IMAGINATION 407COMMENTARY
Figures like Michelangelo or Georgia O'Keeffe are renowned for their imagina-
tions, but the essence of what they did is simple: They looked at the world in a way
that no one else had before, and they translated their visions into work.
Imagination is always reshaping the world as people connect seemingly
disparate things. And once the connection is made, it may seem obvious, but
making these supposedly obvious connections has brought success to many
people.
John D. Rockefeller was a partner in an oil refining business in Cleveland,
Ohio. In the early days of petroleum production, the business was extremely
volatile. The price of a barrel of oil fluctuated enormously Determined to make
his company succeed, Rockefeller realized that if he couldn't control oil prices,
he might help himself by controlling his costs. So he set up a barrel-making
operation that cut barrel costs by more than 60 percent. That move was so
profitable, Rockefeller began investigating what other parts of the business his
company could control. Soon he owned pipelines and oil wells, along with his
refineries. He had created the first vertical corporation-one that supplied all
its own needs, and one that became the huge Standard Oil.
You must learn to focus your imagination, and then to act on the right
ideas that you develop. This is not an overnight process; a multimillion-dollar
idea will not spring from your brain tomorrow simply because you will it. In
most people, imagination is handicapped by two things. First, it is not usefully
focused. It flits from object to object, driven by circumstance. Today your
imagination may be stimulated by a movie you saw, tomorrow by a newspaper
headline, and the next day by a bit of conversation you overhear. Its powers are
scattered. Or, second, it may be in thrall to the six basic fears, creating visions
of some rare and dreaded disease, a disaster at work, or romantic betrayal. In
such situations its powers are at work, but only to your detriment.
If you do begin to focus your imagination, it will not take long at all for you to
have many small ideas of surprising usefulness. As you begin to apply these ideas,
your confidence in your imagination and in yourself will grow.