, anxiety, fear, and worry willthereby create a life of frustration, fear,anxiety and worry. And if he thinksabout nothing ... he becomes nothing.

AS YE SOW — SO SHALLYE REAP

The human mind is much like afarmer’s land. The landgives the farmer a choice.He may plant in that landwhatever he chooses. Theland doesn’t care what isplanted. It’s up to thefarmer to make the deci-sion. The mind, like theland, will return whatyou plant, but it doesn’tcare what you plant. Ifthe farmer plants tooseeds — one a seed of corn, the othernightshade, a deadly poison, watersand takes care of the land, what willhappen?

Remember, the land doesn’t care. Itwill return poison in just as wonderfulabundance as it will corn. So up comethe two plants — one corn, one poisonas it’s written in the Bible, “As ye sow,so shall ye reap.”

The human mind is far more fertile,far more incredible and mysteriousthan the land, but it works the sameway. It doesn’t care what we plant ...success ... or failure. A concrete, worth-while goal ... or confusion, misunder-standing, fear, anxiety, and so on. Butwhat we plant it must return to us.

The problem is that our mind comesas standard equipment at birth. It’sfree. And things that are given to us fornothing, we place little value on.Things that we pay money for, wevalue.

The paradox is that exactly thereverse is true. Everything that’s reallyworthwhile in life came to us free —our minds, our souls, our bodies, ourhopes, our dreams, our ambitions, our

intelligence, our love of family andchildren and friends and country. Allthese priceless possessions are free.

But the things that cost us moneyare actually very cheap and can bereplaced at any time. A good man canbe completely wiped out and makeanother fortune. He can do that sever-al times. Even if our home burnsdown, we can rebuild it. But the thingswe got for nothing, we can neverreplace.

Our mind can do any kind of job weassign to it, but generally speaking, weuse it for little jobs instead of big ones.So decide now. What is it you want?Plant your goal in your mind. It’s themost important decision you’ll evermake in your entire life.

Do you want to excel at your partic-ular job? Do you want to go places inyour company ... in your community?Do you want to get rich? All you have

got to do is plant that seed in yourmind, care for it, work steadily towardyour goal, and it will become a reality.

It not only will, there’s no way thatit cannot. You see, that’s a law — likethe laws of Sir Isaac Newton, the lawsof gravity. If you get on top of a build-ing and jump off, you’ll always godown — you’ll never go up.

And it’s the same with all the otherlaws of nature. They always work.They’re inflexible. Think about yourgoal in a relaxed, positive way. Pictureyourself in your mind’s eye as havingalready achieved this goal. See your-self doing the things you will be doingwhen you have reached your goal.

Every one of us is the sum total ofour own thoughts. We are where weare because that’s exactly where wereally want or feel we deserve to be —whether we’ll admit that or not. Eachof us must live off the fruit of ourthoughts in the future, because whatyou think today and tomorrow — nextmonth and next year — will mold yourlife and determine your future. You’reguided by your mind.

I remember one time I was driving

throughe a s t e r nArizona andI saw one ofthose giant earth-moving machinesroaring along the roadwith what looked like 30tons of dirt in it — a tremen-dous, incredible machine —and there was a little manperched way up on top with thewheel in his hands, guiding it. As Idrove along I was struck by the simi-larity of that machine to the humanmind. Just suppose you’re sitting atthe controls of such a vast source ofenergy. Are you going to sit back andfold your arms and let it run itself intoa ditch? Or are you going to keep bothhands firmly on the wheel and controland direct this power to a specific,

worthwhile purpose? It’sup to you. You’re in thedriver’s seat. You see, thevery law that gives ussuccess is a double-edged sword. We mustcontrol our thinking. Thesame rule that can leadpeople to lives of suc-cess, wealth, happiness,and all the things theyever dreamed of — that

very same law can lead them into thegutter. It’s all in how they use it … forgood or for bad. That is The StrangestSecret!

Do what the experts since the dawnof recorded history have told us to do:pay the price, by becoming the personyou want to become. It’s not nearly asdifficult as living unsuccessfully.

The moment you decide on a goal towork toward, you’re immediately asuccessful person — you are then inthat rare group of people who knowwhere they’re going. Out of every hun-dred people, you belong to the topfive. Don’t concern yourself too muchwith how you are going to achieveyour goal — leave that completely to apower greater than yourself. All youhave to do is know where you’re going.The answers will come to you of theirown accord, and at the right time.

Start today. You have nothing tolose — but you have your whole life towin. n

58 November/December 2004 www.advantedgemag.com

Continued from Page 56

To learn more about EarlNightingale and his many timelessbooks and audio programs, visitwww.AdvantEdgeMag.com/006 today.

“The difference is goals. People with goalssucceed because they know where they’regoing. It’s that simple. Failures believethat their lives are shaped by circum-stances ... by things that happen to them ...by exterior forces.”

START YOUR 30-DAY ACTION

IDEAS FOR PUTTING THE

STRANGEST SECRET TO WORK!

SEE PAGE 59

For the next 30-days follow each ofthese steps every day until you haveachieved your goal.

1. Write on a card what it is youwant more that anything else. It may bemore money. Perhaps you’d like todouble your income or make a specificamount of money. It may be a beautifulhome. It may be success at your job. Itmay be a particular position in life. Itcould be a more harmonious family.

Write down on your card specifical-ly what it is you want. Make sure it’s asingle goal and clearly defined. Youneedn’t show it to anyone, but carry itwith you so that you can look at it sev-eral times a day. Think about it in acheerful, relaxed, positive way eachmorning when you get up, and imme-diately you have something to workfor — something to get out of bed for,something to live for.

Look at it every chance you get dur-ing the day and just before going to bedat night. As you look at it, rememberthat you must become what you thinkabout, and since you’re thinking aboutyour goal, you realize that soon it willbe yours. In fact, it’s really yours themoment you write it down and beginto think about it.

2. Stop thinking about what it is youfear. Each time a fearful or negativethought comes into your mind, replaceit with a mental picture of your posi-tive and worthwhile goal. And therewill come a time when you’ll feel likegiving up. It’s easier for a human beingto think negatively than positively.That’s why only five percent are suc-cessful! You must begin now to placeyourself in that group.

“Act as though it were impossible tofail,” as Dorothea Brande said. No mat-ter what your goal — if you’ve keptyour goal before you every day —you’ll wonder and marvel at this newlife you’ve found.

3. Your success will always be meas-ured by the quality and quantity of serv-ice you render. Most people will tell youthat they want to make money, withoutunderstanding this law. The only peo-ple who make money work in a mint.The rest of us must earn money. This iswhat causes those who keep looking forsomething for nothing, or a free ride, tofail in life. Success is not the result ofmaking money; earning money is theresult of success — and success is in

direct proportion to our service.Most people have this law back-

wards. It’s like the man who stands infront of the stove and says to it: “Giveme heat and then I’ll add the wood.”How many men and women do youknow, or do you suppose there aretoday, who take the same attitudetoward life? There are millions.

We’ve got to put the fuel in before wecan expect heat. Likewise, we’ve got tobe of service first before we can expectmoney. Don’t concern yourself with themoney. Be of service ... build ... work ...dream ... create! Do this and you’ll findthere is no limit to the prosperity andabundance that will come to you.

Don’t start your test until you’vemade up your mind to stick with it. Ifyou should fail during your first 30days — by that I mean suddenly findyourself overwhelmed by negativethoughts — simply start over againfrom that point and go 30 more days.Gradually, your new habit will form,until you find yourself one of thatwonderful minority to whom virtuallynothing is impossible.

Above all ... don’t worry! Worrybrings fear, and fear is crippling. Theonly thing that can cause you to worryduring your test is trying to do it allyourself. Know that all you have to dois hold your goal before you; every-thing else will take care of itself.

Take this 30-day test, then repeat it... then repeat it again. Each time itwill become more a part of you untilyou’ll wonder how you could haveever have lived any other way. Livethis new way and the floodgates ofabundance will open and pour overyou more riches than you may havedreamed existed. Money? Yes, lots ofit. But what’s more important, you’llhave peace ... you’ll be in that wonder-ful minority who lead calm, cheerful,successful lives. n

30-DAY ACTION IDEAS FOR PUTTINGTHE STRANGEST SECRET TO WORK FOR YOU

THE PSYCHOLOGYOF WINNING

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It may be a combination ofthe three. Discover theingredients of successwith Nightingale-Conant’sclassic program by DenisWaitley — The Psychologyof Winning.

1.800.288.3396www.nightingale.com

A Nightingale-Conant audio publication. Availablewhile supplies last. Nightingale-Conant reserves theright to discontinue production and sale of any productor service. Nightingale-Conant delivers an uncondition-al 30-day satisfaction guarantee on all its products andservices.

©2004 Nightingale-Conant Corporation http://www.TheRealMikeGriffin.com/Nightingale