For prosperity, the first tool you need is energy, says James Allen. Energy is
the working power in all achievement. Inert coal it converts into fire, and
water it transmutes into steam; it vivifies and intensifies the commonest talent
until it approaches to genius, and when it touches the mind of the dullard, it
turns into a living fire that which before was sleeping in inertia. . . .
Conserve energy But energy, to be productive, must not only be directed towards
good ends, it must be carefully controlled and conserved.
"The conservation of energy" is a modern term expressive of that principle in nature by which no energy is wasted or lost, and the man whose energies are to be fruitful in results must work intelligently upon this principle. . . . It is the concentrated powder which drives the bullet to its mark. Calmness, as distinguished from the dead placidity of languor, is the acme of concentrated energy. There is a focused mentality behind it. In agitation and excitement the mentality is dispersed. It is irresponsible, and is without force or weight.
Energy, then, is the first pillar in the temple of prosperity, and without it, as the first and most essential equipment, there can be no prosperity. No energy means no capacity. . . . But energy is a composite power. It does not stand alone. Involved in it are qualities which go to the making of vigorous character and the production of prosperity. Mainly, these qualities are contained in the four following characteristics: Promptitude Vigilance Industry Earnestness Promptness is valuable Promptitude is a valuable possession.
It begets reliability. People who are alert, prompt, and punctual are relied upon. They are a means of wholesome discipline to those who would not otherwise discipline themselves. Thus while aiding their own usefulness and success, they contribute to the usefulness and success of others. The perfunctory worker, who is ever procrastinating, and is always behind time, becomes a nuisance, if not to himself, to others, and his services come to be regarded as of little economic value. Deliberation and dispatch, handmaids of promptitude, are valuable aids in the achievement of prosperity.
Vigilance pays Vigilance is the guard of all the faculties and powers of the mind. It is the detective that prevents the entrance of any violent and destructive element. It is the close companion and protector of all success, liberty, and wisdom. . . . The lack of vigilance is shown in thoughtlessness and in a general looseness in the common details of life. . . . No one who aims at any kind of usefulness and prosperity can afford to be asleep with regard to his actions and the effect of those actions on others and reactively on himself.
. . . we receive at the hands of the world according to the measure of our giving. For bad, bad; for good, good. . . . Get industrious Industry brings cheerfulness and plenty. Vigorously industrious people are the happiest members of the community. They are not always the richest, if by riches is meant a superfluity of money; but they are always the most lighthearted and joyful, and the most satisfied with what they do and have, and are, therefore, the richer, if by richer we mean more abundantly blessed.
Active people have no time for moping and brooding, or for dwelling selfishly upon their ailments and troubles. Things most used are kept the brightest, and people most employed best retain their brightness and buoyancy of spirit. Things unused tarnish quickest; and the time killer is attacked with ennui and morbid fancies. . . . Be earnest "Earnestness," said a great teacher, "is the path of immortality. They who are in earnest do not die; they who are not in earnest are as if dead already".
Earnestness is the dedication of the entire mind to its task. We live only in what we do. Earnest people are dissatisfied with anything short of the highest excellence in whatever they do, and they always reach that excellence. What ever you are - whether shopkeeper or teacher, you can safely give the very best to the world without any doubt or misgiving. If the indelible impress of your earnestness be on your goods or on your words, your business will flourish, or your precepts will live. Thus is the making and masonry of the first pillar explained.
"The conservation of energy" is a modern term expressive of that principle in nature by which no energy is wasted or lost, and the man whose energies are to be fruitful in results must work intelligently upon this principle. . . . It is the concentrated powder which drives the bullet to its mark. Calmness, as distinguished from the dead placidity of languor, is the acme of concentrated energy. There is a focused mentality behind it. In agitation and excitement the mentality is dispersed. It is irresponsible, and is without force or weight.
Energy, then, is the first pillar in the temple of prosperity, and without it, as the first and most essential equipment, there can be no prosperity. No energy means no capacity. . . . But energy is a composite power. It does not stand alone. Involved in it are qualities which go to the making of vigorous character and the production of prosperity. Mainly, these qualities are contained in the four following characteristics: Promptitude Vigilance Industry Earnestness Promptness is valuable Promptitude is a valuable possession.
It begets reliability. People who are alert, prompt, and punctual are relied upon. They are a means of wholesome discipline to those who would not otherwise discipline themselves. Thus while aiding their own usefulness and success, they contribute to the usefulness and success of others. The perfunctory worker, who is ever procrastinating, and is always behind time, becomes a nuisance, if not to himself, to others, and his services come to be regarded as of little economic value. Deliberation and dispatch, handmaids of promptitude, are valuable aids in the achievement of prosperity.
Vigilance pays Vigilance is the guard of all the faculties and powers of the mind. It is the detective that prevents the entrance of any violent and destructive element. It is the close companion and protector of all success, liberty, and wisdom. . . . The lack of vigilance is shown in thoughtlessness and in a general looseness in the common details of life. . . . No one who aims at any kind of usefulness and prosperity can afford to be asleep with regard to his actions and the effect of those actions on others and reactively on himself.
. . . we receive at the hands of the world according to the measure of our giving. For bad, bad; for good, good. . . . Get industrious Industry brings cheerfulness and plenty. Vigorously industrious people are the happiest members of the community. They are not always the richest, if by riches is meant a superfluity of money; but they are always the most lighthearted and joyful, and the most satisfied with what they do and have, and are, therefore, the richer, if by richer we mean more abundantly blessed.
Active people have no time for moping and brooding, or for dwelling selfishly upon their ailments and troubles. Things most used are kept the brightest, and people most employed best retain their brightness and buoyancy of spirit. Things unused tarnish quickest; and the time killer is attacked with ennui and morbid fancies. . . . Be earnest "Earnestness," said a great teacher, "is the path of immortality. They who are in earnest do not die; they who are not in earnest are as if dead already".
Earnestness is the dedication of the entire mind to its task. We live only in what we do. Earnest people are dissatisfied with anything short of the highest excellence in whatever they do, and they always reach that excellence. What ever you are - whether shopkeeper or teacher, you can safely give the very best to the world without any doubt or misgiving. If the indelible impress of your earnestness be on your goods or on your words, your business will flourish, or your precepts will live. Thus is the making and masonry of the first pillar explained.
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