W. Clement Stone

W. Clement Stone wrote several books about success and positive thinking during his lifetime. A prominent businessman, he worked since early childhood. His first job as a newsboy, even though he was only six years old at the time, helped him discover the value of positivity in making a sale.

Then, he started his insurance sales business with just $100 at age 19. With his unique ingenuity and winning attitude, Stone turned that small figure into millions of dollars. He made waves in another way when his multimillion-dollar contributions to the Richard Nixon presidential campaign came up in debates about excessive campaign spending.

Stone’s collaboration with Napoleon Hill on “Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude” is arguably his most notable writing. He died in 2002 after living to 100 years old. Though he spent a few years in Detroit, Michigan, as a young man, he lived in and around Chicago, Illinois, for most of his life.