Think And Grow Rich - The Ghost Of Fear Of Poverty Pt.1

Think And Grow Rich – The Ghost Of Fear Of Poverty Pt. 1

On December 22, 2010, in Blog Series, Book Reviews, Financial intelligence in MLM, Personal development in MLM, The six ghosts of fear, Think and grow rich, Think and grow rich, by Oliver

Previous lesson plan: Think And Grow Rich – How To Outwit The Six Ghosts Of Fear – Lessons From Chapter 15

Let’s start with the first of the six ghosts – the fear of poverty.

Napoleon Hill states clearly in the closing chapter of Think and grow rich:”There can be no compromise between poverty and riches.”

And:”Fear of poverty is state of mind.”

It is “without doubt, the most destructive of the six basic fears.”

“It is the most difficult to master.”

It “grew out of man’s inherited tendency to PREY UPON HIS FELLOW MAN ECONOMICALLY.”

He goes on:”Nothing brings man so much suffering and humility as POVERTY!”

“No wonder that man fears poverty.”

Mr. Hill offers five symptoms that allow his readers to analyze his fear.

This form of examination might embarrass you but it is an important step to “disclose weaknesses which one does not like to acknowledge.”

It “is essential to all who demand of Life more than mediocrity and poverty.”

The symptoms of the fear of poverty are:

INDIFFERENCE

DOUBT

WORRY

OVER-CAUTION

PROCRASTINATION

Interesting enough that Napoleon Hill mentions the fear of poverty even before the fear of death.

It amazes me that people fear poverty more than death – myself included.

Why is that ?

Chances are people think: If I screwed up and died, I wouldn’t care anymore.

But if I screwed up and died financially, I still would have to live physically and take responsibility for the mess I created.

People would put the blame on me, especially because I tried to do things differently than others and aimed high – and failed.

My parents would tell me that they always knew and always told me – and I might lose their recognition and love.

So here comes the fear of loss of love into play – hm, what about my wife and kids ?

Would I also lose them eventually because they would be looking for someone who would do better ?

Would I ever be able to recover ?

We’re not living in such a failure-friendly country like the US. If you think that the US aren’t failure-friendly, come to Europe, especially Germany

If I died, I wouldn’t have to suffer that much…

Is this the self-talk going on in people ?

I don’t know.

What I know is that this very ghost of fear of poverty has haunted for me for ages.

I can recall my first signs of fear of impoverishment at the age of 9 or 10.

Then at the age of 13 or 14 – with no (I stress it: NO !) severe events attached to it.

“Only” the pure emotion of fear.

My Dad always had a secure job. Of course it was stressed how important it was that my Dad had his job to feed his family.

As he was always ahead of the game in his job, there was never a severe issue with that.

Of course, unemployment rates in Germany were increasing at the beginning of the eighties – but we didn’t know any unemployed people.

Hey, they were considered as being lazy.

So my childhood was free from any true economical concerns, I am grateful for that.

So how was I able to develop such an insane fear of poverty ?

Did I inherit it from my grandparents ?

It is said the ghost of fear of poverty walks invisibly from generation to generation, like bald heads in the male blood line…

My grandparents had plenty of reasons to be afraid of poverty.

Please stay tuned for my next post about Think And Grow Rich – The Ghost Of Fear Of Poverty Pt. 2

What do you think ?

I always love your reaction, so please leave me a comment down below with questions, thoughts, or feedback.

And (yes, here’s my call to action) please share this post with your Twitter and Facebook friends by clicking on the share buttons below.

I appreciate you telling others.

To a prosperous life

Oliver Tausend
+49 1512 9125216 office Germany & rest of the world (anytime)
+1 201 984 5664 office North America (anytime)
Skype ID: guernsey2016 (anytime)
wordpress@olivertausend.com
Outwit poverty with the right information about your MLM business: Success in 10 steps

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22 Responses to “Think And Grow Rich – The Ghost Of Fear Of Poverty Pt. 1”

Peter Fuler MBA
Twitter: prfuller
says:

December 22, 2010 at 22:21

Hey Oliver

Fear is an interesting thing. It holds us back and prevents us from obtaining what we want.

I am going to go back and read that chapter again as it has been awhile.

Thanks Oliver

Peter
Peter Fuler MBA recently posted..Is Network Marketing an Illegal Pyramid or an Equal Opportunity Business

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
December 24th, 2010 at 14:16
Hi Peter,

fear is an interesting thing- it’s our biggest enemy. It’s my passion to live the life I deserve despite my fears.

Thanks for your comment.

Take care & merry Christmas

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Coach Freddie says:

December 23, 2010 at 01:57

Hey Oliver,
Yes, fear can hold us back and paralysis us. Most fear comes from thinking about what we don’t want. (law of attraction) We must shift out focus to what we do want, our biggest dreams. Napoleon Hill said: “What ever the mind can conceive and believe the mind can achieve.” Think and Grow Rich.
Keep your mind on your dreams.

Coach Freddie
Coach Freddie recently posted..The Dash

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
December 24th, 2010 at 14:14
Hi Freddie,

thanks for your thoughful on the point comment. Napoleon Hill’s quote holds true for both negative and positive things.

Take care & merry Christmas

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Ashley Porter says:

December 23, 2010 at 06:03

We all have at least 1 thing that we are most fearful of…it all boils down to perception…fear of poverty seems so real to many (given the economy) but unfathomable to others…

I think its important t remember that which you resist persists and that which you focus on with strong feelings ends up manifesting in your physical realm.
Ashley Porter recently posted..Personal Development Tips For Home Business Owners

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
December 24th, 2010 at 14:11
Hi Ashley,

you are right, fear is a matter of perception. Well, fear as an in-built tendency to prove itself right.

Which we resist persists, awesome – thanks for that great reminder.

Thanks for adding value to my post !

Take care & merry Christmas

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Dalia says:

December 24, 2010 at 00:35

I love Napoleon Hill, and this particular book is incredible!

well I own the audio, I always try to look for go -getters, and you can see who are they and who are not, because to deal with people’s limited beliefs when you are trying to build an organization is extremely hard!

Thanks for this article!

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
December 24th, 2010 at 14:08
Hi Dalia,

the more we become or own self-limiting beliefs, the more we will attract like-minded people. We have to be the change we want to see in others.

Thanks for stopping by.

Take care & merry Christmas

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Jym
Twitter: JymTarrant
says:

December 24, 2010 at 12:58

Hey Oliver,

Fear of Poverty is so common – it’s really a great work to transcend it.

Boiled down to it’s essence though I believe it is actually fear of death. Because survival requires food and shelter, and not to have income, or to be in poverty, means losing your ability to acquire those things. Of course, it’s possible to survive with nothing, but our modern culture does not recognize our existence without at least those basic elements fulfilled.

So it’s really a question of fear of being excluded from life completely! No wonder we find it so hard to overcome… But it can be done!

Thanks for yet another excellent insight into this great book…

All the best and wish you a wonderful Christmas,

Jym
Jym recently posted..Keeping Busy or Getting Rich Revolutionize Your Business for PROFITS!

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
December 24th, 2010 at 14:07
Hi Jym,

interesting take, thanks for sharing. I have never seen it that way so far: Fear of poverty being fear of death. You could be right, my friend !

In our modern society even water costs money.

Thanks for your comment and merry Christmas to you too !

Take care

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Marcus Baker
Twitter: marcus_baker
says:

December 28, 2010 at 11:24

Hi Oliver,

Perhaps people perceive the possibility of poverty being more imminent then death?

When I was younger, death always seemed to be something that was a long way off and I didn’t have to concern myself with it.

Of course this view was very short sighted as death can be around the corner for any of us.

Now older I have worked a lot through death issues and no longer believe that it is final as I first thought so I am again not that worried about it but fear of poverty ….. it never seems to go away.

~Marcus
Marcus Baker recently posted..Why Personal Branding and Christmas Gifts are Similar

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
December 28th, 2010 at 18:17
Hi Marcus,

a friend of mine and attorney says:”Dying is not a question of age, but a question of opportunities…” This gentleman has a particular sense of humour, but there is a certain truth to it, isn’t it ?

If you don’t fear death, it’s a good sign because of maturity it’s inevitable anyway. But poverty…there’s a stigma of failure to it.

How many people do being broke mistake for poverty ?

There’s a huge difference.

Thanks for your comment.

Take care

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Jared Mackenzie says:

December 28, 2010 at 19:33

Great post! I really like how you think outside the box and came up with this post. I look forward to reading more!
Jared Mackenzie recently posted..Learn Master Photoshop Techniques at Your Speed

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 21:41
Hi Jared,

thanks for your comment. Glad you like my post.

Come back soon and take care

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Heather C Stephens
Twitter: stephensheather
says:

December 30, 2010 at 18:59

Hi Oliver,

This was a post I had to read 3 times to really absorb everything. The message is simple but yet so puzzling and thought provoking.

I also have been gripped by fear of poverty several times in my adult life. The biggest was when I was pregnant with my second child and my husband’s pay was decreased by almost half because he was hourly at the time. He would go into work every day, hoping that there was enough work that he would be needed. Fortunately, he’s a driven person who always excels at what he does, so he was the first guy to get the work if they had any. But, even then we were scared that we wouldn’t be able to afford the c-section surgery, keep our house, and put food on the table during that time.

What it taught me though, is that when things are tough financially, we get more creative and my husband and I work very well together as a team. The several times we’ve been scared in our marriage have really brought us closer to each other, and we’ve always come out of the fear farther ahead than we would have been otherwise.

Honestly, Oliver, I think fear of poverty can be a good thing when we use it to give us the motivation and energy to change something in our lives for the better. I wouldn’t be here otherwise.

Heather
Heather C Stephens recently posted..3 WAHM Lessons to Help You Grow a Home Based Business and a Family

[Reply]

Reply
Roshanda Gilmore says:

December 31, 2010 at 05:35

Hey Oliver,

I love how you highlight this chapter as it is of tremendous value.

The fear of poverty is such a BIG fear for so many. I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am for every meal as well as other essentials. Sometimes we tend to take so much for granted. I remember not knowing where my next meal would come from and so in hindsight it makes me so much more thankful now…

We must try to remember FEAR is not TRUTH!

Thanks for a excellent post!
Roshanda Gilmore recently posted..HOW TO MASTER THE FEAR OF REJECTION… ONCE AND FOR ALL!!!

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
December 31st, 2010 at 13:45
Hi Roshanda,

fear is the contrary of TRUTh, it’s a lie, the anti-truth. The key is gratitude, absolutely correct and not taking anything for granted !

Powerful comment, thanks for sharing.

Take care & happy New Year

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Tanisha Adjokatcher says:

January 5, 2011 at 03:23

These are the main things keeping people from success too Oliver hate to say it but the good old USA is the worst and has been designed for the 99%$ of people to fail and the elite to grow……. I will use this as my next post Oliver if you dont mind….

The symptoms of the fear of poverty are:

INDIFFERENCE

DOUBT

WORRY

OVER-CAUTION

PROCRASTINATION

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
January 5th, 2011 at 22:41
Hi Tanisha,

of course you can quote – the source of it is “Think and grow rich”.

And wow, now that’s a statement about the “good old USA” – since I have been starting working with folks from the US I realized that you have the same fears, worries etc. like we – to my total astonishment, I have admit.

Thanks for stopping by !

Take care

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Sonia says:

June 30, 2011 at 09:33

Hi Oliver,

Thanks for selecting such an important topic “Think and Grow Rich.” I certainly embrace this book, because it highlights many factors that certainly prevent people from moving forward to attain their goals, and fear seems to be the main one. Great topic!

[Reply]
Oliver Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 14:17
Hi Sonia,

thanks for your comment. Glad you liked my post.

What was one thing you learned from it ?

Take care

Oliver

[Reply]

Reply
Think And Grow Rich - Oliver Tausend's Lessons- Ghosts Of Fear | Oliver Tausend's Blog says:

July 4, 2011 at 10:02

[...] had to write two lessons about the ghost of fear of poverty which has always been the most predominant fear I experienced so far, sometimes in conjunction with [...]

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