Og Mandino: The Greatest Salesman in the World

Og Mandino was a "sales guru" and the author of the bestselling book The Greatest Salesman in the World. He remains one of the most inspirational and best-selling authors today. His books have sold over 50 million copies and have been translated into over twenty-five different languages. He was the president of Success Unlimited magazine until 1976. He had been inducted into the National Speakers Association's Hall Of Fame.

According to the 1930 U.S. Census, Mandino was named after his paternal grandfather. His nickname Og was derived from his full name, Augustino Mandino. Mandino eventually became a successful writer. His works were inspired by the Bible and influenced by Napoleon Hill, W. Clement Stone, and Emmet Fox. Mandino was once the editor of a high school paper and planned to attend the University of Missouri, a journalism school. But in the summer of 1940, before Mandino was able to enter college, his mother died suddenly from a massive heart attack. This happened while Mandino's mother was in the kitchen preparing his lunch. After the incident, Mandino decided to work in a paper factory until 1942. Afterwards, Mandino joined the United States Army Air Corps where he became a military officer and a bombadier. He flew for thirty bombing missions over Germany on board a B-24 Liberator during World War II. It was also during this time that Mandino flew with fellow pilot and movie star, Jimmy Stewart. Mandino kept a personalized 8 X 10 photograph of Stewart. This photograph hung on the wall of his home office where he wrote his books.

After his military duties, Mandino discovered that many companies were not hiring many former bomber pilots. As a result, he became an insurance salesman. Traveling on the road and sitting in bars at night, Mandino became an alcoholic. He was unable to keep a job. As a result, Mandino's wife, together with their only child, left him. One wintry November morning in Cleveland, Mandino almost tried to commit suicide. But as he sorted through several books in a library, volumes of self-help, success and motivation books captured Mandino's attention. He selected some titles, went to a table and began reading. Mandino followed his visit to the library with more visits to many other libraries around the United States. He read hundreds of books that dealt with success, a pastime that help him alleviate his alcoholism. It was in a library in Concord, New Hampshire, where he found W. Clement Stone's classic, Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude, a book that changed Mandino for the better.

Og Mandino's famous lines:

• “A day merely survived is no cause for celebration. You are not here to fritter away your precious hours when you have the ability to accomplish so much by making a slight change in your routine.”
  

• “Action will destroy your procrastination.”

• “To be always intending to make a new and better life but never to find time to set about it is as to put off eating and drinking and sleeping from one day to the next until you're dead.”
  

• "It is those who concentrate on but one thing at a time who advance in this world. The great man or woman is the one who never steps outside his or her specialty or foolishly dissipates his or her individuality."
  

• “The victory of success is half won when one gains the habit of setting goals and achieving them. Even the most tedious chore will become endurable as you parade through each day convinced that every task, no matter how menial or boring, brings you closer to fulfilling your dreams.”

“Action will destroy your procrastination.”