Outwitting the Devil Summary

By Napoleon Hill

If you could do anything in the world, what would it be? So what's

standing in the way of pursuing this goal? Did you know that according to
Napoleon Hill, 98% of us are governed by fear?

Outwitting the Devil was written in 1938 by the author known as "the maker
of millionaires." It's a bid to answer the question as to why so many of us
fail to reach our full potential, and how we can adopt strategies to
achieve our goals.

Despite being written in 1938, it was only published in 2011. This was due
to its controversial title and its critique of churches and schools. The
book is structured as if Hill (Mr. Earthbound) is interviewing the devil, and
it has an engaging Q and A structure. While the devil can be viewed from
a Christian perspective, it's more pragmatic to consider the devil as the
darkness within us – the doubts and anxieties that discourage us from
realizing our full potential.

This summary is a brief guide to some of the factors that nag us and
dissuade us from making the most of our lives. Why are so many people
aimlessly going through the motions of their lives and not maximizing on
opportunities? Hill argues that freedom and success are just around the
corner, provided we use our imagination and get to know ourselves and
the world around us. By role-playing and having conversations with
ourselves, we can unlock a greater sense of purpose.
What's Hiding Under Your Bed?

What are you most afraid of?

All of us have things that we fear, some of us have rational fears, and
some of us may have completely irrational fears. When Mr. Earthbound
asks the devil about fear, according to the devil, 98% of humans are
fearful. And, six significant fears prevent us from living full lives.

We fear poverty, criticism, becoming ill, losing loved ones, growing old,
and death. While fear is a natural instinct, it's often the excuse we make
to deny ourselves acting on our dreams and goals. We act on our fears
rather than rationalizing them. Fear cripples us, it makes us procrastinate,
and when we procrastinate, we stagnate.

What are some of the excuses you make for not fulfilling your goals?
Perhaps it's not having enough time or enough money. Maybe it's that
somebody is standing in your way, or that someone else has already
achieved what you want to do, so what's the point?

Fear isn't an excuse, and we need to lean into fear, have the courage to
fail, and then try again. If we view fear as an obstacle deliberately put in
front of us by the devil, we can reframe it into something to overcome
and triumph over.

The First Cause of Failure

Napoleon Hill says that 'Drifting, without aim or purpose, is the first cause
of failure.'

When we hit a slump or fall into a particular type of depression, this is

often from having a lack of purpose and feeling isolated and alone. In
addition to this, we are governed by fear and avoid adversity. However,
as we've learned from books such as Black Box Thinking, Daring Greatly, and
The Talent Code, failure is essential. We should never be governed by our
mistakes because, as Hill says, 'Every adversity, every failure, every
heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.'

Napoleon Hill began by looking at failure and believed that the key to
understanding it was talking to successful people. However, he shifted
focus and started analyzing unsuccessful people. The idea was to learn
about success through failure.

We all go through struggles, but Hill explains that failure comes with
opportunities. It's up to us to reevaluate our goals and strategies when
we fail so that we can improve. Being resilient is all about the power of
positive thinking, and so we need to continuously strive towards moving
forward. When we hit a slump it's up to us to change our direction and
shift focus.
In Hill's own life, he went through a period where he entered into a dark
state of paranoia and self-doubt. He was becoming a drifter, which often
happens to us when we lose focus and motivation. Drifters have no sense
of agency, and they live as if on autopilot. Drifters just cruise through life
and allow themselves to be heavily influenced by external forces. They
don't make decisions or take any risks, hence losing the power to think
and act independently.

Hill argues that we're encouraged to be drifters from an early age, and in
fact, it's the devil who encourages this. Early on in life, we're introduced
to things that make us want to go through life robotically, and we lose the
capacity to think for ourselves. Hill critiques the school system and says
that it nurtures homogenous behavior. Outcomes-based education
focuses on learning things off by heart and reciting information. Hill says
we need to focus instead on encouraging critical and independent
thinking. Parents and educators need to nurture uniqueness and
creativity, rather than standardized testing and rote learning. Hill also
critiques the church for fostering the same sort of homogeneity and
suggests that we develop our inner voices and learn to think
independently.

We're not only corrupted through institutions and indoctrination. We're

also corrupted through substances such as alcohol, cigarettes, drugs,
and unhealthy foods.

The Hypnotic Rhythm

As we know from The Power of Habit, we're very susceptible to forming

both good and bad habits. We often get caught in patterns and create
long-term habits based on this. Habitual behavior makes us act in a
hypnotic state where we live life as if on autopilot.

Drifting is one of the most dangerous habits we can get into, and Hill
refers to it as a "hypnotic rhythm." To rid ourselves of being habitual
drifters, we need to be more mindful and aware of our actions. We need
to ask ourselves why we do the things we do, and listen to our internal
voices.

The good news is the law of hypnotic rhythm can work in our favor if we
encourage good habits. And, as we know from the creation of habits, we
can replace bad habits with positive ones.

To become a non-drifter, we need to cultivate an engaged and present

mindset. We also need to develop definite plans and goals. Non-drifters
have a clear sense of purpose and never blame other people for their
lack of success. It's important to be the main character in your own life,
and act in a way that celebrates all of your talents and skills.

Listening to the Other Self

We often hear voices inside us telling us what we should be doing. This is

our "intuitive self," and it usually presents itself when we're in a slump.
During times when we're stagnating, our intuitive voice jumps in and tries
to persuade us to change direction. This voice is readily distinguishable
from the noise and chatter in our heads. If it's intuitive, we will know. We
need to listen and get to know all the voices in our heads, and in so
doing, we'll learn to master the self. The important thing regarding the
intuitive voice is identifying when to say yes, and when to say no.

The story goes that Hil's intuition galvanized him into finishing his
manuscript for his first self-help book. He listened to his intuitive voice
and was told that the first step to getting out of his hypnotic rhythm was
to finish his manuscript. Once he finished the document, he was able to
move onto the next step. He was guided to meet a publisher, and was
given an advance and a publishing deal.

The lesson is always to keep moving forward and to have faith in our
"Infinite Intelligence." If we listen to ourselves, we will learn how to take
calculated risks and create a sense of purpose.

The Devil Is in the Details

Success isn't just about the self. We need to do things for other people.
It's essential to serve our community and help those who are in need. Hill
explains that true fulfillment comes from helping others because
happiness isn't a solitary pursuit. Humans are social beings, and therefore
we find meaning from connections.

There are always people who are worse off than ourselves; we need to
acknowledge this by shifting focus from our own problems to focusing on
others. This shift in focus allows us to have a greater sense of
perspective and purpose.

We should also consider the "Average of Five." The Average of Five is the
theory introduced by Jim Rohn, that states that we're the culmination of
the five people we spend the most time with. The idea is the people we
spend the most time with, have the most significant influence on us, so
we must choose the people we hang out with very carefully. If we hang
out with negative people, we will become more negative. Although this
theory is controversial, Hill argues that our first loyalty is with ourselves.
Hence, we need to carefully choose our social circles, and spend time
with positive people who bring out the best in us. We need to stop
associating with people just because we feel a sense of duty and
obligation. Instead, we need to foster relationships with people who
encourage us to reach our full potential.

Hill provides an exercise where he suggests visualizing our heroes and

role-playing conversations with them. We need to ask things like, 'What
would my hero advise me to do?' 'What advice would they give me?' 'How
would they tackle this situation?' By doing this, we'll emulate the good
habits and qualities that we admire in other people.

In Conclusion

Benjamin Franklin said, 'Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time,
for that is the stuff life is made of.'

Time can be our biggest friend or our biggest foe. We have the choice to
use time wisely and grow, or we can squander time and stagnate. What
we do with the time we're given is crucial, and the devil often tempts us
into drifting and becoming aimless.

One of the critical insights of Outwitting the Devil is that it's okay to be self-
serving. We don't have to please everyone, and we're more effective if
we put our needs first. By keeping up with our own purpose and values,
we're more likely to be in the position to serve and help others.

By harnessing the power of positive thinking, we can plan in advance, set

clear goals, and develop a deep sense of purpose. We can do this by
listening to our intuitive voice, relying on our infinite intelligence, and
avoiding the temptation to act impulsively.

Finally, to outwit the devil, we need to live a conscious and disciplined

life, and realize that we're the ones who can alter the course of our
destiny.