19th May, 2022
More than 100 years ago, a young man, the son of a Midwestern college president & preacher was flailing around at various jobs; his problem : None of them really seemed to serve anyone.’
Since childhood he had been imbued with the ethic, which involved, among other things, the concept of service, of the improvability of the individual, the importance of positive attitude.
Even as a 17 year old, he had begun the habit of writing on slips of paper the gist of his daily reading in magazines and books; just before sleep he would repeat what he had learned that day, referring to his slips of paper, if he forgot anything.
Finally, in 1921, pushed out of his job at Westinghouse in Pittsburgh because of a recession, he decided to push ahead with his idea that had been born of that early reading: to publish a Reader’s Service, consisting of 31 articles of value, condensed to save time, issued in a small, pocket-sized magazine that the reader could carry around and refer to at odd moments.
The young man approached existing magazine publishers of the time; they all turned down his idea.
Even the great William Randolph Hearst told him it would never sell enough to succeed.
But, as the young man said some years later, ‘I didn’t care if I made a penny, as long as the magazine served the reader.’
Already the Plus Factor that comes to the aid of people with altruistic goals was coming into the picture.
With faith in his idea, DeWitt Wallace and his wife, Lila, started putting out their little magazine. That was in 1922.
It crossed 1 million copies in 1940 & When the Wallaces died, the little magazine had 100 million readers, 30 million subscribers, 18 million in the United States and the rest worldwide.
Reader’s Digest unites its readers and their families like no other brand through the simplest of acts: sharing stories, laughs, and great advice.
Heading into its 100th anniversary, Reader’s Digest stands out more than ever in today’s cultural landscape due to its themes of optimism, faith, heroism, trust, humor, and wellness.
In all its work, Reader’s Digest carries on its singular, historic vision: to bring out the good in people and families everywhere.
The Reader’s Digest was the great publishing success story of our time.
The focus of their idea always was, ‘How can we help young people?
How can we help older people?
How can we help anyone anywhere who needs help.”
So if you have a goal that includes helping people in some way, don’t let anyone talk you out of it.
Don’t believe them when they say, ‘It can’t be done.’
Miracles can happen when you set clear, worthwhile, useful goals and go after them with belief.
So aim high. Put all negative or defeatist thoughts out of your mind, and give it all you’ve got.
When you do, great forces will come to your aid and the Universe will conspire to deliver it to you.
Have a goal of helping people, follow your dream & stay blessed forever.