First, check out this video: www.wimp.com/inefficientdrinker/
Once you've done that, the rest of this entry will make sense.
[Insert elevator muzak here]
Okay, done? When I first watched this video, I thought, "Man, what a funny/stupid cat! I can't believe it did that!" Then I started thinking some more. Uh oh. You know what happens when I start thinking more? I start drawing connections to my life. Yup.
So here's what I started asking myself: When do I do things in my life like the cat in this video? In other words, when do I get so bull-headedly sure that MY way is the best/smartest/most efficient way that I can't see that maybe my way ISN'T best?
Thinking, thinking.
Okay, pretty much all the time. Maybe not ALL the time. A lot of the time, though. I see a goal ahead, something I want, and think, "Okay, here's how I get there. Easy." In the process of getting there, I don't always choose the best way to reach the goal, though.
Example: Friday night was our ward autumn party/hayride at a farm about four miles out of town. The party started at 5:30. I had steel drum lessons until 6:45. I called a friend who was at said party to make sure it was still happening. Oh yeah, come on over. I'd forgotten, though, about the fact that it had been raining all day and that the road to the farm was unpaved. And narrow. And it was getting dark. The road ended up being washed out in places, full of puddles, and harder to navigate than usual. That combined with it essentially being a one-lane road presented problems. I should have just turned around at the first turn-out and gone home. But no, I bulled ahead, sure that despite the sudden return of a downpour, the party would still be happening. I ended up just blocking the way for lots of people trying to get home. And being cranky that I drove out there and everyone was leaving by the time I arrived. Plus getting lost on the way home. I was so focused on "I'm going to the party" that I ignored all the details that suggested going to the party wasn't such a good idea.
Not that the above event was a huge tragedy or anything, but it reminded me that I so often insist on MY way and MY schedule that I'm like the cat in the video, getting drenched and laying back my ears in discomfort while I keep sticking my head right under the faucet. I need to learn to wait a bit. I need to open myself up to alternative routes that might work better.
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3 comments:
Wow, Sheila, those are some seriously insightful conclusions from such a hilarious video! I like them. I agree. We think, "Hey, this is working. Kind of. Well, not really, but I'm still going to do it." I'm still learning from my research-oriented husband, who emails half his address book to get their thoughts/opinions/advice on the next step he's considering making before he actually makes it. For me it's a humility issue (er, lack of). Next time I'll think of that drenched -- though darling -- cat!
Efficiency is my friend! So often things don't happen like we imagine though. 20-20 hindsight right?
I think maybe part of the problem is that what I think is being efficient most times really isn't efficient after all. Yeah, 20-20 hindsight.
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