OPEN YOUR MIND
The problem
with most people is that their wealth is 'too near'. You need to develop an
open mind to spot the obvious. This will never happen if you are continually
speeding off to the next opportunity.
There
was once a man, Al Hafed, who lived on the banks of the River Indus who had a
nice farm with orchards and gardens, excess cash, a beautiful wife and
children. He was ’wealthy’ because he was contented. Then an old priest
visited him and one night related how the world was made, including the
formation of all the rocks, the earth, the precious metals and stones. He told
the farmer that if he had a few diamonds he could have not just one farm, but
many. The farmer listened. Suddenly, he wasn't that happy with what he had thus
far acquired in life.
He sold
up and went travelling in search of diamonds, across Persia, Palestine and into
Europe. A couple of years later, the money he had was gone, and he was
wandering around in rags. When a large wave came in from the sea, he was
happily swept under by it.
Meanwhile,
the man who had bought the farmer's land was another story. One day, while watering
his animals in the stream that ran through the property, he noticed a glint in
the watery sands. It was a diamond; the land was full of diamonds. In fact, it
was one of the richest diamond finds in history; The mines of Golconda
would yield not just one or two but Acres of diamonds.
Open your mind
In this
tiny book: Acres of Diamonds, which is actually a transcript of a hugely
popular lecture that he gave, Dr. Russell H. Conwell relates similar true life
stories about the folly of going off to find your fortune when it is in your
own backyard or just staring you in the face. He suggests that most people are
'pygmies of their possible selves', because they are not willing to accept, or
it did not occur to them, that they have great untouched powers: "Families
do not credit their own folks with abilities they attribute to other persons.
Towns and cities are cursed because their own people talk them down", he
says.
Dr. Conwell's
message is that we shouldn't fall for the trap of thinking that all the great
people and the great businesses are somewhere else. Consider that Henry Ford
started designing and building his car on his own farm and built the famous
Ford production line factories in the same area where he had grown up. There
was nothing special about Dearborn, Michigan - he made it special, without ever
leaving his own backyard. Warren Buffett, the great investor, decided against
moving his family to Wall Street. He stayed in Omaha, Nebraska and made his
billions there.
Open your mind and discover true
service
Dr. Conwell's
other theme is that great service is basic to prosperity. He tells of the
financier John Jacob Astor the elder, who had to suddenly go into partnership
in a millinery store because the owners could not keep up mortgage payments.
What did he do to get this business on its feet? He would go into the park and
quietly watch the women strolling along, particularly the most confident and
elegant, and take careful note of the hats they were sporting. Back in the
store, he had these hats copied exactly. The result was that the store never
made a hat or bonnet that a lady didn't like, and it boomed. Left behind was
the idea that 'we make hats and try to sell them', to be replaced by 'what
women want, we sell'.
From
such basic service erupts great success, in this case a store that even in the
19th century made seventeen million dollars. You may think you have already
considered it, but ask again: what do people want?
The
problem with most people, Dr. Conwell says, is that their wealth is 'too near'.
You need to develop an open mind to spot the obvious. This will never
happen if you are continually speeding off to the next opportunity,
looking for a greener pasture. Genuine service is simple, but it may only
occur to you what this is when your mind has been quieted. Without
finding some quiet time to yourself you will not be able to see the wood for
the trees. Leave time for meditation and contemplation, and answers will come.
Another
way to start is by thinking about what you need. Chances are, if you need
something, others will too. The woman who invented the snap button, first used
in gloves, made her fortune this way. Dr. Conwell further emphasizes that
"It is the open-mindedness to little things that brings human
success." The greatest minds think in simple terms, and the greatest
people, Dr. Conwell says, are always straightforward.
You
cannot succeed if you have no interest in people and their needs. In Dr. Conwell's
words, you must make yourself necessary to the world. What all great people
have in common is that they make themselves a 'medium' for good, they make the
best goods and provide them to the largest number. This, not taking money at a
till, is service.
Two main lessons
Acres of
Diamonds might seem from another era, but Dr. Conwell was one of the original
American motivational speakers and his talk can still inspire. It costs next to
nothing to buy, can be read in about half an hour, and every so often you may
like to be reminded of its two lessons:
There's
no need to look beyond yourself and your immediate circumstances to find the
seeds of your fortune. Service is the key to success. Don't just sell things.
Find out what people really want. This requires greater than normal thought and
observation. Are you
open –minded?
This is
a review from the book “Acres of Diamonds” by Dr. Russell H. Conwell.
Also read: Small Beginnings, Discover your Passion, Moment of Truth, Overcome Limitations, Ignore What People Say and
Dare the Impossible
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