Power of the Will, or Success

Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. Without ignoring, or in any sense undervaluing, the numerous and interesting philosophical aspects of the subject now before us, I have dealt with the will in this book, from a purely practical point of view, as directly related to the everyday life of all sorts and conditions of men. I have endeavored to show that, by cultivating the will, strengthening it by constant and careful exercise, a man may attain the highest success in life that is possible to his natural ability, while, by neglecting to cultivate it, he will certainly fail to succeed at all. And I have also shown that the extent of the success or the failure is, in a very large degree, proportionate to the extent of such cultivation or neglect. It is true that a man may meet with what is called a stroke of luck; but it will surely be found that luck, as a rule, shows a marked preference for those who have duly cultured and restrained their mental and moral faculties.