I learned a wonderful lesson from the brilliant mind of Napoleon Hill when I read his book on Think and Grow Rich long time ago. And I have never forgotten that lesson up until now. I have applied this knowledge in some areas of my life and that’s the BIG reason why I have achieved so many success in my life which brought me a lot of money. And that lesson falls under this powerful statement- “Desire is the starting point of all achievement”. Once we have reached the highest point of our desire, nothing can stop the fire that keeps it burning until we achieve our goal and more so, if we burn our bridges behind.

Let me quote his very inspiring text about the man who burned bridges:

When Edwin C. Barnes climbed down from the freight train in Orange, N.J., more than fifty years ago, he may have resembled a tramp, but his thoughts were those of a king.!

As he made his way from the railroad tracks to Thomas A. Edison’s office, his mind was at work. He saw himself standing in Edison’s presence. He heard himself asking Mr. Edison for an opportunity to carry out the one consuming obsession of his life, a burning desire to become the business associate of the great inventor.

Barnes’ desire was not a hope! It was not a wish! It was a keen, pulsating desire, which transcended everything else. It was definite.

A few years later, Edwin C. Barnes again stood before Edison, in the same office where he first met the inventor. This time, his desire had been translated into reality. He was in business with Edison. The dominating dream of his life had become a reality.

Barnes succeeded because he chose a definite goal, placed all his energy, all his will power, all his effort, everything, back of the goal.

THE MAN WHO BURNED BRIDGES:

Five years passed before the chance he had been seeking made its appearance. To everyone except himself, he appeared only another cog in the Edison’s business wheel, but in his own mind, he was the partner of Edison every minute of the time, from the very day that he first went to work there.

It is a remarkable illustration of the power of a definite desire. Barnes won his goal because he wanted to be a business associate of Mr. Edison more than he wanted everything else. He created a plan by which to attain his purpose. But he burned all bridges behind him. He stood by his desire until it became the dominating obsession of his life–and–finally, a fact.

When he went to Orange, he did not say to himself “I will try to induce Edison to give me a job of some sort.” He said “I will see Edison, and put him on notice that I have come to go into business with him.” He did not say, “I will keep my eyes open for another opportunity, in case I fail to get what I want in the Edison organization.” He said, “There is but one thing in this world that I am determined to have and that is a business association with Thomas A. Edison. I will burn all bridges behind me, and stake my entire future on my ability to get what I want.”

He left himself no possible way of retreat. He had to win or perish!
That is all there is to the Barnes story of success!

Keep Your Desire Burning

Majority of people want to get rich or at least some people want to live their lives comfortably. I pity those few who say they don’t want to experience riches. God created all of us to be wealthy. No such god would want us to suffer from poverty or financial setbacks. If America, Europe and many rich countries in the world are suffering from economic downturns, it doesn’t mean that God wants the world to suffer from financial problems. The problem was created by human mind and not God’s. If we were able to create this financial problem in our minds which in turns became the reality of today, this means that we are more capable of creating economic recovery anytime we want to.

Riches can be created but we have to desire it first, not just a plain desire but a BURNING desire. And we have to keep the desire burning and burning until riches are attained. To maintain that kind of desire, we have to nurture and sustain our positive emotions about our wants to acquire riches.