In this article, I will talk about forms of metaphor and provide a personal example how I misinterpreted the message of Napoleon Hill. The goal of a good metaphor is to motivate, influence us in a positive way, but if you interpret it wrongly, the message can cause a considerable damage such as misunderstanding the meaning it is supposed to drive home.
During high school I discovered books on personal development and fanatically learned to believe that anything is possible if you believe it is possible. You just have to think positive, have faith in yourself and things will turn in your favor.
At age 25, I opened my first business, and realized that belief is a good starting point, but there are a lot of factors outside ourselves which influence us, and determine whether we will be a success or failure. Luckily, I quickly adapted by the end of the year, I was already earning a substantial income. But as I made my first cash, which I thought was quite substantial, I thought to myself, "if I succeed in this story, I can succeed in anything."
A few months later, I opened another business. I was proud of myself because the new company also seemed to perform well and I seemed to be swiftly walking towards another personal and business success. However, there is something I lacked, and that is this new line of business. Consequently, the company failed to perform well. As a matter of fact, it did not give me enough returns to cover the initial investment.
Eventually, I thought that the best strategy is to transfer all the funds from my first company and concentrate on building the new company so that I can start reaping profits as soon as possible. Within few weeks I woke to the rude reality that the first company was getting bankrupt while my second company was not performing either; customer traffic dropped by as much as 70% overnight as a result of some media announcement.
Over the next few weeks, things were moving from worse to worst. Here I was, helplessly on my way to bankruptcy. I believed I was left with no choice but to close the company within the next few weeks.
Shortly thereafter, in a drawer I found the book "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill. I had read the book a few years earlier to read it again.
In one chapter, I came across a sentence which says, "A quitter never wins and a winner never quits."
This sentence created a strong impact in me because I didn't see myself either as a quitter, or as a looser, and for that reason (believing Hill), I decided to continue to provide the best in my company hoping for success
But it did not happen. Months went by, and I was sinking deeper into debt, but I still persisted until the at last it reached a point where I had no money topay the electricity bill. Then I realized that I have no choice but to close the company.
If I hadn't been drawn to that sentence, I would have pulled out with a lot less consequences (financially and emotionally).
I foolishly believed that the statement was a universal law which must not be broken. In fact, I missed the truth of this quote: "Before success comes in any man's life, he is sure to meet with much temporary defeat, and, perhaps, some failure. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and most logical thing to do is to quit. "
These are two paradoxical statements by the same author in the same book.
So, what was actually Napoleon's intention which I did not understand back then?
Napoleon had intended to make a distinction between the person and the project the person is involved in.
Therefore, the statement "A quitter never wins and a winner never quits." Has the danger of being misinterpreted. First, it can be interpreted to mean that we should never ever give up on a project, regardless of circumstances, with the hope that we will succeed someday so long as we persist. On the other hand, it can be interpreted to mean (which I think should be the correct interpretation) that we should never give in as individuals even if we give in a project. Thus, we should detach ourselves from the project.
Our problem is that we often identify ourselves with the project. For example, I used to refer to my company as my own child. What is wrong! Personalizing the project prevents us from being honest with ourselves from time to time.
Therefore, if you believe that your project is not giving you the desired outcome, give it up, but do not give up on yourself as a person-only give up on the project. Even if you should lose faith with your project, do not lose faith on yourself, lose faith only in this current project. Give it up, and move on to a more successful one.
Entrepreneur | Author | Speaker and Training Specialist @ http://beyourbetterself.com/ Dedicated, resourceful and passionate professional with an accomplished career, promoting high life quality in the capacities of Tenodi Consulting. Expert in the field of Neurolinguistic programing (NLP), training, education, presentation and writing; awarded with Superbrands certificates.
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