Living Without Chaos

Starting on January 8, 2010, the 30 Days of Pelman begin. First of all, the entire set of lessons are at http://chaoscure.com/pelmanism. There is an overview of Pelman there but here’s a short sweet description of what it is all about. It’s about maximizing your mind and your energy and becoming the best you can be. The lessons were written in the early part of the 20th century and have a lot of dated references. For one thing, the focus is always on men as they were considered to be the ones who needed business sense and acumen. Another thing is that there is an assumption that education included Latin. And there are references to books that were the hot items at the time but are long since out of print.

I had thought of calling this something other than Pelman but that was the guy’s name and the least I can do is keep it — it’s his compilation of winning techniques. The following suggestions come from the introduction to Lesson 1. (I’ve changed them somewhat to make them sound more 21st century.)

If your time is limited, Pelmanize a little every day. Even if you only have five minutes, Pelmanize so you don’t make that common mistake of saying “Oh I am too busy now but I’ll make it up on the weekend.” The reality is, if you don’t have time now, when will you have time?

Realize that every distinctive achievement like a prosperous business, a remunerative invention, a fine poem, a beautiful picture, had its first origin in the mind. Develop your mind and better results are inevitable. Taking the time to improve your mind is not a selfish thing. You owe it to yourself and to your family.

A thoroughly trained and efficient mind is the only universal asset in the world. Even money cannot compete with it, and is powerless without it. Every country, every trade, every profession is eager to welcome and employ it. It is the key to success in life.

Unless you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, your brain is the only weapon with which you can hope to fight the battles of life, and the higher the state of efficiency to which you can bring it, the surer your success.

The struggle for wealth, and power, and fame is just as fierce today as the struggle for food, and clothing, and life, between primeval man and the brute creation thousands of years ago. The victory must still be won by the same old weapon. It is no longer a question of the swiftest arrow or the longest spear, but only and always of the more efficient brain.

Let’s make our brains as efficient as they can be.