#41 - The 30 Causes Of Failure
In this episode of Right Your Own Story, I talk about the 30 Causes Of Failure, from the classic book 'Think and Grow Rich' by Napoleon Hill.
Napoleon Hill was tasked with seeing if there was an actual formula for why people succeeded, and also failed. He was introduced to the big players of the day who were considered successful. These included former presidents of America, Inventors, Railroad Executives, Henry Ford, Thomas Edison etc, to name but a few.
In his quest, he discovered something important.
There WAS a reason why people succeed (13 of them), but there was also a reason why people failed (30).
He wrote about this and more in his classic book, Think and Grow Rich, which became an international bestseller.
The lessons in the book are as valid now as when it was first published in 1937.
In last weeks podcast episode, I spoke about the 13 Causes of Success (Click this link to listen to that episode), but this weeks episode is to discuss the reverse side of that particular coin - The 30 Causes of Failure.
So, here they are, all 30 of them:
**Note - Before you look at the list, maybe think about a time when you tried something, and it just didn't work OR, think of a certain person you know who failed at something, and see if you can identify some of the reasons.
1. AN UNFAVOURABLE HEREDITARY BACKGROUND
2. LACK OF A WELL DEFINED PURPOSE
4. LACK OF SELF-DISCIPLINE
5. INSUFFICIENT EDUCATION
7. POOR ENVIRONMENT DURING CHILDHOOD
11. LACK OF A CONTROLLED SEXUAL URGE
12. DESIRE OF SOMETHING FOR NOTHING
14. ONE OR MORE OF THE SIX BASIC FEARS - POVERTY, CRITICISM, ILL HEALTH, LOSS OF LOVE, OLD AGE AND DEATH
15. WRONG SELECTION OF A MATE IN MARRIAGE
17. WRONG SELECTION OF A MATE IN BUSINESS
18. SUPERSTITION OR PREJUDICE
19. WRONG SELECTION OF VOCATION
20. LACK OF CONCENTRATION OR EFFORT
21. INDISCRIMINATE SPENDING
25. INABILITY TO CO-OPERATE WITH OTHERS
26. POSSESSION OF POWER NOT EARNED
27. INTENTIONAL DISHONESTY
29. GUESSING INSTEAD OF THINKING
Quite a list, is it not? Did you identify with it in any way? I know I did when I first learned about it, and that was not particularly pleasant to discover, but it was important because then I could learn how to stop doing that.
For completeness, here are the 13 Causes for Success too:
9. POWER OF THE MASTER MIND
10. MYSTERY OF SEX TRANSMUTATION
11. THE SUBCONSCIOUS MIND
I would highly recommend purchasing a copy of 'Think and Grow Rich', and adding it to your library. Here is the Amazon link for it.
