Think and Grow Rich! | Page 6

recognized? It is this-- ALL ACHIEVEMENT,
ALL EARNED RICHES, HAVE THEIR BEGINNING IN AN IDEA!
If you are ready for the secret, you already possess one 17 18 half of it,
therefore, you will readily recognize the other half the moment it
reaches your mind.
THE AUTHOR
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
THE MAN WHO "THOUGHT" HIS WAY INTO PARTNERSHIP
WITH THOMAS A. EDISON

TRULY, "thoughts are things," and powerful things at that, when they
are mixed with definiteness of purpose, persistence, and a BURNING
DESIRE for their translation into riches, or other material objects.
A little more than thirty years ago, Edwin C. Barnes discovered how
true it is that men really do THINK AND GROW RICH. His discovery
did not come about at one sitting. It came little by little, beginning with
a BURNING DESIRE to become a business associate of the great
Edison.
One of the chief characteristics of Barnes' Desire was that it was
definite. He wanted to work with Edison, not for him. Observe,
carefully, the description of how he went about translating his DESIRE
into reality, and you will have a better understanding of the thirteen
principles which lead to riches.
When this DESIRE, or impulse of thought, first flashed into his mind
he was in no position to act upon it. Two difficulties stood in his way.
He did not know Mr. Edison, and he did not have enough money to pay
his railroad fare to Orange, New Jersey.
These difficulties were sufficient to have discouraged the majority of
men from making any attempt to carry out the desire. But his was no
ordinary desire! He was so determined to find a way to carry out his
desire that he finally decided to travel by "blind baggage," rather than
be defeated. (To the uninitiated, this means that he went to East Orange
on a freight train).
He presented himself at Mr. Edison's laboratory, and announced he had
come to go into business with the inventor. In speaking of the first
meeting between Barnes and Edison, years later, Mr. Edison said, "He
stood there before me, looking like an ordinary tramp, but there was
something in the expression of his face which conveyed the impression
that he was determined to get what he had come after. I had learned,
from years of experience with men, that when a man really DESIRES a
thing so deeply that he is willing to stake his entire future on a single
turn of the wheel in order to get it, he is sure to win. I gave him the
opportunity he asked for, because I saw he had made up his mind to

stand by until he succeeded. Subsequent events proved that no mistake
was made."
Just what young Barnes said to Mr. Edison on that occasion was far
less important than that which he thought. Edison, himself, said so! It
could not have been the young man's appearance which got him his
start in the Edison office, for that was definitely against him. It was
what he THOUGHT that counted.
If the significance of this statement could be conveyed to every person
who reads it, there would be no need for the remainder of this book.
Barnes did not get his partnership with Edison on his first interview. He
did get a chance to work in the Edison offices, at a very nominal wage,
doing work that was unimportant to Edison, but most important to
Barnes, because it gave him an opportunity to display his
"merchandise" where his intended "partner" could see it.
Months went by. Apparently nothing happened to bring the coveted
goal which Barnes had set up in his mind as his DEFINITE MAJOR
PURPOSE. But something important was happening in Barnes' mind.
He was constantly intensifying his DESIRE to become the business
associate of Edison.
Psychologists have correctly said that "when one is truly ready for a
thing, it puts in its appearance."
Barnes was ready for a business association with Edison, moreover, he
was DETERMINED TO REMAIN READY UNTIL HE GOT THAT
WHICH HE WAS SEEKING.
He did not say to himself, "Ah well, what's the use? I guess I'll change
my mind and try for a salesman's job." But, he did say, "I came here to
go into business with Edison, and I'll accomplish this end if it takes the
remainder of my life." He meant it! What a different story men would
have to tell if only they would adopt a DEFINITE PURPOSE, and
stand by that purpose until it had time to become an all-consuming
obsession!

Maybe young Barnes did not know it at the time, but his bulldog
determination, his persistence in standing back of a single DESIRE,
was destined to mow down all opposition, and bring him the
opportunity he was seeking.