COMING FULL CIRCLE

I like the image this conveys. To come back to where you started, but hopefully with a little better understand. Not having made progress in terms of what some people value, but perhaps in terms of experience you are a whole lot smarter. At least hopefully you are smarter.

There are times when I deal with people who are chasing their tails in terms of effort. They aren’t really heading in any positive direction, but they sure are working very hard just the same. I know that old saying, “work smarter, not harder.” The idea being conveyed naturally is that sometimes there are easy ways to do things that are more productive than what seems to be the most laborious method. In other words or should I say MY words the capacity to sweat doesn’t mean you necessarily are going to be successful.

But despite that reality the problem is I think that many of us make lousy students in terms of taking advice. You sure can find plenty of it available and too much of it way, way less than helpful. However if you aren’t successful at sometime it might be a good idea to accept the fact that the person who is might have a better way of doing things. So where would the harm be in listening?

Okay enough of that preaching I guess. What I’m getting to here more than anything is that we all have to approach the idea of learning in different ways. And in some cases there are people who simply can’t learn until the screw up enough to accept the fact they need to try to do things differently.

What is tough for me as Mayor and a boss is to deal with the times somebody I know is racing out of control towards a cliff of disaster and you can’t stop them. The person in no way will listen or care. Nothing is going to change the person’s behavior till the learn as it is said, “the hard way.”

And that sometimes is a good thing if the person truly learns from the mistake. So he or she starts over and then does it right the next time.

Those are times of real celebration for me. I can sit back and nod and say “whew!” That’s because I know they won’t do the same thing again.

Unfortunately there are some people even that doesn’t help with. They can fall down, crash and burn and get up and do the same stupid thing not just once more, but again and again and again. I tell you that is really discouraging. But with that individual you can complain you can threaten, it just isn’t going to keep them from running into a wall.

I have ended up just being content to see the people walking in circles and the few who stop to finally head in the right direction. As for the ones that keep going in circles, well I guess the thing is I’ve sort of developed a philosophy. I have given thought to selling tickets or even making the whole incident into a DVD for sale. Hey I’m a realist. If somebody is going to live a life that gives me a reason to laugh then what’s wrong in making a buck at it?