In advising clients, and in my forthcoming book, “The Science of Business,” Allah Willing, I spend a considerable amount of time on the relationship between the spiritual and emotional aspects of the human brain and mind, and entrepreneurship and business activity. For some this seems strange. But when properly reminded of just what is involved in a creative or innovative act, or in organizing people around it; it does not take long before a person sees the deep connection between the unseen reality of inner human nature and personality, and the manifestation of behaviors, events, and institutions outside of us.

I promote the general definition of an entrepreneur as one who conceives or perceives an opportunity and creates or coordinates an organization to pursue it.

The largely internal or unseen acts of perception and conception are critical factors in our ability to obtain what we strive for in entrepreneurship and business, much less life itself.

For this reason, of the five major elements of the model that makes up The Science of Business—capital, power, standardization, suffering and willpower—if I had to choose I would say that the relationship between willpower and suffering matters the most. Again, these two emotional and spiritual factors occur most intensely on the inside of the individual, and represent the unseen force that underlies motivation and drives human actions.

This points to the immense value of the intense study of history, as the Honorable Elijah Muhammad has taught, and upon which his National Representative, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan continues to place great emphasis.

In all of the great stories and biographies of the most successful businesspersons that I have read or studied, not a single one of them achieved and sustained success without developing and supporting the power of their will through suffering and adversity.

Every single one of these great ones practiced one, two, or all three of the following methods: prayer, affirmation, or visualization. They did so whether or not they claimed a religious or spiritual faith, or belief system.

Reflect over the following regarding visualization from “How To Find a More Satisfying Career” by Victor M. Parachin:

“Legendary hotelier Conrad Hilton knew how to use this technique. The Great Depression was exceptionally hard for Mr. Hilton. After the stock market crash of 1929, people didn’t travel as much, and when they did they didn’t stay in the hotels Mr. Hilton had acquired during the roaring 1920s. Business at his hotels was so poor that by 1931 his creditors were threatening to foreclose. He was so financially destitute that even his laundry was in hock and he had to borrow money from a bellboy to eat. That year, Mr. Hilton came upon a photograph of the Waldorf Hotel. It had six kitchens, 200 cooks, 500 waiters, 2,000 rooms and a private hospital and railroad in the basement. He clipped the photograph out of the magazine and scribbled across it, “The Greatest of Them All.”

“The year 1931 was a presumptuous, outrageous time to dream,” Mr. Hilton would later write. Nevertheless, he put the photo of the Waldorf in his wallet, and when he had a desk again, slipped the picture under the glass top. The magazine photo was always in front of him. As he worked his way back up and acquired new, larger desks, he would slip the cherished photo under the glass. In October 1949, 18 years later, Mr. Hilton bought the Waldorf.”

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Consider the following from the study guide course, Self-Improvement: The Basis For Community Development by The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, “Building The Will Part IV” (Practical Application):

“This week we want to apply the principles of success. We can test these principles immediately, for they remain the same whether the desire is for something small and personal, such as a pair of shoes; or, the desire is on a lofty plane, such as the liberation of oppressed people.

Think of something you personally desire. Think of this object or achievement right now. Envision it in your mind.

Is it within the Power of your God, Allah, to bring this desire about? Think of His Attributes: Beneficent, Merciful, Masterful ... Does He have the Power to fulfill your desire? If He is the Nourisher unto perfection, would He want you to have it?

Do you truly desire it? How strong is your desire? Do you doubt that you can get it? Will having this desire fulfilled help you in your faith in Allah (God) and your ability to solve your own problems?

Will money be required to fulfill the desire? Does that which you want cost more than what you have? Then you must obtain whatever financial resources are needed to fulfill the desire. You must not go into debt to obtain the object of your desire. Debt is a form of slavery. In our prayers we say to Allah (God): “I seek Thy refuge from being overpowered by debt and the oppression of men.” Do not obtain your desire by taking a step backward; obtain it by taking a step forward.

Here is what you must do to be successful. Follow the verses you have studied from The Book that has no doubt in it. Believe in the Unseen; Keep up Prayer; Spend out of what Allah (God) has blessed you with in the way of charity; Believe in the previous and present revelations; be sure of the Hereafter.

Do these things and you will be of the SUCCESSFUL!”

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Think deep in what is implied about universal laws at work on behalf of the human being in relationship to the above words, “We can test these principles immediately, for they remain the same whether the desire is for something small and personal, such as a pair of shoes; or, the desire is on a lofty plane, such as the liberation of oppressed people.”

Weigh the reality of universal principles and those words with these portions of the parables of Jesus:

The Parable of The Persistent Widow Luke 18:1-8: Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually wear me out with her coming!’ And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?’”

The Parable Of The Son’s Request Matthew 7: 9-11: Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

How strong is your faith—in your self; obtaining what you desire; universal principles of success; and your relationship to the Supreme Being?

Remember, in life, each day we are putting our faith to an exchange, producing the results we see, and don’t see.

(Cedric Muhammad is a business and political economist who advises entrepreneurs and small businesses through his company, CM Cap (http://www.cmcap.com/). He can be reached via e-mail at cedric@cmcap.com. His weekly “Cedric Muhammad and Black Coffee Program” can be viewed every Wednesday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. EST at The Black Coffee Channel by visiting http://www.blackcoffeechannel.com/.)