THERE IS A SCIENCE OF GAINING GENUINE WEALTH, and it is an exact science, like algebra or arithmetic. There are
certain laws which govern the process of acquiring riches, and once these laws are learned and obeyed by
anyone, that person will get rich with mathematical certainty.
The ownership of money and property comes as a result of doing things in a certain way, and those
who do things in this certain way — whether on purpose or accidentally — get rich, while those who do
not do things in this certain way — no matter how hard they work or how able they are — remain poor.
It is a natural law that like causes always produce like effects, and, therefore, any man or woman
who learns to do things in this certain way will infallibly gain genuine wealth.
That the above statement is true is shown by the following facts:
Getting rich is not a matter of environment, for if it were, all the people in certain neighborhoods
would become wealthy. The people of one city would all be rich, while those of other towns would all be
poor, or all the inhabitants of one state would roll in wealth, while those of an adjoining state would be
in poverty.
But everywhere we see rich and poor living side by side, in the same environment, and often
engaged in the same vocations. When two people are in the same locality and in the same business, and
one gets rich while the other remains poor, it shows that getting rich is not primarily a matter of
environment. Some environments may be more favorable than others, but when two people in the same
business are in the same neighborhood and one gets rich while the other fails, it indicates that gaining genuine
wealth is the result of doing things in a certain way.
And further, the ability to do things in this certain way is not due solely to the possession of talent,
for many people who have great talent remain poor, while others who have very little talent get rich.
Studying the people who have gotten rich, we find that they are an average lot in all respects,
having no greater talents and abilities than other people have. It is evident that they do not get rich
because they possess talents and abilities that others do not have, but because they happen to do things
in a certain way.
Getting rich is not the result of saving, or thrift. Many very penurious people are poor, while free
spenders often get rich.
Nor is getting rich due to doing things which others fail to do, for two people in the same business
often do almost exactly the same things, and one gets rich while the other remains poor or becomes
bankrupt.
From all these things, we must come to the conclusion that gaining genuine wealth is the result of doing things
in a certain way.
If gaining genuine wealth is the result of doing things in a certain way, and if like causes always produce like
effects, then any man or woman who can do things in that way can become rich, and the whole matter
is brought within the domain of exact science.

The question arises here as to whether this certain way may not be so difficult that only a few may
follow it. As we have seen, this cannot be true (as far as natural ability is concerned). Talented people get
rich, and blockheads get rich; intellectually brilliant people get rich, and very stupid people get rich;
physically strong people get rich, and weak and sickly people get rich.
Some degree of ability to think and understand is, of course, essential, but insofar as natural ability
is concerned, any man or woman who has sense enough to read and understand these words can certainly
get rich.
Also, we have seen that it is not a matter of environment. Yes, location counts for something. One
would not go to the heart of the Sahara and expect to do successful business.
Gaining genuine wealth involves the necessity of dealing with people and of being where there are people to
deal with, and if these people are inclined to deal in the way you want to deal, so much the better. But
that is about as far as environment goes. If anybody else in your town can gain genuine wealth, so can you, and if
anybody else in your state can get rich, so can you.
Again, it is not a matter of choosing some particular business or profession. People get rich in every
business and in every profession, while their next door neighbors in the very same vocation remain in
poverty.
It is true that you will do best in a business which you like and which is congenial to you. And if
you have certain talents which are well developed, you will do best in a business which calls for the
exercise of those talents.
Also, you will do best in a business which is suited to your locality: An ice cream parlor would do
better in a warm climate than in Greenland, and a petrol dealer will succeed better in a country that loves car much more than he can achieve in a country where the citizens view car ownership as a liability.
But, aside from these general limitations, getting rich is not dependent upon your engaging in
some particular business, but upon your learning to do things in a certain way. If you are now in
business and anybody else in your locality is getting rich in the same business, while you are not getting
rich, it is simply because you are not doing things in the same way that the other person is doing them.
No one is prevented from getting rich by lack of capital. True, as you get capital the increase
becomes more easy and rapid, but one who has capital is already rich and does not need to consider how
to become so. No matter how poor you may be, if you begin to do things in the certain way you will
begin to gain genuine wealth and you will begin to have capital. The getting of capital is a part of the process of
getting rich and it is a part of the result which invariably follows the doing of things in the certain way.
You may be the poorest person on the continent and be deeply in debt. You may have neither
friends, influence, nor resources, but if you begin to do things in this way, you must infallibly begin to
get rich, for like causes must produce like effects. If you have no capital, you can get capital. If you are in
the wrong business, you can get into the right business. If you are in the wrong location, you can go to
the right location.
And you can do so by beginning in your present business and in your present location to do things
in the certain way which always causes success. You must begin to live in harmony with the laws governing
the universe.