The Master Key System is a personal development book by Charles F. Haanel
(1866-1949) that was originally published as a 24-week correspondence course in 1912, and then in book form in 1916.[1] The ideas it describes and explains come mostly from New Thought philosophy. It was one of the main sources of inspiration for Rhonda Byrne's film and book The Secret (2006). General Description The Master Key System is a book which describes many New Thought beliefs such as the Law of attraction,[2] creative visualization and man's unity with God, and teaches the importance of truth, harmonious thinking and the ability to concentrate.[3][4] Each of the 24 chapters contains an introduction, followed by a sequentially numbered section which includes an exercise towards the end, followed by a section with questions and answers. At the very beginning of the book there is a Psychological Chart which readers are encouraged to complete. It is a self-evaluation of the reader's creative power, time efficiency, health, mental ability and capacity to concentrate.[5] The book ends with a glossary and a general question and answers section. Every chapter has a quotation at the end of the numbered section. These come from eminent people such as Jonathan Edwards, Lilian Whiting and Amos Bronson Alcott. Exercises Every chapter ends with an exercise which the reader is encouraged to undertake every day for the following 4 7 days. Each is a meditation that requires the person to first sit comfortably in a chair. The sequence of exercises in each chapter is as follows: 1.Sitting still 2.Inhibiting all thought combined with previous exercise 3.Releasing physical tension combined with previous exercises 4.Letting go of all negative emotions combined with previous exercises 5.Visualising a pleasant place 6.Remembering details from a photo of someone 7.Visualising positive facial expressions on the face of a friend 8.Visualising everything that leads to the construction of a battleship 9.Visualising a flower growing from seed 10.Visualising certain geometric forms 11.Concentrating on a quote from the Bible; Mark 11:24 12.Contemplating your unity with Omnipotence 13.Contemplating being part of the Whole 14.Focusing on harmony 15.Contemplating the fact that knowledge needs to be applied to be useful 16.Contemplating that happiness and harmony are states of consciousness 17.Focusing on the object of your desire 18.Focusing on your power to create create a logical basis for your faith 19.Total concentration on what you want 20.Focusing on "In Him we live and move and have our being" 21.Focusing on truth 22.Concentration on a Tennyson quote: "Speak to Him, thou, for He hears, and spirit with spirit can meet, Closer is He than breathing, and nearer than hands and feet." 23. Contemplating the fact that man is a spirit with a body 24. Realising that this is a wonderful world