By the time he was a teenager he was already a successful businessman. He got in on the ground floor of radio when he borrowed and studied a correspondence course from his barber, and eventually developed the largest electronics repair business in South Texas.

In 1944, married and at the age of 30, he began to study psychology in an effort to find ways to help his children do better in school. Silva spent over 20 years studying great minds, researching the human condition, and developing his Method. His study of Psychology led him to hypnosis, which led him to meditation. As a result of this unexpected turn of events, he began to research metaphysics. Eventually, Silva developed a method that could teach anyone how to develop their own intuition.

In 1966 The Silva Method made its way to the public eye. Word of his activities soon spread beyond Laredo where he was teaching his method to more than 100 people every week. Soon after, he was asked to teach groups who were willing to pay him for his knowledge. Thus at the age of 52 Silva began the work that would make him famous throughout the world. In fact, he has been called the most famous Laredo resident of all time. After a couple of years of teaching the method throughout Texas, Silva began to train other instructors to do the same throughout the world.

During his lifetime, Jose Silva was a businessman, athlete, artist, singer, educator, philosopher, the world's leading scientist in the field of the mind and human potential, and the founder of the world's number one mind development program.

Silva was the leader in the mind development field. He spent his entire lifetime developing his creative and intuitive abilities and teaching others to find their own abilities within themselves. The Silva Mind Control Method was the first program in history to teach people how to actually control their own minds for better health, faster learning, greater creativity, and for the development of their psychic ability.

Many programs have followed, drawing from Jose Silva's 22 years of research. Now doctors like cancer specialist Dr. O. Carl Simonton, who studied with Jose Silva, teach patients how to use visualization and imagination in treating cancer. Professional artists, sculptors, athletes, business executives, scientists and people from all walks of life have benefited from the program. The greatest contribution of the Silva Method is in teaching people how to actually develop and use their intuition to get information and correct problems.

Silva is the author of numerous books that have been translated into more than two dozen foreign languages. Some of his books are The Silva Mind Control Method, published by Simon and Schuster in 1977, Sales Power, the Silva Mind Method for Sales Professionals, published by Putnam in 1992, The Silva Mind Control for Business Managers, published by Prentice Hall, The Silva Mind Control Method for Getting Help From Your Other Side, published by Pocket Books, You the Healer, published by Kramer, and The Silva Method: Think and Grow Fit by Career Press. He also came to hold several patents; including one which was the first patent ever issued that states that, "Human concentration turns on an educational device."

Today his life's work is being presented in over 30 languages in 111 countries. Silva served as Chairman of the Board of The Silva Method up until 1999, when he passed away peacefully in his home.

Currently, there are more than 1,000 licensed Silva Method Lecturers throughout the U.S. and in more than 100 foreign countries. The Silva Method is offered in 29 different languages in the following countries. Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bermuda, Bolivia, Borneo, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Czech Republic Cyprus, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Dubai, Eritrea, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Kuwait, Mayotte, L'Reunion, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua N. Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Lesotho, Republic of Mauritius, Russia, Santa Lucia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad, & Tobago, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, (Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Al Ain, Falaj-Al-Moalia, Fujairah, Ras-Al-Kahaimah, Sharjah, Umm-Al-Quwain), United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zaire, Zambia Zimbabwe.