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Think and Grow Rich test: Do you suffer from any of the six basic fears?

October 17, 2009 by JD
Filed under: Books, Self-Improvement, Success and Failure

My answers to the Think and Grow Rich Self-Assessment Test

Recently, I was reminded of the self-assessment test in Napoleon Hill’s best-selling book, Think and Grow Rich.

There are fifty-four questions in that test, and I’m going to be giving my answers and thoughts on one or two of them as close to daily as I can manage. I may miss a day here or there, but I’m going to follow through until I reach the end of the test.

I’ve started the series of posts with:

Think and Grow Rich self-assessment test

Question Number 23. Do you suffer from any of the six basic fears?

I guess the first place to start answering this question is to list the six basic fears according to Napoleon Hill in Think and Grow Rich.

Fear of Poverty
Fear of Old Age
Fear of Criticism
Fear of Loss of Love of Someone
Fear of Ill Health
Fear of Death

Now, you might think there are other basic fears or may want to discount these, but that’s not the point. These are the fears that Napoleon Hill identified and are part of this self-assessment test.

He spends some time talking about each of them and relating stories of how they sabotage our success, both in Law of Success and in Think and Grow Rich.

Let’s take them one at a time, briefly.

I’ll talk about how they affect me, but not go into the big discussion of what they mean and how Mr. Hill described them. If you want to know more, read the book.

Fear of Poverty

I have mixed feelings about this.

I’ve lived close to, or below, the poverty line for much of my life. Sometimes I was doing well and had all the money I wanted and other times I ate when I found money in the parking lot or one of my friends gave me food.

I’m not really afraid of poverty. I know how to deal with it.

But, on the other hand, I am definitely not a friend of poverty. Poverty and debt have destroyed the dreams and aspirations of millions of people and continues to do so, today.

I learned how to escape debt hell and that made a huge difference in my life.

I learned that stuff was much less important than freedom.

As Robert Kiyosaki advised in one of his Rich Dad, Poor Dad books, “First, learn to live within your means, and then increase your means.”

That’s awesome advice.

I can deal with poverty, but I don’t like it, and I’m working to leave it in the dust behind me.

Now that I have a new chief aim in life and a plan for achieving it, it’s just a matter of time, effort, and work to get there.

My parents had different views of poverty, and both of them lived through the Great Depression. Dad lived on a farm and knew they didn’t have any money, but they had all the food they needed and more work than they could handle. Mom lived in town and it was harder on them.

As a result, Mom became a packrat and never threw anything away that may one day be useful. Unfortunately, I’ve inherited that tendency and I’m working hard to overcome it.

There’s no reason to hang on to stuff “just in case” unless you are afraid that poverty is your lot in life. If a world of abundance, you’ll be able to get what you need in the future, so it’s much easier to declutter your life and not be weighed down by unnecessary and unwanted stuff.

So, do I suffer from the Fear of Poverty? Yes, I do, to some extent, but I’m getting better.

Fear of Old Age

In the past, just a generation or two ago, old age, for many people meant poverty, ill health, and imminent death.

Things are better for many of us and Social Security and Medicare have made a huge difference for many people who otherwise would have had a much different last few years of their lives.

I never feared old age, because I never expected to live past 30. Yet, here I am 27 years past that point and still putting one foot in front of the other, although much slower than I used to.

I’ve watched old age wear down strong and vital people and it is not a pretty sight. People lose their dignity and their zest for living when they are no longer able to do what they once did.

I don’t fear getting old, but I do fear being incapacitated and having to depend upon someone else to care for me. I really don’t want that to happen.

So, even if I don’t really fear old age, I’ve seen first-hand that there are real reasons to fear it. Some of our social nets have improved the situation as compared to 100 years ago, but they’re not perfect solutions for many old people.

Fear of Criticism

I don’t fear criticism. Sometimes, in fact, I thrive on it.

I don’t see the world as other people do and I question both authority and reality.

I don’t wish for criticism, but it mostly rolls off my back without much impact.

Fear of the Loss of Love of Someone

This can be a very painful experience, as you may already know. I’ve lost the love of both of the loves of my life, but, after moving through the pain, life goes on.

I haven’t seen one of them for over 25 years and don’t even know if she’s still alive. I see the other one at least a couple of times per month and we remain great friends.

But, I never feared the loss of their love. I’ve never been jealous and don’t understand it.

I’ve seen it have a powerful and debilitating effect on some of the people I know, however.

Fear of Ill Health

For most of my life, I was a strong and vital man, a small giant.

A few years ago, I was sick for a couple of weeks and I’ve never fully recovered. It has changed my life. Earlier this year, I was really sick, but I’m slowly recovering from that.

When I was younger, bending steel was a fun thing to do. These days, opening a can of home-canned soup can be a challenge.

I love blacksmithing, but I’m no longer strong enough to do it. Maybe one day, but not now.

Yet, even on my worst days, I can sit here in front of the computer, deal with email, and maybe even write something of value.

On better days, I can build sites, connect with friends around the world, and work to support myself.

I would not be able to do those things if I had to have a full-time job, pave roads, pour concrete, or smite metal, to use examples from the past of how I supported myself.

So, learning how to build a business on the Internet has given me the freedom to deal with ill health and survive – perhaps to prosper again, one day.

I don’t really fear ill health, but I do understand both the problems and the fears that are associated with it.

That’s one of the reasons I just don’t understand all the debates and vitriol surrounding the attempts to improve health care in the United States.

I have no health insurance and I just don’t go to a doctor, even when I’m sick. I either survive and get better, or I’ll die.

That wasn’t true in the past. For much of my life I had excellent health insurance. Oddly enough, it was when I was strong and healthy and didn’t really need it.

Life throws curves at you. Get used to it.

Maybe I’ll live long enough to take advantage of Medicare. Maybe I won’t.

Either way, I’m not going to succumb to the fear of ill health. I’m going to do everything I can on the days I feel strong enough to work.

Fear of Death

No, I’m not afraid of death or whatever may come afterwards.

I’ve studied various religions and philosophies over the decades and I’ve come to the conclusion that nobody knows what happens to us after we die.

Some people believe that one thing or another will happen, but they don’t know and they can’t offer demonstrative proof.

So, just like trying to understand UFOs, understanding what happens after death is largely wasted time and effort.

Now, I’m sure that you may have a very different view on this, and that’s great. Just don’t try to impose your views on me.

I don’t fear death and I don’t look forward to or fear what may come afterward. That’s an adventure that I’ll leave until later.

As someone I respect once said, “I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.”

In Summary

So, of all these basic fears, the only ones that really affect me are the fear of poverty, old age, and ill health, and I’m doing all I can to eliminate or at least reduce their effects on how I live my life.

There are other things I fear, but I try to keep them under control, too.

What about you?

Do you suffer from any of the six basic fears?

All the best,

Tags: Napoleon Hill, self-assessment, test, Think and Grow Rich

Comments

3 Comments on Think and Grow Rich test: Do you suffer from any of the six basic fears?

Mitch on Mon, 19th Oct 2009 8:36 pm

Hi John,

I stress over most of these, but the only one I fear is the last one. And I know that’s the only one I have absolutely no control over, which is why it’s the one I fear.

The rest of them,… well, I stress over them, but I know there’s things I can do to help alleviate them. Well, maybe not the old age thing, but I can at least try to stay as healthy as I can so I’m no feeble as I get older.
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..My Top 19 Favorite Classical Pieces =-.

JD on Wed, 28th Oct 2009 3:58 am