Edwin C Barnes was a penniless salesman who had a    
DESIRE to go into partnership with the inventor
Thomas Edison.

More than that – his DEFINITE MAJOR PURPOSE was
to be Edison’s associate.

He had the chance to be one of Edison’s salesmen but that wasn’t what he wanted. He waited until the opportunity came and Edison’s other salesmen decided that they couldn’t sell the latest invention – a dictating machine.

When his opportunity came, it was in a different form and in a different way to what Barnes was expecting.

Barnes showed Edison that he could market and distribute the machine in partnership with Edison and made a fortune.

Barnes knew what he wanted and had the determination to stand by his desire. Opportunity has a habit of slipping in the back door and can sometimes come disguised as misfortune or temporary defeat. Perhaps that is why opportunities are sometimes not recognised and missed.

(My version of a story from Napoleon Hill, Think & Grow Rich)