The Art of Possibility

One of the many advantages of being a voracious reader is that books have a way of emerging into your life at the perfect moment. I’ve become convinced that when you are open to the universe in a certain way, it tends to respond in kind. This happened for me again just last week. I was doing some scenario planning for Metros Capital and, with the backdrop of the strangest and most challenging macro environment I’ve seen in a long time for real estate, had brainstormed myself into a very unproductive downward spiral. I found myself imagining all sorts of stress and difficulties—“what if this happens and then that and that…?”—and was at a loss about how to think about things let alone what to do. 

Just when I was about to throw my hands up, I came across a post on X from Tim Ferris recommending a book “The Art of Possibility” by Rosamund and Benjamin Zander. I was intrigued enough to download a sample and within minutes I was hooked and on my way to working myself out of this self-induced depressive state. The book is all about the magic of thinking about life in terms of possibility. The authors interlace stories from their diverse experiences as musicians, educators, psychologists, and leaders, and offer 12 practices for finding and keeping a mindset of possibility amidst the various challenges and situations of modern life. More on that later. 

The Zanders make two really insightful points in the book: 

1. The problem of modernity is that it tricks us into thinking that life is all about scarcity, competition, and peril when, in reality, it’s an “infinite, generative, and abundant” world of possibility, if only we could see it! The trick is to learn how to overcome the deep grooves of conditioned beliefs and thinking patterns that get battered into our minds by the relentless messaging streams of our age. 

    

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2. They point out that, for some odd reason, we actually have two selves. We have a calculating self that lives in the world of measurement and is focused on things like scarcity, competition, and survival. And then we have a central self that lives in the world of possibility and is focused on things like creativity, relationships, and generosity. The 12 practices are essentially tips, tools, and tactics for finding and living as your central self instead of your calculating one. 

Side note: It’s not at all clear to me why we evolved to have two selves like this but I think it’s true. What the psychologists tell us is that the calculating self, which we experience subjectively as something like our character, is ultimately a defense mechanism against the various terrors of living in a profoundly uncertain and dangerous world and knowing the whole time that one day, whether we like it or not, we are all going to die. If you are interested in an in-depth analysis of all this I highly recommend “The Denial of Death” by Ernest Becker, a work I recently read as part of my Salamander Book Club with my friend and longtime business partner John. Don’t worry, an essay on the Salamander Book Club and the origin story for its unique name is forthcoming!

Anyway, what makes life kind of crazy is that it asks us to do two things. First, we must create a calculating self (i.e. develop a character) strong and effective enough to be successful in the world (i.e. to survive at the very least and ideally thrive). This is largely the task of youth or should be! Then, just as it feels like we are finally coming into our own and achieving some success, life challenges us to abandon the very thing we just spent several decades creating.  For sooner or later, we realize that our calculating self can only take us so far. We get stuck in a rut or, worse, end up in crisis and then we start learning about the limits of the calculating self.  One day, we catch a glimpse of our central selves and start to realize that another, more exciting and authentic way of living is possible. Then we are presented with a choice: retreat into the safety of the old patterns of our character or step into the expansive realm of possibility that comes with our true selves.

This path is so common, so predictably true it feels like it’s something that life simply demands of us.  The whole process feels like a kind of natural and inevitable progression, something we cannot avoid even if we want to. As I was reading the book, I kept thinking about Ernest Shackleton and his incredible story of survival because it so perfectly demonstrates the immense power of possibility. Long story, short: Shackleton was the leader of a failed expedition to the South Pole in 1914. His boat, the Endurance, got caught in the ice and eventually destroyed. After finding some respite on a nearby island, he decided to lead a small group of men on a mission to find help. They left in a lifeboat and embarked on an absolutely insane 720 nautical mile open ocean voyage. Keep in mind, he did this with no equipment and no navigation tools in a 23 foot open lifeboat in some of the coldest, roughest seas on the planet. After successfully completing this once-in-history ocean voyage, he and his men then completed a 32-mile overland trek across mountainous terrain with one 50-foot rope and a few small tools. In modern times, climbers equipped with all the modern stuff have attempted this crossing and failed! He reached a port, recruited help, and went back and saved every last man. This is considered by many to be the single greatest feat of survival in all of recorded human history. There’s a phenomenal book about it all called “Endurance,” which might make for some nice holiday reading. 

Shackleton was so obviously living with the possibility mindset. If he was stuck in measurement mode, he would have never set foot in that lifeboat, for the ex-ante probability of coming out of that alive, let alone successful, is zero. According to his men, he only lost his cool one time during the whole ordeal. After getting smashed by a massive rogue wave and then missing out on capturing a bird, he threw his hands up in despair and muttered a few curse words. He quickly regained his composure and went on to become a legend. When the Zanders say that the world of possibility is infinite, generative, and abundant, this is what they are talking about. There’s something else out there, some other force. We cannot always see it or feel it but it’s there and if you can find it and hold onto it, like Shackleton, there’s no limit to what you can accomplish. 

With Shackleton in mind, let’s finish by discussing the Zanders’ 12 practices of possibility:  

1. It’s all invented

It’s important to remember that our subjective reality is largely self determined and that we all have the incredible power to change the way we are thinking at any moment.

2. Stepping into a universe of possibility

While the measurement mindset is the strong natural default perspective of life, you can get yourself out of it by constantly challenging your assumptions.

3. Giving an A

Giving an A means resisting all the temptations to judge and compare and instead treating everyone as someone uniquely special, valuable, and capable of great things.

4. Being a contribution

This one will be familiar for you all as it’s a core principle of Profit+! The idea is to stop thinking about life in terms of personal achievement and gain and instead think of every day as an opportunity to make a contribution to the greater good.

5. Leading from any chair

Leadership is available at any moment and from any position in life. It isn’t about titles or hierarchies. It’s about having the courage to take responsibility for others. 

6. Rule number 6

This is one we could all stand to remember from time to time: Don’t take yourself so seriously! So many of life’s problems are a function of our tendency to be over-serious and often a smile, joke, or self-deprecating statement is all that’s needed to break the impasse.

7. The way things are

Be present to the way things are, including your feelings about the way things are. Resist the temptation to escape from the present moment. Stay with what is and don’t let abstractions (the things you think) prevent you from seeing and experiencing things as they are (actual reality).

8. Giving way to passion

Passion provides the clue of your central self but you have to give it a voice to keep it alive. So, don’t listen when that annoying, scared voice of the calculating self appears in yourr mind telling you “Don’t do it. Hold back. You’ll embarrass yourself!” Let go of all that fear and let your passion animate your life.

9. Lighting a spark

Think of yourself as someone whose job it is to enroll others in the life of possibility. Treat every single encounter as an opportunity to light the spark for someone else. 

10. Being the board

Even though you may not be completely responsible for all the circumstances of your life, it’s better to think of things that way. Accepting responsibility gives you the space in your mind to see how you can make a difference no matter what. 

11. Frameworks for Possibility

Once you start living in possibility, the key is to stay there. The idea here is to use your awareness to constantly check in with your mindset. What’s the framework behind your thinking? What are its assumptions? Are they open to possibility or stuck in the world of competition and measurement? It’s ok if you lose your cool—even Shackleton did—you just have to get back to possibility ASAP. 

12. Telling the We Story

Here we have another Profit+ staple. Life is best lived through the lens of “we” and “our” not “I” and “mine.” Shackleton didn’t achieve the impossible trying to become a legend, he did so because he wanted desperately to save the lives of his crew.

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