Lessons from Mark Twain

Waldo at the Pemberton Music Festival

I did not see this coming, but I managed to actually accomplish something this week. 

As always, these matters are highly confidential, so I'll turn things over to our friend the Queen and her advisors.

*****

The queen of a small but pleasant realm had in front of her the big job of overhauling practically her entire kingdom. The place had been let go, not just by her but by the many rulers before her. Neglected repairs had piled up. The place was teetering on the brink of ruin.  

One of the biggest, hardest, most necessary jobs was to paint the fence around the kingdom. 

Her advisors had told her of the many problems posed by painting the fence. 

"No one trusts the paint," one had said, "they worry that it will run out before the job is done."

"Yes," said another, "and the paint is too expensive."

"Retailers refuse to sell the paint," added another, "because they don't know much about it."

"Also, the paint's not made in the kingdom. Painting the fence won't create jobs."

One day, after hearing these same things for the thousandth time, the Queen asked, "are there ways around these problems?" 

Not quite comprehending what they'd been asked, the Queen's advisors sought clarification from their ruler.

"I mean," said the Queen, "now that we have canvassed to the tiniest detail what are the problems in painting the fence, can we please figure out how to paint the fence?"

Eager to get away from someone so evidently on the brink of madness, the advisors backed bowing out of the room. They agreed their next steps were to set out more clearly for their fever-brained ruler the reasons why the fence will never be painted.

Unaware of the fate of her last request to her advisors, the Queen took a stroll the next day to the fence that surrounded her kingdom. 

There she found someone painting the fence. Along with the painter was a large crowd of people with things to exchange for the pleasure of painting the fence.

"Am I ever glad to see you," said the fence painter.

"And I you," said the Queen.

After a short conversation, and the exchange of a dead cat, the Queen returned to her chambers, took up her great, long list of things to do, and put a line through "paint the fence." 

*****

Another Experiment in Behavioural Science

If you might indulge me over the next few weeks, I would be very grateful if you would take a short survey. No, seriously, it's one question. Per week. It'll take you less time to do than the time it's taken you to recoil from the idea. 

Thanks.

And thanks for reading!

Have a great week!

Karen