Book: Peace, Power and Plenty

Overview
Orison Swett Marden’s 1909 guide belongs to the New Thought tradition, arguing that outer conditions follow inner states. He links three ascending outcomes: peace as the mental and moral foundation, power as the organized expression of character and will, and plenty as the natural harvest of a well-governed life. Material success is not the primary aim but a by-product of serenity, self-mastery, and unwavering usefulness. The book blends moral exhortation, practical counsel, and proto-psychological insight to show how thought, habit, and health converge to produce character and circumstance.

Peace
Peace is presented as dynamic poise rather than passivity. Marden insists that worry, fear, regret, and resentment waste life’s “nerve force,” dim judgment, and poison the body. Calmness conserves energy for decisive action. He recommends mental hygiene: replace destructive images with constructive ones, cultivate cheerfulness and gratitude, and refuse the mental rehearsal of injuries. Environment, reading, companionships, and self-talk are framed as steady influences that either disturb or stabilize the inner climate.

Physical care supports mental equilibrium. Fresh air, exercise, sleep, and simple diet are treated as moral disciplines that shore up serenity and make self-control easier. Peace becomes a habit of response, a practiced return to a quiet center from which choices are made. From that center, the mind does clearer work, intuition sharpens, and daily frictions lose power to derail purpose.

Power
Power for Marden means directed vitality: self-control, concentration, and a definite aim. Scattered interests dissipate strength; a single, worthy purpose organizes talent and time. He urges readers to decide promptly, persist under discouragement, and economize attention. Adversity is recast as a gymnasium for the will, an opportunity to turn resistance into resilience.

Character is magnetic. Personal presence, cleanliness, posture, voice, sincerity, communicates inner order and inspires confidence. He warns against gossip, complaint, and sensational reading that agitate the mind and rob initiative. The disciplined management of thought, emotion, and habit yields a quiet boldness that others recognize and trust. Such poised power is not domineering; it is persuasive, steady, and reliable under strain.

Plenty
Plenty is abundance without anxiety, rooted in service and competence. Wealth is described as the shadow of value created, not the prize of cunning. Marden connects prosperity with integrity, fair dealing, and the habit of doing more than is paid for. The right vocation matters: one’s best gifts must find their proper field, and sustained excellence creates demand.

Mental expectancy plays a role. A poverty attitude constricts initiative; a generous, hopeful outlook widens vision, invites opportunity, and emboldens action. Gratitude, promptness, and thoroughness compound into reputation, and reputation draws resources. He counsels liberality rather than hoarding, arguing that circulation strengthens capacity, relationships, and future prospects.

Methods and Emphasis
Throughout, Marden recommends autosuggestion, affirmations, and visualization to reset habitual thought. Attention is treated as a steering wheel; whatever one persistently pictures and emotionally endorses shapes conduct and outcomes. He couples this with concrete routines: orderly schedules, good reading, wholesome companions, and steady physical care. The style mixes anecdotes and moral maxims with an early mind-body model: thought influences health, health supports judgment, judgment directs achievement.

The book’s enduring appeal lies in its simple chain of causation. Secure peace, and you conserve energy. Harness that energy into ethical power, and you act with effectiveness. Sustain effective action in the spirit of service, and plenty follows as a natural consequence.