An old man & his young grandson decided one morning to go to the market in the village. It was quite a distance to the market, so they decided to travel with their donkey, the old man sitting on the animal while his grandson walked alongside.
On the way, they passed a group of of villagers walking in the opposite direction. The villagers, seeing the old man sitting on the donkey, approached them saying how terrible it was that old man was riding the donkey while the young boy, being so small, needed to walk so fast to keep up. As the villagers left, the pair decided that the villagers may be right & swapped places.
A short while later, the pair passed a group of women walking to the river. The women, seeing the young boy on the donkey, complained bitterly. “Your grandson is young & has energy. You are old & should be resting!”. The women walked on & the pair, hearing the truth in the women’s advice, decided to ride the donkey together.
As they continued on the long path, they walked past a farmer. The farmer, seeing how the donkey is straining under the weight of both riders, yelled at them & demanded that they take better care of their donkey. The grandfather & grandson, feeling sorry for their donkey, decided to carry the donkey instead.
Finally, as they were about to enter the village, they approached their final hurdle: a bridge crossing a deep river. As they carried the donkey over the bridge, the animal started to panic. The old man & the young boy, unable to hold the donkey, watched in shock & horror as the animal slipped, fell into the river & drowned.
The moral of the story? If you try to please everyone, YOU CAN KISS YOUR ASS GOODBYE.
As my mentor, Joel Bauer says: “In life, it’s not about whether you’re liked or not – it’s about being effective!”
(I heard this story on the Audible.com audio book of Michael Port’s “Book Yourself Solid”, a book I highly recommend.)
