Knowing This Difference Will Give You Everything You Desire — Wish vs. Desire
When you understand the difference between a wish and a desire, you will find success in your endeavors.
When conducting a search on Google for the definition of a wish, it states that the word desire is a synonym. At a glance, you may not see the major difference between the two words.
People say these words are interchangeable. I disagree and I think knowing the difference between these two words separates the winners from the losers.
Passive Wish — The Majority Of Humans Are Wishful
A wish is passive. The way people use it is passive. It’s feeling or hoping for something to happen that is not easily attainable.
When you were young, what did you wish for?
A fancy car? A winning ticket for the lottery? A pretty girlfriend? A juicy Big Mac from McDonalds that your mother wouldn’t let you have?
How did you wish for it?
Was it a thought in your head? Was it a prayer to your God in your religion? Was it a prayer to the universe, to change the course of time and the fabric of reality to fulfill your wish?
Regardless of your method, you were asking for someone or something to control the external factors to hand you the very things you wished for. You wanted to sit there and wish that, by a miracle or unbelievable luck, you would be gifted whatever you asked for.
It wouldn’t matter how it came. It wouldn’t matter where or who it came from. If it just appeared in front of you, you’d have no questions and would be extremely happy, because by the definition of a wish, it was highly unlikely to happen and was not easily attainable.
You did nothing but wish for good things to happen to you. You sat on your ass and wished for it.
You did nothing to prove to yourself and to others that you deserved the unattainable. The worst part is, you probably won’t be able to keep your fortune up for too long.
You know why? You didn’t build up the necessary skills and knowledge that needs to come with attaining the “unattainable”.
Think about people who come from poverty who end up winning the lottery. 70% of lottery winners end up broke again. Lottery winners are more likely to declare bankruptcy within three to five years than the average American.
They struggle with depression, suicide and divorce. They lose friends and family over green paper.
They have no prior knowledge of proper money management. They don’t know what to use their money on. Their mindset is still stuck in the poor mindset. They don’t think about saving or investing. They don’t have the discipline that millionaires practiced and developed over the years.
They wanted to skip the journey and land right at the destination. The vital fact they missed was that the real lessons are learned throughout the journey. Only those who had arrived at the destination through the journey knew of this secret.
All they think about is spending, gathering the greatest luxuries that they always wished for and buying unnecessary things that are marketed to people with money. They try to spend money on every aspect of their lives to hide their insecurity, their ultimate fear of becoming or looking poor once again.
Never would they have to eat frozen dinners or wear the same pair of shoes for three years again. They’d only eat at Michelin Star restaurants and have thousands of expensive shoes.
Their money is all spent in trying to shape how they look to other people. They’ll be generous with their money in all the wrong places. Popping bottles and treating “friends” to dinner, instead of helping those in unfortunate situations and those who had stuck by them when times were rough.
When their credit card is finally declined, when their house is taken away from them and they could no longer afford to even buy a Grande Iced Coffee from Starbucks, they’ll come to the realization that they had never changed. They never adopted the mindset of the rich. They were still poor in the mind and would end up paying the price for it. Their so-called “friends” will slink back into the shadows; they got what they came for.
Active Desire — Limits Are Constructed Out Of Fear
Desire is an active process because you know that whatever you desire is attainable. You change yourself and look for opportunities actively. You set your sights on the top of the mountain and prepare accordingly.
When people say something is impossible, your ears perk up. You understand that no one sets limits for you but yourself. You understand that whatever you desire, you can and will get if you truly believe you will get it.
If you want to be rich and prosper, it starts in the mind. When you desire something, for whatever reason it may be, you fundamentally change how you view the unattainable. You realize that nothing is, in fact, unattainable. Your mind is absolutely limitless. You can conceive and truly believe in something that many people will find to be absurd.
Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe it can achieve. There are no limitations to the mind except those we acknowledge.
— Napoleon Hill
Do you believe it? Do you believe that the limits you have been setting for yourself are all because you’ve acknowledged them? You’ve given them credibility, a reason to make you scared.
You can achieve your wildest dreams. You can make possible what others say is impossible.
Many people say earning $100 million dollars will be impossible. Well it’s impossible if you have the same mindset as those who are wishful. If you desire $100 million dollars, you’ll find that you’ll have to think outside the box. You’ll have to follow the footsteps of the people who chose not to conform. You can’t earn that kind of money with a 9–5 job.
So from that moment on, if you truly desire $100 million dollars, you will look for opportunities that you can create or find that will lead you to that large sum of money. You actively start looking for the necessary skills you need to cultivate to start a $100 million dollar business. You’ll start a business or look for businesses to invest in.
You’ll realize that the conventional perspective of “you will never earn $100 million dollars” was created from those who were scared of failure and humiliation. Those who wanted the money without working for it.
They try setting artificial limits on ambitious people because they don’t want to see them succeed. It would only remind them of their inability to overcome their fears. The crab mentality burrows deep into those who failed or feared their wildest dreams.
You now know the distinction between someone who wishes and someone who desires.
Someone who wishes makes excuses and sets limits on his mind.
If he is able to think that something is impossible, he is able to hide under the comfortable bedsheets. He is able to forgive himself for not chasing after his dreams. He is willfully blind, and sees the world full of limits and impossibilities.
If something is simply impossible, he has an excuse not to do anything about it. He can be relieved that he does not have to try, does not have to fail. He can die knowing that his wildest dreams were indeed impossible and he had no choice but to live a comfortable, normal life like the 99.9% of us on earth.
Someone who desires will set his sights on the summit, and will never give up because he knows he can make it. He takes responsibility for his fate and lines up his mindset and actions accordingly. He works hard and never gives up on his dreams. He has no excuses and no impossibilities. He sets no limits on his mind and achieves his heart’s wildest desires.
He is the one who will change himself and the world. He is the Steve Jobs, the Albert Einstein, the Martin Luther King Jr.
“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.”
What are your wildest dreams? Do you think they’re crazy, or do you think they’re attainable? Are you aiming high enough? If a lot of people around you doubt what you desire, take it as a sign that you might be on the right path.
(as long as it doesn’t endanger the livelihood of others)
You may not get what you desire today. Not even for a couple of years. Maybe even decades. But if you have one life to live, why not go all in on your dream? Why not fail and drag yourself through the hard times? What are you afraid of?
Six Ways to Turn Desires into Gold
Taken almost word for word from Napoleon Hill’s book, Think and Grow Rich, these six steps will help you align your life with your goals, to change you from someone who simply wishes to someone who desires with all his heart.
Let’s say you want to become rich, which is the goal for a lot of people.
- Think about the exact amount of money you desire. Don’t tell me a vague statement like “I want a lot of money.” Be definite in your answer.
- Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire. What are you willing to sacrifice? There is no such thing as something for nothing in life.
- Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire. Give yourself a deadline and it will make you efficient with your time. You will plan how you expect to gain this money. Let’s try to be practical with this. Don’t say tomorrow or in a week. You can dream wildly, but you must plan efficiently.
- Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action. This is the most important part. Many of us will plan and dream but never execute. Start now, because you will never be 100% ready.
- Write out a clear, concise statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, name the time limit for its acquisition, state what you intend to give in return for the money, and describe clearly the plan through which you intend to accumulate it. A one page summary that can serve as a reminder for you. This is to eliminate vagueness. You know exactly what you need to do to get to your ultimate goal.
- Read your written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night, and once after arising in the morning. As you read - see and feel and believe yourself already in possession of the money.
Napoleon Hill emphasizes the importance of the final step. He knew that many people would do the first five steps and hesitate at the sixth. This is a crucial step because it helps you visualize the end goal, the moment you waited for. You need a daily reminder as to why you are doing the things you set out to do. You need to hammer the belief into your head, until there is no more doubt.
The list can also be applied to any ultimate goal. The most important aspect of that list is the fact that you codified what you desire. You quantified the amount that you would be satisfied with. You stated clearly what you needed to do to achieve your goal, and planned out the roadmap. You gave yourself a deadline so that you can be accountable for your actions, while anticipating D-Day. Then you remind yourself to start now. There is no more time to waste.
One thing I’d like to add. The book was created solely for those who wanted to become rich. I believe the search shouldn’t be solely about money. The underlying motive of your goal is extremely important.
Why do you want this money in the first place? What is the driving force of your desire for money? What will you do with the money you’ve gained? You must continuously have an overarching goal that justifies your chase for the money.
Is it to provide yourself with freedom from the 9–5? To be able to do the things you love while having the ability to support your family and loved ones? To be able to invest all your time in the things you love — in your creative endeavors?
Think about why you’re pursuing this goal. You may lose sight of this goal along the way, which is why it is important for you to follow the 6th step of the list.
You can and will achieve your heart’s desires. Start today and don’t look back.
