When a man becomes inwardly changed and filled with new ambitions,
ideals and hopes, he, in course of time, rises above his sordid
surroundings and _attracts to himself an environment that corresponds
to his new state of mind_. It would be useless to tidy up the house
of a slut for her, for she would soon make it like a pig-sty again,
but if you could get a new ideal of neatness, cleanliness, order and
spotlessness into her mind, she would not rest satisfied until her
immediate environment corresponded, in some measure at least, to her
mental ideal or image.

Very often, the failures of a man's life, and its disharmonies and
poverty, either comparative or real, are outward symbols of his
weakness of character. He may have ability in plenty, but he may lack
application or steadfastness, and thus he fails in all his
undertakings, and has to be kept by his wife and daughters. He will
assure you that his circumstances are due to ill-fortune, but the
actual cause of his failure is in his character, or, rather, lack
of character.

If, therefore, a man's poverty and lack, or financial difficulties
are due to weakness of character which manifest in his work and
dealings with others, in the form of inefficiency, poor service and
bad judgment, it follows that he, himself, must change before his
circumstances can be permanently altered for the better. The
difficulty in dealing with unsuccessful people is in getting them
to realize that they, themselves, are the cause of all their troubles.
[10] Until, however, they do realize this, their case is hopeless,
and it is impossible to help them, but when they acknowledge that
the fault is theirs, they can be shown that there is a remedy for
their ills and a way out of their difficulties, by means of
self-improvement. Let them then search for hidden weaknesses, and
build up those weak places in their character, such as lack of grit,
determination, steadfastness, persistence, patience, probity,
decision, which are the cause of their troubles, and they will find
that their circumstances will gradually change for the better.