Master of Determination
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There are several definitions of the word determination. The two that I retain for this article are as follows. Determination: the quality of being determined to do or achieve something. And also determination: the act of determining the properties of something.
The first speaks of a burning desire for achievement and the second the simple act of figuring out the qualities and features of something or other.
When they are used in a human context, they become intimately related.
The Secret:
Do you know Napoleon Hill? He wrote “Think and Grow Rich”, perhaps one of the most important books in my life.
In it, the author, fueled on by Andrew Carnegie, sets out to discover the real secret of success. The secret of riches, lets even call it the secret of the universe. On his quest, he interviews the great men of the 20th century. Amongst these are: Henry Ford, Theodore Roosevelt, Edison, Schwab and a score of others.
The secret is a modern day adaptation of the principles found within. There is only one main idea behind it: “thought can be transformed into its physical equivalent”. This can be rephrased a thousand times and it comprises one of the greatest pieces of wisdom known to man.
(There is a link to the Secret video at the end of this post. It’s plenty cheesy, with Joe Vitale’s beady eyes full of surnatural light, but it can give you a welcome dose of inspiration if you’re not quite on track to where you want to go.)
How about this quote by Henry Ford: “Whether you think you can or whether you think you cannot, you are right”?
Some people like to put a metaphysical spin on this idea. I believe its logic is sound enough to require no “special” explanation.
There is a force in each healthy human mind that is greater than any conscious thought. It is from this force that stems intuition for example.
Consider our minds. So limited and yet so vast. How much of your life do you think you consciously remember? Not much I would venture to say. Yet more than likely, it is all there, recorded in the most minute detail.
What is the average value of a million dollar idea? That is: an idea that could make a million dollars or more.
I would venture to say it is less than a single dollar, probably less than a quarter. Because every one of us has had one and more likely dozens. But where have they gone?
If salmon were like men, they would be extinct by now.
Think about it. For the single right to reproduction, they must travel thousands of miles against the current without eating. They must propel themselves up waterfalls several times their height. And then they must fight off their brethren, all that for the simple act of copulation.
They either go all the way or die trying.
They can’t decide “I’m a bit tired this time, I think I’ll go back to the ocean and try this again next year.” It’s simply not an option.
In front of those odds, how many humans would make it? Very, very few. Ours lives are far too comfortable. The status quo is far too easy, the easy way out far too inviting. It does not hold the immediate promise of doom, only the doom of “ordinariness”.
But here is the truth. Destiny, fate, the substance of determination is shaped by ideas. More so, it is shaped by the will behind those ideas. The idea is the lump of iron which through the furnace of your will becomes a sword or remains a cold shapeless mass.
Hold an idea in your mind’s eye long enough and it will begin to shape you. It will shape your life and the universe around you until that idea becomes reality.
And if the furnace of your will is not strong enough, the world will shape your idea. Rather it will tarnish it and make it fade until it disappears just as if it had never existed.
Salmon have no choice. One might say they are lucky. They are programmed to win against incredible odds. They are destined to heroic acts.
Through the possibility of choice, we are not.
When you know the “what”, the “how” will come, if you want it enough. If you want a million dollars, a new car, a beachfront house, a healthy mind and body; whatever it is your mind could conceive can be achieved with sufficient desire.
And therein lays the greatest challenge of all. Learn to sharpen your desire like a diamond blade and you will cut down any obstacle effortlessly.
Lean to focus your will. Whenever you see the first step toward your “what”, take it and your mind will give you the next step and the one after that until you are there.
That is what the secret means to me. Find for it your own meaning and you will be a force to be reckoned with.
I will stop here and give you the link. This post is long enough and somewhat out of context on this blog.
If you want to watch the whole video in one place for free, go to secret-seminar.com. Don’t buy anything there and don’t be distracted by marketing messages, just watch the video and lay out your plan. You will already be on your way.
He who is master of determination holds a universal key that will open any door.


on March 22nd, 2007 at 2:47 am ¶
Hi Alex,
The salmons example is an excellent one. What better to start the day with an article that boosts determination.
What about looking at it this way:
In today’s world, life is getting tougher (relating to salmons: water falls are higher and higher, climate is changing), determined people are becoming harder to find (salmon is an endangered specie), BUT; success stories are bigger and bigger (maybe salmons are finding more and more mates to copulate with instead of just the few ones?)…
All in all, thank you for this 5 mins read that helps boosting anyone’s determination.
Regards,
on March 22nd, 2007 at 3:00 am ¶
Hi Jad,
Thanks for your comment.
What you say illustrates the pareto principle (20% of people get 80% of success or whatever it may be). That’s why determination is so important.
When you have the strength to keep going, you distinguish yourself from the herd and good things cannot avoid coming your way.
on March 23rd, 2007 at 8:41 am ¶
Dear Mr. Goad,
I enjoyed visiting your website today, and it occurs to me that you might be interested to learn that a new edition of Napoleon Hill’s classic book “Think and Grow Rich” has been published.
Its title is “Think and Grow Rich!” (subtitled) “The Original Version, Restored and Revised.” I am the editor/annotator of this new 412-page edition, which is really an homage to Dr. Hill. (For several years I was the editor-in-chief of “Think & Grow Rich Newsletter.”)
What I have done is this: to restore Dr. Hill’s book to its original manuscript content (it was first published in 1937, but was abridged in 1960), annotate it with more than 50 pages of endnotes (most of the persons and events he discusses are generally unknown to readers today), index it thoroughly, add an appendix with a wealth of additional information about Dr. Hill and his work, and revise the book in ways to help remove certain “impediments” to reading the book today (language that today would be considered obsolete, sexist or racist). None of these things had previously been done with TGR.
If you would like to learn a little more about this project, a quick visit to www.tgr-restored-revised.com will give you some details. The “Editor’s Foreword” provides more complete information, and the “Testimonials” page will demonstrate how well-received this new book is around the world. Here is the book’s Amazon.com page:
http://www.amazon.com/Think-Grow-Rich-Original-Restored/dp/1593302002/sr=1-1/qid=1172004763/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-1493475-7148634?ie=UTF8&s=books
The book is available on all the Amazon websites and most other online sellers, it can be ordered by any bookstore, and it will start appearing in bookstores soon.
Our edition of TGR! is superior in every way to other versions on the market. It is a trade paperback, not a pocket-size mass market paperback. It is 412 pages versus 256+ (depending on the edition). It looks better, feels better, reads better than any other version. It is fast becoming the “version of choice” among Napoleon Hill devotees and other students of success and high achievement.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Ross Cornwell, Editor
on March 23rd, 2007 at 11:05 am ¶
Hi Ross,
Congratulations on publishing your new book. It looks very interesting and I will be sure to pick up a copy. I had no idea there was more to the book than the 260 or so pages, it’s great to hear those will now be available.
It’s a timeless work highly recommend it to anyone, no matter their situation, which is just about the highest honor a book can receive.
Thanks for your comment,
Alex