Two Shoe Sales Reps With Two Different Perspectives

Possibility Thinking is the willingness to see possibilities everywhere instead of limitations.

Long ago, I read Robert Schuller’s book,?Move Ahead with Possibility Thinking. It had a significant impact on me and my life. You see, growing up, I had what I thought were big dreams, but there was something within me that wanted bigger. I wanted to be the best person I could be?and serve as many people as possible,?which meant expanding my thinking to achieve that outcome.

Once I invited possibility thinking into my life, I found myself free to think as big as I wanted. I could imagine huge goals that felt strange initially but were possible with the right thinking. The belief that something can happen is the starting point of making the seemingly impossible a reality. Once you can see beyond perceived limitations, then the possibilities are endless.

Decades later, I’ve achieved so much more than I ever dreamed, but never more than I thought was possible.

The story of the Manchester Shoe Company, told by Benjamin Zander in his book?The Art of Possibility, neatly encapsulates the remarkable power of possibility thinking. In the early 1900s, inspired by a desire to sell shoes in a remote region of the world, two traveling shoe salespeople from the Manchester Shoe Company were sent by the owner to explore the possibility. Two telegraphs came back independently from the shoe salespeople a few days after their arrival. One said, “Situation horrible. They don’t wear shoes!” The other said, “Glorious opportunity; they don’t have any shoes yet!” Imagine what would have happened if the company had acted only on the first message.

We must never ignore that great sales careers are built and lost in the person’s mind. Therefore, our actions are nothing but reflections of how we think.

It’s hard to overstate the value of possibility thinking. Possibility thinking can do many things for you. It can help you close more deals, create more sales opportunities, achieve happiness, generate more wealth, and take you to a whole new level—personally and professionally.

Whatever you dream about or desire to accomplish, start to imagine it can happen, and quite possibly, with some work, it will.

Life is good, especially on a Friday. Happy Friday!