# Spirella Manual (1913)/Section 2
## SECTION 2.SECTION 2.
### The Cardinal Elements of Success.

1. PERSONAL APPEARANCE.—Success often depends upon first impressions. Neatness creates a favorable impression; the absence of it the reverse. The first impression made by you shall be—WHAT? You cannot afford to be careless about your personal appearance. Over dress or carelessness in dress shows lack of taste. Dress in good taste. The little details of your toilet count for as much in creating the right first impression as do your bearing and manner of introduction. The right poise and bearing are indispensable. These are necessary to win people and make sales. Their absence repels people, defeats your purpose. Avoid gaudy colors in dress, hat or neckwear. In a word, if you want success, neatness and plainness are positively essential. ​2. As an aid to personal appearance, we urge that you wear one of our corsets of latest model, adapted to your figure, and that your dress be fitted to it. You will then satisfy yourself that Spirella Corsets are the most stylish, comfortable and healthful corsets made, and you can truthfully bear testimony to the same. If you do this and heed the above hints, you will be a living demonstration to the public of the style and grace of Spirella Corsets. Such a demonstration, backed by the right poise, will start you on the road to success. These matters adjusted, other essential elements of success can be developed.
3. SELECTING THE RIGHT ARTICLE.—The next important step is to select the right article. Some of the qualities to be considered in such selection are as follows:
Is it a necessity? Does it meet the requirement? Does it satisfy the customer? Does it do more? Can you sell to more than one in a family? Can you secure re-orders and build up a permanent business? What ARE its superior qualities?
Such questions are superfluous to the person who has investigated the quality of Spirella and Spirella Corsets. It is fit, however, that we review these points and fix them well in our mind before starting to sell.
4· Everyone agrees that to appear neat and stylish a woman must wear the proper corset. Every woman desires to appear attractive. Therefore, the necessity of the right corset goes without question. The fifty millions of corsets purchased by the women of the United States alone, to say nothing of the millions purchased by the women of other countries every year, prove the demand for corsets.
5. To answer our second question affirmatively, one need but to acquaint herself with the merits of Spirella and the Spirella Corset.
6. In letters received, published in our literature, and by personal interview with those who wear Spirella, you will find the answer to our third question, and will become impressed with the fact that Spirella does meet every Requirement and More.
Its many superior qualities over all other corsets and corset stays are presented in detail later in these pages. The overwhelming demand for the special features embodied in our corset, and which no other cor­set embraces is shown by the immense trade already established.
7. The opinions of those who have worn Spirella Corsets conclusively prove that our customers are more than satisfied. We work on the prin­ciple that a satisfied customer is a constant customer. our best advertise­ment, and we have not been disappointed.
8. More of the merits of Spirella and why it satisfies will be found in Sections 3 and 5. For answers to the fifth and sixth questions we refer you to Section 6, Articles 69 and 70. BECOME FULLY CONVINCED ON THESE POINTS BEFORE GOING INTO THE WORK.
9. CONFIDENCE. When convinced that Spirella is a real boon to women, that it fills a great demand which has never been met, success is ​assured. This is imperative. You cannot win real success without it, nor should you make an effort to sell until thoroughly convinced that Spirella is All We Claim for it and Has No Equal.
10. COURAGE.—Without courage, conviction and confidence will be of no value to you. They must be backed by the courage To Dare and to Do. It takes courage to overcome obstacles and to face the problems which all must face to win success IN ANY LINE. No business is free from disappointment. This is no exception. You must necessarily strike poor streaks, you must face knotty problems, BUT YOU CAN OVER­COME AND MASTER THEM.
Summon all the energy of your mind and body. NEVER ENTER­TAIN A THOUGHT OF FAILURE. YOUR EVERY THOUGHT, WORD, ACTION, EVERY MOVEMENT AND EXPRESSION OF YOUR BODY SHOULD WORK TOGETHER. YOU CAN REACH THE HIGHEST SUCCESS ONLY WHEN YOU HAVE SUFFICIENT CONFIDENCE AND COURAGE TO PUT YOUR WHOLE SELF INTO YOUR WORK IN ONE COMPLETE, HARMONIOUS AC­TION. PEOPLE WATCH EVERY EXPRESSION OF YOUR FACE AND EVERY GESTURE OF YOUR BODY; THESE MUST BACK UP AND AGREE WITH WHAT YOU SAY. IF YOUR CONVIC­TION IS DEEP ENOUGH, YOUR CONFIDENCE AND, COURAGE IN SPIRELLA BROAD AND STRONG ENOUGH; YOU CAN COM­PEL ACTION, i. e., INDUCE SALES. Make difficulties stepping stones to greater achievements. You will hear about "hard times." Some will say, "0, you can't sell those corsets! You have struck a poor town. Peo­ple have all the corsets they want."
CONFIDENCE AND COURAGE will lift you above the influence of such remarks. Remember the room at the top. A superior article is always in demand. Many of our Representatives are earning to-day from $75.00 to $200.00 per month in spite of all obstacles. We believe you can do it. "What we want is not talent, IT IS COURAGE AND PURPOSE; NOT POWER TO ACHIEVE, BUT THE WILL TO DO REGARDLESS OF DIFFICULTIES." Bring to your work an ENERGY and ENTHUSI­ASM born of CONVICTION. Push your business vigorously and work for large profits. Believe in your goods, throw your whole heart into your work and others will catch your spirit. "ENTHUSIASM RULES THE WORLD," said the Great Napoleon. ENTHUSIASM IS THAT SOME­THING IN YOUR NATURE THAT CARRIES EVERYTHING BEFORE IT. Emerson says: "NOTHING GREAT WAS EVER ACHIEVED WITHOUT ENTHUSIASM."
Fire all your faculties to a white heat, and you must carry everything before you. A customer is influenced more by Earnestness than by Logic. Enthusiasm creates an EAGER DESIRE for what you have. ENTHUSI­ASM lessens difficulties, because it carries your customer over all objec­tions which she otherwise would raise. "THE WORLD BELONGS TO THE ENERGETIC." ​11. PREPARATION.—"Success in any calling is the fruit of intelli­gent preparation." You may have good personal appearance; you may have the right thing; you may have confidence and courage, and still fail from lack of a complete knowledge of your subject and how to work. You must therefore, prepare as thoroughly for your work as you would to deliver an essay or an oration in some great contest. You should know, if possible, all there is to know on the subject, and should keep up with the times by continuing to study and read everything attainable on your busi­ness. President Garfield said, "A trained man will make his life tell. Without training men are left on a sea of luck where thousands go down while one meets with success." Work is the only key to preparation and after you have worked to learn how to work, continue to work at your work.
12. In an address, entitled, "True and False Methods of Success," Dr. A. C. Knudson, formerly of Allegheny College, now of Boston Theo­logical School, recently said:
"All physiology and psychology make it perfectly clear that exercise, work, lies at the basis of all real strength and achievement. Nothing is accomplished except through it. If you want knowledge you must toil for it; if food you must toil for it; and if pleasure, you must toil for it; toil is the law. And it is the law of all life. Education, training, does not prepare us to get along without work. It only fits us for work. Work is the law of life. Nothing good comes except through it. It is the basic principle of all sound pedagogy. 'What we learn strengthens only in pro­portion to the effort we put forth.' This is the one principle of achieve­ment in the world, in business or professional life. The advocacy of the strenuous life may have been a little overdone in these latter days. But in its fundamental principle, it is the one method of success. The law for all life, for the salesman and the statesman, for the merchant and the prince, for the lawyer and the preacher, for the teacher and the manufac­turer, is the same as that for the football game; 'Hit the line hard; don't foul and don't shirk; but hit the line hard!"
13. CHARACTER.—A much greater and more permanent benefit is to be derived from such preparation, than immediate success. The thor­oughness with which you prepare for this work and the manner in which you go about it, each stamps itself upon you not only while making preparation, but while engaged in the work. Hold in mind that you are build­ing your work into your character and your character into your work. You cannot slight your work or your preparation in any particular and build a strong character. Every step taken has its effect upon your future. Think how closely work and character are allied, and the tremendous influence each exerts upon the other. They act and react on each other until the one is a perfect index of the other. "Show me a man at his work or tell me how he works and I will explain his character to you. Or, tell me a man's real character, and I will tell you how he works, what to expect of him under various conditions," says a student of men.
This knowledge of real life and real character is becoming more gen­eral than ever before. "You can fool all of the people some of the time. ​You can fool some of the people all of the time. But you can't fool all the people all the time." The margin of those you can fool all the time, or can fool occasionally, is rapidly growing less. In this age of easy communication people mingle more freely and know more of one another. It be­comes more difficult to mislead them by deceptive methods. They detect more readily the ring of the counterfeit.
Laying aside the disastrous influence upon your own character, from a business point of view, even you cannot afford to use deceptive methods. If you can see no higher motive than "Honesty is the best policy," make honesty your policy and stick to it.
The world to-day is seeking and offering large premiums to men and corporations that can be depended upon. We want your help to make THE SPIRELLA COMPANY a firm of that character. You can depend upon us for "a square deal" and the right quality of goods. Your prep­aration, your manner, your work, will make the reputation of the firm good or bad in your territory. Ponder these matters well, and do not enter the field until thoroughly satisfied that Spirella is all that it is represented, and that you can give it your unqualified support and endorsement.
"This above all. to thine own self be true, And it must follow as the night the day, Thou can'st not then be false to any man."
By wearing Spirella and by studying the following section on "How to Proceed," you will gain that knowledge of your subject and that mental attitude necessary to your success.