Customer Reviews

Law of Success: The 21st-Century Edition: Revised and Updated

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I have been a fan of Napolean Hill since 1975 when I enrolled in my first network marketing company and Think & Grow Rich was practilly required reading for everyone. Later I found out that those who read Think & Grow Rich (as well as other positive mind books) excelled while those who didn't were left behind.

Someone recommended The Law of Success. At first I just saw it as an inflated version of Think & Grow Rich and didn't see the value. Then I met another network marketer who made nearly $3 million in under 2 years (in 1970's dollars!) and credited Hill's books, especially this one and Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude and Think and Grow Rich. He told me that Think & Grow Rich will get your interest, but The Law of Success would make me rich.

I recall the price of The Law of Success was around $20 (a lot of money in 1976 considering I bought Think & grow Rich for $1.95) for the 2 volume set. So I set a goal to buy the book set with the profits from my business, that is extra sales or residual checks on top of what I was already making.

Shortly thereafter, I bought the set and dove into the program. Reading a chapter a day, this was on top of reading other motivational material. My sales exploded. My attitude changed. And I thought I already had a good attitude!

Hill goes much deeper into the 17 principles in The Law of Success and in this updated version, while Hills ideas remain intact, the material is revised for the times, there are new quotes and new material.

This is also in one paperback book instead of two hardbacks. It is easier to read and packed with material that goes beyond what you will find in Hill's others books.

Since my old copies are all dog eared and worn, I went out and spent the $34 and bought the new & improved version over the weekend and again feel stimulated. It jogged my memory and gave me many new ideas for my new pursuit. I am now recommending this book to everyone and anyone who wants success.

If you liked Think & Grow Rich, you will love The Law of Success. It's Hill's best work and the new and revised version is better than the original.

While Robbins does his theatrics, Napoleon Hill was a man of humble beginnings and great intellectual depth. What makes this book so important is not the amount of money people make after reading it. The depth of your soul's growth can never be measured. One dark night, I found Think and Grow Rich in the desk drawer of a man who had just retired and left the book there. I'll never be the same. Reading Law of Success gives the background and foundation of what Napoleon Hill went through, interviewing successful people for 20 years without any financial backing and the struggle that became worth it to him.
You'll love reading this book. It will change the way you see your world, if you're willing to open your heart to it.
Forget all the other so-called self-help prophets. Napoleon Hill was the real thing. Imagine sitting across the table from Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, William Wrigley, or Henry Ford as they tell you the struggles that enabled them to give so much to the world. All I can say is besides the Bible, Hill's books and especially this one, saved my life.

I was given a set of The Law of Success back in the 1980's a prize for winning a sales contest. I still have those hardback encyclopedia type books.

Recently while in Borders, I came across this newly revised paperback version. Remembering how I came across my copy, I offered this book as a prize for my top sales people. I couldn't believe the results. My top salesperson sales soared after reading and applying the concepts in The Law of Success.

This book is above Think & Grow Rich. It is 1,000 pages and 18 chapters covering the 17 principles of success. It has endorsements from many prominent people that you will know includinga former President of the United States. It is also new and updated.

Even though I have a copy of the hardback, I went out and bought the new and revised version and am recommending this to everyone in my organization. In fact, we even take a chapter a week on our onference calls and discuss how this book is helping our people. Great book. Highly recommended.

This is a truly outstanding book. However, if you wish to read ANY of Napolean Hill's work stay away from anything published by Highroads Media. What they did in both Law of Success and Think and Grow Rich is change the text to the way they think it should read. The changes made to both books are obvious and definately change the meaning of the books. Stay away from any work published by these people and opt to find editions that are true to the original text.

The first batch of significant books that had the greatest influence on me in terms of attaining personal achievement includes mostly Napoleon Hill's books:

- The Law of Success (early edition);
- Think & Grow Rich;
- The Keys to Success;
- Success through a Positive Mental Attitude;
- Succeed & Grow Rich through Persuasion;

The others were from Clement Stone, Dale Carnegie, & Earl Nightingale.

That was the early 70's when I had just started work as a young engineer.

The author, Napoleon Hill, had impressed me most by his relentless dedication in spending some two to three decades of his life in pursuing & researching the success secrets of the rich & famous...with a little help from Andrew Carnegie, of course.

As matter of fact, many of the famous people he interviewed were also favourite role models of mine e.g. Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, just to name a few

Till this day, I have never forgotten what he said:

"The most powerful instrument we have in our hands is the power of our mind."

I have never ceased to be fascinated by the simplicity & the potency of his ABCs of personal achievement: CONCEIVE, BELIEVE & ACHIEVE!

It is certainly enlightening to note that even Stephen Covey had drew inspiration from Napoleon Hill's work even though he never made that credit. He only admitted that the 7 Habits had its origins from "200 years of success literature in the United States." That remark itself is self explanatory.

Anthony Robbin's Mastery program as embodied in his books as well as his audio/video resources is no exception, even though he has been influenced in larger extent by NLP.

If you look at & compare the 17 principles of personal achievement in 'The Law of Success' &/or the 13 Steps to Riches in 'Think & Grow Rich', one can obviously see the uncanny resemblance of the 7 Habits & the Mastery principles...in one way or another.

At this juncture, let me outline the principal theme of each book:

The Law of Success: the original course on the fundamentals of success - all the seventeen essential principles of personal achievement (over 1,000 pages of information);
Think & Grow Rich: The seventeen essential principles are reframed & condensed in terms of thirteen concrete steps to wealth creation (in actuality, this is a condensation of the Law of Success);
The Keys to Success: a further elaboration of the seventeen essential principles with concrete suggestions, exercises & advice;
Success Through Positive Mental Attitude: joint authorship with Clement Stone, with a further emphasis on developing a positive mental attitude;
Succeed & Grow Rich Through Persuasion: joint authorship with Clement Stone, with a further emphasis on developing master salesmanship & networking;
[It is pertinent to note that Clement Stone actually built his insurance business empire with these principles.]

My most productive, personal learning experience from Napoleon Hill's work is the understanding - & application - of his success principle #1: Develop Definiteness of Purpose.

[Very surprisingly, J Y Pillay, former Chairman of Singapore Airlines, - who had been credited for building the airline to what it is today, A GREAT WAY TO FLY! - also credited his work axiom to this same success principle, but he attributed it to an ancient Hindu scripture known as Bhagavad Gita.]

I am certainly gratified to note that Napoleon Hill's work had casted so much influence on - & empowered - so many people in the world, including myself.

If you've read many self-help or business books you'll find that most of the themes are derived from those set out in Napoleon Hill's Law of Success. This 1000 page tomb eclipses all other self-books I've read including those from Robbins and Covey. Covey and Robbins both credit their work has been influenced by Napoleon Hill's Law of Success.

The most interesting thing about this particular edition is that the editor has added comments to modernize the content and has also included dozens of recommended books that should be read to supplement the reading, among which are works by Covey and Robbins.

Also of interest is the 12 hours of lecture from the author himself from the 50's teaching his students at the time on each of his laws of success (Your Right to be Rich).

Purchase this book as well as the 12 hour CD set 'Your Right to be Rich' and you just might catch a sliver of the success that Robbins and Covey have had by modernizing their own interpretation of this reference in your own field of endeavor.

I own a copy of the original 1-volume "Laws of Success." So when I bought this book, I was very curious to read the 21st century updates. I have mixed feelings. Sure, the original was written several decades ago. But if you believe the book's basic premise that "the laws" are timeless and apply to everyone regardless of circumstances then, is an updated version necessary? Well, can you easily purchase a copy of the original?

Whether or not you have the original, this book does exactly what it's intended to do. It updates the original version by interjecting stories and comments from recent people and events. For some people it's important to talk about the here and now; for others - nostalgia and timeless principles left to be interpreted by themselves are desirable attributes. This book will satisfy both.

The storyline: In 1908 Napoleon Hill accepted a challenge from Andrew Carnegie to write down success principles and make them available to everyone. He spent the next 20 yrs. studying and interviewing successful people while supporting himself. In 1927, he published Laws of Success. It contains some really good habits that were tested by making himself a success. I've read it 3 times. In retrospect, he was probably the 1st Motivational Speaker. Consider this, the "7 Habits of Highly Effective People" was really a spin-off of the Laws of Success. Of course, Stephen Covey gave us the Franklin Planner, or is it really an updated Benjamin Franklin "pocket journal?" I use both, the Franklin planner and the pocket journal. And now I have both versions of the Laws of Success.

This book is over 1000 pages long, and there is a reason for this. The reason is because the author, Napoleon Hill, spent 20 years researching what is now Law of Success. This is the first edition that has all seventeen laws together.

1. Introduction to the Master Mind
2. A Definite Chief Aim
3. Self-Confidence
4. The Habit of Saving
5. Initiative and Leadership
6. Imagination
7. Enthusiasm
8. Self-Control
9. The Habit of Doing More Than Paid For
10. A Pleasing Personality
11. Accurate Thinking
12. Concentration
13. Cooperation
14. Profiting By Failure
15. Tolerance
16. The Golden Rule
17. The Universal Law of Cosmic Habitforce

The last law ties all the other sixteen together. It is an absolute guarantee that if you are looking for answers, purpose, direction, or meaning for your life, this will give you what you seek.

It will radically change your paradigm on life to one that if followed, will lead you to success within yourself. Read it, embrace it, and be transformed.

If you haven't read this book and are interested in success in life and in money, you have to read all 1072 pages of this classic. With my direction, my son had read it 3 times by the time he was 18. Now, he is a multi-millionaire several times over at 46 years old. I could write a book on all of the advantages of reading this book. Instead, why not read it yourself. I am in a state of shock by the low number of reviews on this classic.

There are many books and seminars out there that teach the principles presented in this book. Even the popular 'The Secret' DVD/book is based on Hill's teachings. EVERY big-time motivational speaker out there (e.g., Anthony Robbins, Jack Canfield, etc) have referenced Napoleon Hill to death as his work was based on the most comprehensive success research (still) to date. Napoleon Hill, who was commissioned by Andrew Carnegie (the first known billionaire/previous richest man in the world) spent 20 years researching the wealthiest minds. The end result was his "Laws of Success". That is probably why every motivational speaker out there references Hill's work. To date, there is probably no other book/media that has inspired more millionaires and billionaires to achieve great success. I liked this revised edition of Hill's work as it presents modern-day examples and gentle revisions that still maintain the integrity of Hill's work. Whether you are looking to purchase this book, or "Think and Grow Rich", you won't be disappointed.