Outwitting the Devil Chapter 2 Questions

Question 1:
"The 'other self' follows no precedents, recognizes no limitations, and always finds a way to accomplish desired ends!
It may meet with temporary defeat, but not with permanent
failure."

Do you believe that we sometimes allow what could be a temporary defeat become a permanent one? Does making a temporary defeat permanent cause us to lose opportunities in life?

Question 2:.
"I have also discovered that there comes with every experience of temporary defeat, and every failure and every form of
adversity, the seed of an equivalent benefit.

Mind you, I did not say the full-blown flower of success,
but the seed from which that flower may be made to germinate and grow. I know of no exception to this rule. The seed of
which I speak may not always be observed, but you may be sure
it is there, in one form or another."

What does this quote mean to you? Do you believe that sometimes the seed of benefit is overlooked by cynical people or people who have fear on their throne? Do you think subjectivity plays a role in whether we see the seed of benefit or not?

Question 3:
"My experience with prayer has taught me that so often all which
results from prayer is a plan (if the prayer is answered at all),
a plan that is suited for the attainment of the object of the
prayer through natural and material media. The plan must be
transmuted, through self-effort action."

Do you think that thoughts or plans that appear in our minds may actually be answers to desires or prayers we have been dwelling on? Are we responsible for making those answered prayers and desires manifest in reality through doing our part and acting on these plans? Is this the same idea as "God helps those who help themselves"?

Question 4:

"I was astounded, when I first tried this plan of offering a prayer of thanks for what I already possessed, to discover what a vast fortune I had owned without being appreciative of it.

For example, I discovered that I possessed a sound body
which had never been seriously damaged by illness. I had a
mind which was reasonably well balanced. I had a creative
imagination through which I could render useful service to
great numbers of people. I was blessed with all the freedom I
desired, in both body and mind. I possessed an imperishable
desire to help others who were less fortunate."

Do we sometimes take for granted all that we have accomplished or all of our intangible assets? Are we sometimes blinded to things that have gone well in our life when fear takes the throne? Why do you think fear and negative emotions blind us to the things we should be grateful for?

Question 5:
"If Edison had stopped by merely wishing for the secret
with which electric energy might be harnessed and made to
serve through the incandescent lamp, that convenience to
civilization would have remained among nature's multifarious
secrets. He met with temporary defeat more than 10,000 times
before wresting this secret from nature. It was finally yielded
up to him because he believed it would be, and he kept on
trying until he had the answer."

Why do we wish more often than we believe? Do you think that if you were Edison's friend back then and didn't know that he would eventually succeed, after over ten thousand time of failing, would you tell him to quit after failing a thousand times? A hundred times? Ten times? Three times? Why do we prefer to quit than to continue trying?

Question 6:
"The state of mind known as faith apparently opens to one
the medium of a sixth sense through which one may communicate with sources of power and information far surpassing any available through the five physical senses. There comes to your aid, and to do your bidding, with the development of the sixth sense, a strange power which, let us assume, is a guardian angel who can open to you at all times the door to the Temple
of Wisdom. The "sixth sense" comes as near to being a miracle
as anything I have ever experienced, and it appears so perhaps
because I do not understand the method by which this principle is operated."

The sixth sense Napoleon talks about is called the collective unconscious by our government research scientists, God or spirit by the spiritual, and the subconscious mind by psychologists - have you ever experienced a gut feeling or thought that either warned you of danger or gave you a good idea that benefited you? Do you think it'd be easier to access this positive energy with faith on the throne?

Question 7:
"((P + T) x A x A) + F = Your Personal Success Equation

Combining your Passion with your Talent and then
seeking the right Association and taking the right Action are
very important components for Success . . . but it is when
you combine all those components with a strong Faith in
yourself and your mission that you truly have Your Personal
Success Equation."

Why do you think faith is so important in this personal success formula?