How Abraham Lincoln Used an Ancient Achievement Principle
(An excerpt from LINCOLN SPEAKS TO LEADERS)
ABRAHAM LINCOLN: "When I was young, I read a book that most people read in my day, but few read today-Pilgrim's Progress, by John Bunyan. It's a classic that tells the story of a lonely, resolute traveler who struggled with temptation, overcame despondency, and reached his goal. Pilgrim's Progress became a metaphor for my life.
Great religious leaders have long taught that if you truly want something, you should act as if the object of your desire is already on its way to you. For example, if your goal is to become a lawyer, visualize yourself as a lawyer, and you will be well on your way to achieving that dream. Seeing it happen is the way to make it happen.
During the war, I wrote a personal letter to a college student who was a friend of my son Robert. His grades were bad, he was discouraged, and he was considering dropping out of college. In that letter I said, 'You cannot fail if you resolutely determine that you will not.'"
PAT WILLIAMS: "This is a message I believe in wholeheartedly. I've seen it happen time after time after time. Why do homerun hitters drive the ball into the bleacher seats? Because they see it happen before the wood connects with the leather...
Jim Brown, the legendary Cleveland Browns running back, was the first athlete I ever heard talk about visioning this way. The night before games he would think about what he wanted to accomplish, picture it as if he'd already done it. When game time came, his mission was already half accomplished. Because he'd seen himself successful, the doing of it was simply the living out of history.
Mark Price, who is among the greatest free throw shooters in NBA history, constantly visualized the ball going into the basket in advance of the games. After repeatedly playing the scene over and over in his mind, by game time it was all automatic."
--Adapted from Chapter Six: "Success Comes From Within"
How Abraham Lincoln Used an Ancient Achievement Principle - To learn more about this author, visit Gene Griessman's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
![]() | |
| |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
|
| |
| |||
Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
![]() | |
![]()
| |
![]() | |
|
| |
![]() | |
|
| |
![]() | |||||||
|
![]() | ||
|
| ||
![]() |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
![]() |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
![]() |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
![]() |
|
|
![]() | ||
|
More PR Resources
Press Release Builder | ||
|
The Top 10 Guy Kawasaki Posts
Best Posts for Entrepreneurs | ||
![]() | ||
![]() | ||||
| ||||
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|






Subscribe to Gene's articles











