When Henry ford decided to produce his famous v-8 motor, he chose to build an engine with the entire eight cylinders cast in one block, and instructed his engineers to produce a design in one for the engine. The design was placed on paper, but the engineers agreed, to a man, that it was simply impossible to cast an eight-cylinder engine-block in one piece.
Ford said, “Produce it anyway.”
“But,” they replied, “It’s impossible!”
“Go ahead.” Ford commanded, “And stay on the job until you succeed, no matter how much time is required.”
The engineers went ahead. There was nothing else for them to do, if they were to remain on the ford staff. Six months passed and nothing happened. Another six months passed, and still nothing happened. The engineers tried every conceivable plan to carry out the orders, but the thing seemed out of the question:“impossible!”
At the end of the year ford checked with his engineers, and again they informed him they had found no way to carry out his orders.
“go right head,” said ford, “I want it, and I’ll have it.”
They went ahead, and then, as if by a stroke of magic, the secret was discovered.
The ford determination had won once more!
This story may not be described with minute accuracy, but the sum and substance of it is correct. Deduce from it, you who wish to think and grow rich, the secret of the ford millions, if you can. You’ll not have to look very far.
Henry ford was successful, because he understood and applied the principles of success. One of these is desire: knowing out the lines in which the secret of his stupendous achievement have been described. If you can do this, if you can lay your finger on the particular group of principles which made Henry ford rich, you can equal his achievements in almost any calling for which you are suited.
亨利福特在要制造有名的v8汽缸引擎汽車時，曾指示他手下的工程師著手設計一種引擎，要把八個汽缸全放在一起。設計的紙上作業完成了，但是工程師們都異口同聲地跟福特說，“要把八個汽缸全放在一起，壓根是不可能。”
福特說：“無論如何都要做出來。”
他們又回答：“但是，那不可能啊！”
“動手做。”福特一聲令下， “不論花多少時間，做到交差為止！”
工程師只得著手去做。如果他們還想呆在福特的公司里討生活，就別無他途可行，值得去做。過了半年，沒有動靜。又過了半年，一樣沒有半點進展。工程師們試過了所有想得出來的計劃去執行命令，結果仍然是：“不可能！”
過了一年，福特的工程師們都沒有進展，他們再次告訴他，他們想不出有什么辦法可以做到的指示。
“繼續做，”福特說。“我要八汽缸引擎，就一定要做到！”
他們繼續努力，然后仿佛如有神助似的，做法出籠了。
福特的決心又打贏了一仗。
這個故事也許說的不夠詳盡，但是故事的內容卻都是“如假包換”的。要想致富的你，從這個故事可以推算出福特百萬家財的秘密何在。務須舍近求遠，就在眼前。
亨利福特了解成功的原則，也運用了這些原則，所以他成功了。這些原則中，有一項就是渴望：知道自己要做的是什么。閱讀這篇文章時，請牢記這則福特的故事，時時在字里行間尋找他了不起的原因。只要你能做到，能正確無誤地指認出福特所運用的原則，就幾乎可以在適合自己的任何行業里，和他一樣地出類拔萃。