Sharpening the Saw – A Story About Continued Development
Stephen Covey tells the story of a man who was walking through a forest when he came across a frustrated lumberjack.
The lumberjack was trying to cut down a tree with and was swearing and cursing as he laboured in vain.
“What’s the problem?” The man asked.
“My saw’s blunt and won’t cut the tree properly.” The lumberjack responded.
“Why don’t you just sharpen it?”
“Because then I would have to stop sawing.” Said the lumberjack.
“But if you sharpened your saw, you could cut more efficiently and effectively than before.”
“But I don’t have time to stop!” The lumberjack retorted, getting more frustrated.
The man shook his head and kept on walking, leaving the lumberjack to his pointless frustration.
This story is relevant to so many of us isn’t it?
We get frustrated by life and our inability to cope, but instead of developing ourselves and taking the time to become more effective, we keep struggling with a blunt saw.
Don’t do it any more. Stop, sharpen your saw and become more effective.
The lumberjack was trying to cut down a tree with and was swearing and cursing as he laboured in vain.
“What’s the problem?” The man asked.
“My saw’s blunt and won’t cut the tree properly.” The lumberjack responded.
“Why don’t you just sharpen it?”
“Because then I would have to stop sawing.” Said the lumberjack.
“But if you sharpened your saw, you could cut more efficiently and effectively than before.”
“But I don’t have time to stop!” The lumberjack retorted, getting more frustrated.
The man shook his head and kept on walking, leaving the lumberjack to his pointless frustration.
This story is relevant to so many of us isn’t it?
We get frustrated by life and our inability to cope, but instead of developing ourselves and taking the time to become more effective, we keep struggling with a blunt saw.
Don’t do it any more. Stop, sharpen your saw and become more effective.
