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There's a lot of things that can wreck your chances to do well. We live in a rather dangerous world, so you got to be not only wise, you got to be careful. And attitude diseases are deadly. I mean, they'll destroy all the good things you start. So we'll go through those attitude diseases, how to spot them, how to look for them, what they are, and the cure. And I'm a pro on these because I've had them all. So I can give you excellent advice
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on these if you keep repeating the same life, same excuses, same results. Understand this clearly. It's not your situation, it's your system. And right now your system is broken. Listen carefully, because what you're about to hear might be the reason you've been stuck this whole time. And if it hits, you fix it using the link in the description.
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Here's the list. Attitude diseases. Number one is indifference. The shrug of the shoulder. The guy's not even concerned. He's just drifting. There's one problem with drift. You cannot drift to the top of the mountain. The guy says, well, I can't see getting all that worked up. Well, to be any kind of winner, you gotta get worked up. Here's the key to the good life. Learn to put everything you've got into everything you do. Whatever you are doing, pour it on. It will quickly open up into opportunity or quickly disclose to you that you ought to be doing something else. The delusion is, if I had a better job, I'd really pour it on. See, that's delusion. Wherever you are, pour it on. See, that'll help change your life. Get rid of this disease. Here's the next attitude disease. Indecision. Mental paralysis. The guy can't make up his mind and it becomes a disease. Pretty soon he knows he's got it. The guy says, well, I know I'm on the fence, but he says, what if I get off on the wrong side? Listen, after a while, it doesn't matter. Just get off. Any side will do. Here's the best way to live, one way or the other. That's best. Pick a direction and go with everything you got. Just pick one and go. Somebody says, yeah, but what if it's the wrong direction? You'll find out quicker. A life full of adventure is a life full of many decisions. The ones that turn out to be wrong give you better experience to make better decisions. So don't see how many decisions you can get out of. See how many you can get into. That's where the adventure is. So shake off this Disease, indecision. The next one is doubt. Doubts like a plague. And one of the worst is self doubt. There are many, but that's one of the worst. The guy doubts himself. Doubts if it'll last that long for him. Doubts if he can do that well. Doubts if he can make that much. Doubts if he can accomplish all that. A chronic excellent self doubter. You can imagine what damage that does to your future. So here's the key. Turn this coin over and become a believer. And there's many things to believe in. One of the majors is yourself. The understanding of self worth is the beginning of progress. Now, if those three don't get you, this one will. Worry. That's a devastating disease. Worry. Worry causes health problems, social problems, personal problems, family problems. It's devastating. Worry long enough, it'll drop you to your knees. Could reduce you to begging. I know how bad this one is. I used to have it bad. I used to be known as a super worrier. Not a super warrior. No, super warrior. My family wished I'd have been a warrior. I got those years to make up for. But I'll tell you what, my advice to you is, do what I finally did on worry. Give it up. Who needs it? I'm not saying it's easy. I'm saying it's worth. Took me almost one year to kick the worry habit. And it was not an easy year. It was one of the toughest years I ever spent. But I finally got that monkey off my back and I discovered you could live the most incredible life free of worry, not free of challenge, not free of difficulty, free of worry. I learned how to do it. And you. Here's the next attitude disease over caution. Some people never will have much. They're too cautious. Now, you can also be too reckless, but you can also be too cautious. This is called the timid approach to life. And my caution was always the risk. Risk used to drive me right up the wal. I used to say, what if this happens? It's called the language of the poor. What if this happens? And on top of that, if this was to happen, look at the fix I'd be in. I better not try. I could always ace myself out. Then I'll tell you what changed my whole life. When I finally discovered it's all risky. The minute you were born, it got risky. If you think trying is risky, wait till they hand you the bill for not trying. If you think investing is risky, wait till you get the tab for not investing. See, it's all risky. Getting married is risky. Having Children is risky. Going into business is risky. Investing your money is risky. It's all risky. I'll tell you how risky life is. You're not going to get out alive. That's risky. The Englishman says, well, if that's the way it's going to work out, let's give it a go, right? That's what it's for, give it a go. Somebody says, yeah, but I'm looking for safety and security. Fine, then huddle in a corner. We'll cover you with a sheet, bring you three meals a day, and we'll protect you, feed you, look after you, care for you. We won't let anything happen to you, and you'll probably live to be 100. The guy said, well, yeah, I'd live to be 100, but what a way to live, right? What a way to live. Safe and secure. Don't ask for security, ask for adv. Adventure. Better to live 30 years full of adventure than a hundred years safe in the corner. Here's the next attitude disease. We're almost through with this motley list. In fact, we're almost through. Hang on. The next one is pessimism. Pessimism, the deadly disease of always looking on the bad side, the problem side, the difficult side, checking all the reasons why it can't be done. The poor pessimist leads an ugly life. He doesn't try to figure out what's right, he tries to figure out what's wrong. He doesn't look for virtue, he looks for faults. And when he finds them, he's delighted. How ugly this is. The poor guy looks through the window, doesn't see the sunset. He sees the specks on the window. And this is the poor guy, right, who rushes up, takes such leave of his senses. This guy rushes up and he says, I've got five good reasons why it won't work. He's so dumb, he doesn't know all, he needs one. He's got five. To the pessimist, the glass is always half empty. To the optimist, the glass is half full. Why would the same measure affect people two different ways? Answer. It all depends on how you look at it. Our lives are mostly affected by the way we think things are, not the way they are. The way we think they are affects us most. There's a subject we don't have time to get into tonight called better thinking habits. One of the major things Shoaff taught me when I met him, he said, poor thinking habits keeps most people poor, not poor working habits. Most people work hard, but they don't think hard. And Shof taught me that the mind is like a factory, a mental factory. And whatever you think about all day long pours ingredients into this mental factory. And that's what builds the economic, social, financial fabric of your life. As you think so, you become. How awesome. When he talked about poor thinking habits, he had me. I used to start the day reading the morning newspaper. I mean, you can believe that or not. I'd get a cup of coffee and read the paper. I'd load up on wars and riots and murders and stabbings and killings and bank robberies and muggings and car wrecks and tragedies. I'd even read the back pages. I seemed to like that stuff for some weird reason. I'd load up on all that and then I'd start the day. You can imagine the kind of days I used to have you walk around on your financial knees. They call you economic peewee. The guy says, I want to be a great leader. Wonderful. The first thing we do is follow him to his house. When we get there, we walk in and check his library. Number one. Somebody says, well, why check his library? The reason is because what a man reads pours massive ingredients into his mental factory. And the fabric of his life is built from those ingredients. You would not believe what such some people have got in their house to read. You would not believe one of the best dressed up words I know for a lot of it is trash. Can you imagine dumping a barrel of trash into this mental factory every day and coming out with a rich, dynamic, positive life? It can't be done. You might as well try making a cake with cement. The kids back in Danbury, Connecticut, high school, they're asking me questions. One day, talking to the kids. Kids got good questions these days. One of them said to me, Mr. Own, how do you build the good life? I said, it's simple. It's not easy, but it's simple. Here's how you build anything. Select the right ingredients, keep out the wrong ingredients. And it starts with thought. Everything starts with thought. So you must be wise and careful what you think about, because that starts everything. I asked the kids what would happen if somebody dropped sugar in my coffee. They said, well, you'd be okay. I said, what if somebody dropped strychnine in my coffee? They said, well, you'd be dead. I said, correct. Lesson one, life is both sugar and strychnine. You gotta be careful. I said, what if my worst enemy drops in the sugar? They said, will you be okay? I said, what if My best friend, even by accident, drops in the strychnine. They said, well, you'd be dead. I said, correct. Lesson two, watch your coffee. You gotta be careful, see? It doesn't matter who hands you the bad stuff. It doesn't matter where you get the bad stuff. It'll still do its damage on your bank account, wherever you get it. Mr. Shelf gave me one of the greatest phrases when I first met him when he said, jim, every day, stand guard at the door of your mind. How important. Stand guard at the door of your mind and you decide what goes into your mental factory. Don't let anybody just dump anything they want to in your mental factory because you've got to live with the results. Okay, here's the last disease, and we're through with this list. The last subject is very brief, the last disease, but this one is deadly. Engage in this one, indulge in it even slightly, and you might as well forget the future because it's going to forget you. Complaining, crying, whining, griping, a Bible word called murmuring. See, that'll ace your future. Spend five minutes complaining and you have wasted five. And you may have begun what's known as economic cancer of the bone. Surely they will soon haul you off into a financial desert and there let you choke on the dust of your own regret. I hope I said that well so you won't forget. It's a deadly disease. Just be on the lookout of the things that can destroy all the good you start. The war is on. And this evening, tomorrow, mentally, personally, socially, economically, you gotta make sure you're winning the war. And this is part of it.
Title: Why You’re Still Broke – The 7 Deadly Attitude Diseases
Host: Jim Rohn
Date: April 13, 2026
In this motivational episode, Jim Rohn explores the "7 Deadly Attitude Diseases"—damaging mental habits that sabotage personal success and keep you stuck. With his signature blend of practical wisdom and wry humor, Jim outlines each “disease,” provides vivid examples, and offers actionable cures. The episode is focused on personal growth, highlighting the power of mindset as the foundation for systemic change.
Symptoms: Expecting the worst, looking for problems.
Danger: Focuses on faults instead of opportunities, perpetuates misery.
Cure: Develop better thinking habits—guard your thoughts and what you feed your mind.
Notable Quotes & Moments:
Jim Rohn [09:15]: “The poor pessimist leads an ugly life. He doesn’t try to figure out what’s right, he tries to figure out what’s wrong.”
Jim Rohn [10:22]: “As you think so, you become. How awesome.”
Jim Rohn [11:08]: “Can you imagine dumping a barrel of trash into this mental factory every day and coming out with a rich, dynamic, positive life? It can’t be done. You might as well try making a cake with cement.”
Anecdote: On the importance of selective reading, citing his own past habit of starting the day with negative news.
Vivid Analogy:
Jim Rohn [11:35]: "Life is both sugar and strychnine. You gotta be careful... Lesson two, watch your coffee. You gotta be careful, see? It doesn’t matter who hands you the bad stuff. It doesn’t matter where you get the bad stuff. It’ll still do its damage."
Greatest Lesson from Mr. Shoaff:
Jim Rohn [12:15]: “Every day, stand guard at the door of your mind. How important. Stand guard at the door of your mind and you decide what goes into your mental factory.”
On Indifference:
“You cannot drift to the top of the mountain.” [00:51]
On Decision-making:
"Don’t see how many decisions you can get out of. See how many you can get into. That’s where the adventure is." [02:58]
On Risk:
"If you think trying is risky, wait till they hand you the bill for not trying." [06:42]
On Complaining:
"Spend five minutes complaining and you have wasted five... you may have begun what’s known as economic cancer of the bone." [13:00]
Wisdom from a Mentor:
"Every day, stand guard at the door of your mind." [12:15]
Jim Rohn’s passionate message is that success and fulfillment start with rooting out self-sabotaging attitudes. By recognizing and curing these “deadly diseases,” you lay the foundation for real growth. The episode offers actionable advice, memorable analogies, and a call to become vigilant gatekeepers of your own mindset.
"Just be on the lookout for the things that can destroy all the good you start. The war is on... And this is part of it." —Jim Rohn [13:35]
This summary distills the core ideas, stories, and motivational philosophy of one of Jim Rohn’s classic teachings—serving as a practical guide for anyone looking to shift their mindset and unlock their potential.