Wallace Wattles

https://youtu.be/KcdOK5PxZqA

• Summary at the end of the book condensed into eight main points. Focusing on the metaphysical and tangible steps towards acquiring monetary wealth

There is a thinking stuff from which all things are made, and which, in its original state, permeates, penetrates, and fills the interspaces of the universe. A thought in this substance produces the thing that is imaged by the thought

• Insights
  • Everything begins with an idea
  • Ideas acted upon create reality
  • Raw materials of physical, mental, emotional can be configured to create something great
• Quotes
  • Thought is the only power which can produce tangible riches from the Formless Substance. The stuff from which all things are made is a substance which thinks, and a thought of form in this substance produces the form
  • Original Substance moves according to its thoughts; every form and process I see in nature is the visible expression of a thought in Original Substance. As the Formless Stuff thinks of a form, it takes that form; as it thinks of a motion, it makes that motion. That is the way all things are created

Man can form things in his thought, and by impressing his thought upon formless substance can cause the thing he thinks about to be created

• Insights
  • The more I think about something, the more it turns into desire
  • The greater the desire I have upon something, the more I will act in accordance
  • The more I act in accordance, the more I attract in accordance
• The more I remove ideologies that contradict these ideas, the more power I give this particular ideology
  • I must lay aside all other concepts of the universe than this monistic one; and I must dwell upon this until it is fixed in my mind, and has become my habitual thought
  • Read these creed statements over and over again; fix every word upon your memory, and meditate upon them until I firmly believe what they say. If a doubt comes to me, cast it aside as a sin. Do not listen to arguments against this idea. If I get mixed up in my faith, all my efforts will be in vain
  • Do not ask why these things are true, nor speculate as to how they can be true; simply take them on trust. The science of getting rich begins with the absolute acceptance of this faith
  • To think what I want to think is to think truth, regardless of appearance
  • New Forms are constantly being made, and older ones are dissolving; but all are shapes assumed by One Thing. There is no limit to the supply of Formless Stuff, or Original Substance. The universe is made out of it; but it was not all used in making the universe
  • There is abundance of opportunity for the man who will go with the tide, instead of trying to swim against it
  • Nature is an inexhaustible storehouse of riches; the supply will never run short. Original Substance is alive with creative energy, and is constantly producing more forms. When the supply of building material is exhausted, more will be produced; when the soil is exhausted so that food stuffs and materials for clothing will no longer grow upon it, it will be renewed or more soil will be made
  • The universe is a great Living Presence, always moving inherently toward more life and fuller functioning. Nature is formed for the advancement of life; its impelling motive is the increase of life
  • There is nothing wrong in wanting to get rich. The desire for riches is really the desire for a richer, fuller, and more abundant life; and that desire is praise worthy
  • Life has advanced so far, and become so complex, that even the most ordinary man or woman requires a great amount of wealth in order to live in a manner that even approaches completeness
  • There is a Science of getting rich, and it is an exact science, like algebra or arithmetic. There are certain laws that govern the process of acquiring riches; once these laws are learned and obeyed by any woman, he will get rich with mathematical certainty
  • Studying the people who have got rich, I find that they are an average lot in all respects, having no greater talents and abilities than other men. It is evident that they do not get rich because they possess talents and abilities that other men have not, but because they happen to do things in a Certain Way
  • Read this blog every day; keep it with you; commit it to memory, and do not think about other "systems" and theories. It I do, I will begin to have doubts, and to be uncertain and wavering in my thought; and then I will begin to make failures

In order to do this, man must pass from the competitive to the creative mind; otherwise he cannot be in harmony with the Formless Intelligence, which is always creative and never competitive in spirit

• Insights
  • Competition exits where there is a game with certain rules
  • Instead of competing, look for ways to create new realties that return riches in which I create the rules
  • Listening to myself vs others, act in the now based on my vision while learning from my past
• Getting rich involves the necessity of dealing with men, and of being where there are people to deal with; and if these people are inclined to deal in the way I want to deal, so much the better

Man may come into full harmony with the Formless Substance by entertaining a lively and sincere gratitude for the blessing it bestows upon him. Gratitude unifies the mind of man with the intelligence of Substance, so that man's thoughts are received by the Formless. Man can remain upon the creative plane only by uniting himself with the Formless Intelligence through a deep and continuous feeling of gratitude

• Quotes
  • The whole process of mental adjustment and atonement can be summed up in one word, gratitude. First, I believe that there is one Intelligent Substance, from which all things proceed; second, I believe that this Substance gives me everything I desire; and third, I relate myself to it by a feeling of deep and profound gratitude
  • Many people who order their lives rightly in all other ways are kept in poverty by their lack of gratitude
  • Gratitude will lead my mind out along the ways by which things come; and it will keep me in close harmony with creative thought and prevent me from falling into competitive thought
  • The moment I permit my mind to dwell with dissatisfaction upon things as they are, I begin to lose ground. I fix attention upon the common, the ordinary, the poor, and the squalid and mean; and my mind take the form of these things. Then I will transmit these forms or mental images to the Formless, and the common, the poor, the squalid, and mean will come to me

Man must form a clear and definite mental image of the things he wishes to have, to do, or to become; and he must hold this mental image in his thoughts, while being deeply grateful to the Supreme that all his desires are granted to him. The man who wishes to get rich must spend his leisure hours in contemplating his Vision, and in earnest thanksgiving that the reality is being given to him. Too must tress cannot be laid on the importance of request contemplation of the mental image, coupled with unwavering faith and devout gratitude. This is the process by which the impression is given to the Formless, and the creative forces set in motion

• Quotes
  • That clear mental picture I must have continually in mind, as the sailor has in mind the port toward which he is sailing the ship; I must keep my face toward it all the time. I must no more lose sight of it than the steersman loses sight of the compass
  • My part is to intelligently formulate my desire for the things which make for a larger life, and to get these desires arranged into a coherent whole; and then to impress this Whole Desire upon the Formless Substance, which has the power and the will to bring me what I want
  • The answer to prayer is not according to my faith while I am talking, but according to my faith while I am working
  • Do not try, by occult or mystical means, to act on people or things that are out of my reach. Do not wait for a change of environment before I act; get a change of environment by action
  • And my action, whatever it is, must most likely be in my present business or employment, and must be upon the persons and things in my present environment. I cannot act where I am not; I cannot act where I have been, and I cannot act where I am going to be; I can act only where I am. Do not bother as to whether yesterday's work has well done or ill done; do today's work well. Do not try to do tomorrow's work now; there will be plenty of time to do that when I get to it
  • By thought, the thing I want is brought to me; by action I receive it. l whatever my action is to be, it is evident that I must act now. I cannot act in the past, and it is essential to the clearness of my mental vision that I dismiss the past from my mind. I cannot act in the future, for the future is not here yet. And I cannot tell how I will want to act in any future contingency until that contingency has arrived

The creative energy works through the established channels of natural growth, and of the industrial and social order. All that is included in his mental image will surely be brought to the man who follows the instructions given above, and whose faith does not waver. What he wants will come to him through the ways of established trade and commerce

• Quotes
  • I can get into the business I want by making constructive use of the business I am already established in; by doing my daily work in a Certain Way. And in so far as my business consists in dealing with other men, whether personally or online, the key thought of all my efforts must be to convey to their minds the impression of increase
  • Be sure of this, and convey assurance of the fact to every man, woman, and child with whom I come in contact. No matter how small the transaction, even if it be only the selling of a stick of candy to a little child, put into it the thought of increase, and make sure that the customer is impressed with the thought
  • Do everything that I do in the firm conviction that I am an advancing personality, and that I am giving advancement to everybody
  • I must so impress others that they will feel that in associating with me they will get increase for themselves. See that I give them a use value greater than the cash value I am taking from them
  • The mind that seeks for mastery over others is the competitive mind; and the competitive mind is not the creative one
  • I will get rich most easily in point of effort, if I do that for which I am best fitted; but I will get rich most satisfactorily if I do that which I want to do
  • I am not obliged to do what I do not like to do, and should not do it except as a means to bring me to the doing of the thing I want to do
  • Do not be afraid to make a sudden and radical change if the opportunity is presented, and I feel after careful consideration that it is the right opportunity; but never take sudden or radical action when I am in doubt as the wisdom of doing so

In order to receive his own when it shall come to him, man must be active; and this activity can only consist in more than filling his present place. He must keep in mind the purpose to get rich through the realization of his mental image. And he must do, every day, all that can be done that day, taking care to do each act in a successful manner. He must give to every man a use value in excess of the cash value he receives, so that each transaction makes for more life; and he must so hold the Advancing Thought that the impression of increase will be communicated to all with whom he comes in contact

• Quotes
  • The One Substance desires to live more in me; hence it wants me to have all the things I can use
  • Get rid of the idea that God wants me to sacrifice myself for others, and that I can secure his favor by doing so; God requires nothing of this kind. What he wants is that I should make the most of myself, for myself, and for others; and I can help others more by making the most of myself than in any other way
  • Intelligent Substance will make things for me, but it will not take things away from some one else and give them to me
  • I must get rid of the thought of competition. I am to create, not to compete for what is already created. I do not have to take anything away from any one. I do not have to drive sharp bargains. I do not have to cheat, or to take advantage. I do not need to let any man work for me for less than he earns
  • Never look at the visible supply; look always at the limitless riches in Formless Substance, and know that they are coming to me as fast as I can receive and use them. Nobody, by cornering the visible supply, can prevent me from getting what is mine
  • Man can form things in his thought, and, by impressing his thought upon formless substance, can cause the thing he thinks about to create
  • To set about getting rich in a scientific way, I do not try to apply my will power to anything outside of myself. I have no right to do so, anyways. It is wrong to apply my will to other men and women, in order to get them to do what I wish done. It is as flagrantly wrong to coerce people by mental power as it is to coerce them by physical power
  • Substance is friendly to me, and is more anxious to give me what I want than I am to get it. To get rich, I need only to use my will power upon myself. When I know what to think and do, then I must use my will to compel myself to think and do the right things
  • Since belief is all important, it behooves me to guard my thoughts; and as my beliefs will be shaped to a very great extent by the things I observe and think about, it is important that I should command my attention
  • The very best thing I can do for the whole world is to make the most of myself
  • Some people remain in poverty because they are ignorant of the fact that there is wealth for them; and these can best be taught by showing them the way to affluence in my own person and practice
  • I cannot retain a true and clear vision of wealth if I am constantly turning my attention to opposing pictures, whether they be external or imaginary
  • I must use my thought and begin to do what I can do where I am; and I must do all that I can do where I am
  • I am not to overwork, nor to rush blindly into my business in the effort to do the greatest possible number of things in the shortest possible time. I am not to try to do tomorrow's work today, nor to do a week's work in a day
  • It is really not the number of things to do, but the efficiency of each separate action that counts. Every act is, in itself, either a success or a failure. Every act is, in itself, either effective or ineffective. Every ineffective act is a failure, and if I spend my life in doing inefficient acts, my whole life will be a failure
  • Do, every day, all that I can do that day, and do each act in an efficient manner
  • No matter whether I am a physician, a teacher, or a clergyman, if I can give increase of life to others and make them sensible of the fact, they will be attracted to me, and I will get rich
  • Do not wait for the opportunity to be all that I want to be; when an opportunity to be more than I am now is presented and I feel impelled toward it, take it. It will be the first step toward a greater opportunity. There is no such thing possible in this universe as a lack of opportunities for the man who is living the advancing life

The men and women who practice the foregoing instructions will certainly get rich; and the riches they receive will be in exact proportion to the definiteness of their vision, the fixity of their purpose, the steadiness of their faith, and the depth of their gratitude

• Quotes
  • Many people will scoff at the idea that there I s an exact science of getting rich; holding the impression that the supply of wealth is limited, they will insist that social and governmental institutions must be changed before any considerable number of people can acquire competence, but this is not true. It is true that existing governments keep the masses in poverty, but this is because the masses do not think and act in the Certain Way
  • Give no anxious thought to possible disasters, obstacles, panics, or unfavorable combination of circumstances; it is time enough to meet such things when they present themselves before me in the immediate present, and I will find that every difficulty carries with it the wherewithal for its overcoming
  • Do not spend any time in planning as to how I will meet possible emergencies in the future, except as the necessary policies may affect my actions today. I am concerned with doing today's work in a perfectly successful manner, and not with emergencies which may arise tomorrow; I can attend to them as they come. Do not concern myself with questions as to how I shall surmount obstacles which may loom upon my business horizon, unless I can see plainly that my course must be altered today in order to avoid them. No matter how tremendous an obstruction may appear at a distance, I will find that if I go on in the Certain Way it will disappear as I approach it, or that a way over, though, or around it will appear