Earl Nightingale - The Strangest Secret: How to Live the Life You Desire

Earl Nightingale was a national treasure, plain and simple.

Before there was Dave Ramsey or Tony Robbins, there was Zig Ziglar. And before there was Zig Ziglar, there was Earl Nightingale. His influence as the grandfather of motivational speaking has had a powerful impact on everyone in the personal development space, and his words and teachings have touched more lives directly and indirectly than can be counted.

Im grateful to be listed in that number.

My parents first introduced me to Earls message in the 1970s. They were in the real estate business when I was a kid, and they would take me to motivational seminars. I would also listen to cassette recordings of incredible speakers like Earl. So I had already been exposed to The Strangest Secret by the time I was twelve years old.

Interestingly, that was also about the same time that I started my very first business, mowing lawns around my neighborhood. I dont know if Earl inspired my first taste of entrepreneurship as much as my dads insistence that I start earning my own money, but I wouldnt be surprised if his words had at least some impact.

As I grew, so did my appreciation for Earl. I remember getting the chance to hear him speak in that wonderful baritone voice at the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. That day, he shared the stage with some real legends: Paul Harvey, Zig and Judge Ziglar, Cavett Robert, and Charlie Tremendous Jones.

What an incredible lineup!

That day reinforced so much of what l had already learned from Earl, the kind of stuff youll learn from this book. As you read Earls words, youre going to discover what the strangest secret in life is all about. More important, youll realize why this has become the bestselling personal development talk in history.

And heres a spoiler alert: the strangest secret is you become what you think about.

Now, if youre reading this book, Im pretty sure I didnt spoil anything. You already knew that. But its important to remember exactly what Earl was teaching through this talk. In almost every generation, so many men and women just drift through life with no real purpose. And when that happens, the power of intentionalityreally paying attention to what fills our mindscan feel like a superpower.

Of course, people have tried to discredit Earls words by misusing them. Obviously, no ones going to become eight feet tall just because they wish it were true. And, unfortunately, I cant grow more hair on my bald head by thinking about it hard enough. But when it comes to being intentional about behavior, we absolutely become what we think about.

Heres an example I like to use: If youre married, you thought about courting and dating someone. In fact, you probably put a lot of energy into planning for it. You were intentional about working that plan, and it eventually paid off! Like any success, your marriage was the result of several intentional acts that consumed your very being for a period of time.

What you thought about became reality because you were intentional !

Henry Ford once said, If you think you can or think you cant, youre right. I love that quote. I believe that you can overcome adversity, temporary failure, enemies, and almost anything else if youre intentional about setting goals and willing to take the necessary steps to achieve them. But the decision to believe its possible is always up to you.

The classic story of Roger Banister is a great example of that.

By the 1940s, the world record for the fastest mile was set at 4:01. And thats pretty much where most people thought it would stay. In fact, one medical expert even said that if someone ran a mile in less than four minutes, his muscles would collapse, his heart would explode, and he would drop dead at the end of the race. Conventional wisdom said that humans had reached their physical limit.

And, since no one believed it could be done, no one did ituntil May 6, 1954. That was the day British runner Roger Banister ran a mile in 3:57, breaking the record that had stood as a barrier for nine years. He didnt explode. He didnt fall over. He didnt die at the finish line.

He also didnt hold the record very long. Another runner broke it forty-six days later!

You see, once people realized that the four-minute mile could be broken, they went about the business of breaking ita lot. From 1954 through 1960, the record for the mile fell twenty-two times. Today, even high schoolers at local track meets can run a four-minute mile.

Like so many situations in life, the problem wasnt in the runners legs: it was between their ears. They had to believe their goals were possible and act on that belief. As Earl said, the power of intentionality made all the difference.

When I was first starting out, I waited for someone to discover me. I was convinced that an appearance on a national television show or even the nightly news would create my breakthrough moment. Now, after working more than thirty years to become an overnight success, I realize that what Earl said so many times is absolutely true: success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal. The incremental, intentional steps we take create the thought patterns and momentum that push us forward in life.

Thats because we live in a sowing and reaping world. What you plant in your life is going to grow. Farmers dont plant corn and then stand back in shock when corn comes up! They understand cause and effect. They arent looking for soybeans because they know that whatever goes into the soil is whats coming out.

They also dont control the sun or the rain, but they do control the work they put in. Likewise, you cant control how God chooses to bless something, but you can control your effort and how you use what youve been given. Like I said, intentionality is important.

Earl liked to say that our minds and our lives are incredibly fertile. Unfortunately, we probably use less than 20 percent of our intellectual and emotional capacitiesand too often the part we do use is focused in the wrong direction. We get all twisted up and distracted because were human. Earl always encouraged folks to be incredibly intentional so they could be incredibly effective.