The first two thirds of the book, The Art of Possibility by Rosamund and Benjamin Zander, presented more than food for thought, in my opinion. If the average thought provoking piece of literature is "food for thought" this book was enough sustenance to provide for a small starving third-world nation.
The eight chapters prior have given a structure for acknowledging the less effective "thinking" or practices that we participate in and allow to effect our lives. They also begin to layout the groundwork for what and how to change in order to live more efficacious and powerful life.
In chapter nine we examine the idea of owning responsibility for everything that happens in your life. It is important to acknowledge the risks that we take and their importance, but also that without taking those risks, we would live without the rewards which comes with the outcome of those risks. This chapter also speaks to the idea that we need to allow the things that happen in the pass to be processed and then left in the past rather than owning space in our present lives.
Chapter 10. In effort to pull all of these considerable ideas into one coherent plan of action we take in our role in laying out and carrying out a framework for which to follow.
To sum up the book, I want to just comment on the final chapters. The authors point out the importance of disassociating ourselves with the “us vs. them” mentality and putting focus on our ability to give concession to our connections and then go beyond and look at the places where we can foster those connections.
Life is defined by the experiences we accumulate. I have a new appreciation for the title of this book. There is an "art" to creating possibilities is our lives. If we limit those possibilities than we are limiting the depth and breadth of our lives. If we are not living life to it's fullest than what purpose are we serving.
Well put Danielle. There have been many things to mentally "chew" on throughout this book. And I appreciate the various stories of how these practices have been enacted, even beyond the musical realm. Without negating the importance of anything, we can move through life viewing the possibilities rather than struggling to hold onto the scarcity - which oddly enough tends to produce more abundance than careful conservation usually does.
ReplyDeleteGreat summary and observations. It's definitely an art to adjust and appreciate this change in direction or more correctly, change in perception.
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