Here’s an interesting quote by William Walker Atkinson:
“We wonder at the achievements of the great men in all walks of life, and we are apt to excuse ourselves by the sad remark that these people seem to “have it in them,” while we have not.
Nonsense, we all have it in us to do things a hundred times greater than we are doing. The trouble is not in greater than we are doing. The trouble is not in the lack of power and mental material, but in the Desire and Interest, and Incentive to arouse into activity those wonderful storehouses of dynamic power within our mentality – we fail to call into our disposal, and which is like all other natural powers and forces eager and anxious to be manifested and expressed.
Yes, that’s what we said “anxious and eager,” for all natural forces, penned up and in a static condition seem to be bursting with desire to manifest and express into outer dynamic activity. This seems to be a law of life and nature. Nature and all in it seems to be eager for active expression. Have you not been surprised at yourselves at times, when under some slightly higher pressure and incentive Something Within you seemed to break its bounds and fairly carry you off of your feet in its rush into active work? Have you not accomplished tasks under the stress of a sudden urgent need, that you would have deemed impossible in cold-blood. Have you not carried all before you when you “warmed-up” to the task, whereas your ordinary self would have stood around doing nothing under ordinary circumstances.
Earnestness and Enthusiasm are two great factors in bringing into operation these latent forces, and dormant powers of the mentality. But one need not stand by and wait until you work yourself into a fit of fervor before the energies spring into action. You can by a careful training of the Will – or rather, by a carefully training of yourself use you Will – manage to get hold of the mental throttle, so that you may pull it down and turn on a full head of steam whenever necessary.
And when you have once mastered this, you will find that you are not any more tired when running under full pressure, than when you are crawling along – this being one of the Secrets of Success.”
