The Greatest Salesman In The World

“Every one of us is a salesman, no matter what his occupation or profession. Most of all, first he must sell himself to himself in order to find personal happiness and peace of mind” – a review from The Greatest Salesman In The World, the best book I’ve read since Eat Pray Love.

I found it on the free books rack in the public library yesterday along with Life's Little Instruction Book & The Book of Basic Values which I decided were essential for my personal collection and if anything would make excellent coffee table books or would go quite nicely by/on the bedside table for quick perusal now and then (I don’t believe in books by the toilet – that is no place to linger haha).

I woke up this morning and read it in one sitting with my coffee in hand and a snortface pug in my lap. The backdoor was open, letting the pure crisp chilled October air drift inside while the gentle white early morning light spilled out across the shadows gently, subtly, slowly dispelling the lingering darkness, helping the new day make the transition from dawn to a settled morning just outside the window. A kind of morning, a kind of moment, that invigorates, refreshes, and calms the senses simultaneously.

It is a marvelous story about scrolls. Secret scrolls in the Middle East many centuries ago that are passed down from master to apprentice, and contain the principles to becoming the greatest salesman in the world. More than a mere how-to manual, these scrolls are imbued with little truths that go beyond how to be successful in business, and are more about how to live a successful life and be a successful person. The spiritual twist to this narration moved me to tears. It’s powerful, very powerful.

Pen in hand I underlined little delicious morsels this book delivered on most every page but will include a select few below:

Each struggle, each defeat, sharpens your skills and strengths, your courage and your endurance, your ability and your confidence and thus each obstacle is a comrade-in-arms forcing you to become better...

Scroll II: I WILL GREET THIS DAY WITH LOVE IN MY HEART…henceforth I will look on all things with love and I will be born again.

I will love the sun for it warms my bones; yet I will love the rain for it cleanses my spirit.

I will love the light for it shows me the way; yet I will love the darkness for it shows me the stars.

I will welcome happiness for it enlarges my heart; yet I will endure sadness for it opens my soul.

I will acknowledge rewards for they are my due; yet I will welcome obstacles for they are my challenge…

How will I react to the actions of others? With love. For just as love is my weapon to open the hearts of men, love is also my shield to repulse the arrows of hate and the spears of anger…

How will I confront each to whom I meet? In only one way. In silence and to myself I will address him and say I Love You…

Never will I allow my soul to become complacent and satisfied, rather I will feed it with meditation and prayer. Never will I allow my heart to become small and bitter, rather I will share it and it will grow and warm the earth…from this moment all hate is let from my veins for I have not time to hate, only time to love.

Scroll III: I WILL PERSIST UNTIL I SUCCEED… I was not delivered unto this world in defeat, nor does failure course in my veins. I am not a sheep waiting to be prodded by my shepherd. I am a lion and I refuse to talk, to walk, to sleep with the sheep. I will hear not those who weep and complain, for their disease is contagious…I will try, try, and try again...

Scroll IV: I WILL LIVE THIS DAY AS IF IT IS MY LAST…and if it is my last, it will be my greatest moment. This day…I will drink every moment to its full. I will savor its taste and give thanks.

Scroll V: TODAY I WILL BE MASTER OF MY EMOTIONS…
If I feel depressed I will sing.
If I feel sad I will laugh.
If I feel ill I will double my labor.
If I feel fear I will plunge ahead.
If I feel inferior I will wear new garments.
If I feel uncertain I will raise my voice.
If I feel poverty I will think of wealth to come.
If I feel incompetent I will remember past success.

Scroll X: Never will I pray for the material things of this world. I am not calling to a servant to bring me food. I am not ordering an innkeeper to provide me with room....only for guidance I will pray…the guidance I seek may come, or the guidance I seek may not come, but are not both of these an answer? If a child seeks bread from his father and it is not forthcoming has not the father answered?

Oh, creator if all things, help me. For this day I go out into the world naked and alone, and without your hand to guide me I will wander…

Bathe me in good habits that the bad ones may drown; yet grant me compassion for weaknesses in others. Suffer me to know that all things shall pass; yet help me to count my blessings of today.

Discipline me in the habit of trying and trying again…endow me with patience which will concentrate my strength.

But all these things be only if thy will. I am a small and lonely grape clutching the vine yet thou has made me different from all others. Verily, there must be a special place for me. Guide me, help me, show me the way.