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A Lesson Learned, Finally

From left to right: Dr. Dennis P. Kimbro, Curlie McCalla, C. Carol Brown (me), Dr. Vibe

 

Recently, I was fortunate enough to meet Dr. Dennis P. Kimbro, author of Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice. What amazed me about him was his humility, his warmth, approachability and his total lack of ego. Let me paint you a picture of this amazing man.  

He received his B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Oklahoma, and a doctorate from Northwestern University where he studied wealth and poverty among underdeveloped countries. He is a tireless educator, author, and B-school professor and is universally characterized as one of the most insightful and scholarly writers in the field today. 

Dr. Kimbro studied the methodology of Napoleon Hill, author of the phenomenal best seller Think and Grow Rich. Using Think and Grow Rich as a reference, Dr. Kimbro decided to do what Hill had done in the 1930’s. He developed a survey to use among peak performing Black Americans. Two years later, he learned from the foundation bearing Hill’s name that, Hill himself, had drafted a book in 1970 that explored the identical question. Moreover, Hill had written nearly one hundred pages on the subject, which turned out to be his last. After a personal meeting with W. Clement Stone, president of the Napoleon Hill Foundation, Dr. Kimbro was commissioned to update and complete Hill’s original manuscript. Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice, the results of Dr. Kimbro’s and Hill’s efforts, distills the secrets of success contained in the lives of peak performing men and women, and reveals how readers can utilize these keys to make their dreams come true. 

I first read Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice in 1998 when I lived in Vancouver. I was amazed at the concept of using my mind to control everything in my life, especially my finances. Unfortunately, like most people, I was too deeply embroiled in life’s daily drudgery to truly embrace these  ideas and use them to change. Over the next few years, I reread Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice four times–each time finding something new in the book that I could apply to my life but didn’t.  It wasn’t until 2006 when  a friend suggested I watch The Secret that Dr. Kimbro’s book and its connection to the Law of Attraction finally click in my head and I started to use those principles to change my life. 

And then I met Dr. Kimbro in person and my life changed again. He had just walked into the room where he was to give his address and before he even had his coat off, I was standing in front of him introducing myself and asking him to be my mentor. Without skipping a beat, he agreed to mentor me and then asked me a series of questions about what I wanted and why I wanted it.  His questions helped me to formulated what I wanted to do with my life–something that I thought I was unclear about–but when I started to tell him, it came out of my mouth as if a well rehearsed speech. Before he gave his address, he ensured that we exchanged contact information and hugged me with the warmth and familiarity of a dear friend. 

Fortunately I am a believer in life-long learning. Dr. Kimbro taught me a number of things that night. I learned not to be average. I learned that I’m too sharp to fail. I learned that I really do have the power to change my reality just by the thoughts that I hold in my mind. I learned to ask for what I want and more times than not, I get it, so I’m careful to only ask for things that are going to make me happy, healthy and wealthy. I learned that things happen the way they are supposed to whether you worry about them or not, so why worry. I learned to be humble and to not let my ego get in the way of good relationships or happiness.  And the most important thing I learned from Dr. Kimbro is that life is too short not to pursue your dreams. 

Since Dr. Kimbro has come into my life, I’ve reread Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice (the fifth time really is a charm!) and I’m following the road map. I’m focused on being happier and I worry a whole lot less. But most of all I’m focused on my dreams and every day I’m taking steps towards seeing them come true.  

My mentor is teaching me to be the best me I can be. I think I’m ready to learn that lesson, finally .

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