Thoughts are things. What you think, you become.

Psychologists have discovered that humans have around 6,000 thoughts every day. Some are conscious thoughts, while others are unconscious.

Our thoughts determine our characters. If we think good thoughts, we become good. If we think bad thoughts, we become bad.

As a Man Thinketh by James Allen is one of the first books I ever read. It was about 4 years ago that I picked up this book. Although I had read the book rather quickly at the time, I did remember reading about the importance of thoughts and how it impacts our external circumstances.

I recently discovered this book lying around on my shelf. I had even forgotten that I had it. So I picked it up again and read it. It is a very small book. You can read it in about an hour’s time.

As a Man Thinketh

Bob Proctor, who is one of the most renowned motivational speakers on the law of attraction, lists this book as one of the top three best books ever written on the topic.

James Allen, the author of As a Man Thinketh, has kept this book really simple. This book is less than a hundred pages and the language is also simple and understandable.

The basic idea of this book revolves around the fact that your actions are the results of your thoughts. You become what you constantly think about. Your circumstances are also the outcome of your thoughts.

Main Lessons

Here are a few main points that you can learn in the book:

• Every man has the power to live the life he desires.
• Your thoughts are the most powerful tool that drives you to achieve the life of your dreams.
• Your external circumstances are the results of your character and thoughts.
• Thoughts are like seeds that produce fruits. Good thoughts bear good fruits. Bad thoughts, bad fruits.
• You don’t attract what you want, you attract what you are.
• Thoughts affect your health. Strong, pure, and happy thoughts lead to good health. Impure thoughts attract disease and illness.
• Have a definite purpose of achievement and then make this purpose the centralizing point of your thoughts.
• Dreams are the seedlings of realities. Cherish your visions and soon you will realize them.
• Remain calm and patient to see your thoughts turn into reality.

Are THOUGHTS Enough?

If we look at it from a real-life perspective, we do find that our outcomes are formed by our thoughts, whether knowingly or unknowingly.

For example, whenever you think that your day is going to go bad or that something bad is likely to happen to you, chances are it will happen to you.

Allen, in his book, has focused primarily on THOUGHTS. Everything he has stated in this book is pointing towards the same thing – THOUGHTS.

Although the author did try to keep things simple and to the point, I feel that there is more to it than just focusing on our thoughts.

Definite purpose, desire, faith, and persistence are some of the things that are essential along with thoughts.

What THOUGHTS Really Are?

After reading the book, we become pretty certain that thoughts make things happen and they drive our entire life for us.

What actually are THOUGHTS? They are basically the path to achieving our desires.

So before you start thinking all the positive and pure thoughts as recommended in this book, you must be certain about what it is that you truly desire – whether it is money, fame, success, good health, or good relationships.

Once you are certain about your desires, you can make it your primary focus to think positive and pure thoughts about them. Think as if you are already in possession of your desires. Feel good about having achieved your desires, even though you have not achieved them in reality. Have faith in yourself.

The law of the universe works in such a way that once you put your thoughts and feelings in alignment with your desires, they will come to reality.

Thoughts and Purpose

Allen does talk about thoughts and purpose in his book. He says, “Until thought is linked with purpose, there is no intelligent accomplishment.”

He also talks about being persistent. Even if a man fails to accomplish his purpose, he will gain the strength of character, which is also a measure of his success. This will make him more experienced in his future endeavors.

Allen points out further that doubt and fear must be excluded in the process of accomplishing one’s purpose because they lead to failure.

“Thought allied fearlessly to purpose becomes creative force.”

Final Thought

As a Man Thinketh is indeed a must-read book. It gives you a primary idea of the power of our thoughts. We might not be able to control our external circumstances directly, but what we can do is that we can control our thoughts and emotions. And, as a result of these thoughts and emotions, the external circumstances will shape up accordingly.

The accomplishment of money, success, good health, and relationships are all possible by using the power of thoughts. Mix your thoughts with definiteness of purpose, faith, and persistence, and the accomplishment is certain. Indeed;

“You are what you think.”