The Magic Of Thinking Big

An activationist “takes action, gets things done, follows through on ideas and plans” (213). They decide they want to achieve something and set out at once to do so. Taking action also quells fear: Those who act deliberately despite their worries automatically focus on doing the thing, and the fears drop away. David Schwartz strongly recommends that readers become activationists; he contrasts activationists with “passivationists.” (See that definition below.)

Who we believe we are determines our outcomes. If we believe we’re a successful person, we’ll tend to be successful. If we believe we’re mediocre, or that life is too hard for real success, then we manifest those results. The most basic way to success, then, is to believe in one’s abilities. The process is simple: Believe that you are successful, and you’ll begin to be that way in real life. This is central to the book and its themes.

The mind is like a “broadcasting system” that “transmits messages […] on two equally powerful channels: Channel P (positive) and Channel N (negative)” (201). Each channel responds to prompts: If a person thinks a negative thought, Channel N will respond with lots of negative comments to back up that thought. If the person thinks positively, Channel P kicks in and delivers a slew of positive messages confirming the initial positive thought.