Much later, when I was in my early twenties, I was given some audio tapes of Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich", read by Earl Nightingale. That book applied the power of positive thinking to success in business and the accumulation of wealth, as well as other things one may aspire to. Not long after that, I read "The Power of Positive Thinking" by Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, and a somewhat related writing called "The Third Mind" (not to be confused with William S. Burroughs' work). The Third Mind concept is a phenomenon that occurs when two people collaborate on a project or discuss a topic. Each shares his or her thoughts, and each adds those thoughts to his/her own, and new ideas form that appear to come from a third, invisible person in the room. Thoughts that neither would have had alone are stimulated by the sharing of information.
Needless to say at this point, I have been generously drenched in the idea of positive thought and the powers of the mind. In Napoleon Hill's writing, he says, "Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.
Many people have used the seemingly limitless (if you believe the writings) power of positive thought to obtain wealth, power, material things, or develop desired relationships or situations such as jobs or the establishment of a business. Being a Christian, I believe that God gave us the amazing power of our mind. I beleive that God answers prayer, but I also beleive that some things we attribute to God are not His doing, but the abilities He gave us to accomplish things for ourselves.
That brings us to the point of this blog post. Not everything that we desire, and apply "positive thinking" to obtain has a positive result. You are familiar with the old saying, "Be careful what you wish for."
Gerald Brom said, "Everything comes with a price. Everything. Some things just cost more than others."
I have said similar things many times myself. Everything we desire requires some price be paid, whether it is at the cost of our time and energy, or a trade-off of something else in our lives. I have known several people, for instance, who had such a desire to accomplish something that the cost included the loss of relationships, or having to part with something else that was dear to them. In order to get one desired job, you often have to give up another, hopefully for better pay, working conditions, or some other benefits. Sometimes the cost is not just to ourselves, but to others as well, and sometimes the cost can be great and painful. In short, positive thinking can have negative consequences, if it's not applied carefully to well considered desires. One man I know almost destroyed his marriage and family by devoting all his time and energy to building a business and obtaining financial success. All the time he thought he was doing it for his family...until it was almost too late. I know another man who actually did lose his family seeking something else which turned out to be folly.
Positive thinking is a very powerful too, but like any tool which is abused or used in the wrong way, it can be dangerous and even deadly.
Be careful - truly - what you wish for and consider the price you're willing to pay for it. Also consider the possible unintended consequences.
