The Championship Strategy: Reimagining Napoleon Hill‘s “Think and Grow Rich“

If the catchphrase, “Show me the money!” rings a bell, then you already know David Meltzer.

In the high-stakes world of sports entertainment, Meltzer guided athletes to championship success as CEO of the Leigh Steinberg Sports & Entertainment agency—the inspiration for Jerry Maguire.

Now, as the newly appointed chairman of the Napoleon Hill Institute’s Corporate Division, he’s calling the plays for a different kind of victory: transforming Hill’s success principles into a winning strategy for today’s business leaders.

The comeback story

Like many great sports narratives, Meltzer’s journey includes a stunning setback. After losing $100 million, he turned to a trusted coaching manual: Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich. (Hill, who died in 1970, was a self-help author known for his philosophies on leadership, self-motivation and individual achievement.)

“I used to tell people, ‘Every time I read Think and Grow Rich, I make another million dollars,’” Meltzer recalls.

What started as a joke became his blueprint for rebuilding, which led to his current role as a globally recognized entrepreneur, business coach and media powerhouse.

When Meltzer wrote his first book, Connected to Goodness, he approached the Napoleon Hill Foundation for guidance, wanting to capture the same pragmatic spiritual reconciliation he found in Hill’s work. As he delved deeper into Hill’s other works, particularly Outwitting the Devil, Meltzer discovered a treasure trove of wisdom that would shape his leadership philosophy.

“I started to see a trend,” Meltzer explains. “Some of the most seminal personal development and entrepreneurial information that has inspired all the greatest people around the world was dying because they did not have the understanding of the new media, the new platforms.”

His mission: Ensure that these foundational principles reach today’s corporate leaders through modern channels.

“My heroes, like Bob Proctor and Wayne Dyer and the Zig Ziglars of the world? Nobody knew them anymore,” he says. This realization drove him to action—first through licensing Think and Grow Rich for film and book projects, and ultimately in his role as chairman of the institute’s new corporate division.

The 4-quarter strategy

“The truth vibrates the fastest,” he says. This is why he believes Hill’s teachings don’t need reinvention—just reimagination.

Just as championship teams need a comprehensive game plan, Meltzer has developed a four-quarter strategy to modernize Hill’s legacy:

First quarter: CAPTURE

Like preserving game films from legendary matches, Meltzer’s team is digitizing Hill’s vast archive of handwritten notes, deteriorating films and original manuscripts.

During his visit to the archives, Meltzer discovered “mind-blowing” typewritten content that was “so before its time that it doesn’t need to be changed—it just needs to be presented correctly.”

Second quarter: MODIFY

Much like how modern coaches adapt classic plays for today’s game, this phase focuses on transforming Hill’s content for contemporary platforms. “It’s not about rewriting anything,” Meltzer emphasizes. “It’s about understanding how to present the same information.”

Here, his team is converting lengthy chapters into digestible social media content and transforming key principles into short-form videos.

Third quarter: AMPLIFY

This phase leverages what Meltzer calls “stage theory”—using bigger stages with bigger people to reach a greater audience. Like a championship game broadcast globally, this strategy aims to extend Hill’s reach across the digital landscape through partnerships with influential leaders and corporations to potentially touch all 8 billion people on the planet.

Fourth quarter: PERPETUATE

The final quarter focuses on maintaining Hill’s original “frequency” while growing exponentially—like preserving a team’s winning culture while expanding its fan base. This involves creating a social ecosystem where Hill’s teachings can thrive authentically, without dilution or distortion.

Strategic market expansion

When the Napoleon Hill Institute launched its corporate division on Jan. 11, 2025, the date held a personal significance for Meltzer. “I’m a 1-11 guy,” he explains, referencing his birthday on Jan. 11 at 1:11. Meltzer believes that the launch date aligns with his personal connection.

Market analysis drove Meltzer’s first two major initiatives, revealing that organizations like the Carnegie Institute found their greatest success in the Middle East and North Africa region. “Why recreate the wheel?” he notes. “We’re going to start with the biggest and best opportunities.”

Simultaneously, as chairman of the Unstoppable Foundation and the father of three daughters, “girl dad” Meltzer prioritized the Women’s Division, which emerged as a cornerstone of the institute’s mission to empower individuals worldwide. Under the leadership of Institute CEO Cliona O’Hara, the Women’s Division was strategically developed with a dedicated partner to refine, rebrand and amplify existing programs tailored to women’s personal and professional growth.

Recognizing the demand for specialized empowerment initiatives, the institute integrated this division alongside other key areas, such as personal coaching and corporate development. By leveraging proven models and expanding into high-impact regions like the Middle East and North Africa, the Women’s Division ensures that its programs reach and uplift female executives and entrepreneurs globally.

The victory strategy

As executive producer of the 2 Minute Drill and the digital business show Elevator Pitch from Entrepreneur, Meltzer knows how to reach modern audiences. Two fundamental plays from Hill’s playbook guide his leadership strategy: definite purpose and control of impulse. These principles shaped his recovery from financial devastation and continue to guide his leadership approach.

“The combination of wisdom and faith that Napoleon Hill writes about,” Meltzer reflects, “shortens the distance of resistance that we create in our lives.” This philosophy manifests in what he calls “nonnegotiable behavior”—daily practices that integrate personal and professional growth, including prioritizing sleep, health and family alongside finance and productivity.

Looking ahead, Meltzer faces what he deems “the challenge of the ‘big O, little C’”—huge opportunity with currently limited capability. He’s focused on building a sustainable legacy.

“The fastest way to be successful,” he says, “is to find people who sit in a situation that you want to be in and ask them for directions—and then help others do the same.” 

12 timeless principles of Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich

If you take anything from Meltzer’s wealth of experience, let it be these 12 principles, which he’s drawn from Think and Grow Rich:

1. Desire: Cultivate a burning desire—the starting point for all achievement.
2. Faith: Believe in your ability to realize your goals.
3. Autosuggestion: Program your mind with positive affirmations.
4. Specialized knowledge: Acquire expertise in your chosen field.
5. Imagination: Use your creativity to envision success.
6. Organized planning: Develop concrete action plans.
7. Decision: Make prompt, firm decisions.
8. Persistence: Maintain unwavering determination.
9. Mastermind group: Collaborate with a supportive network.
10. The subconscious mind: Focus your subconscious on your objectives.
11. The brain: Harness your brain’s potential for innovation.
12. The sixth sense: Develop and trust your intuition.

In a nutshell, Think and Grow Rich underscores the power of mindset, relentless effort and strategic planning as the keys to unlocking both wealth and lasting success.

This article originally appeared in the July/August 2025 issue of SUCCESS® magazine.

Photo courtesy of David Meltzer Enterprises

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