Think Outside the Box

The proverbial box is nothing but the limitations we place in our thinking. When we limit ourselves in our thinking, we limit our progress in life.

If you have concluded that you cannot go farther than certain level, you may never be able to advance beyond that level. If you say there is nothing else you can do concerning certain issue in your life, then, you are guilty of thinking “inside the box.”

Obviously, we live in a world of endless possibilities. Just when a person concludes that something is impossible, then you will find a positive-minded person that will get up and convince the doubting Thomas that it is possible.

In his book, The Amazing Results of Positive Thinking, Norman Vincent Peale narrated a story which helped to encourage one to think outside the box all the time in order to achieve outstanding success.

In the story, a sky scrapper was built and they were considering installing elevator. But the engineers said this would mean extra cost as they have to pull down part of the building in order to install the elevator. They thought there was no other way they could go about it.

But a janitor, who heard the engineers discuss the issue, suggested that instead of incurring more expenses by destroying part of the building, it was better they installed the elevator outside the building. The idea struck the engineers!

Now, before then, no elevator had ever been installed outside buildings. The other engineers kicked against the idea of installing elevator outside the building. They said the idea went against the laws of engineering.

But after much deliberation and out of reluctance, they agreed to experiment with the janitor’s idea. They succeeded in doing that. That was the first time elevator was installed outside a building!

Dear reader, anytime any person or your mind tells you that something is impossible, don’t believe it. The fact that you cannot find a way of doing certain thing does not mean it is impossible. The fact that something has never been done in a particular way does not mean it cannot be done that way.

The problem with us most times is that we are too rigid in our thinking. When something has never been done in a particular way, we quickly conclude that it can never be done that way. Norman Vincent Peale called this type of thinking “grooved-in thinking.”

Noting is Impossible

We are living in a world of endless possibilities. Many things that people thought were impossible years ago have been made possible by those who thought outside the box and discovered ways of getting them done.

Travelling to the moon was thought to be impossible many years ago, but some people thought outside the box. They believed it was possible. They believed there must be ways of getting into the moon. After series of trials and errors, they discovered a way and eventually got into the moon.

WHEN YOU THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX ALL THE TIME, YOU WILL CERTAINLY DISCOVER WAYS OF ACCOMPLISHING THE GOAL YOU SET FOR YOURSELF. Don’t limit yourself in your thinking. Always believe thing are possible. You only need to find a way of doing them.

THE BASIC STEP TO THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX IS ESTABLISHING IN YOUR MIND THE FACT THAT NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE. Then, think of ways of getting things done. It is when you start thinking of possible ways of doing a particular thing that you will start discovering the ways.

You Can Make It Possible

The fact that it has never been done anywhere does not mean it is impossible. Those things we say are “impossible” remain impossible because we fail to think outside the box.

Many years ago, Henry Ford told his team of engineers to produce a particular engine (V8) which had never been produced before. When the engineers saw the design, they quickly replied that it was impossible to produce it. Ford told them to go and produce it. They went and tried to produce it. After some time, they returned to Ford and told him they could not produce it.

Ford asked them to go back and keep working on it until they produced it. He gave them a deadline. They went back and worked to produce it. Surprisingly, within few weeks, the engine was successfully created!

Dear reader, those things you think are impossible are not really impossible. They may look impossible, but they are not. When you think outside the box by looking for ways of getting those things done, you will certainly find ways of doing them.

It may be that no one has ever done what you want to do. That does not mean it is impossible to do it. The fact that it has never been done does not mean that it cannot be done. Like Ford’s team of engineers, you have to force yourself to believe that it is possible.

WHEN YOU THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX AND GO BACK TO WORK, YOU WILL DISCOVER THAT THOSE THINGS YOU THOUGHT WERE IMPOSSIBLE ARE ACTUALLY POSSIBLE.

It Can Be Done

The fact that some have tried it and failed does not mean it cannot be done. We have seen or heard it many times, in the business world, of situations where some people failed and quit some businesses while others come into the same businesses and make them buoyant. What is the secret?

The secret is in the pattern of thinking of the operators of these businesses. While former operators thought there was no way they could take the businesses to greater height; the later thought they could achieve great success in the businesses. That thought gave them the staying power to remain in the businesses and turn them around for the better.

You can succeed where others have failed. You only need to change your way of thinking. Stop thinking inside the box. Stop limiting yourself in your thinking. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE WAYS OF GETTING THINGS DONE. REMEMBER: WHERE THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY.

For every goal you set for yourself, there is a way of achieving it. You only need to THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX. Put on your thinking cap now and start thinking of ways of achieving the goal you have set for yourself.

Try Again

The fact that you have tried many times and did not succeed does not mean that you cannot succeed. More often than not, the problem we have is not with the method we adopt in achieving our goal. The method may be right. It is only our way of thinking that is wrong.

Often, when we try several times and don’t succeed we start thinking that it is all over, that we have failed; and then we quit. The story is told of a pike (a large FRESHWATER fish with very sharp teeth) that was kept in the aquarium. The aquarium had a glass partition which separated the pike from many other small fishes kept at the other side. The pike tried repeatedly to eat the small fishes, but each time it tried, it would be blocked by the glass partition.

Later, the glass partition was removed, but the pike never made any further effort at eating the fishes. More often, we suffer from this “pike syndrome.” The pain and frustration we experience from several futile efforts make us to stop putting in more efforts.

No wonder, someone said: “90% of those who failed didn’t fail; they quit.” Quitting should not be your portion. Don’t quickly pack off and quit when things are going wrong. IF YOU ARE SURE YOU ARE ON THE RIGHT TRACK, AND THINGS ARE NOT GOING WELL AS YOU EXPECT, DON’T ALLOW FEELING OF FRUSTRATION TO GET YOU OFF THE TRACK.

Remain on the track. Keep trying. Give it more tries. You may be closer to success than you think. Why give up when only one more effort could be what you need make to achieve the goal you have set for yourself.

Finally, when you are in a fix, don’t conclude that it is impossible. No matter how difficult things may be, it is not impossible to achieve them. Believe you can achieve any goal you set for yourself. THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX and begin to generate the ideas you need for achieving your set goal.

Until I come your way soon, go and live victoriously!