The Magic of Thinking Big: Difference between revisions
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🪞 '''6 – You Are What You Think You Are.''' A policeman quoted in the American Institute of Men’s and Boys’ Wear “Dress Right. You Can’t Afford Not To!” campaign admits people judge by appearance; I apply the same rule to adults because your look “talks” to others and to yourself. On the selling floor one customer hears, “Yes sir, may I serve you?” while another is ignored—the signals each person broadcasts explain the difference. I recommend simple, visible upgrades—pressed suit, shined shoes, neat grooming—because an old psychology professor was right: dressing sharp helps you think sharp. Beyond appearance, I urge you to treat your work as important; the classic three‑bricklayer story shows how a cathedral grows in the mind before it rises on the site. To keep self‑respect humming, build a short “sell‑yourself‑to‑yourself” commercial and read it aloud daily; Tom Staley did and watched his confidence and results climb. As you improve your self‑definition, behavior follows—voice steadies, decisions quicken, and others mirror that higher estimate back to you. Self‑labeling sets a feedback loop: think first‑class and you act first‑class, which earns first‑class treatment and chances. *You are what you think you are.*
✈️ '''7 – Manage Your Environment: Go First Class.''' In a training session I asked a group of trainees to name one time they were penny‑wise and pound‑foolish; the examples came fast—a “new” automatic transmission from an alley garage that failed after 1,800 miles, a bargain accountant who brought trouble with the Bureau of Internal Revenue, and months of greasy‑spoon lunches replaced by a businessman’s lunch at one of the best restaurants in town that cost only a little more but delivered real food, service, and atmosphere. From there the lesson widens: the mind feeds on its environment, and conversation is a main course—healthy talk energizes you; gossip is thought poison. A simple self‑test exposes a taste for rumor and helps you throw it out before it corrodes judgment and reputation. Make the setting work for you: seek “psychological sunshine” by circulating in new groups, take advice from people who are succeeding, and refuse to let small‑thinking acquaintances hold you back. Choose quality over clutter—one good pair of shoes beats three second‑class pairs—and remember that others rate you for quality, often subconsciously. The larger theme is behavioral: what you repeatedly see and hear becomes “mind food” that sets your standards, vocabulary, and horizon line. And when you choose first‑class surroundings and services, you signal higher expectations to yourself and invite better treatment from others, which compounds into bigger opportunities. *Go first class in everything you do. You can’t afford to go any other way.*
😊 '''8 – Make Your Attitudes Your Allies.''' A donation drive inside one business shows the math: one year employees gave $94.35 to the Red Cross; the next year, with an enthusiastic captain on the same payroll, they gave almost $1,100—an increase of roughly 1,100 percent. Attitude broadcasts before words do; a five‑word phone greeting can say “I like you and my work,” or it can warn “you’re a bother,” and listeners respond accordingly. Popular culture even carries the point—Bing Crosby’s “You Don’t Need to Know the Language to Say You’re in Love” illustrates how feeling gets through without vocabulary. To turn feeling into force, grow three specific attitudes: “I’m activated,” “You are important,” and “Service first,” each backed by practices—from lifting your smile, handshake, and “thank yous,” to calling people by name, to giving more value than is expected. Professor Erwin H. Schell called attitude the catalyst that makes abilities fully effective; the book’s classroom vignette with a dull history professor proves the reverse. Numbers reinforce the mechanism: enthusiasm and respect multiply effort and cooperation, while boredom and indifference shut both down. In the larger frame of thinking big, attitudes create self‑fulfilling conditions—energy attracts energy, and service attracts returns. *Attitudes are mirrors of the mind. They reflect thinking.*
🤝 '''9 – Think Right Toward People.''' Picture a committee weighing candidates for a promotion or new post: in nine cases out of ten, the first and heaviest factor discussed is likability, even in universities considering professors. That emphasis has a method behind it—people lift the person they like and trust, and no one has time to drag a reluctant colleague rung by rung up the ladder. To become easier to lift, Lyndon Johnson’s ten‑point plan—remember names, be comfortable to be around, don’t be a know‑it‑all, heal misunderstandings, and so on—turns goodwill into a daily habit. Initiative helps too; approaching twenty‑five strangers by an elevator produced twenty‑five friendly replies, showing how a pleasant remark raises both people a degree. The chapter frames the mind as a broadcasting station with two channels: “P” for positive and “N” for negative; tuning to “P” after a boss’s critique leads to improvement and better rapport, while “N” leads to conflict and mistakes. A Life‑magazine example from 15 October 1956 has Benjamin Fairless of U.S. Steel modeling resilient thinking after setbacks—asking how to become worthy of the next opportunity instead of sulking. Psychologically, reciprocity and expectation do the work: assume value in others and you elicit cooperative behavior; stew in suspicion and you create the treatment you feared. In the economy of thinking big, generous, human judgment is the cheapest lubricant for progress and the surest way to widen your support. *Success depends on the support of other people.*
⚡ '''10 – Get the Action Habit.'''
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