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Think and Grow Rich test: What habits in others annoy you the most?

November 28, 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 34. What habits in others annoy you the most?

I think the habit that annoys me most is when someone says that they’ll do something and then they never follow-up and do it.

I’d much rather someone told me no and stuck to it rather than telling me yes or maybe and then never doing whatever it is.

That really gets under my skin.

Another thing that bothers me is when people have an opinion about something, even though they have no experience with it.

Where does this come from?

What may bother me the most, however, may be people who are “smart asses” and cynics. Yes, I know these are two different things, but they’re related.

No matter how serious the conversation or circumstance, the smart ass has a way of deflecting everything without resolving anything. It’s easy, but what does it accomplish?

Sometimes it can lighten the mood if it’s humorous, but frequently, probably most of the time, it’s not funny, it’s just distracting and bothersome.

Cynics have convinced themselves that everything is a lie and nothing works as described – among other traits that they develop.

Frequently, a cynic will believe that he is a skeptic. There is a big difference.

Someone who is skeptical will generally not believe what they read or hear, but they usually have enough of an open mind to look into it a bit more before making their final decision.

Cynics, however, make their final decision based on something other than facts and experience and that bothers me.

I can deal with a skeptic, but I do my best to avoid cynics.

The final habit that really annoys me is the habit of lying.

This is related to the first one I mentioned, but I don’t think the people in that first group are actually meaning to lie. They just don’t follow-up. They get busy and distracted and go in another direction.

Liars, however, are never to be trusted. When I realize that someone is an habitual liar, I move them out of my life as quickly as possible. Who needs that?

What about you?

What habits in others annoy you the most?

All the best,

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

Comments

4 Comments on Think and Grow Rich test: What habits in others annoy you the most?

Mitch on Mon, 7th Dec 2009 12:32 am

I’ll go with you on the lying part, but I think the things that annoy me the most are disrespect, lack of honesty, and giving false hopes without really caring one way or another.

For instance, people write me all the time and ask me to give them proposals for projects. I send them, then never hear back. I think that’s disingenuous, but what can you do?

Disrespect comes in the form of setting time aside for someone and having them not show up or not call, which means they’ve wasted your time more than once.

I think honesty stands on its own terms.
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..A New Thing In Subscribing To Comments =-.

JD on Tue, 8th Dec 2009 5:41 am

Good morning, Mitch.

You bring up a great point about disrespect. I remember when I was a consultant and someone would want a proposal or would set a meeting to talk about something.

I’d spend time preparing and much of the time it would be for nothing.

Eventually, I learned how to qualify someone before I invested much time and energy.

Unless they were the decision maker, had available money or budget, and demonstrated a real interest in working with me, I would not take the appointment or send the proposal.

It may have cost me a gig here and there, but I believe it saved me much more time and energy to devote to better prospects.

I learned that anyone who would not show up for two meetings would be a pain to work for, anyway, so I chose to work with people who recognized and respected the fact that I was a wizard.

I hadn’t thought about that in a long time.

All the best,

Mitch on Tue, 8th Dec 2009 10:41 am

Hi John,

It’s hard to qualify someone when it’s an email request. I need to try to get phone numbers and hopefully talk to someone before I continue doing this type of thing, because you’re right, it is a waste of time, although I have to admit it’s not that big a waste of time because I just have to modify my template and move on. Let’s go with it being more frustrating than anything else.
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..Traffic And Buyers =-.

JD on Wed, 9th Dec 2009 1:33 am

Good morning, Mitch.

I can understand that. Back when I was consulting, in the dark ages before email, it was somewhat more involved and usually more expensive to prepare a response to someone’s inquiry.

I guess we can deal with frustrating, now and then.