As a Man Thinketh (1903) is James Allen’s short, influential essay on the shaping power of thought. Taking its title from a verse in Proverbs, the book argues that a person’s character, circumstances, and destiny grow directly out of the habitual contents of the mind, as surely as a plant grows from its seed.
In calm, aphoristic prose, Allen develops the theme through brief chapters on thought and character, thought and circumstance, serenity, and the achievement of one’s visions and ideals. The work became a cornerstone of the modern self-help and “New Thought” traditions, admired for its clarity and quiet conviction. Brief enough to read in an hour yet often returned to for a lifetime, it remains one of the most widely read inspirational essays in the English language.