Title: The Art of Possibility

Authors: Rosamund Stone Zander & Benjamin Zander

Publisher: Harvard Business School Press
Copyright year: 2000
Library of Congress or ISBN: 0-87584-770-6
BOOK SUMMARY
 Author bio and credits:

Rosamund Stone Zander is a family therapist and a landscape painter.

Benjamin Zander is the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra
and a professor at the New England Conservatory of Music.

Author's main point (what will you remember about this book?)
The practices presented in this book are not about making incremental changes that lead
to new ways of doing things based on old beliefs, and they are not about self-improvement.
They are geared instead toward causing a total shift of posture, perceptions, beliefs and
though processes. They are about transforming your entire world. Each practice has its
own catchphrase. Once you are in the habit of using them, the practices will reliably land
you "back in the boat", reoriented in a universe of possibility.

A few supporting ideas (ideas which support the main point):

“SUMMAR OF THE BOOK”

 I divided this book summary into eleven parts or you can say in eleven chapters,
let’s move on to summary of the book.

I. It's all invented: "A shoe factory sends two marketing scouts to a
region of Africa to study the prospects for expanding business. One
sends back a telegram saying, “Situation hopeless, stop, no one wears
shoes.” The other writes back triumphantly, “Glorious business
opportunity, stop, they have no shoes!” This is what we all have the
ability to do. Life experiences come to us in sequence: First, our senses
bring us selective information about what is out there; second, the brain
constructs its own simulation of the sensations; and only then, third, do
we have our first conscious experiences of our milieu… thinking outside
of the lines, or boxes that we traditionally live in. Here's how to practice
that step. Simply ask yourself this question; “What assumptions am I
making that I'm not aware I'm making, that gives me what I see?”
When you have the answer to that question then ask yourself; “What
might I now invent, that I haven't invented, and that would give me
other choices?”

II. Stepping into a Universe of Possibility: The universe of

possibilities is the place you seek after you have discovered that it's all
invented. This universe…like a page that displays…extends beyond the
borders that confine us to everyday reality. Our current world that we
survive in is made up of measurements… measurements of
achievement that we compare and contrast ourselves to. Our goal is to
get up in the morning and instead of trying to figure out how to survive,
we need to arise and yell out to everyone to look at how different things
appear when you see them as possibilities. In this new world you make
all things possible by creatively thinking and giving… producing new
life, creating new ideas, consciously endowing with meaning,
contributing, yielding to the power of contexts. How do you practice
this step? Ask yourself; “How are my thought and actions, in this
moment, reflections of the measurement world?” Just keep asking
yourself this question until one day you wake up and someone asks you
how you are doing and you reply, "Perfect" in light of all the problems
you may face.
III. Giving Everyone an A: Grades only compare one person to
another. Sound familiar? the old you living in the universe of possibility.
According to Michelangelo, "Inside every block of stone or marble dwells
a beautiful statue". If we could apply this concept to every student we
would spend our time nurturing the child's developing skills, mastery
and self-expression. Freely granting an "A" to everyone that you work
with or in your personal life, expresses a vision of partnership,
teamwork and relationship. Giving an "A," both invents and recognizes a
universal desire in people to contribute to others, no matter how many
barriers there are to its expression.

IV. Being a Contribution: Life is often an obstacle course that we

spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to maneuver through and
still remain hopeful. If we take away the element of measurement we
experience a life where we are contributors to it. Not because of what
we have done, but because of the story we tell. Remember the lady
who was throwing back the starfish and the gentleman told her how
useless this action was? She still helped each starfish she threw back
into the water. The purpose of this section is to help us to invent
ourselves as a contributor. Here's how: Declare yourself as a
contributor. Throw yourself into life as someone who makes a
difference, accepting that you may not understand how or why.

V. Leading from any Chair: The position that you hold in any
organization will lack true meaning unless you are able to allow others
to voice their opinions and concerns. Some leaders think that they are
the only person who has a vision, idea or solution to a problem. Those
who work for them are to be quiet and do as told. This lesson is about
how to listen to those who are involved in carrying out the vision of the
organization. They see things differently, they have experienced life
differently, and they have ideas. How much greatness are we willing to
grant? The leader has more power when they listen and take ideas from
any source that makes the organization a better place and more
productive in the long run.

VI. How serious do you make things out to be? Is it worth getting
yourself so worked up about an issue that you no longer are able to see
any solutions? This is my favorite rule. Life is always going to be a
bumpy ride. So take each bump that comes along and figure out how
you are going to get over it. Plan, practice, look ahead, and take time
for yourself and smile. Relax; it will all work out… maybe not how you
originally thought. Its life, enjoy and learn. "Rule #6" (Don’t take
yourself so darn seriously!)

VII. Giving Way to Passion: We are surrounded by energy. We have

an abundant and full life. Now what do you really like to do? There are
two steps to this practice: 1. Notice where you are holding back, and let
go. Release those barriers of self that keep you separate and in control
and let that vital energy of passion surge through you, connecting you
to everything beyond. 2. Participate wholly. Allow yourself to be a
channel to shape the steam of passion into a new expression for the
world. When you listen to music let it be a part of you… feel the notes
as they carry you away into the experience of the composer as he
wrote. Take a walk on the beach or kayak on the water. Feel the power
of the ocean as you venture forth. Remember these forces as you move
into and through your day. It will fill you with energy and awe at our
world and what we can accomplish. Remember the "One Buttock
Pianist" and move into the music. The question for learning is, "Where
is the electric socket for possibility, the access to the energy of
transformation?" Dare to let go of the edges of ourselves and
PARTICIPATE!!!!

VIII. Lighting a Spark: Certain things in life are better done in person.
When you are trying to sell someone on an idea of yours or you want
them to perform, you must make every effort to meet with them face to
face. This type of commitment to your idea will demonstrate your
passion for the project. In the face-to-face communication you, and
only you, will create the same passion in the person that you are
seeking to help you resolve your issue. You are "enrolling" the person,
generating a spark of possibility for others to share. As they share with
others you soon will create the fire to fuel your passion. To practice
enrollment you must: Imagine that people are an invitation for
enrolment; Stand ready to participate, willing to be moved and inspired;
Offer that which lights you up; and, Have no doubt that others are eager
to catch the spark. The life force for humankind is, perhaps, nothing
more or less than the passionate energy to connect, express, and
communicate. Enrollment is that life force at work, lighting sparks from
person to person, scattering light in all directions. Sometimes the
sparks ignite a blaze, sometimes they pass quietly, magically, almost
imperceptibly, from one to another to another.

IX. Being the Board… the board where the whole game is being
played: I am the framework for everything that happens in my life. If I
cannot be present without resistance to the way things are and act
effectively, if I feel myself to be wronged, a loser, or a victim, I will tell
myself that some assumptions I have made are the source of my
difficulty. This practice helps us to remain on track. When things
happen to us we are able to take a graceful journey through life. The
grace comes from owning the risk for everything that happens in your
life and leaves your spirit whole, with the ability to choose again.
Instead of questioning all the bad things that happen in you life you
change the way you look at those things and say that's just the way
things are. Remember that to play the game of "shoulds and oughts" is
a blame game that you might still have control over. Those things
occurred in the past and you have no control over your past. Being the
board requires courage and compassion. The rewards for being the
board are self-respect, connection of the deepest and most vital kind,
and a straight road to making a difference.

X. Creating Frameworks for Possibilities - Inventing and framing

the possibilities: It is about restructuring meanings, creating visions,
and establishing environments where possibility is spoken… where the
buoyant force of possibility overcomes the downward spiral. The steps
to practicing framing the possibilities are: Make a new distinction in the
realm of possibilities, one that is a powerful substitute for the current
framework of meaning that is generating the downward spiral…enter
the territory. Embody the new distinction in such a way that it becomes
the framework for life around you… keep distinguishing what is "on the
track" and what is "off the track" of your framework for possibility. The
story of the second grade girl is my favorite way of remembering this
practice. The little girl has had chemotherapy and comes back to
school with no hair. The kids make fun of her and won't play with her.
The next morning the teacher comes to school with her head shaved.
All the students went home and begged their parents to let them shave
their heads. The framework the students had functioned in changed
when the teacher removed the downward spiral. The vision we have
becomes our framework for possibility when it meets certain criteria
that distinguish it from the objectives of the downward spiral. The
criteria that enable a vision to stand in the universe of possibility are:
The vision articulates possibility, A vision fulfills a desire fundamental to
humankind, a desire with which any human being can resonate, It is an
idea of which no one could logically respond, "What about me?", A
vision makes no reference to morality or ethics, it is not about the right
way of doing things. It cannot imply that anyone is wrong, A vision is
stated as a picture for all times, using no numbers, measures, or
comparatives. It contains no specifics of time, place, audience or
product. A vision is free standing… it points neither to a rosier future,
nor to a past in need of improvement. It gives over its bounty now. If
the vision is "peace on earth," peace comes with its utterance. When
"the possibility of ideas making a difference" is spoken, at that moment
ideas do make a difference. A vision is a long line of possibility
radiating outward. It invites infinite expression, development, and
proliferation within its definitional framework. Speaking a vision
transforms the speaker. For that moment the "real world" becomes the
universe of possibility and the barriers to the realization of the vision
disappear. This practice of framing possibility calls upon us to use our
minds in a manner that is counterintuitive.

XI. Telling the WE Story: More often than not, history is about
conflicts between an "us" and "them". The WE Story defines a human
being in a specific way. It says we are central selves seeking to
contribute, naturally engaged, forever in a dance with each other. The
WE appears when, for the moment, we set aside the story of fear,
competition, and struggle and tell its story. The steps to the WE story
are: Tell the WE story… the story of the unseen threads that connect us
all… the story of possibility. Listen and look for the emerging entity.
Ask: "What do WE want to have happen here? What's the best for US?
What's our next step?" When we remove our “me,” “me,” “me”
statements and turn them into the “WE,” “WE,” “WE” story, everyone
wins. The goal of each of us is to remove those things that impede our
progress forward as a great leader.

*******************

I hope you enjoyed this summary.