The Carnegie Secret

The "Carnegie Secret" is a concept that Napoleon Hill studied extensively. Carnegie told Hill that the formula for success was so powerful that if learning how to apply it was taught to students, the time they needed to spend in formal schooling could be cut in half. This formula, Carnegie repeated, was used by all the leading businessmen and inventors of the late 19th and early 20th century. Carnegie asked Hill to go out and confirm the application of the formula by the 500 richest Americans (and others).

Hill in his introduction to Think and Grow Rich refers to the "formula" as a conception which is the foundation of all success, and necessary to achieve the premise of the book. Hill describes the secret in every chapter but never states it plainly, believing its use is only available to those who possess a “readiness” for the secret: a disposition Hill states as essential to the concept itself. Hill spends a great deal of time in Think and Grow Rich discussing the life of inventor Thomas Edison, whose personal belief in the practical electric light is now legend; it is stated in the book that the great inventor personally put his stamp of approval on the formula as being necessary for the attainment of all achievement, including riches. However, personal belief alone is not enough for success, requiring "The Secret" of achievement for that all important next step.

One of the basic premises of the “Carnegie Secret” or “Carnegie Formula” is that whatever your mind focuses on will attract like-minded people to you. As one element necessary for Achievement, it can also lead to failure when internal focus is so strong that like-mindedness cannot be achieved; examples are all around us, and Hill pointed them out repeatedly in his writings. Hill talked at length about the major importance of DESIRE in the lives of successful people to help achieve focus.

Hill's proposition was that if you have a desire that is great enough, literally nothing can stop you from achieving your aim(s) through the power of like-minded attraction; but only as long as this desire does not have selfishness as a component. He offered six steps to “fuel” desire so that it will become the “motivating master” of those who use the formula. Riches are what Hill's teachings promise the reader; these riches can be in the form of money or any other result aimed for, if the person applying the formula uses focus and desire properly to achieve them. Selfish use of focus and desire, Hill warned, often leads to poverty or far worse.

It is interesting to note that two very accomplished people have stated in writing that Hill’s book Think and Grow Rich was directly responsible for their success. The first was Art Williams who is listed on the Forbes 400 list as being worth over $1 Billion. He states in his book “All You Can Do Is All You Can Do - But All You Can Do Is Enough” that the “six steps” were the basis of his success in building a company that would eventually make him worth 10 figures. The second is S. Truett Cathy, the founder of the Chick-fil-A restaurants (a privately held corporation). He states in his book that he read Think and Grow Rich in high school and it changed his life. Mr. Cathy is also on the Forbes 400 list with a fortune estimated to be worth $900 Million. Both succeeded enormously in attracting like-minded individuals to work with them throughout their careers, one of the necessary ingredients for Achievement as described in detail by Hill as a "Master Mind Alliance".

Thoughts Are Things
Hill spent most of his effort on describing to his readers and students the paradox that "Thoughts Are Things." In fact, the subtitle of the introduction chapter of "Think and Grow Rich" is "The Man Who 'Thought' His Way." The ability of people to share thoughts underpins achievement, and Hill stated that this allows the success-oriented individuals to attract like-minded people in order to accomplish anything. Most of the examples in Think and Grow Rich concern the great difficulty of creating and maintaining like-mindedness, and Hill termed this concept "The Master Mind". Hill's numerous examples of racism, prejudice, war, poverty, discouragement, and fear illustrated the significant barriers that existed in his time (and still exist today) as the road-blocks to Achievement through the coordination of like-minded individuals.

The Spirit of Giving
Hill stated many times in his writings that the success formula required a complete and total understanding of the spirit of giving. He named this concept "The Golden Rule". Many times he was quoted as saying "There is no such thing as something for nothing". Hill was a devout Christian, and did not see any conflict between his success philosophy and his religious faith. Acquiring the Carnegie Secret of Achievement, Hill said after his own books were in wide circulation, could only be had by those "ready" for it; this meant understanding the entire Philosophy including elements such as the Golden Rule, Faith, and Desire. Once ready, anyone could go on to acquire great wealth as it required only application of the formula.

The Creation of the United States of Americadirectly provided a written definition of the secret of Achievement, for he was adamant it would deprive people of the ability to learn it for themselves. Hill's belief was that the U.S. Constitution was one of the finest living examples of the Philosophy of Achievement in existence, and the same power is available to all; to which there is no doubt just as much disbelief in our times as in Hill's. And yet the Constitution does exist, making Hill's claim all the more tantalizing that such a power is available to the average person; this claim alone is mainly responsible for the millions of copies of his books in circulation. There is no hard-copy record of the Carnegie Secret in existence, beyond Carnegie's own stupendous fortune which still exists today as the Carnegie Foundation. Carnegie's wealth was so great in his time that its share of the US Gross National Product was far in excess of today's largest fortunes, rivaling the USA so much that is was once thought Carnegie could become "an Emperor in Washington". And yet, Carnegie achieved this wealth as an individual, and not completely without controversy; but as a historical fact it is indisputable that one man was responsible. On this basis, Carnegie's secret formula is considered by some presently to be a long lost secret, awaiting rediscovery.

Master Mind
Hill is also credited with coining the phrase 'Master Mind' (more commonly, Mastermind). The 'Master Mind' may be defined as: “coordination of knowledge and effort in a spirit of harmony, between two or more people, for the attainment of a definite purpose.” In Think and Grow Rich, Hill discusses his creation of Master Mind groups and how these groups could multiply an individual's brain power and continually motivate positive emotions. However, the Master Mind was a deeper and more powerful connection than mere synergetic cooperation would suggest, and requires an understanding of Hill's belief's about the brain and the nature of energy (particularly thought energy) within Thomas Edison's cosmological understanding of matter and energy. In describing the Philosophy of Achievement, Hill was careful in his writings to examine the brain as a sending/receiving station for thought; and for the first time in history explained to the world that like-mindedness had a physical basis. Hence the Master Mind, governed by the laws of mutual attraction, could only exist if like-mindedness was achieved between individuals. Scientists had only recently (in Hill's time) shown that the brain was the true source of thought, and hence like-mindedness could now have a true physical underpinning from the point of view of science.

Hill states there are two characteristics of the Master Mind principle; one is economic, the other psychic. Economic advantages arise from sharing and cooperation with others utlizing the Philosophy of Achivement. As to the other, Hill states: "No two minds ever come together without, thereby, creating a third, invisible, intangible force which may be likened to a third mind." This force, Hill reasoned, was tremendously valuable and ultimately the source of true wealth. Hill also believed that the human mind is a form of energy, part of it spiritual in nature. He states that when the minds of two people are coordinated in a spirit of harmony, the spiritual units of energy of each mind form an affinity, which constitutes the "psychic" phase of the Master Mind. For his development of the Master Mind concept and other principles of success, Hill was awarded an honorary doctor of literature degree (LittD) by Pacific International University. The Litt.D. is awarded for an original contribution (or contributions) of special excellence to linguistics, literary, philosophical, social or historical knowledge.

The Stories in Think and Grow Rich
There are several examples in Hill's book Think and Grow Rich that promise to lead the reader to the Carnegie Secret, but only if the reader is ready. They are:

• Edwin Barnes desire to become Thomas Edison's business partner, which allowed him to make a fortune with the Dictaphone
• The ship captain who burned his ships after landing to take an island, and conquered the inhabitants
• A little slave girl who mastered the owner of the plantation to gain 50 cents
• An uncle of R.U. Darby who missed a fortune in a gold mining venture, and sold the equipment to someone who hired experts and found the gold.
• The department store tycoon, who after the Great Chicago Fire rebuilt his store on the exact spot; others fled, he prospered.
• The creation of United States Steel in the mind of one man; which led to Carnegie Steel being acquired by JP Morgan and made Carnegie one of the richest men in the world.

Hill stated repeatedly that these examples lead to The Secret of Carnegie's enormous achievement, as well as those of the other richest 500 Americans he studied in detail for the book. All of these individuals in the examples had to face fear, and find some way to overcome it; that is clear from the content of each story. But the secret to riches, what happens after fear is overcome, is never explained outright in the book. It is left to the reader to decide for themselves what really happens next, and the promise is that if you get the answer right, you can make money where others can only make excuses. It is a tantalizing challenge, as real today as it was in the 1930's when the first copies of Think and Grow Rich were published. Hill's genius is that he dares the reader to try.