ADVERSITY—A BLESSING IN DISGUISE
Friend, do not become discouraged, disappointed and disheartened, if the seemingly cruel hand of fate knocks you off of your feet. Maybe the blow will prove to be the greatest blessing that ever came your way.
It has happened to many and doubtless it will happen to you, when the dark clouds of despair have darkened the pathway of life’s progress, that behind each dark cloud is a silver lining, if we only learn how to see it.
There were two men who established and built up an enormously successful commercial institution. They owned the stock in the company about equally. One of the men, who had lots of initiative, began selling off some of his stock, thus enjoying for personal use a large amount of ready cash from the proceeds.
His associate in the business, who didn’t possess quite so much initiative, wanted to sell some of his personal stock that he might also enjoy some ready cash from the proceeds. But not a dollar could he sell. He appealed to his associate who was finding a ready market for his stock, requesting the associate to help him dispose of his stock. But the associate refused, suggesting that “he do his own selling.” This refusal resulted in a serious disagreement between the two men, which finally ended in a complete dissolution of their friendly business relations.
Now let us see what happens. The one who could not find a market for his stock was the fortunate one in the final crisis. The one with the ready initiative, who sold his stock, sold with it by so doing, his voice in the management of the business. When the climax was reached in their disagreement, the one who couldn’t sell his stock naturally had, BY FORCE OF CIRCUMSTANCES, the control of the business, so he used his power to his own salvation and to the great detriment of his associate, by voting him out of the Presidency of the corporation and voting himself into that office.
The fact that he couldn’t sell his stock was A BLESSING IN DISGUISE.
There was once a young man who was President of a corporation which was making lots of money. He owned automobiles, had servants and all the other luxuries which go with a successful business. He trusted his banker too far by borrowing money for expansion purposes. The banker wanted this young man’s interest in the corporation, because he knew the young man was making lots of money and the banker happened to be dishonest. In the 1907 Roosevelt Panic he saw his chance and closed him out. It seemed like a dark day for the young man. All was lost. But watch the roulette wheel of destiny as it spins around by the force of the hand of fate. His loss forced him to go back to the practice of law. This brought him in touch with a million-dollar corporation which employed him at a salary of $5,000.00 a year, a salary which he wouldn’t have thought of accepting from an outsider while he was in control of his own business. This brought him to the middle west, and likewise in touch with the “big opportunity” of his life.
So his loss proved a blessing in disguise, for it literally drove him into a greater success.
A young bank clerk was discharged on account of his habit of drawing pictures of automobiles and sketching mechanical parts of automobiles during business hours. The loss of his job was quite a shock to him, for he supported his mother and two sisters from his small earnings as a bank clerk.
The loss of his bank job was the greatest blessing that ever came to him, for six months later he invented an automobile part which made him a fortune. He is now president of the largest automobile accessories companies in America. His clerks are all supplied with desk pads and pencils, with instructions to do all the drawing of automobiles they wish, and to submit to him any new ideas for improvements of automobile parts. Any of their ideas which he uses are paid for extra, at one hundred dollars each.
John D. Rockefeller discharged one of his faithful employees who he thought went too far in the exercise of his authorized duties, in making a financial transaction for Mr. Rockefeller in his absence, even though the deal netted Mr. Rockefeller several thousand dollars in cash.
A blessing in disguise. This office clerk, who had been honest and faithful, but not overly well paid, was immediately employed by one of Mr. Rockefeller’s rivals, at a handsome salary. He now holds a high official position with the rival company.
And, while I write, further evidence of the soundness of my theory that “Adversity is usually a blessing in disguise” reaches me. One of the men mentioned in the beginning of this narrative—the one who was successful in selling stock, but who thereby lost the presidency of his company—has been elected president of a ten-million-dollar corporation, with an excellent chance to make $50,000.00 a year from his salary and dividends on his bonus stock in the company.
The ten-million-dollar corporation never would have been organized in all probability, except for the fact that this man’s business associate supplanted him in his original position.
A blessing in disguise, for the ten-million-dollar corporation has patents and secret processes for making fuel, heat and light which probably will make this man immensely wealthy.
Every change in one’s environment is for a purpose. That which seems like disappointment and ill “luck” usually is a blessing in disguise. If we do not carefully study cause and effect in all that we do and all that comes our way, we may never discover when and where our apparent failures are, in reality, blessings instead.
Stop and take an inventory of your life’s record and see if you cannot find evidence in your own case which will support the correctness of this. Take an inventory of the lives of those you know intimately and see if the same is not true.
Then, when you become discouraged; when the hand of fate seems to be against you; when your destiny seems doubtful and life’s pathway fraught with many thorns of disappointment; when the rough and rugged hand of time spins the roulette wheel of fate so hard that the little pointer goes past your number just remember, friends, that there is a bigger stake awaiting you, if not in your present environment, then later on in some other “game” in the sphere of human accomplishments.
Hang on!
LET AMBITION BE YOUR MASTER
LUCKY is the man who is driven by that determined little slave master called AMBITION! Those who have enjoyed the greatest success in life were literally driven to succeed by AMBITION! It made Harriman, Rockefeller, Carnegie, Hill, Roosevelt, and a good many thousands of other successful men of whom we never hear.
Ambition is the mainspring of life, but we must keep it wound up! Self-confidence is the balance wheel which keeps ambition moving at an even momentum. Enthusiasm is the oil with which we keep the human machine greased and in smooth running order. The well-organized, capable, and productive man is AMBITIOUS, ENTHUSIASTIC, and, possesses plenty of SELF-CONFIDENCE. Without these success is uncertain, if not impossible.
One of the greatest men America has ever known divorced his first wife because she was beneath his mental plane, and therefore had a tendency to keep down his ambition. This great man is not with us any more, but the world is testifying to his greatness by quoting his writings and reading his books more than ever before. It is a commonly known fact that his second wife was his chief source of inspiration—that she was responsible for keeping his AMBITION alive and constantly on the alert. That is why he married her. He foresaw the need for a constant attendant who would see to it that his AMBITION let him have no rest.
Lucky is the man who has formed a partnership with such a wife. We all get lazy at times. We need someone to keep our AMBITION alive and spur us on to bigger and better accomplishment. The chief reason that I consent to my wife going back to the farm every summer is that while she is away she constantly writes me letters which fire me with AMBITION. She understands me as few wives understand their husbands. She knows how necessary it is to constantly remind me of my chief aims in life, and she has a way of doing it which is pleasing and inspiring.
When I secured my first $5,000 a year position I thought I was fixed for life, and probably I would have been, had it not been for that little master for whom I was slaving—AMBITION! My wife and AMBITION collaborated against me and made me resign that position—FOR A BIGGER ONE! Five thousand a year would have satisfied me had it not been for my master, AMBITION. In my bigger and broader field I serve a hundred of my fellow men where I served one before, which means that I get a hundred times as much enjoyment out of life as well as financial returns which are adequate and in proportion to the service which I perform.
In addition to my regular work I lecture three times a week in one of the local colleges, on the subject of Advertising and Salesmanship. The course is a heavy one, covering a period of ten months. The students are taught everything about Advertising and Selling that I can teach them, both from my own experience and from that of a score or more of able advertising specialists. THE FIRST LECTURE IN THE COURSE IS ON THE SUBJECT OF THE VALUE OF AMBITION! I use every ounce of influence that I possess to fire these young men and young women with an everlasting knowledge of the value of AMBITION, SELF-CONFIDENCE, and ENTHUSIASM! If I succeed no further than to cause my students to cultivate that wonderful power, AMBITION, my time and theirs will have been well spent in the effort.
AMBITION is what freed America from over-the-sea rulership.
Once in my life, while I was working for a salary, I was discharged from my position—just ONCE! The head of the institution for which I worked told me that I was too “ambitious.” That was the greatest compliment anyone ever paid me, even though it cut me off temporarily from my bread and meat.
I have always had my suspicions why this man “fired” me, although he claimed it was because his “help” were unanimously agreed that I ought to go! His “help” who objected to me was one of his brothers who had his eye on the General Managership of the institution. He knew what “AMBITION” might lead me to. I have never blamed the brother, for he has a wife and two babies to support, and “AMBITION” on my part seemed to him a dangerous barrier between him and his coveted goal.
That institution of which I write was organized nearly twenty years ago. It is doing a business of about $600,000 a year. Another institution, engaged in the same line of business, started in just six years ago, on a capital of less than $6,000. I was formerly Advertising Manager of this institution. It does not discourage “AMBITION.” It is now doing a business of $1,500,000 a year, and clearing more net profits every month than the other firm is doing in gross business. The older institution, the one which was organized and has been doing business for nearly twenty years, is headed by men who are afraid of the “AMBITIOUS MAN.” Those who are working for a salary are afraid he will get their jobs (which said fear is not without some foundation). The head of the firm is afraid of the “AMBITIOUS MAN” because he is afraid he will find in him a compeitor in business (which, also, is not without well-grounded foundation).
BUT—AND HERE IS THE CRUX OF MY WHOLE STORY OF THESE TWO FIRMS—THE MAJORITY OF BUSINESS FIRMS ARE LOOKING FOR MEN WHO HAVE PLENTY OF “AMBITION.” Do not worry because one firm is afraid of the ambitious man. The very fact that such a firm is afraid of him is, in itself, strong evidence of weakness on the part of those who manage the firm.
While I was Advertising Manager of the younger firm of which I have written, I had three young men in my department. I put them on notice that some day one of them would get my position, and I commenced training them for my job. I told them that the man who “made good” first would get the place, if my recommendations would help any. My Secretary landed the prize. He is still with that firm, making more money than he ever made in his life, and more money than the average man of his age receives. I did not discourage “AMBITION” for fear of losing my job. I encouraged it so that someone would grow to be big enough to push me out of the rut and into a bigger position. That is what happened. I have no patience to speak of, with the man who is so narrow that he is afraid to inspire “AMBITION” in his fellow workers.
Show me a man who believes he has a corner on the details connected with his job and I will show you, in the same person, a man who will never develop beyond petty selfishness. I beseech you not to fall into the habit of neglecting to cultivate your “AMBITION.” You will need something more than mere services with which to succeed. You will need that ever alert little master which is the subject of this chapter. But, I must here give you a word of warning—do not let your ambition become a selfish one! The greatest object over which to develop ambition is the desire to serve our fellow men. We cannot serve them if we are jealous of them. Remember, also, that AMBITION is a contagious thing. If you give it to the world, the world will give it back to you in increased measure. But keep it unto yourself and you will lose it. It will take wings and fly!
Ambition finds expression in a thousand different forms. It is the foundation which underlies all invention, art, music, industry, commerce—nay, the very foundation upon which the progress of the world has been built. Within the present generation we have seen it expressed in the most wonderful inventions the world has ever known; the automobile, the telephone, the wireless, the submarines, the X-ray, and the airplane. AMBITION was the very warp and woof out of which these things were constructed. Ambition leads us to think, and when we begin to think the nebulous problems in the world’s evolution begin to become clarified and simplified. BE AMBITIOUS IF NOTHING MORE. OTHER THINGS WILL TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES.
WHAT I HAVE LEARNED FROM ANALYZING TEN THOUSAND PEOPLE
WHEN I was requested to write this article, I was overjoyed at such an opportunity to pass on to thoughtful men and women, who are trying to “find themselves,” the benefit of my experience as a personal analyst.
During the past eight years I have analyzed over ten thousand men and women who were earnestly seeking their proper niche in the world’s work. Incidentally, through my research I have discovered some of the fundamental qualities without which no human being can hope for success. Five of these are mentioned in this article, in words which a school boy can easily understand.
I have also discovered some of the things which break men’s hearts and send them to the scrap-heap of human failures. It is my sincere hope that every person who reads this article may profit by one or more of the points which it covers. I am placing the results of my discoveries in print for the first time, solely out of my deep desire to make life’s pathway just a little smoother for my fellow man.
It is my purpose to pass on to you, in as few words as possible, that portion of my discoveries which I believe will aid you in planning and achieving your “chief aim” in life, whatever that may be. I shall not preach to you. Whatever suggestions I make are based upon discoveries which I have made in my work.
I believe it befitting to state that twenty years ago I was working as a laborer, at wages of $1 a day. I had no home and no friends. I had but little education. My future then looked very unpromising. I was downcast in spirit. I had no ambition. I had no definite purpose in life. All around me I saw men, some young and some old, who were whipped—just as I felt that I was. I absorbed my environment as a sponge absorbs water. I became a part of the daily routine in which I lived.
It had never occurred to me that I could ever amount to anything. I believed my lot in life was to be that of a laborer. I was just like a horse which has had the bit slipped into its mouth and the saddle buckled on its back.
Here is the turning point in my career. Note it well!
A chance remark, no doubt made in a half-jocular way, caused me to throw the bit out of my mouth, kick off the saddle, and “run away” as young horses sometimes do. That remark was made by a farmer with whom I lived. I shall never forget it if I live to be a hundred, because it has partly bridged the gap over that awful chasm which nearly all human beings want to cross, “failure”!
The remark was this: “You are a bright boy. What a pity you are not in school instead of at work as a laborer at a dollar a day.”
“You are a bright boy!” These were the sweetest words I had ever heard.
That remark aroused in me the first ambition I had ever felt, and, incidentally, it is directly responsible for the personal analysis system which I have worked out. No one had ever hinted to me before that I was “bright.” I had always imagined that I was exceedingly dull. In fact, I had been told that I was a dunce. As a boy I was defeated in everything I undertook, largely because those with whom I associated ridiculed me and discouraged me from engaging in the things which interested me most. My work was selected for me—my associates were selected for me—my studies were selected for me—and my play, well, I was taught that play was a waste of time.
With this first-hand knowledge of the great handicap under which the average person starts out in life, as a working basis, I began many years ago to work out a system for helping people “find themselves” as early in life as possible. My efforts have yielded splendid returns for I have helped many find the work for which they were most suited, and started them on the road to happiness and success. I have helped not a few to acquire the qualities for success which are mentioned in this article.
THE FIRST TWO SUCCESS REQUISITES
With this prelude I shall tell you first what I believe to be the two most important of the five chief requisites for success. These are SELF-CONFIDENCE and ENTHUSIASM. The other three I will mention later.
What is self-confidence?
I will tell you what it is: It is the little glass window through which you may look and see the real man-power within your body. Self-confidence is self-discovery—finding out who you are and what you can do. It is the banishment of fear. It is the acquirement of mental courage. It is the turning on of the light of human intelligence, through the use of common sense.
It was self-confidence, plus enthusiasm and concentration, that caused the birth of the world’s greatest inventions, the incandescent electric light, the automobile, the talking machine, the airplane, the moving picture, and all the other great mechanical creations.
Self-confidence, then, is an essential quality for all worth-while accomplishments. Yet, it is the quality in which most of us are weakest. Not a weakness which many of us acknowledge, but it exists just the same. A man without self-confidence is like a ship without a rudder—he wastes his energy without moving in the right direction.
I wish I might be able to tell you exactly how to acquire full self-confidence. That would be a big undertaking. I will give you this suggestion, however—I made my first step in the direction of self-confidence the day I heard those words, “You are a bright boy.” That was the first time I had ever felt ambition tugging at my coat sleeve, and with it, apparently, came self-confidence.
It is remarkable what clothes have to do with building self-confidence. A man came to me for analysis not long ago. He had been earning a good salary, but conditions for which he was in no way responsible caused him to be let out. I asked him how much money he had and he said, “Seventy-five dollars.” I told him to invest one-third of it in a new suit of clothes. He demurred on the ground that he “couldn’t afford it.” But I insisted and went with him to buy the clothes. Then I insisted on his going to the cobbler’s and having the heels of his shoes straightened up. Then I persuaded him to have his shoes shined and get a clean shave and a hair cut. I then sent him to see the president of a large corporation who employed him at $3,000 a year.
If I had sent him to interview the president of that corporation without the new suit and the clean-up, he wouldn’t have gotten the position, in all probability, because he would not have had the proper self-confidence. Good clothes, clean linen, polished shoes, and a clean shave are not luxuries—they are a necessity to the man who comes in contact with the business public.
Copyright © 2022 by Joel Fotinos
