Motivational Writers
By Bruce Shawkey I recently discovered the little-known motivational writer Vash Young on the Internet Archive. Born Vashni Young in Salt Lake City on January 18, 1889, he went by “Vash” throughout his life. Though he wrote numerous books, Young never achieved the lasting fame of writers like Dale Carnegie, Napoleon Hill, or Viktor Frankl. That’s unfortunate, because his writing is warm, direct, and deeply human — blending personal stories with practical advice for living well. “I enjoy listening to people talk about their lives, their struggles, their ambitions, their regrets, and the ways they’ve changed over time,” he once wrote. “To me, there’s nothing more interesting.” Of all his books, the one that stands out most is Fortunes for All, published in 1959 when Young was 70 years old. It reads like the final distillation of a lifetime’s worth of hard-earned wisdom. Early in the book, Young offers a simple daily prescription for pushing back against discouragement: Be my own best fri...
