dream | act | succeed

Hey and welcome to REWIND. Today, we are going to have a glance back at the fifth blog post I ever wrote! As always, in red inc the old stuff, in black my todays comments.

Summer 2015.

Finishing my apprenticeship as a technical product designer at the end of July, I had 6 weeks off before school would start again. Being single after coming out of a three years and something relationship I was really not feeling great.

Starting into my holidays with a kind of a plan for what to do, I wanted to refresh some skills for school, like math, physics and the like. Sitting in the living room downstairs on a sunny morning, I was going through an English exercise book that I have found in my room. Deciding on doing a break for the translation task, I grabbed my iPad to listen to something on YouTube while doing some sit-ups.

Opening the App while laying on the ground and scrolling through the home site, I was searching for an audiobook. After finishing my workout and clicking on the stop button, I had a glimpse on the suggestions on the right side. And there it was.

The law of success by Napoleon Hill

Ha! Well, actually it was exactly like that! It just appeared without any reason! Was that fate? Was that meant to happen? Honestly, I don’t know! But it was exactly the thing I was missing in my life at that time! The timing, brilliant! Thank you universe!

“The law of success! Sounds interesting, let’s give it a try!” Starting to listen to this audiobook in English, this was the first main obstacle I had to overcome. Being really not that good in this particular language or in languages in general at this point in my life, I just started to listen to it, even though I did not really understood much. But this did not really stop me. It was that good! I was just so fascinated by the content, that I was listening to it all day long.

Looking for the book online, I found it quite easily and started to read the book in the last 5 weeks of the summer.

I should have rather learned English first! But well, I did afterwards! Or meanwhile? Who cares! Those fife weeks, life changing! Believe me!

So what is this book about?

“The law of success” by Napoleon Hill. Published in 1928. Is still as fresh as a book from the last five years. Of course, some points are really outdated, but the meaning, the thing the author wanted to say, to express, to tell you, all of this is unbelievable accurate. Once created for a program to educate salesman, this book gives you a very wide-ranging overview of the important things to become successful. Divided into sixteen lessons, you can hear stories that will inspire you in your life.

And with that said, what else should I tell you? Mhh, well, maybe that: At the end of the day, knowledge isn’t everything! If we do not know how to use something, or do not even have the idea to use it, well, we will not reach our goals! Therefore, reading this book is good, but not enough! It’s not about the information which is stacked inside, it’s rather what is going on inside of your head!

Why reading it, is so important!

Once started with the book, I was not able to stop reading it, even though it is quite a long book considered my disgust about books in my youth. “But why should you read it?” And with “read it”, I mean, “read the book!” Not the summary, or a fancy article about it. Do not just listen to the YouTube summary, or the top ten information you can find somewhere in the wide world web. Because what you really get out of this book, is the things you are thinking while reading it. For me, it is very similar to what DHH (David Heinemeier Hansson) once described in an interview with Tim Ferriss while speaking about driving a racecar.

It was kind of like you just had a bottle of flow. You could just open your fridge and like, “Oh, I’d like some flow please. Can you get me into the flow state where you lose track of time? Where you just have such a great experience learning and getting better. That’s how I felt the first very many times I got into a racecar. I could just switch on flow.

The Tim Ferriss Show Transcripts: David “DHH” Heinemeier Hansson (#195)

For me, it is just the same. If I drive a race car, on my simulator or read this book, my mind just switches into the flow mode just like that! “klick sound”.

Reading it twice, or like I do, reading it once a year, this book can transform your life, your thinking, everything. So go ahead, and get this book.

Oh and just one more thing, if you will find out that there are things in the book you already now, than do not be surprised and skip the lesson, but instead read it very carefully, because it could be the case, that you are not doing it right.

The fascinating thing about this book is the fact, that it taught me so much about life without telling me anything new. It was not that I had never heard about these things! It was rather, that I just did not focus on it. For me, those things where not really important, when in fact, they are really important!

In life, we always have a chance to change! We can start today, becoming a different person! A book like this helps us to go through life. It keeps the spirit alive, it motivates, it shows us that there is always chance! A chance for those, who are willing to take it!

Five years ago, I was small, weak and confident a word I have never even heard before. I did not had a goal, an aim, something to hope for! I was just existing. This book gave me a chance to change! To move on! To forget about the past and make a clean cut! From now on, I would do things differently! From now on, I would change my life! It took me some time, definitely. But I have done it! I changed my life! And honestly, if you would have told me five and a half years ago, that I would have a blog, writing on my own book, getting my masters degree in mechanical engineering, driving a race car in formula student, having such an awesome life with a racing simulator, a pool and the like, no man! I wouldn’t have believed you! But life has changed! And the book, well, it is kind of responsible for that! Therefore, what else should I say! Go and get this damn thing!

It’s not the book, that changes you. It’s you, that needs to change!

See you next time.