The 13 Principles of Success: The Complete Master Guide
Published in 1937 after 25 years of rigorous interviews with over 500 self-made giants—including Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and Andrew Carnegie—Think and Grow Rich remains the foundation of modern success psychology. Here is how all 13 principles operate as one unified engine.
“Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
Why Reading the Book Once Is Not Enough
Most people read Think and Grow Rich as a piece of literature. They consume the stories, feel a momentary burst of motivation, and return to their ordinary routine. Napoleon Hill was explicit: the principles do not produce riches through passive acquaintance. They demand deliberate, persistent, daily exercise.
The 13 Principles Explained
Transmute a burning desire into its physical and financial equivalent through unshakeable obsession.
Induce a state of mind by affirmative autosuggestion to turn desire into subconscious conviction.
Voluntarily direct suggestions and stimuli to the subconscious mind through repeated vocalization.
Accumulate organized, intelligently directed knowledge aimed toward a definite end.
Harness synthetic and creative imagination to shape desires into practical plans.
Form definite, practical plans and align yourself with a mastermind alliance to execute.
Reach prompt decisions and change them slowly, if at all, resisting outer doubt and hesitation.
Apply continuous willpower. What carbon is to steel, persistence is to character.
Coordinate knowledge and effort in a spirit of harmony between two or more minds.
Transmute physiological energy into intense creative drive and mental enthusiasm.
Feed the subconscious only positive emotions and clear instructions while guarding against fear.
Tune your mental frequencies to receive vibrations of thought released by other minds.
Access infinite intelligence through sudden flashes of inspiration and creative hunches.
How to Practice the Principles Daily
To make the 13 principles practical in everyday life, Hill recommended building a sacred morning and evening ritual:
- Morning Arising: Read your Definite Major Purpose statement aloud with conviction before interacting with your phone or emails.
- Midday Mindset Guard: Maintain strict mental diet against negativity, indecision, and procrastination.
- Evening Before Retiring: Repeat your written statement in a calm hypnagogic state, feeling and seeing yourself already in possession of your goal.
Put the 13 Principles into Practice
Burning Desire provides daily exercises, statement builders, and focus frequencies.