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The CC - What Wisdom tells Me
What Wisdom tells Me Cleo, our 9 year old River Engineer, grabbed my hand; “No Papa, it’s got to go that way!” I was trying to remove one of her diversions. “But it will just get stuck and stay over there!” The Engineer was adamant; “Papa, it will just have to wait its turn!” Buoyant coloured balls and lots of dams and diversions dotted the “river” at Vancouver’s Science World. My granddaughter was engineering downstream operations, trying to block the progress of the blue ball as she wedged in two diversions, and then a dam. The blue ball has become a metaphor for how I see people and projects through my filter. My ideas carry passion, and I find it hard when diversions or dams are inserted to slow them down. A couple months ago, I approached my client with a strategy that I felt strongly would alleviate his stress and grow his business. I was quite passionate. It involved taking on a partner, increasing the amount of available capital and breadth of management. After my presentation he said, “I see where you’re going, but I’ll have to think about it a while." He kept delaying but I couldn't let it go, so I followed up with an email. “Hi … If you delay much longer, the offer will get rescinded….” I guess it’s common enough; we all want to be right and have others to agree with us. In this case I was feeling right while he remained unsure. Whether in my family, personal life, or my business community, I want to be followed. Because I’m right. Even though I think I see the facts clearly, is Wisdom asking me to question the filter I’m using? I'll always have a Grayson-filter. We all have our own. As natural as my glasses, my filter is the lens that helps me make sense of the complexity of my world. But my lens that I see through may not be wisdom. In fact my filter may get rigid, inflexible, and resistant to adaptation. I don’t want that to happen. I unconsciously think: “If my way of seeing the world is true, then yours must be less true. If my conclusions are sound, then yours must be immature.” Then I start sorting ideas and people into clear categories: right or wrong, evolved or unenlightened, aligned or misguided. The world becomes simpler, but for me, poorer. The good news is that there’s still time for me to discover Wisdom, which says, “Don’t struggle over how your friends respond. Just care for them in silence.” Wisdom asks me; “Don’t try to simplify your family relationships to untrouble your thinking. Let it stay uncomfortably unknowable.” Wisdom tells me, “Tend your work patiently and let understanding arrive in its own time.” Wisdom wants me to see that my work isn’t to see the world in the right way, but to develop the capacity to remain content with “I’m not sure.” For this and next week, I’m writing on one theme: binary, black-and-white thinking; realizing that seeing complex issues as only two opposing options leaves no room for the middle ground. Want to join the conversation? Reach out and I’ll send the details: If that doesn’t work, we’ll meet on MS Teams, Fri, Feb 6 at 7:00 AM. I would love to connect with you on LinkedIn or Facebook See you next week, Grayson Did someone forward you this email? Get weekly reflections straight to your inbox by subscribing to The Compassionate Competitor. Want to share this issue via text, social media, or email? Just copy and paste this link: [ARCHIVE URL GOES HERE] |
Grayson Bain
Join us if you're yearning for business insights peppered with adventure, humanity, and a dash of humility. It’s more than success; it’s about significance.
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