I was recently told this story about two successful shoe salesmen from competing companies who were assigned by their firms to sell shoes in the territory of Africa.

The first shoe salesman boarded the plane and headed into his new territory unsure what to expect, but hopeful that this venture would be a success. His plane safely arrived in Africa and the shoe salesman immediately began his assessment of his new wide open market. It was less then an hour of the shoe salesman’s arrival to Africa when he quickly phoned back to his headquarters and requested the first flight out and back to the states, explaining to his boss “I can’t sell shoes here! Nobody wears them, everyone is barefoot!”

The second shoe salesman hopped on the plane anxious to see what awaited him in Africa. He expected a challenge but was optimistic about this new opportunity. After a safe landing the shoe salesman grabbed his bags and quickly became thrilled at what he observed. The shoe salesman quickly dialed up his headquarters and demanded to speak to his boss, he said “I can’t believe what I’m seeing, send me an assortment of ten thousand pairs of shoes immediately! Everyone is barefoot over here!”

Get the right perspective and find opportunities where others don’t!