let me share with you a story I know well, the story of my father. He was born a very poor white man in the Island of Barbados. My mother was born poor. She had nothing; he had nothing. And they proceeded to have children. Twelve children were born; two died at birth. Ten survived. He had nothing. How he got hold of this, I do not know, but the first time he heard me speak in New York City was a Sunday morning, and when we went back to the apartment, he said,
“You know, everything you said this morning is true. But why do you tell the people to close their eyes? Don’t close your eyes. Keep them partly shut.
You can control your imagination and you can control your attention better if the eyes are not completely closed.
When you see me in the morning after breakfast reclining in my chair, you might think that I am just sleeping it off – because he’s a heavy drinker.
“You might think I’m simply sleeping it off. I am not sleeping off anything. I am doing my day’s work then!
I bring before my mind’s eye the men that I want to deal with that day, and I control the conversation. I tell them exactly what I want to tell them, as though it were true. I let them tell me – confirm that it is true, and then when I am completely satisfied with my inner conversation, then I go to town. And it works that way.”
Source: Order Your Conversations Aright