7 - Today's THINKING Gives Me and Advantage

This next chapter deals with thinking, which is the fifth item on Maxwell’s Daily Dozen. Early in the chapter, Maxwell insights us with a quote from Claude Bristol that reads “Thought is the original source of all wealth, all success, all material gain, all great discoveries and inventions, and all achievement.” This quote hit home with me and made me realize that thought is one of the most valuable things we have that will help lead us to success.

Maxwell moves on to introduce us to the three reasons why focusing on our thought daily is so valuable:

1. Good thinking precedes good results.

2. Good thinking increases your value.

3. Poor thinkers are slaves to their surroundings.

Maxwell continues by sharing some of the advice that he has used over the years to create good thinking habits throughout the day:

1. Understand that great thinking comes from good thinking.

2. Recognize that there are many kinds of thinking.

3. Maximize your strengths and staff weaknesses

Maxwell continues by adding some sensible tips to improve your thinking:

1. Find a place to think.

2. Set aside time to think every day.

3. Find a process that works for you.

4. Capture you thoughts.

5. Put you thoughts into action quickly.

6. Try to improve your thinking every day.

Maxwell ends with a great quote at the end of the chapter that opened my eyes to become a better thinker. He says “I believe that many people take thinking for granted. They see it as a natural function of life. But the truth is that intentional thinking isn’t commonplace. What you do every day in the area of thinking really matters because it sets the stage for all your actions, and it will bring you either adversity or advantage.”

Wow!!! This quote and chapter were quite inspiring to me, and I now know that for the rest of my life I will appreciate the ability to think, and make sure that I utilize all of my thoughts to help me succeed.