Book Reviews: Think and Grow Rich

Think and grow rich is a great starting point for anyone who cares about accumulating riches. It focuses on the attainment of riches through an obsessive desire to achieve them using autosuggestion, faith, and knowing people who are smarter than you. I first read this book back in 2002 or 2003, it was one of the first books on personal finance that I read. I read it again in October 2007 and again in March 2008. It is worth reading several times and is a fantasitc way to start thinking about wealth accumulation.

Think and Grow Rich Author: Napoleon Hill Year of publication : 1937	Book (412 pgs) Audiobook ( 12 CDS) Buy at Amazon (new) Buy at Amazon (new) Buy at Half.com (used) Buy at Half.com (used)
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Who will benefit most from reading this book:	Most people who are interested in becoming financially literate will get something out of this book. This is a great starting place for those who do not have a wealth accumulation mindset. This is a good review for those who are already working on accumulating wealth as well.

What makes a man rich

At the beginning of the book/CD Hill lists the 12 things that he thinks makes a man rich. They are:

1.Positive mental attitude
2.Sound health
3.Harmony in human relations
4.Freedom from fear
5.Hope of future achievement
6.Capacity for applied faith
7.Willingness to share ones blessings with others
8.Be engaged in a labour of love
9.An open mind towards all subjects towards all
people
10.Complete self discipline
11.Wisdom to understand people
12.Financial security

I think this is a fantastic list... maybe a little long, I think you can condense these down to four or five areas... but still a great list. Unfortunately, while he claims this is what makes a man rich, the book focuses solely on number 12: Financial security. I don't understand why he doesn't spend more time on the 11 other areas... other than people want to read about money and he probably couldn't have sold his book if the focus hadn't been there.

Autosuggestion

After introducing the topic and giving a short synopsis of how he came about writing this book, Hill dives right into the heart of the book: autosuggestion. He claims that the most important thing to do in acquiring riches is to have the desire to do so. With an obsessive desire to achieve anything he puports that the mind will unconsiously start going about finding solutions to the problems you might be facing.

Specialized Knowledge, the Mastermind Principle, & Being educated

Hill points out that one of the best way to riches is through specialized knowledge, that being knowledge that will set you apart from others in your occupation. If you know something or can do something that no one else can then you are indespensable.

He also discusses the mastermind principle, surrounding yourself with people and resources who know and can do the things that you can't to make you successful and rich. This is what he means by "being educated." The educated are those who know how to access information--usually by talking to the right people and having the right tools.

His mastermind group centers on others that you meet with regularly (at least twice a week). Today I think that kind of a group has been replaced by online networks like facebook or linkedin. Creating a mastermind group like the one he discusses would be quite intimidating in today's world.