2 chapters across the catalog
The concept of "drifting" is introduced as a state where individuals surrender their autonomy to external circumstances or perceived authority figures. This aligns with the Milgram experiments, which showed that a high percentage of people would administer lethal shocks if ordered by someone in a lab coat. Modern applications of this psychological state are seen in the influence of TV hosts and social media algorithms.
The final segment of the Napoleon Hill interview outlines ten methods for self-defense against "drifting," including doing one's own thinking and budgeting time. The devil's advice emphasizes that fear is a filler for the unused portion of the mind and that one must master life or be mastered by it. These 1938 concepts are compared to C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters, written during the same era of global propaganda.
