Chapter 6: Imagination

Think and Grow Rich Chapter 6 Summary explains what is imagination according to Napoleon Hill. Imagination is in the origin of original ideas and therefore in the origin of differentiation.

Summary : Imagination

Two sides of the imagination

Imagination is the means through which the desire is given shape, form and action. There are two kinds of imagination.

What is synthetic imagination?

Synthetic imagination: It arranges old concepts, ideas or plans into new combinations. Synthetic imagination is the one type most frequently used in the process of transforming the desire into riches.

What is creative imagination?

Creative imagination: It gives the finite mind direct communication with Infinite Intelligence. It is the faculty through which inspiration is received. It is also the faculty through which human minds connect and exchange vibrations of thought.

The Great of History became “great” because they developed creative imagination. Creative imagination works only when the conscious mind is vibrating at an exceedingly rapid rate, as when the conscious mind is stimulated through the emotion of a strong desire.

Put your plan for the realization in writing as soon as possible, to give concrete form to the intangible desire. This, along with the written statement of your desire, is the first step towards converting thought into its physical counterpart.

One should remind that how the desire is converted into money cannot be stated in one single statement. The story will be complete when one has mastered and begun to make use of all the principles of the book. It is possible to be done, for it has been done before.

Laws of Nature and artificial laws of men

You can build a fortune through the aid of immutable laws. But first, you must become familiar with these laws and learn to use them. This is why Chapter 6 is dedicated to Imagination. It is an important point you cannot overlook.

Through repetition and by approaching these principles from every conceivable angle, the hidden secret through which great fortunes have been accumulated will be revealed.

Strange and paradoxical as it may seem, the hidden secret is not a secret. Nature has advertised this secret in terms of biology. The conversion of desire into physical equivalent is no more miraculous than the conversion of a tiny cell into a human being. This part is important as it is the key of the understanding of the principle which built everything which exists.

As the construction of natural things is driven by the laws of Nature, the construction of artificial things is driven by the laws of definiteness of purpose. In fact, there is nothing more definite than the laws of physics such as gravity, electromagnetism, etc. That is why riches, when they come in big quantities, are never the result of hard work: they come naturally, as if it were generated by Nature.

Unless you have not been a student of the mind for long, it is not expected you will assimilate all that is in the chapter upon first reading. In fact, the book must have been read at least three times. This is why I created this summary.

Personally, I use the summary, not the book, and so far the results have been great.

Ideas are the starting point of all fortunes

The moment you reach the decision of definiteness of purpose a strange feeling of assurance will come over you, such as you have not experienced before.

Ideas are impulses of thought that impel action by an appeal to the imagination. They can be transmuted into cash through the power of definite purpose and definite plans.

All successful sales representatives know ideas can be sold where merchandise cannot. Ordinary sales don’t know this, and that’s why they are “ordinary”.

The story of practically every great fortune starts when a creator of ideas meets a seller of ideas and begin working in harmony. Millions of people go through life hoping for a favorable break. Perhaps breaks can get one opportunity but the safest plan is not to depend on luck.

You have just gone through the lessons contained in this summary of Chapter 5 of Think and Grow Rich. Now, you can have a look at some questions that will help you make your own analysis of what Imagination is.

Analysis : is imagination a skill?

Think and Grow Rich Chapter 6 Summary explains that imagination is a skill you can develop. You have to force yourself, and train yourself.

Your brain gets used to be stimulated and learns to produce good, original, new ideas and concepts. Like memory, a new language or mental mathematics, imagination can be improved, definitely.

What causes imagination in the brain?

Imagination is caused by stimulation, playing and day-dreaming. If you have problems, you should try a daily drill which will help you recover your inner kid. Keep in mind imagination works from the general to the concise. Next drill will help you understand it better.

Dedicate 20 min of your day to imagine yourself the way you want to live or after having accomplished what you wanted. You can find a quiet spot or you can even try in front of the mirror. It doesn’t matter provided you are alone.

Start seeing yourself in that situation as if you were in a movie. Then, you will be able to start talking and behaving in front of the mirror as the kids do. But now, here is the trick. After you do it many times, try to ask yourself questions in order to let your imagination fly.

For example, after you imagine you are an IT entrepreneur, you can imagine yourself with a supercar. Then you can imagine your telling your friends and organizing big parties.

But then, you can also imagine yourself giving an interview to a reporter who asks: why is your new product so innovative? Automatically your brain will start answering. And if you keep on doing the same exercise over and over you might make your imagination answer many layers of detail effortlessly.

Make sure you have understood all the concepts of Think and Grow Rich chapter 6 Summary and click below to jump to the next Chapter!

Go to Chapter 7 or read our 5-minute summary of the book.