I read a 45 page book that was written in 1944 the other day. Actually, I read it twice.
It was a powerful book because power lies in saying as much as is required and no more. Here’s his warning about the ‘need for more’ or to ‘overexplain’ in the foreward of his 45 page book:
This book is concerned with the art of realizing your desire. It gives you an account of the mechanism used in the production of the visible world. It is a small book but not slight. There is a treasure in it, a clearly defined road to the realization of your dreams. Were it possible to carry conviction to another by means of reasoned arguments and detailed instances, this book would be many times its size.
It is seldom possible, however, to do so by means of written statements or arguments since to the suspended judgment it always seems plausible to say that the author was dishonest or deluded, and, therefore, his evidence was tainted. Consequently, I have purposely omitted all arguments and testimonials, and simply challenge the open-minded reader to practice the law of consciousness as revealed in this book. Personal success will prove far more convincing than all the books that could be written on the subject. — NEVILLE
Even in 1944, when they didn’t live in a world of nearly the ‘excess’ we live in today, he felt the need to explain why his book wasn’t 600 pages… Or 200.
Current culture is obsessed with saying ‘more’. Doing more. Explaining more. Having more.
There’s no power in defending your points to Kingdom come.
Power lies in saying what is required, not all that is possible.
If more people would ‘practice’ what is in a 45-page book, play with the ideas, remix and reinterpret the points to be even better, and stay committed to the material, they’d have more success.
Some people go to the gym for 9 days in a row and say, ‘This doesn’t work’.
No, it just didn’t work on that short of a timeline.
Stay with the great ideas for longer than the week it takes you to read the 300-page book, you just might start seeing results.
Unchecked consumption of anything will make you bloated and unable to act on anything.
Read 30 newsletters and you read 0.
Watch 30 lectures in a month and retain 0.
Speak 2000 words at halftime and the team remembers 0.
Speak 25 and they’ll remember them all.
Think about this part of the quote for some time today, not in terms of a book, but in your communication with players…
Were it possible to carry conviction to another by means of reasoned arguments and detailed instances, this book would be many times its size.