------------------------------------------------------------ Applied Psychology POWER OFMENTAL IMAGERY _Being the Fifth of a Series of__Twelve Volumes on the Applications__of Psychology to the Problems of__Personal and Business__Efficiency_ BY WARREN HILTON, A. B. , L. L. B. FOUNDER OF THE SOCIETY OF APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY ISSUED UNDER THE AUSPICES OFTHE LITERARY DIGESTFORThe Society of Applied PsychologyNEW YORK AND LONDON1920 ------------------------------------------------------------ COPYRIGHT 1914BY THE APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY PRESSSAN FRANCISCO (_Printed in the United States of America_) ------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENTS Chapter I. IMAGINATION AND RECOGNITION Page RECOGNIZING THE PAST AS PAST 3 IMAGINATION, PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE 5 II. KINDS OF MENTAL IMAGES VISUAL IMAGERY 9 AUDITORY IMAGERY 11 IMAGERY OF TASTE AND SMELL 12 MUSCULAR AND TACTUAL IMAGERY 13 PERSONAL DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL IMAGERY 14 INVESTIGATIONS OF DOCTOR GALTON 15 INVESTIGATIONS OF PROFESSOR JAMES 16 INVESTIGATIONS OF PROFESSOR SCOTT 21 III. HOW TO INFLUENCE OTHERS THROUGH MENTAL IMAGERY A RULE FOR INFLUENCING OTHERS 31 APPLICATION TO PEDAGOGY 32 HOW TO SELL GOODS BY MENTAL IMAGERY 33 A STUDY OF ADVERTISEMENTS 34 THE WORDS THAT CREATE DESIRE 35 A KEY FOR SELECTING A CALLING 36 IV. HOW TO TEST YOUR MENTAL IMAGERY FINDING OUT YOUR WEAK POINTS 39 TESTS FOR VISUAL IMAGERY 40 TESTS FOR AUDITORY AND OLFACTORY IMAGERY 42 TESTS FOR IMAGERY OF TASTE AND TOUCH 43 TESTS FOR IMAGERY OF HEAT AND COLD 44 HOW TO CULTIVATE MENTAL IMAGERY 45 V. THE CREATIVE IMAGINATION THE PROCESS OF CREATIVE IMAGINATION 49 BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL IMAGINATION 50 HOW WEALTH IS CREATED 51 THE KLAMATH PHILOSOPHY 52 HOW MEN GET THINGS 53 PREREQUISITES TO ACHIEVEMENT 54 HOW TO TAKE RADICAL STEPS IN BUSINESS 55 THE EXPANSION OF BUSINESS IDEALS 57 RISING TO THE EMERGENCY 58 THE CONSTRUCTIVE IMAGINATION 59 LITTLE TASKS AND BIG TASKS 60 WORKING UP A DEPARTMENT 61 IMAGINATION IN HANDLING EMPLOYEES 62 HOW TO TEST AN EMPLOYEE'S IMAGINATION 63 IMAGINATION IN BUSINESS GENERALLY 64 IMAGINATION AND ACTION 65 IMAGINATION AND RECOGNITION [Illustration] CHAPTER I IMAGINATION AND RECOGNITION [Sidenote: _Recognizing the Past as Past_] In the preceding volume of this _Course_, entitled "The TrainedMemory, " you learned that the memory process involves fourelements, Retention, Recall, Recognition and Imagination; and thescope and operation of two of these elements, Retention andRecall, were explained to you. There remain Recognition and Imagination, which we shall make thesubject of this book. We shall treat of them, however, not onlyas parts of the memory process, but also as distinct operations, with an individual significance and value. Both Recognition and Imagination have to do with mental images. Recognition relates exclusively to those mental images that arethe replica of former experiences. _It is the faculty of the mindby which we recognize remembered experiences as a part of our ownpast. _ If it were not for this sense of familiarity and ofownership and of the past tense of recalled mental images, therewould be no way for us to distinguish the sense-perceptions ofthe past from those of the present. Recognition is therefore an element of vital necessity to everyact of memory. [Sidenote: _Imagination, Past, Present and Future_] Imagination relates either to the past, the present or thefuture. On the one hand, it is the outright re-imagery in themind's eye of past experiences. On the other hand, it is thecreation of new and original mental images or visions by therecombination of old experiential elements. [Illustration: _Girls_-- You'll want to have it taste just right, especially if it's for"him, " so be careful of the directions: Make a paste, using atablespoonful of Anderson's Chocolate --to a cup of boiling milk--stir for a moment--then servethis delightful beverage. Watch his eyes sparkle--note thesatisfaction in every sip--hear him murmur "You're a dear. " THIS ADVERTISEMENT COMBINES DIFFERENT ELEMENTS IN A SKILFULAPPEAL TO THE SENSES. SEE TEXT, PAGE 34] KINDS OF MENTAL IMAGES [Illustration] CHAPTER II KINDS OF MENTAL IMAGES [Sidenote: _Visual Imagery_] When we speak of "images" in connection with Imagination andRecognition we do not refer merely to mental pictures of thingsseen. _Mental images are representations of past mentalexperiences of any and every kind. _ They include past sensationsof sound, taste, smell, feeling, pain, motion and the othersenses, as well as sensations of sight. One may have a mentalimage of the voice of a friend, of the perfume of a flower, justas he may have mental images of their appearance to the eye. Indeed, the term "image" is perhaps unfortunately used in thisway, since it must be made to include not only mental pictures ina visual sense, but all forms of reproductive mental activity. Our recollection of past experiences may be either full anddistinct or hazy and inadequate. Some persons are entirely unableto reproduce certain kinds of sensory experiences. Somehow theyare aware of having had these experiences, but they cannotreproduce them. Every one of us has his own peculiarities. [Sidenote: _Auditory Imagery_] This morning I called upon a friend in his office. I was therebut a short time. Yet I can easily call to mind every detailof the surroundings. I can see the exterior of the building, its form, size, color, window-boxes with flowers, red tileroof, formal gardens in the open court, and even many of theneighboring buildings. I can plainly recall the color of thecarpet on his office floor, the general tone of the paper on thewall, the size, type and material of his desk, and many otherelements going to make up an almost perfect mental duplicate ofthe scene itself. I can even see my friend sitting at his desk, and can distinctly remember the color, cut and texture of hisclothing and just how he looked when he smiled. [Sidenote: _Imagery of Taste and Smell_] Last evening we entertained a number of friends at dinner. One ofthe ladies was an accomplished musician, and later in theevening she delighted us with her exquisite playing upon thepiano. The airs she played were familiar to me. I am fond ofmusic and I enjoyed her playing. I can sit here today and inimagination I can see her seated before the piano and rememberjust how her hands looked as she fingered the keys. But I find itdifficult to recall the air of the selection or the tones of thepiano. My mental images of the notes as they came from the pianoare faint and uncertain and not nearly so distinct and clear asmy recollection of the scene. [Sidenote: _Muscular and Tactual Imagery_] I find it easy to recall the appearance of the food that wasserved me for breakfast this morning. I can also faintly imaginethe odor and taste of the coffee and toast, but I find that theseimages of taste and smell are not nearly so realistic as mymental images of what I saw and heard during the course of themeal. When I was in college I was very fond of handball and was amember of the handball team. It has been many years since Iplayed the game, yet I can distinctly feel the peculiar tensionof the right arm and shoulder muscles that accompanied the"service. " Nor do I feel the slightest difficulty in evoking adistinct mental image of the prickly sensations that so annoyedme as a boy when I would first put on woolen underwear in thefall of the year. [Sidenote: _Personal Differences in Mental Imagery_] From these examples, it is apparent that we can form mentalimages of past sensations of sight, sound, taste, smell andfeeling, and indeed of every kind, including the muscular ormotor sense and the sense of heat and cold. But there is the greatest possible difference in individuals inthis respect. Some persons have distinct images of things theyhave seen, are good visualizers. Others are weak in this respect, but have clear auditory images. And so as to all the variouskinds of sensory images. This is a fact of comparatively recent discovery. The firstproponent of the idea was Fechner, but no statistical work wasdone in this line until Galton entered the field, in 1880. Inhis "Inquiries into Human Faculties, " he says: [Sidenote: _Investigations of Doctor Galton_] "To my astonishment, I found that the great majority of the menof science to whom I first applied protested that mental imagerywas unknown to them, and they looked on me as fanciful andfantastic in supposing that the words 'mental imagery' reallyexpressed what I believed everybody supposed them to mean. Theyhad no more notion of its true nature than a color-blind man, whohas not discerned his defect, has of the nature of color. Theyhad a mental deficiency of which they were unaware and naturallyenough supposed that those who affirmed they possessed it wereromancing. " [Sidenote: _Investigations of Professor James_] The investigations of Dr. Galton were continued by ProfessorJames, of Harvard University. He collected from hundreds ofpersons descriptions of their own mental images. The followingare extracts from two cases of distinctly different types. Theone who is a good visualizer says: "This morning's breakfast-table is both dim and bright; it is dimif I try to think of it with my eyes closed. All the objects areclear at once, yet when I confine my attention to any one objectit becomes far more distinct. I have more power to recall colorthan any other one thing; if, for example, I were to recall aplate decorated with flowers I could reproduce in a drawing theexact tone, etc. The color of anything that was on the table isperfectly vivid. There is very little limitation to the extentof my images; I can see all four sides of a room; I can see allfour sides of two, three, four, even more rooms with suchdistinctness that if you should ask me what was in any particularplace in any one, or ask me to count the chairs, etc. , I could doit without the least hesitation. The more I learn by heart themore clearly do I see images of my pages. Even before I canrecite the lines I see them so that I could give them very slowlyword for word, but my mind is so occupied in looking at myprinted image that I have no idea of what I am saying, of thesense of it, etc. When I first found myself doing this I used tothink it was merely because I knew the lines imperfectly; but Ihave quite convinced myself that I really do see an image. Thestrongest proof that such is really the fact is, I think, thefollowing: "I can look down the mentally seen page and see the words thatcommence all the lines, and from any one of these words I cancontinue the line. I find this much easier to do if the wordsbegin as in a straight line than if there are breaks. Example: Etant fait Tous ............. A des ............ Que fit .......... Ceres ............ Avec ........... Un fleur ......... Comme .......... (La Fontaine S. IV. )" The poor visualizer says: "My ability to form mental images seems, from what I have studiedof other people's images, to be defective, and somewhat peculiar. The process by which I seem to remember any particular event isnot by a series of distinct images, but a sort of panorama, thefaintest impressions of which are perceptible through a thickfog--I cannot shut my eyes and get a distinct image of anyone, although I used to be able to a few years ago, and the facultyseems to have gradually slipped away. * * * In my most vividdreams, where the events appear like the most real facts, I amoften troubled with a dimness of sight which causes the images toappear indistinct. * * * To come to the question of thebreakfast-table, there is nothing definite about it. Everythingis vague. I cannot say what I see. I could not possibly count thechairs, but I happen to know that there are ten. I see nothing indetail. * * * The chief thing is a general impression that Icannot tell exactly what I do see. The coloring is about thesame, as far as I can recall it, only very much washed out. Perhaps the only color I can see at all distinctly is that of thetablecloth, and I could probably see the color of the wall paperif I could remember what color it was. " This difference between individuals is just as marked in thematter of ability to form _auditory_ images as in respect to_visual_ images. [Sidenote: _Investigations of Professor Scott_] Thus, Professor Walter Dill Scott, of Northwestern University, cites the following: "One student who has strong auditory imagery writes as follows:'When I think of the breakfast-table I do not seem to have aclear visual image of it. I can see the length of it, the threechairs--though I can't tell the color or shape of these--thewhite cloth and something on it, but I can't see the pattern ofthe dishes or any of the food. I can very plainly hear the rattleof the dishes and of the silver and above this hear theconversation, also the other noises, such as a train which passesevery morning while we are at breakfast. Again, in a footballgame I distinctly hear the noise, but do not see clearlyanything or anybody. I hear the stillness when everyone is intentand then the loud cheering. Here I notice the differences ofpitch and tone. ' "I had read that some people were unable to imagine sounds whichthey had heard, but it had not impressed me, for I had supposedthat such persons were great exceptions. I was truly surprisedwhen I found so many of my students writing papers similar tothose from which extracts are here given: 'My mental imagery isvisual, as I seem to see things and not hear, feel or smell them. The element of sound seems practically never to enter in. When Ithink of a breakfast-table or a football game I have a distinctimage. I see colors, but hear no sound. ' [Illustration: A feature in the making of Anderson's Cocoa The manner in which thousands of pounds of Cocoa beans are dailyroasted Anderson & Co. N. Y. THIS ADVERTISEMENT AWAKENS THE WRONG KIND OF MENTAL IMAGES. SEETEXT, PAGE 34] "Another in describing his image of a railroad-train, writes: 'Iam not able to state whether I hear the train or not. I aminclined to think that it is a noiseless one. It is hard for meto conceive of the sound of a bell, for instance. I can see thebell move to and fro, and for an instant seem to hear the ding, dong; but it is gone before I can identify it. When I try toconceive of shouts I am like one groping in the dark. I cannotpossibly retain the conception of a sound for any length oftime. ' "Another, who seems to have no vivid images of any kind, writes:'When I recall the breakfast-table I see it and the personsaround it. The number of them is distinct, for there is only oneof them on each side of the table. But they seem like mereobjects in space. Only when I think of each separately do Iclearly see them. As for the table, all I see is a generalwhiteness, interspersed with objects. I hear nothing at all, andindeed the whole thing is so indistinct it bewilders me when Ithink of it. My mental imagery is very vague and hazy, unless Ihave previously taken special notice of what I now have an imageof. For instance, when I have an image of a certain person Icannot tell his particular characteristics unless my attentionwas formerly directed to them. ' "Another writes: 'There is no sound in connection with any image. In remembering, I call up an incident and gradually fill out thedetails. I can very seldom recall how anything sounds. One soundfrom the play "Robespierre, " by Henry Irving, which I heard abouttwo years ago and which I could recall some time afterward, Ihave been unable to recall this fall, though I have tried to doso. I can see the scene quite perfectly, the position of theactors and stage setting, even the action of a player who broughtout the sound. ' "Quite a large proportion of persons find it impossible toimagine motion at all. As they think of a football game, allthe players are standing stock-still; they are as they arerepresented in a photograph. They are in the act of running, butno motion is represented. Likewise, the banners and streamersare all motionless. They find it impossible to think of such athing as motion. Others find that the motions are the mostvivid part of their images. What they remember of a scene isprincipally movement. "One writes: 'When the word "breakfast-table" was given out I sawour breakfast-table at home, especially the table and the whitetablecloth. The cloth seemed to be the most distinct object. Ican see each one in his place at the table. I can see no colorexcept that of the tablecloth. The dishes are there, but are veryindistinct. I cannot hear the rattle of the dishes or the voicesvery distinctly; the voices seem much louder than the dishes, butneither are very clear. I can feel the motions which I makeduring the breakfast hour. I feel myself come in, sit down andbegin to eat. I can see the motions of those about me quiteplainly. I believe the feeling of motion was the most distinctfeeling I had. When the word "railroad-train" was given I saw thetrain very plainly just stopping in front of the depot. I saw thepeople getting on the train; these people were very indistinct. It is their motions rather than the people themselves which Isee. I can feel myself getting on the train, finding a seat, andsitting down. I cannot hear the noise of the train, but can hearrather indistinctly the conductor calling the stations. I believemy mental imagery is more motile (of movement) than anythingelse. Although I can see some things quite plainly, I seem tofeel the movements most distinctly. ' "A very few in describing their images of the breakfast-tablemade special mention of the taste of the food and of its odor. Ihave discovered no one whose prevailing imagery is for eithertaste or smell. With very many the image of touch is very vivid. They can imagine just how velvet feels, how a fly feels on one'snose, the discomfort of a tight shoe, and the pleasure ofstroking a smooth marble surface. " HOW TO INFLUENCE OTHERS THROUGH MENTAL IMAGERY [Illustration] CHAPTER III HOW TO INFLUENCE OTHERS THROUGH MENTAL IMAGERY [Sidenote: _A Rule for Influencing Others_] The practical importance of the fact of mental imagery and of theindividual differences in power of mental imagery is very great. They should be particularly taken into account in any business orprofession in which one seeks to implant knowledge or convictionin the mind of another. [Sidenote: _Application to Pedagogy_] The underlying principle in such cases is this: _To the mind youare seeking to convince or educate, present your facts in asmany different ways and as realistically as possible, so thatthere may be a variety of images, each serving as a clue toprompt the memory. _ We cannot do more at this point than indicate a few minor phasesof the practical application of the principles of mental imagery. In the old days geography was taught simply with a book and maps. Today children also use their hands in molding relief maps insand or clay, and mountains and rivers have acquired a meaningthey never had before. In the days of the oral "spelling match" boys and girls werebetter spellers than products of a later school system, becausethey used not only the eye to see the printed word, the arm andhand to feel in writing it, but also the ear to hear it and thevocal muscles to utter it. And because of this fact oral spellingis being brought back to the schoolroom. [Sidenote: _How to Sell Goods by Mental Imagery_] If you have pianos to advertise, do not limit your advertisementto a beautiful picture of the mahogany case and general wordstelling the reader that it is "the best. " Pianos are musicalinstruments, and the descriptive words should first of all callup delightful _auditory images_ in your reader's mind. If you have for sale an article of food, do not simply tellyour customer how good it is. Let him see it, feel it, andparticularly _taste it_, if you want him to call for it the nexttime he enters your store. [Sidenote: _A Study of Advertisements_] Turn, for example, to the advertisement of a certain brand ofchocolate, facing page 6. The daintily spread table, the prettygirl, the steaming cup, the evident satisfaction of the man, wholooks accustomed to good living, --these elements combine in askilful appeal to the senses. Turn now to another advertisementof this same brand of chocolate, shown facing page 22. Thepurpose here is to inform you as to the large quantity of cocoabeans roasted in the company's furnaces. Whether this fact is ofany consequence or not, the impression you get from the pictureis of a wheelbarrow full of something that looks like coal beingtrundled by a dirty workman, while the shovel by the furnace doorand the cocoa beans scattered about the floor remind one of abegrimed iron foundry. [Sidenote: _The Words that Create Desire_] _The only words that will ever sell anything are graphic words, picturesque words, words that call up distinct and definitemental pictures of an attractive kind. _ The more sensory images we have of any object the better we knowit. _If you want to make a first impression lasting, make it vivid. It will then photograph itself upon the memory and arouse thecuriosity. _ A boy who is a poor visualizer will never make a good artist. Aman who is a poor visualizer is out of place as a photographer ora picture salesman. [Sidenote: _A Key for Selecting a Calling_] No person with weak auditory images should follow music as aprofession or attempt to sell phonographs or musical instrumentsor become a telephone or telegraph operator or stenographer. No man who can but faintly imagine the taste of things should tryto write advertisements for articles of food. Remember the rule: _To the mind you are seeking to convince oreducate present your facts in as many different ways and asrealistically as possible, so that there may be a variety ofimages, each serving as a clue to prompt the memory. _ You can put this rule to practical use at once. Try it. You willbe delighted with the result. HOW TO TEST YOUR MENTAL IMAGERY [Illustration] CHAPTER IV HOW TO TEST YOUR MENTAL IMAGERY [Sidenote: _Finding Out Your Weak Points_] We suggest that you now test your own reproductive imaginationwith a view to determining your points of strength or weakness inthis respect. And in doing so please bear in mind that thefollowing questions are not asked with a view to determining whatyou know about the subject of the question, but simply howvividly--that is to say, with what life-like clearness--themental image is presented to your mind, how close it comes to apresent reality. [Sidenote: _Tests for Visual Imagery_] Go into a quiet room, close your eyes and try to bar from yourmind every distraction. Now then, ask yourself these questions: VISUAL. --1. Can you remember just how your bedroom looked when you left it this morning--the appearance of each separate article of furniture and decoration, the design and color of the carpet, the color of the walls, the arrangement of toilet articles upon the dresser, and so on? Can you see the whole room just as clearly as if you were in it at this moment? Or is your mental picture blurred and doubtful? 2. How clearly can you see the space that intervenes between your house and some far-distant object? Have you a clear impression of the visual elements that determine this distance? 3. Can you see a bird flying through the air? an automobile rushing down the street? 4. Can you imagine a red surface? a green surface? Try each primary color; which is most distinct to your mind's eye? 5. Can you see a smooth surface? a rough surface? a curved surface? a flat surface? a cube? Does the cube look solid? 6. When you memorize a poem do you remember just how each word looked on the printed page? [Sidenote: _Tests for Auditory and Olfactory Imagery_] AUDITORY. --1. Can you in imagination hear your door-bell ringing? 2. Can you form an auditory image of thunder? of waves breaking on a rocky shore? of a passing street-car? 3. Can you mentally hear the squeak of a mouse? the twitter of a bird? the breathing of a sleeping child? 4. Do these images come to you with the distinctness of reality? 5. Can you distinctly remember a voice you have not heard for a long time? 6. Can you recall the tones of an entire selection of music played on the piano? [Sidenote: _Tests for Imagery of Taste and Touch_] SMELL. --Can you distinctly recall the odor of strong cheese? of violets? of roses? of coffee? of your favorite cigar? Is it clear to your mind that it is the odor you are recalling and not the taste? TASTE. --1. Can you remember just how butter tastes? an apple? 2. Try to imagine that you are sucking a lemon. Does it pucker your mouth? Does it seem like a real lemon? 3. Can you imagine the taste of sugar? of salt? of pepper? PAIN AND TOUCH. --1. Can you in imagination live over again any past physical suffering? 2. Can you recall the feeling of woolen underwear? of bedclothes resting upon you? 3. Can you re-experience a feeling of exhaustion? of exhilaration? [Sidenote: _Tests for Imagery of Heat and Cold_] HEAT AND COLD. --Can you imagine a feeling of warmth? of cold? Does your recollection of the feeling of ice differ from your memory of a burn? Go through the above list of questions, carefully noting downyour answers. You will discover some personal peculiarities inyourself you never dreamed existed. Try these questions on other members of your own family. You willbe surprised at the varying results. You will perceive the reasonfor many innate differences of ability to do and to enjoy. [Sidenote: _How to Cultivate Mental Imagery_] Think what an immense part imagination plays in the world ofbusiness, and you will see how important it is to know your owntype of sense-imagery. To some extent the power of forming mental images can becultivated so as to improve one's fitness for different kinds ofemployment. Such self-culture rests upon improvement in thevividness of your sense-perceptions. It suffices for your presentpurpose to know that to cultivate your power of sense-imagery inany respect you must (1) _Keep the appropriate sense-organs ingood condition, and_ (2) _When sense-perceptions of the kind inquestion come to you, give your undivided attention to yourconsciousness of them. _ THE CREATIVE IMAGINATION [Illustration] CHAPTER V THE CREATIVE IMAGINATION [Sidenote: _The Process of Creative Imagination_] There is another type of imagination from the purely reproductivememory imagination of which we have been speaking in this book. There is also Creative Imagination. Creative Imagination is more than mere memory. It takes theelements of the past as reproduced by memory and rearrangesthem. It forms new combinations out of the material of thepast. It forms new combinations of ideas, emotions and theiraccompanying impulses to muscular activity, the elements ofmental "complexes. " It recombines these elements into new andoriginal mental pictures, the creations of the inventive mind. [Sidenote: _Business and Financial Imagination_] No particular profession or pursuit has a monopoly of creativeimagination. It is not the exclusive property of the poet, theartist, the inventor, the philosopher. We tell you this becauseyou have heard all your life of the poetic imagination, theartistic imagination, and so on, but it is rare indeed that youhave heard mention of the business imagination. The fact is no man can succeed in any pursuit unless he has acreative imagination. Without creative imagination the human racewould still be living in caves. Without creative imaginationthere would be no ships, no engines, no automobiles, nocorporations, no systems, no plans, no business. Nothing existsin all the world that had not a previous counterpart in the mindof him who designed it. And back of all is the creative mind ofGod. [Sidenote: _How Wealth is Created_] Mind is supreme. Mind shapes and controls matter. Every concretething in the world is the product of a thinking consciousness. The richly tinted canvas is the physical expression of theartist's dream. The great factory, with its whirling mechanismsand glowing furnaces, is the material manifestation of thepromoter's financial imagination. The jeweled ornament, the book, the steamship, the office building, all are but concreterealizations of human thought molded out of formless matter. Mind, finite and infinite, is eternally creative and creating inthe organization of formless matter and material forces intoconcrete realities. [Sidenote: _The Klamath Philosophy_] Says Max Müller in his "Psychological Religion": "The Klamaths, one of the Red Indian tribes, believe in a Supreme God whom theycall 'The Most Ancient One, ' 'Our Old Father, ' or 'The Old One onHigh. ' He is believed to have created the world--that is, to havemade plants, animals and man. But when asked how the Old Fathercreated the world, the Klamath philosopher replies: _'By thinkingand willing. '"_ [Sidenote: _How Men Get Things_] We get what we desire because the things we desire are thethings we think about. Love begets love. The man who is lookingfor trouble generally finds it. Despair is the forerunner ofdisaster, and fear brings failure, because despair and fear arethe emotional elements attendant upon thoughts of defeat. Behind every thing and every act is, and always has been, thought--thought of sufficient intensity to shape and fashion thephysical event. Mind, and mind alone, possesses the inscrutable power to create. Your career is ordered by the thoughts you entertain. Mentalpictures tend to accomplish their own realization. Therefore, becareful to hold only those thoughts that will build up ratherthan tear down the structure of your fortunes. [Sidenote: _Prerequisites to Achievement_] Creative imagination is an absolute prerequisite to materialachievement. The business man must scheme and plan and devise and foresee. Hemust create in imagination today the results that he is toachieve tomorrow. He must combine the elements of his pastexperiential complexes into a mental picture of future events ashe would have them. Riches are but the material realization of afinancial imagination. The wealth of the world is but the sumtotal of the contributions of the creative thoughts of thesuccessful men of all ages. [Sidenote: _How to Take Radical Steps in Business_] With these principles before you, you can plainly see that the_creative imagination must be called upon in the solution ofevery practical question in every hour of the business day. _ Consider its part in two phases of your business life--first, when you are contemplating a radical change in your businesssituation; second, when you are seeking to improve someparticular department of your business. [Sidenote: _How to Take Radical Steps in Business_] In the determination of how best you can better yourself, eitherin your present field of action or by the selection of a new one, take the following steps: (1) Pass in review before the mind'seye your present situation; (2) Your possible ways of betterment;(3) The various circumstances and individuals that will aid inthis or that line of self-advancement; (4) The difficulties thatmay confront you. Having selected your field, (5) Considervarious possible plans of action; (6) Have prevision of theirworking out; (7) Compare the ultimate results as you foreseethem; (8) Decide upon the one most promising, and then with thisplan as a foundation for further imaginings, (9) Once more callbefore you the elements that will contribute to success; (10) Seethe possible locations for your new place of business and chooseamong them; (11) Outline in detail the methods to be pursued ingetting and handling business; (12) See the different kinds ofemployees and associates you will require, and select certainclasses as best suited to your needs; (13) Foresee possibledifficulties to be encountered and adjust your plans to meetthem; and, most important of all, (14) Have a clear andpersistent vision of yourself as a man of action, setting to workupon your plan at a fixed hour and carrying it to a successfulissue within a given time. [Sidenote: _The Expansion of Business Ideals_] There is excellent practical psychology in the following from"Thoughts on Business": "Men often think of a position as being just about so big and nobigger, when, as a matter of fact, a position is often what onemakes it. A man was making about $1, 500 a year out of a certainposition and thought he was doing all that could be done toadvance the business. The employer thought otherwise, and gavethe place to another man who soon made the position worth $8, 000a year--at exactly the same commission. [Sidenote: _Rising to the Emergency_] "The difference was in the men--in other words, in what the twomen thought about the work. One had a little conception of whatthe work should be, and the other had a big conception of it. Onethought little thoughts, and the other thought big thoughts. "The standards of two men may differ, not especially because oneis naturally more capable than the other, but because one isfamiliar with big things and the other is not. The time was whenthe former worked in a smaller scope himself, but when he saw awider view of what his work might be he rose to the occasion andbecame a bigger man. It is just as easy to think of a mountain asto think of a hill--when you turn your mind to contemplate it. The mind is like a rubber band--you can stretch it to fit almostanything, but it draws in to a small scope when you let go. [Sidenote: _The Constructive Imagination_] "Make it your business to know what is the best that might be inyour line of work, and stretch your mind to conceive it, and thendevise some way to attain it. [Sidenote: _Little Tasks and Big Tasks_] "Big things are only little things put together. I was greatlyimpressed with this fact one morning as I stood watching theworkmen erecting the steel framework for a tall office building. A shrill whistle rang out as a signal, a man over at the enginepulled a lever, a chain from the derrick was lowered, and thewhistle rang out again. A man stooped down and fastened the chainaround the center of a steel beam, stepped back and blew thewhistle once more. Again the lever was moved at the engine, andthe steel beam soared into the air up to the sixteenth story, where it was made fast by little bolts. "The entire structure, great as it was, towering far above allthe neighboring buildings, was made up of pieces of steel andstone and wood, put together according to a plan. The plan wasfirst imagined, then penciled, then carefully drawn, and thenfollowed by the workmen. It was all a combination of littlethings. [Sidenote: _Working Up a Department_] "It is encouraging to think of this when you are confronted by abig task. Remember that it is only a group of little tasks, anyof which you can easily do. It is ignorance of this fact thatmakes some men afraid to try. " Suppose, now, that instead of making a radical change in yourbusiness situation, you are simply seeking to improve someparticular department of your business. [Sidenote: _Imagination in Handling Employees_] In commercial affairs men are the great means to money-making, and efficient personal service the great key to prosperity. Inyour dealings with employees do not be guided by the necessitiesof the moment. Expediency is the poorest of all excuses foraction. Have regard not only for your own immediate needs, butalso for the welfare and future conduct of your employees. It ispart of the burden of the executive head that he must do theforethinking not only for himself but for those under him. Perhaps the man you have under observation for advancement tosome executive position has all the basic qualifications ofjudicial sense, discrimination and attentiveness to details, butyou are uncertain whether he has enough imagination to devise newways and means of doing things and developing business in newfields. If you wish to try a simple but very effective test alongthis line, you can adopt the following standard psychologicalexperiment, which has been used at Harvard, Cornell and manyother colleges and schools. [Sidenote: _How to Test an Employee's Imagination_] Let fall a drop of ink on each of several pieces of white paper, letterhead size. This will make irregular blotches of varyingforms. Let the subject be seated at a desk and ask him to writebriefly about what he sees in each blotched sheet, whether it bean animal form suggested by the outline of the blot, or anythingelse that comes into his mind while looking at the black spot. The principle involved here is the same as that involved inseeing pictures in a flickering log fire or having a vision ofpast or future events by gazing into a crystal. In any of thesecases, it is not the blot, the fire or the crystal that producesthe vision, but the creative imagination that recombines oldelements into new forms. The number of images suggested to one bycertain standard forms of ink-blot when compared with establishedresults is a measure of his imaginative ability. [Sidenote: _Imagination in Business Generally_] In the choice of a location for your factory or store, you mustforesee its future traffic and transportation possibilities. Inpassing upon a proposed advertisement you must get inside thehead of the man on the street and see it as he will see it. Inthe purchase of your stock of goods you must gauge the trend ofpopular taste and foresee the big demand. In your dealings withcreditors you must plan a course of action that will enable youto settle the account to _your_ best interest at _their_request. You must find a way to collect from your debtors and atthe same time hold their business. And so in a hundred thousanddifferent ways you are constantly required to use creativethought in laying every stone in the structure of your fortune. [Sidenote: _Imagination and Action_] Do not understand us as saying that imagination, as theterm is popularly used, is all you need. There must be alsoaction, incessant, persistent. But _creative imagination, in a psychological and scientific sense, begets action. Everythought carries with it the impellent energy to effect itsrealization. _ Use your imagination in your business and theaction will take care of itself. Given imagination and action, and you are sure to win. TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES Removed duplicate sidenotes and adjusted placement of sidenotes. The original book used asterisks as ellipses.