Outwitting the Devil
Outwitting the Devil is a book that was written by Napoleon Hill and annotated by Sharon Lechter. It was originally written in 1938 by Hill, but was said[who?] to be too controversial to be published during that time period. It was released by Sterling Publishing in June, 2011.
The book is an interview between Hill (Mr. Earthbound) and The Devil (Your Majesty). Hill uncovers the secrets to freedom and success by evaluating the greatest obstacles that humans face in order to attain their personal goals in life.
Summary
During the book, (Mr. Earthbound) interrogates The Devil, Your Majesty, to find out how people limit their success and how The Devil achieves his manipulation.
Some of the topics that are discussed are:
- The difference between drifters and non-drifters
- Maintaining a definiteness of purpose
- Finding one’s other self
- Hill’s seven principles
- The law of hypnotic rhythm
History
Just after the release of Think and Grow Rich in 1937, Hill began writing Outwitting the Devil as an explanation of why some were still seeing failure after following all of the steps in Think and Grow Rich. His wife, Annie Lou, did not want the book published because of the role the Devil played in it. When Hill died in 1970, the manuscript went into the possession of Annie Lou, who died in 1984. After her death, the manuscript went into the hands of Dr. Charles Johnson, who was Annie Lou’s nephew and president of the Napoleon Hill Foundation. While Dr. Johnson believed the book’s message to be powerful, his wife, Frankie Johnson, shared Annie Lou’s feelings and told Dr. Johnson that she did not want the manuscript published while she was alive. After Frankie’s death, Dr. Johnson passed the manuscript to Don Green, CEO of the Napoleon Hill Foundation. Sharon Lechter was then asked to edit the manuscript, and after several years of annotations and reviews, it was released in June, 2011.
Bibliography
Outwitting the Devil: the Secret to Freedom and Success, by Napoleon Hill and Sharon L. Lechter. New York: Sterling Publishing, 2011. ISBN 1-4027-8453-8
References
- JM Emmert. Rich Man, Poor Man in SUCCESS, January 11, 2010.
- Douglas Paul Alp. Napoleon Hill - Outwitting the Devil on It's About Your Success, June 18, 2011.
- A Brief Essay by Dr. Hill About Life on The Napoleon Hill Foundation.
- Kimberley Mosher. Book Review: 'Outwitting the Devil', after over 70 years on TNGG // The Next Generation, June 18, 2011.
