The 80-Year-Old Secret to Success Every 20-Something Needs to Hear
Not long ago, I finished reading Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill for the first time.
For those who’ve never read it, Think and Grow Rich was published in 1937 and is considered a masterpiece in the self-development and personal growth realms—many of its philosophies holding true today.
For 25 years, Hill studied and worked closely with the most successful people on the planet—people like Andrew Carnegie and Henry Ford—to uncover their secrets to unparalleled success.
Hill discovers that amassing a great fortune ultimately comes down to mindset—hence the title of the book (literally think and grow rich).
As one can imagine, the book is riddled with inspiration in the form of valuable advice and real-life success stories of the 20th century’s most successful entrepreneurs.
And Hill does an extraordinary job breaking down everything he learned from studying those individuals to help the reader easily digest and effortlessly apply his findings to their own personal growth journey.
But of everything Hill uncovered in his 25+ years of research, one simple truth stands out:
“Failure cannot cope with persistence.”
Meaning that as long as you have a ‘never give up’ mindset you will be successful. It’s not a bad thing to fail—and often, failure is encouraged. It’s hard to learn—and more importantly, grow—without experiencing some form of failure.
But failing time and time again is frustrating to say the least.
And for a lot of people, repeated failure is too much to bear.
The time and effort put in to goal-achievement, and falling short time and time again, is disheartening enough to make a lot of people give up on their goals altogether.
However, some of the world’s most successful people—both today and back when Hill published his masterpiece in the early 20th century—dealt with repeated failure.
For example, Abraham Lincoln failed repeatedly in his bids to become State Legislature, Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, Commissioner of General Land Officer in Washington, and U.S. Senator, until finally winning a bid in the U.S. House of Representatives and eventually, a seat in the Oval Office.
Oprah Winfrey had an absolutely horrific upbringing, bearing excruciating emotional and physical pain. As a 23-year-old aspiring news anchor, she was told she was unfit for television and to change careers. We all know what happened there.
Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group, suffered from severe dyslexia and was repeatedly told he would never amount to anything spectacular. Fast forward a few decades, and his net work is nearly $4.9 billion.
And let’s not forget that Michael Jordan was cut from his high-school team before becoming the greatest player to ever pick up a basketball. One of his most famous quotes: “I’ve failed over and over and over again. That is why I succeed.
I’d like to point out that these are no people with some sort of extraordinary gift (aside from Jordan’s height, maybe).
These were normal people who persisted through repeated failures.
Regardless of what your goals are, or how many times you’ve failed, you need to be persistent.
Eventually, according to Hill, you’ll find the right avenue to lead you toward the path of success—just so long as you keep trying.
If you’re struggling to persist through failure, here are a few things to keep in mind:
Every ‘wrong’ outcome is a step closer to the ‘right’ one.
Failure is the opportunity to begin again with deeper knowledge.
Persistence deems success inevitable.
Remember: failure cannot cope with persistence.
As long as you persist through the difficult times, you will be successful.
