Round Pegs Square Holes with Russell Brunson

In 1908 Andrew Carnegie offered a broke young reporter a 20-year job with zero pay — and secretly timed his answer with a stopwatch. Over 60 seconds and the offer was gone. Napoleon Hill said yes in 29. Twenty years and 500 interviews later, that decision became Think and Grow Rich, the best-selling success book of all time.

Today I sit down with Napoleon himself (1883–1970). He answers only in his own published words: where success actually begins, the difference between wishing and a definite chief aim, the six steps that turn desire into money, why most affirmations never work (and the one ingredient that makes them work), the Master Mind — and the imaginary council he held every night for years, until it scared him into stopping.

I also show you the artifacts from my collection: a signed first edition of Think and Grow Rich, one of the first ads for the book, his cheques, his typewriter and his glasses.

Get a free physical copy of Think and Grow Rich (I wrote the foreword for this edition) plus two unpublished Napoleon Hill books — just cover shipping → https://TAGRsecrets.com

New here? Round Pegs Square Holes is a show where I interview the thinkers who shaped my life and are no longer here. Start here: Welcome to Round Pegs Square Holes

Napoleon's answers are his own published words, voiced with AI.

CHAPTERS

0:00 - The 29-second decision that created Think and Grow Rich

0:39 - Meet Napoleon Hill (1883–1970)1:11 - Three days with Andrew Carnegie

2:45 - Law of Success → Think and Grow Rich (signed first edition)

3:34 - Where success begins: thoughts are things

4:24 - Wishing vs. a definite chief aim

6:17 - How I became a state champ — and made $1M in a year

8:45 - The six steps that turn desire into money

9:44 - Bruce Lee's definite chief aim (1969)

11:04 - Auto-suggestion: the keystone chapter

12:28 - The exact nightly procedure

14:47 - Why most affirmations never work

16:46 - The Master Mind and the third mind

17:34 - Henry Ford in the courtroom

19:18 - The invisible counselors — the ritual that scared him

21:58 - Your homework: the statement + the self-confidence formula

23:46 - Artifacts: first ads, cheques, his typewriter, his glasses

25:26 - Free copy of Think and Grow Rich → TAGRsecrets.com

WHO IS NAPOLEON HILL?

Napoleon Hill (1883 – 1970) was an American author and a founding voice of the personal-success genre. Born in a one-room cabin in Wise County, Virginia, he started writing at 13 as a "mountain reporter" for small-town newspapers. In 1908 steel magnate Andrew Carnegie challenged him to organize the world's first philosophy of personal achievement, a study of America's most successful men that took him 20 years. He published The Law of Success in 1928 and, in 1937, distilled it into Think and Grow Rich, one of the best-selling self-help books of all time and the book that shaped generations of success teachers, from Earl Nightingale to his longtime associate W. Clement Stone. He passed away in November 1970.

WHO IS RUSSELL BRUNSON?

Over 20+ years Russell Brunson has built a following of over a million entrepreneurs, sold hundreds of thousands of copies of his books — DotCom Secrets, Expert Secrets and Traffic Secrets — and popularized the sales funnel. He is the co-founder of ClickFunnels. As of 2026 his training and software have helped over 2,925 people into the Two Comma Club.

#NapoleonHill #ThinkAndGrowRich #RoundPegsSquareHoles

Welcome to Round Pegs Square Holes — a new podcast and YouTube channel by Russell Brunson.

A couple of years ago, Russell started collecting old books, and one author's message changed his life. Napoleon Hill wrote about his "invisible council" — the people he most respected, no longer alive, whom he'd sit with in his mind and ask questions.

This show is Russell's version of that: Russell sits down with one of the greatest minds of all time, and every guest answers only with words they actually wrote or said. He also delves into their backstories with documentaries, researchers and more.

This video is the why behind the show entire channel.

New Episode Every Week

JOIN THE COMMUNITY

https://www.secretsofsuccess.com/roundpegs

WATCH THE FIRST EPISODE with Earl Nightingale

Interviewing Earl Nightingale of "The Strangest Secret"

CHAPTERS

0:00 - Why I built this show

0:20 - Napoleon Hill's invisible council

0:57 - "Unfortunately, they're not here"

1:04 - The idea: interview them anyway

1:24 - The rule: only their actual words

1:50 - Why this matters to you

2:13 - Who the round pegs are

2:27 - Here's to the crazy ones

WHO IS RUSSELL BRUNSON?

Russell Brunson is a collector of old books and a student of the thinkers who wrote them — the "round pegs in the square holes" who shaped how we think about success. Over the past 20+ years he has built a following of over a million entrepreneurs, sold hundreds of thousands of copies of his books (DotCom Secrets, Expert Secrets and Traffic Secrets), co-founded ClickFunnels and popularized the sales funnel. As of 2026 his training and software have helped over 2,925 people into the Two Comma Club. Round Pegs Square Holes is where you discover his invisible council: the stories of the greatest minds in history, in their own words.

CONNECT WITH RUSSELL:

🌎 Website - ⁠https://www.russellbrunson.com/home-page⁠

𝕏 Twitter/X - ⁠https://www.twitter.com/russellbrunson⁠

📸 Instagram - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/russellbrunson⁠

📱 TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@russellbrunson⁠

👔 LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/russellbrunson⁠

📘 Facebook - ⁠https://www.facebook.com/russellbrunsonLIVE

#RoundPegsSquareHoles #RussellBrunson #NapoleonHill