The Art of Possibility

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. A lot of it is solid advice, but something about it rubs me the wrong way.

The book consists of 12 practices, which are supposed to teach you to be more open to possibility, thus changing your view on life and inter-personal relationships and making you less miserable in the long run. Each practice is accompanied with personal stories - mostly Benjamin Zander's , but some - Rosamund Zander's as well.

In the beginning of the book the stories annoyed the hell out of me. They're written like rom-coms, where everything goes well eventually, and they're full of nauseating positivity. Some are as bad as those pictures of meditating people with an annoying “enlightened” quote that pop up on our friend's feed on Facebook from time to time. I know I'm a grump, but I'm sure some levels of inspirational mumbo-jumbo can annoy anyone.

However, some of the stories truly were inspiring. It was usually the ones that were more personal, where Ben or Roz were more vulnerable, where, instead of teaching the reader by showing off their infinite wisdom, they taught by showing how they learned a valuable lesson in the first place, how they made the same mistakes the reader might. And this is why I decided to give this book 3 stars instead of 2.

Now the practices themselves also vary. Some are formulated in a clear manner, while others have a more vague, new-agey wording. Like this one, for instance:

The first step is to notice where you are holding back., and let go. Release those barriers of self that keep you separate and in control, and let the vital energy of passion surge through you, connecting you to all beyond. (p. 114)

Giving an A

It reframed my thinking about how much of my thinking could be reframed.

There's plenty of the “just do it” mentality of being able to accomplish anything within this book. It is all about embracing the possible, after all. However, it also acknowledges the hard things that you must overcome in order to find the possibilities. The lessons in this book are about reframing situations and acknowledging that it's not always easy. There are counter forces at play—within us and within others.

It will take many years of practice to make use of these lessons, but I'm grateful to be starting now.

I read this book after watching a talk given by Benjamin Zander at Davos and another he gave at a TED conference. In person, he is inspiring, likable and he comes across as a genuinely good human being. Much of that comes across in his writing as well. He's a natural story teller and his passion for music and life are contagious.