Customer Reviews

The Art of Possibility: Transforming Professional and Personal Life

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'. . . The objective of this book is to provide . . . the means to lift off from . . . struggle and sail into a vast universe of possibility.'

Benjamin Zander is the conductor of The Boston Philharmonic and is well known for his orchestra's passionate performances. Rosamund Stone Zander is an executive coach, family therapist, and private practitioner who brings enormous psychological perspective to enhancing human behavior. They have written a fascinating book in which they alternate as voices in sharing principles and examples in the form of compelling stories.

They have striven to make what they share ' . . . simple, not easy.' The idea is to help you create in yourself and in others 'transformational' improvements.

They share a series of perspectives designed to improve your understanding of what and where the potential is.

First, humans tend to focus on very few things, missing most of what is going on around them. By shifting focus, you will see many opportunities for the first time. Much of this book is designed to do that for you. You will visit our old friend the nine dot square and be reminded that connecting all of the dots in four lines without lifting your writing instrument from the paper requires you to go outside the box that we mentally draw at the circumference of the dots. Be careful about your assumptions! They can fence you in!

Second, measurements can cause us to focus too narrowly on where we are today and encourage scarcity thinking -- the glass is half empty. The Zanders encourage thinking about the glass as half full, citing the well-known perspective of optimism as being empowering. This can help you 'step into a university of possibility.' I like to call this pursuing the ideal practice.

Third, if you assume that people will do well and help them see how they can, they will. Mr. Zander gives every student an A in his class, and simply requests that the student write a paper to tell what they will do to deserve the A. This gets the students focused on excellence, and takes away the tension that harms accomplishment.

Fourth, as a mindset, think of your role as 'being a contributor.' 'You are a gift to others.' How could that change what you do? As someone who thinks that way now, I find it a very useful perspective, and was glad to see it in the book.

Fifth, lead from any chair. This is a reference to involving everyone. Mr. Zander asks his players to write down how he could improve practices and peformances, and pays attention to the suggestions.

Sixth, follow rule number six. That rule is to 'lighten up.'

Seventh, be present to the ways things are. Many of us are disconnected from reality. By re-touching it, we can see more possiblities.

Eighth, give way to passion. Going with your strong feelings allows you to be more authentic, and to go to new heights of accomplishment.

Ninth, light a spark. See you role as creating a spark of possibility to be lit that others can see.

Tenth, be the board of the game you are playing. This makes it easier to see how you can make a difference.

Eleventh, create a vision that generates 'frameworks of possibility' for others. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s famous 'I Have a Dream' speech is cited.

Twelfth, tell the WE story. Focus on being inclusive and considering what is best for all. Move from I to We, as the Coda to the book encourages.

Each section has exercises you can use to deepen your understanding of the principles and to help you practice, in order to create greater skill.

The principles are similar to those in many other books about improving performance and creativity. What is different about the book are the unique ways that the principles are expressed, the exciting examples in beautiful stories from music and business that will be new to you (as they were to me), and the passion with which the Zanders write. I would love to hear them do this book on an audio cassette! Both do public speaking, so you may get a chance to hear them.

Can we ever get too many great inspirational stories and reminders to live up to our potential rather than our pasts? I don't think so. This book will reignite your passion for making a larger and more positive difference. It will make you more human as you do so.

After you have finished the book, consider where your passion, gifts, and influence can combine to all you to most effectively live these principles. Consider that as a calling for at least some of your leisure time. If you are lucky, you can find some way to make that a primary calling for your working hours, as well. But find that place, and spend as much time as you can there!

My first impression upon picking up The Art of Possibility was that it would be "fluff." Wrong impression. Instead, this turned out to be a very powerful book that I'm glad to have read. The Zanders present a philosophy and strategy for seeing and living in our world from a standpoint of possibility rather than scarcity and restriction. They describe a set of practices that may sound trite from their chapter headings ("Giving an A") but which are backed up by lucid explanations and very moving anecdotes. (I don't usually go for books that rely so heavily on personal stories, but in this case they are quite inspiring and contribute significantly to the power of the book.)

The two authors come at the issues of leadership and personal growth from different perspectives: He from the point of view of an orchestra conductor, and She from that of a psychotherapist. Benjamin Zander fortunately does not try to make the threadbare comparison that being a conductor is like being a CEO; rather, he simply uses his personal experiences as a leader to help make his points with interesting examples related to his career as conductor.

It's a worthwhile read (and easy, too, at 200 pages) that at the very least is inspiring and enjoyable, but also likely to make positive changes in your life if you apply the practices the authors describe.

The Zander's redefine the way you look at things and view situations. I found the book to be a combination of art/creativity and psycho-analysis. Some of the principles I had a hard time really owning.

It reminds me a bit of Zen or Tao. Being in the present, not assigning blame, recognizing that is the way things are...

I couldn't read the book in one sitting. I found that it requires a lot of thought and reflection. Parts that I found inspirational were the white papers that were written by the musicians in response to a request from the conductor.

Some of the principles seemed to really line up well with the popular book from a few years ago "7 spiritual laws of success" by Deepak Chopra.

I would like to hear the authors read this as a book-on-tape, because I found myself thinking about things while I was trying to read. In a nutshell, the book says "put your life into a different playing field, Don't think win-win, think about making a contribution or about making a difference."

In a glut of books on personal improvement, this is a breath of fresh air. Many of the illustrations were drawn from the world of classical music, and as a musician/lawyer, I found them particularly relevant and interesting. Nothing trite here, just great thoughts and useful examples that you will find nowhere else. When I read the book for the first time, I wondered whether a non-musician would be able to relate to a description of a Mahler symphony or Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony. However, I used one of the examples in a recent speech to real estate professionals, and found that they were very interested in hearing about a string quartet (some probably for the very first time). The event made me realize that I love books that take me into a world in which I have never been, and I think many others have the same desire. So if you are not a musician, read this book, because you will be transported into the mind of a musician and the world of classical music. If you are a musician, you'll find yourself agreeing out loud with the musical examples.

This is not to say that the other examples are not relevant and interesting - they are, and they avoid the well-worn roads. I believe this husband and wife team have more to say, and I'm looking forward to their next books.

Although there were moments I was absolutely sucked into the book and inspired by the message, by the end I was ready for it to end. The opening chapter focuses on how reality is all made up and everything is subjective. I think anyone who has been to college will have heard these same arguments in about ten different classes - literature, psychology, sociology, and anthropology - and frankly, the book made it all sound very simplistic. They use a couple of scientific examples - and poof! They have a theory that serves as a basis for the rest of the book. It isn't very original or especially compelling.

Another problem was that almost all the real life examples Zander uses are about orchestra. I appreciate music, but I wished there could be more variety. I got sick of the repetition. Worst of all, almost all of Zander's personal stories are about times he did something amazing. At first I was impressed, but after a while, it sounded egotistical. He should have incorporated more examples from everyday people and avoided focusing on his own life so much. When the authors started suggesting solutions for ending terrorism, I was done. It was too over-the-top, too simplistic.

Having been brought up in the north of England where stoicism is still more highly prized than emotional candour, I have always been suspicious of "self-help" books. Consequently when a collegue gave me a copy of The Art of Possibility, I approached it with some cynicism, or at least with scepticism.
I need not have worried because this is in no way a self-help book. Readers will find no quick fixes or tricks here, and so it is bound to disappoint those seeking psychological sticking-plasters (as we can see in a review below). Rather the Zanders offer sets of practices - "possibilities to live into" - which, due to the way society has conditioned us, are extremely demanding to put into practise. Each idea is illustrated with real life accounts from the Zanders to demonstrate the idea in action. Most impressive is the willingness and honesty with which the Zanders discuss their own faults and mistakes. This rather proves the point that the ideas they propose are in no way easy to perfect, in this less than perfect world. Just as in learning a musical instrument, or acquiring a new skill there are no shortcuts. However, as with most worthwhile skills, the effort is more than repaid by the consequences of living into possibility.
The greatest compliment that I can pay the Zanders is that I have read and re-read the book many times, and practice it every day. I can't claim to be successful, but in the attempt have created waves that continue to open up possibilities I would not have considered possible before I read this book.
I highly recommend The Art of Possibility to anybody seriously seeking to release their full potential from the control of our human conditioning.

What can I tell you about this book? My first words of advice would be to disabuse yourself of the notion that just because it might land on the "self-help" shelf, it's merely another missive filled with affirmations, platitudes, and high-minded, unachievable objectives that will leave you feeling that to change the nature of your existence is a long, hard process, too daunting for a person already exhausted by the mere prospect of getting through another day. Phew! We've all had enough of those kinds of books, and the ideologies served up to us by people who seem to be still battling the incongruities of their own lives, while force-feeding us remedies for ours. (I'll mention no names!) Each chapter of this book presents us with simple practices, and frameworks that can truly help both to bring about a sea-change in the way you view yourself and others, as well as the circumstances you find yourself in. From the basic premise, that "It's All Invented", to the practice of "Rule #6",(don't take yourself so seriously),to the principles of "Giving an A",(allow for the beautiful statue inside the craggy marble), the Zanders generously share their personal and professional lives with us to illustrate how these concepts have transformed their own lives as well as those of many others, and having met Mr.Zander several weeks ago, I can attest to the fact that he is one of the most joyful, engaging people I have ever met. I only wish that the book came with a recording of his Chopin performance, described in the book, and which I was privileged to experience first hand, to help speed you on your own journey towards the realm of possibility.

"Where do you want to go today." "The possibilities are infinite." "A new world. A new way." Just about everyone is talking about the opportunities that are available in the world. If they are right, why (notwithstanding the lack of time) aren't more of us pursuing them?

The Art of Possibility (Harvard Business School Press, 2000) is a wonderfully written, inspiring, and wholly actionable book of practices for living more passionate and fulfilling lives in connection with the people and world around us. "Being with the way things are," "speaking in possibility," and "one-buttock playing" are just a few of the bits of wisdom packed into this extraordinary work.

The authors, Benjamin and Rosamund Zander, contend that new ways of being, perceiving and thinking are required to thrive in our ever-changing world - a world in which we frequently can find ourselves "out of the boat." Developing these new ways requires the ability to draw a different frame around a given set of circumstances. Using metaphors, stories, first-person accounts, and personal revelations, the authors go on to introduce a dozen practices that can serve as different frames. These include Giving an A, Being a Contribution, Leading from Any Chair, and, my favorite, Being the Board.

Used individually or in combination, the practices can help redefine perceptions of what is possible and empower each of us to make every day perfect.

While the book is written largely as a guide for personal development and creativity in any context, the concepts have tremendous potential for transforming the environment within organizations as well.

I ardently recommend this book to anyone who is striving to enrich her/his personal life or professional effectiveness and/or that of the people in the organization in which you work.

How many times do you find a book that you want to read just a little bit of every day, so it doesn't end? "The Art of Possibility" is one of those books. This book provides insight as well as inspiration into leadership.

The book calls us into a world of opportunity. It illustrates how, with simple shifts in our view of life, we can open ourselves up to our own excellence. Another key learning from this book is that we are shown that when we empower and see the greatness of others, we increase our effectiveness as leaders.

"The Art Of Possibility" is a pleasure to read and it provides a new way we can look at our work and lives right away. This book is worth reading more than once.

I've read (and even written) a lot of self-help books, but I can't remember ever having read such a book that left me feeling so electrified. The Zanders' humanity, creativity and imagination shine on every page, in every anecdote, quote, and description of their 12 practices. This isn't a feel-good, fix all your problems without effort book (I hate those!), but rather a key between two cardboard covers. Grab it, jiggle in all sorts of doors you assumed to be locked forever, both inside yourself and in the outside world. Watch in wonder as those doors swing open. I wish THE ART OF POSSIBILITY could be handed out to all new parents, all teachers, all bosses.