of selling. I was able to grasp my biggest opportunity
in the sales field because, though I had been devoting my time and
energies chiefly to accountancy, I had studied and practiced
salesmanship for years in order to market my own services most
effectively.

_While preparing yourself for success, keep your mental eyes wide open_.
Perceive any and all chances about you, however much you specialize in
your preparation for a selected career.

[Sidenote: Preparation In Salesmanship]

Comprehend that preparation in _salesmanship_ is necessary, whatever
vocation you choose. Mastery of the selling process is absolutely
essential if you would assure your success in _any_ field of ambition.
Not only must you _perceive_ opportunities to succeed, but you also must
know how to _sell yourself into the chances_ you see. No matter how much
particularized knowledge you may acquire in preparation for a selected
career, your success will not be _assured_ until you are able to sell
your capabilities to the best advantage. You can neither perceive all
your possible selling opportunities, nor make the most of them when
seen, unless you learn the selling process and develop skill in the
actual sale of the best that is in you.

Broad, varied knowledge is required as the foundation for certain
success. It cannot be built on a narrow or limited base. Evidently,
however, exactly the same amount of knowledge possessed by two men would
not make them equally successful. As already has been emphasized,
success is not assured by the mere possession of knowledge, _but by the
effective ways in which elements of knowledge are fitted to
opportunities_.

[Sidenote: Abstract And Applied Knowledge]

Your abstract knowledge may be valueless. In order to succeed certainly
_you must connect the things you have learned with particular people in
particular fields of activity_. When you have developed the power of
relating your individual ability to every imaginable _use_, your mental
eyes will be opened to many opportunities for success that you otherwise
might never perceive. Such an association of _what you know and can do_
with the various ways your capabilities might be utilized will
tremendously augment your self-confidence. When you realize in how many
ways it is possible to use your especial talents, you will not be likely
to doubt your own _worth_. You will offer your qualifications for sale
with complete faith in their value to prospective buyer