After reading Napoleon Hill’s “Outwitting The Devil” I felt inspired to share the 10 rules for outwitting the devil described in his book. I hope it will bring you as much value as it has done for me.
The book is written as an interview between Hill (Mr. Earthbound) and the devil (our inner dark self), where Hill attempts to uncover the secrets to freedom and success by evaluating the greatest obstacles that humans face in order to attain their personal goals in life.
Here are the 10 Rules to outwit the Devil in your life
Rule #1: Do your own thinking on all occasions. The fact that human beings are given complete control over nothing except the power to think their own thought, is filled with significance.
Use the awareness of your mind to guide your thinking. If you can’t clear your mind and not think for 15 seconds; you are a slave to your mind. Learn how to recognize this and change it. Do you worry? Constantly feel fear and anxiety? These are all further reasons to take back the power that you have to control your thinking.
Rule #2: Decide definitely what you want from life; then create a plan for attaining it and be willing to sacrifice everything else, if necessary, rather than accept permanent defeat.
Understand that not having a plan, is a plan by itself. Just not a good one. If you don’t have the destination of where you want to go in mind, then you will just let the wind decide instead.
In order to create what we want in our life, it requires sacrifice. The bigger the sacrifice the more commitment and drive you need to create for yourself.
Rule #3: Analyze temporary defeat, no matter what nature or cause, and extract from it the seed of an equivalent advantage.
By breaking down past failures, you gain invaluable lessons and prevent yourself from doing the same mistakes over again. Mistakes are great, just don’t make them twice.
Rule #4: Be willing to render useful service equivalent to the value of all material things you demand of life and render the service first.
If you want a million dollars, solve a million-dollar problem. Our rewards in life are in exact proportion to our contributions or our service. Understand this, create, and offer your service with intention.
Rule #5: Recognize that your brain is a receiving set that can be attuned to receive communications from the universal storehouse of infinite intelligence, to help you transmute your desires into their physical equivalent.
Work daily on creating more empty space in your mind. The more empty space from mindfulness, walking, meditation, etc, will allow the universal intelligence to come inside and provide the guidance you desire.
Rule #6: Recognize that your greatest asset is time, the only thing except for the power of thought which you own outright, and the one thing which can be shaped into whatever material things you want. Budget your time so none of it is wasted.
In the movie “Bronx Tale” Sonny tells C, “The saddest thing in life is wasted talent.”This applies to time the same way, talent can’t be wasted unless it can no longer be used. Like many things in life once you run out of time you can’t get it back. Eliminate procrastination; defeat the Enemies that are not allowing you to utilize the gift of time.
Rule #7: Recognize the truth that fear is generally ‘filler’ with which the Devil occupies the unused portion of your mind. It is only a state of mind which you can control by filling the space it occupies with faith in your ability to make life provide you with whatever you demand of it.
Fear is the compass to more life. Breathe, and overcome. Notice that every time you get close to the perceived monster, it vanishes. The fear is not real. It’s only a state of mind.
Rule #8: When you pray, do not beg! Demand what you want and insist upon getting exactly that, with no substitutes.
Please oh please God! Change that statement to I want. I demand. I deserve. Demand what you want and insist on getting it. Raise your standards.
Rule #9: Recognize that life is a cruel taskmaster and that either you master it or it masters you. There is no halfway or compromising point. Never accept from life anything you do not want. If that which you do not want is temporarily forced upon you, you can refuse, in your own mind, to accept it and it will make way for the thing you do want.
There is no halfway or compromising. It’s either you are in control or you are not. The power of your mind is limitless.
Rule #10: Lastly, remember that your dominating thoughts attract, through a definite law of nature, by the shortest and most convenient route, their physical counterpart. Be careful what your thoughts dwell upon.
Are your thoughts bringing you closer to what you desire or want? What do you need to change?
