"Think And Grow Rich", by Napoleon Hill

Hmm, look what we have entangled in our midst - sex and wealth.

Subconsciously, I had an idea of what the chapter was portraying before I actually read it, as in the chapter put my thoughts into words. Come to think of it, sex is really a powerful emotion. Based on countless evidence across the entire world it is safe to say that men and women will literally kill one another if their spouse/significant other cheated. Men will put their entire life and reputation at stake for what they may deem as a prized possession, something they cannot wait to get a hold of. Why? Why does something so abstract hold so much value to people?

As stated before, sex is an emotion. Sex expression is also described in the book as being THE MOST powerful stimulus to the mind leading a list of stimuli such as: love, a burning desire for fame, power, money, music, friendships between the same sex and opposite sex, a master mind, mutual suffering, autosuggestion, fear as well as narcotics and alcohol. In the preceding paragraph I described sex as being ‘abstract’ although it can be viewed as physical. However, what if we had a stigma attached to sex as being merely “physical”?

Sex is a state of mind, a form of energy that evokes from the persona drive, will-power and the need to take action towards the thoughts infiltrating the brain which can be both positive and negative. Negative in a sense where sex can become compared to narcotics and alcohol due to over-indulgence and eventually becoming an addiction. What if……

What if you were to transmute (recall that transmute means to convert or alter a form, nature, substance, etc.) that sexual energy into another form of desire with the similar willpower and drive to conquer before it turned into its physical equivalent? Keep in mind that sex is an emotion and emotions are the greatest stimuli to the subconscious mind. Transmuting those sexual thoughts to business ideas, ways on how to study harder and smarter, coming up with solutions to solve any problems that may plague your life is way easier than you think, just remember that YOU are in control of your thoughts and no one else.

Ever been in a situation where you are so aroused by what you are seeing and/or thinking that you malfunction? Like you literally cannot continue with what you were doing until the feeling was taken care of? Imagine that level of intensity of thinking regarding other ideas.

The persons that understand this message and are in nominal control of their sexual desires are some of the most powerful people in this world. The book also gave me an interesting fact that most of the fortunes of successful men were made after the age of 40. I wonder why. Why? Because - “……the majority of men who succeed do not begin to do so before the age of forty to fifty, is their tendency to dissipate their energies through over-indulgence in physical expression of the emotion of sex. The majority of men NEVER learn that the urge of sex has other possibilities, which far transcend in importance that of mere physical expression. The majority of those who make this discovery, do so after having wasted many years at a period when the sex energy is at its height, prior to the age of forty-five to fifty. This usually is followed by noteworthy achievement.”

This sex energy stuff is pretty cool. Apparently good salesmen have a high sex energy. This energy, however, may be communicated to others through the following media:

• The handshake

• The tone of voice

• Posture and carriage of the body

• The vibrations of thought

• Body adornment

The book also talked about women, love, sex, emotion and them being man’s greatest motivating force - to please women. Read over the section to expound on this.

Some new vocabulary or some words to refresh up on:

• stimuli: a thing that arouses activity of energy in someone or something; a spur or incentive.

• wiseacre: a person with an affectation of wisdom or knowledge, regarded with scorn or irritation by others; a know-all.

• aforethought: thought about or planned beforehand.

• hunch: a feeling or guess based on intuition rather than fact.

• exalt: think or speak very highly of (someone or something)'.

• orator: a public speaker, especially one who is eloquent or skilled.

• incandescent: emitting light as a result of being heated; full of strong emotion; passionate.

• expedient: (of an action) convenient and practical although possibly improper or immoral; advantageous.

• adorn: make more beautiful or attractive; embellish; decorate.

• unpardonable: (of a fault or offence) too severe to be pardoned; unforgivable.

• burlesque: an absurd or comically exaggerated imitation of something, especially in a literary or dramatic work; a parody.

• indomitable: impossible to subdue or defeat.

Some lines that stood out to me:

• “Sex desire is the most powerful of human desires. When driven by this desire, men develop keenness of imagination, courage, willpower, persistence, and creative ability unknown to them at other times.

• “The desire for sexual expression is inborn and natural. the desire cannot and SHOULD NOT be submerged or eliminated. But it should be given an outlet through forms of expression which enrich the body, mind, and spirit of man. If not given this form of outlet, through transmutation, it will seek outlets through purely physical channels.”

• “A river may be dammed, and its water controlled for a time, but eventually, it will force an outlet. The same is true of the emotion of sex.”

• “Destroy the sex glands, whether in man or beast, and you have removed the major source of action. For proof of this, observe what happens to any animal after it has been castrated. A bull becomes as docile as a cow after it has been altered sexually.”

• “The sixth sense is creative imagination.”

• “A better definition of genius is, “a man who has discovered how to increase the intensity of thought to the point where he can freely communicate with sources of knowledge not available through the ordinary rate of thought.””

• “Sex energy is the creative energy of all geniuses. There never has been, and never will be a great leader, builder, or artist lacking in this driving force of sex.”

• “The mere possession of this energy is not sufficient to produce a genius. The energy must be transmuted from desire and action, before it will lift one to the status of a genius.”

• “A mind stimulant is any influence which will either temporarily, or permanently, increase the intensity of thought.”

• “When employing salesmen, the more capable sales manager looks for the quality of personal magnetism as the first requirement of a salesman. People who lack sex energy will never become enthusiastic nor inspire others with enthusiasm, and enthusiasm is one of the most important requisites in salesmanship, no matter what one is selling.

4 more chapters and I’m done.