The Magic of Thinking Big

by David J. Schwartz

Milton, who in Paradise Lost wrote, “The mind is its own place and in itself can make a heaven of hell or a hell of heaven.”

Shakespeare, who observed, “There is nothing either good or bad except that thinking makes it so.”

Those who believe they can move mountains, do. Those who believe they can’t, cannot. Belief triggers the power to do.

Disbelief is negative power. When the mind disbelieves or doubts, the mind attracts “reasons” to support the disbelief. Doubt, disbelief, the subconscious will to fail, the not really wanting to succeed, is responsible for most failures.

It is well to respect the leader. Learn from him. Observe him. Study him. But don’t worship him. Believe you can surpass. Believe you can go beyond. Those who harbor the second-best attitude are invariably second-best doers.

HOW TO DEVELOP THE POWER OF BELIEF

This book will be your guide, but only you can understand yourself. Only you can command yourself to apply this training. Only you can evaluate your progress. Only you can bring about corrective action should you slip a little. In short, you are going to train yourself to achieve bigger and bigger success.

You will find that the more successful the individual, the less inclined he is to make excuses. But the fellow who has gone nowhere and has no plans for getting anywhere always has a bookful of reasons to explain why.

Thoughts, positive or negative, grow stronger when fertilized with constant repetition. At first the victim of excusitis knows his alibi is more or less a lie. But the more frequently he repeats it, the more convinced he becomes that it is completely true, that the alibi is the real reason for his not being the success he should be.

The right attitude and one arm will beat the wrong attitude and two arms every time.

“I felt sorry for myself because I had ragged shoes until I met a man who had no feet.”

“It’s better to wear out than rust out.”

What really matters is not how much intelligence you have but how you use what you do have.

the thinking that guides your intelligence is much more important than how much intelligence you may have.

Knowledge is power only when put to use—and then only when the use made of it is constructive.

the ability to know how to get information is more important than using the mind as a garage for facts.

Three Ways to Cure Intelligence Excusitis

“Am I using my mental ability to make history, or am I using it merely to record history made by others?”

Stop thinking “I should have started years ago.” That’s failure thinking. Instead think, “I’m going to start now, my best years are ahead of me.” That’s the way successful people think.

Mr. Success receives a setback; he learns and profits. But when Mr. Mediocre loses, he fails to learn.

Worry, tension, embarrassment, panic all stem from mismanaged, negative imagination.

all confidence is acquired, developed. No one is born with confidence.

action cures fear. Indecision, postponement, on the other hand, fertilize fear.

it’s ten times easier for a man with a job to get another job than it is for someone unemployed to connect.”

When we face tough problems, we stay mired in the mud until we take action. Hope is a start. But hope needs action to win victories.

Your memory bank automatically answers and supplies you with bits of information relating to this situation that you deposited on previous occasions.

Do this: in these moments when you’re alone with your thoughts—when you’re driving your car or eating alone—recall pleasant, positive experiences. Put good thoughts in your memory bank. This boosts confidence. It gives you that “I-sure-feel-good” feeling. It helps keep your body functioning right, too. Here is an excellent plan. Just before you go to sleep, deposit good thoughts in your memory bank. Count your blessings. Recall the many good things you have to be thankful for: your wife or husband, your children, your friends, your health. Recall the good things you saw people do today. Recall your little victories and accomplishments. Go over the reasons why you are glad to be alive.

what one remembers from the past colors what one sees in the present,

Whether the psychological problem is big or little, the cure comes when one learns to quit drawing negatives from one’s memory bank and withdraws positives instead.

“When the feeling aroused is pleasant, the advertisement has a better chance to be remembered. When the feeling aroused is unpleasant, the reader or listener tends to forget the advertisement message.

You take a big step forward toward conquering fear when you refuse to remember negative, self-deprecating thoughts.

“Underneath he’s probably a very nice guy. Most folks are.”

Do what’s right and keep your confidence. That’s thinking yourself to success.

To think confidently, act confidently.

“Remember, motions are the precursors of emotions. You can’t control the latter directly but only through your choice of motions or actions. . . . To avoid this all too common tragedy (marital difficulties and misunderstandings) become aware of the true psychological facts. Go through the proper motions each day and you’ll soon begin to feel the corresponding emotions! Just be sure you and your mate go through those motions of dates and kisses, the phrasing of sincere daily compliments, plus the many other little courtesies, and you need not worry about the emotion of love. You can’t act devoted for very long without feeling devoted.”

Act the way you want to feel.

You say nothing good about yourself when you avoid making eye contact. You say, “I’m afraid. I lack confidence.”

We do not think in words and phrases. We think only in pictures and/or images. Words are the raw materials of thought. When spoken or read, that amazing instrument, the mind, automatically converts words and phrases into mind pictures. Each word, each phrase, creates a slightly different mind picture.

When you speak or write, you are, in a sense, a projector showing movies in the minds of others. And the pictures you create determine how you and others react.

To think big, we must use words and phrases that produce big, positive mental images.

Look at things not as they are, but as they can be. Visualization adds value to everything. A big thinker always visualizes what can be done in the future. He isn’t stuck with the present.

Practice adding value to things.

the big things that make a good speaker: knowledge of what he’s going to talk about and an intense desire to tell it to other people.

In marriage the big objective is peace, happiness, tranquillity—not winning quarrels or saying “I could have told you so.”

When you believe something is impossible, your mind goes to work for you to prove why. But when you believe, really believe, something can be done, your mind goes to work for you and helps you find the ways to do it.

It isn’t so much what you know when you start that matters. It’s what you learn and put to use after you open your doors that counts most.”

Capacity is a state of mind. How much we can do depends on how much we think we can do. When you really believe you can do more, your mind thinks creatively and shows you the way.

Top-level leaders in all walks of life spend much more time requesting advice than they do in giving it.

Big people monopolize the listening; small people monopolize the talking.

The key to winning what you want lies in thinking positively toward yourself. The only real basis other people have for judging your abilities is your actions. And your actions are controlled by your thoughts. You are what you think you are.