Think and Grow Rich is one of the classics of success and personal development literature. Most people who have ventured into this world of study have at least heard of this book and many have read it.
When I read this book about 15 years ago I took it on whole heartedly. I wrote out my declaration for wealth and read my wealth statement daily. The biggest things I took from this book was to create a burning desire for wealth, fan the flame every day and allow this desire for wealth to become an obsession.
Ultimately these actions only lead me to creating massive attachment to wealth, my businesses, and how people perceived me. Money and wealth became an obsession which created an unhealthy relationship with this area of my life. I began to see people as objects in my road map to wealth as opposed to human beings. This book influenced me to objectify my relationship with others for the purpose of wealth creation.
Did this book actually help me create more wealth in my life?……Yes it did but the results were created from a very unhealthy place and in the end this book only created a mindset that needed to be rewritten so that a more healthy, grounded relationship with money and wealth could be established.
Another interesting observation is that as I have looked at the people who have recommended this book many of them have not created significant wealth themselves and those that have created some level of success have done so through selling the same type of hype, positive mental attitude thinking, or some sort of success program that is the premise for the entire book itself.
To give the book some credit the idea of the mastermind is very powerful and one that I have greatly benefited from and continue to still use in my life.
In conclusion I don’t recommend this book because it creates a mindset for an unhealthy relationship with money and wealth and it seems to beget success stories of individuals, more often than not, who have created their wealth from selling books, workshops or programs of teaching people how to be successful or wealthy.
What are your thoughts on this classic of success literature?
Are there any books on this topic that you feel bring a more grounded and healthy approach to money and wealth creation?
One Response
Chris,
This is fascinating you bring this up! Have been obsessed with $$ and personal development since reading ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’ at age 16. This has influenced many instrumental decisions from college, to dating and overall priorities in life. As you mentioned there are some gems in ‘Think and grow Rich’ such as masterminds which lay the foundation for a great life! Yes – it encourages a single minded focus, which is helpful to attain wealth and become the person capable of massive success – whatever that means to you. For me, its living my fullest life, being authentically me. As for the happiness equation, as we both know highly wealthy unhappy people; Travel is the answer, as this opens your eyes towards a holistic, unique perspective towards life!
Thanks so much for posting and look forward to chatting soon!