Fundamentals of Prosperity - What They Are and Whence They Come

Babson Roger W.

English

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Below is a summary of Fundamentals of Prosperity - What They Are and Whence They Come







Fundamentals of Prosperity

What They Are and
Whence They Come

By

ROGER W. BABSON

_President Babson Statistical Organization_



NEW YORK CHICAGO

Fleming H. Revell Company

LONDON AND EDINBURGH




Copyright, 1920, by
FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY

New York: 158 Fifth Avenue
Chicago: 17 North Wabash Ave.
London: 21 Paternoster Square
Edinburgh: 75 Princes Street




Contents

FOREWORD
I. HONESTY OR STEEL DOORS?
II. FAITH THE SEARCHLIGHT OF BUSINESS
III. INDUSTRY VS. OPPORTUNITY
IV. COÖPERATION--SUCCESS BY HELPING THE OTHER FELLOW
V. OUR REAL RESOURCES
VI. STUDY THE HUMAN SOUL
VII. BOOST THE OTHER FELLOW
VIII. WHAT TRULY COUNTS
IX. WHAT FIGURES SHOW
X. WHERE THE CHURCH FALLS DOWN
XI. THE FUTURE CHURCH



Foreword


Some two thousand years ago the greatest teacher who ever walked the
earth advised the people of Judea not to build their houses on the sand.
What he had in mind was that they were looking too much to the structure
above ground, and too little to the spiritual forces which must be the
foundation of any structure which is to stand. Following the war we
enjoyed the greatest prosperity this country has ever witnessed;--the
greatest activity, the greatest bank clearings, the greatest foreign
trade, the greatest railroad gross earnings, the highest commodity
prices.

We then constructed a ten-story building on a foundation meant for only
a two or three story building. Hence the problem confronting us business
men is to strengthen the foundation or else see the structure fall. I am
especially glad of the opportunity to write for business men. There are
two reasons:--first, because I feel that the business men are largely
responsible for having this ten-story structure on a foundation made for
one of only two or three stories; secondly, because I believe such men
alone have the vision, the imagination and the ability to strengthen the
foundation and prevent the structure from falling.

The fact is, we have become crazy over material things. We are looking
only at the structure above ground. We are trying to get more smoke from
the chimney. We are looking at space instead of service, at profits
instead of volume. With our eyes focused on the structure above ground,
we have lost sight of those human resources, thrift, imagination,
integrity, vision and faith which make the structure possible. I feel
that only by the business men can this foundation be strengthened before
the inevitable fall comes.

When steel rails were selling at $55 a ton, compared with only $25 a ton
a few years previous, our steel plants increased their capacity
twenty-five per cent. Increased demand, you say? No, the figures don't
show it. Only thirty-one million tons were produced in 1919, compared
with thirty-nine million tons in 1916. People have forgotten the gospel
of service. The producing power per man has fallen off from fifteen to
twenty per cent. We have all been keen on developing consumption. We
have devoted nine-tenths of our thought, energy and effort to developing
consumption. This message is to beg of every reader to give more thought
to developing production, to the reviving of a desire to produce and the
realization of joy in production.