Seeking a Carpenter’s Advice before Getting a Haircut
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I know of a person whose area of specialisation is in one respective field, yet he advises people on a variety of fields without any hands-on experience about the subject. The saddest part is that many have inclined their ears towards him and made irrevocable decisions in their life. I am not at all blaming that person, as everybody wants to be noticed as a man of wisdom, yet I certainly blame those who seek his advice as it is simply as though they are seeking advice about a haircut from a carpenter. A barber or a hair stylist is the relevant source that they must seek advice with regard to a haircut, it is not a carpenter’s job, the carpenter is good at making furniture.
Ten years ago, I received a piece of golden advice from my previous Chairman, who has always been very helpful to me in various avenues during my journey. Once when we had scheduled a marketing meeting, I informed him of the participants and he boldly said that we should not invite carpenters whilst making decisions about haircuts. He further added that if I ask, everybody would certainly answer as every one of them likes to be identified as a man of wisdom. A Jack of all trades and a master of none is a famous quote that refers to many people who have halted their progress and are stagnant midway due to the egoistic pattern of thinking, where they believe that they have mastered everything.
When I was young, I used to be the same. Once my aunt took me to a doctor and he said it was difficult to treat me as I was trying to advise him on what needs to be done. Whilst walking out after meeting the doctor my aunt said “why don’t you just keep quiet and allow the doctor to do his part?” She was indeed right. I was such a loser at that time, even with no actual achievements I thought I knew everything. My father is indeed a very wise and mature man whom I consider a victorious personality for the manner in which he has handled the pressures he had to face in life, yet I even tried to advise him though I had not achieved anything in life at that time. One blessed day, I was bestowed sight in abundance with a clear purpose on life.
I realised that even though I thought I knew everything, I knew nothing at all, I was just a loser who was lying flat on the ground at point zero. I understood that all my acquaintances were simply talkers who have not achieved much apart from defeat after defeat.
After receiving a conscious frame of mind my father advised me to do CIM, even though at a latter age I chose to take his advice as I realised that I was greatly in need of taking the advice of wise men, as I have been a fool who was listening to a flock of fools who were exactly the same as me. Slowly but steadily I began to sit down with the winners. I realised that the quality of the cake purely relies on the ingredients and the method of mixing that is used. If you want your children to live a solid life then make sure that you lay a solid foundation for them right from the start. I am extremely concerned about the friends my son Joshua associates as I want him to sit in the light and not in the darkness.
As he plays with some kids in the street, I had to advise him that it is alright to play with everyone but he must maintain a wise and distant relationship with two of those kids as I believe they might be able to tarnish Joshua’s virtuous pattern of thinking. I wish I could give a word of advice to those parents but then again, I realised that swine may not understand the value of pearls. On many occasions I have become a wrongdoer to many for advising the wrong people at the wrong time.
Even the most victorious brands in the world have been mastering one specific strategy as clearly mentioned by Michael Porter in his generic strategies. Those brands have chosen to fight either under ‘the cost-conscious strategy’ or ‘the focused strategy or ‘the differentiation strategy’. Don’t try to master spinning and pace bowling simultaneously. Muttiah Muralitharan became a world class spinner because he opted to master spinning. On the other hand, Brett Lee became a fierce pace bowler as he chose to master fast bowling. A company would certainly slip into a deep pit if they seek financial guidance from its sales consultant.
Obviously, he may know a few financial theories that he learnt during his MBA or some other diploma, yet, he does not have hands-on experience in finance management. Therefore, be vigilant about whom you run up to when you face challenges in life. Your next door neighbour may be a good-hearted person but she may not be wise enough to assist you during a financial struggle. Your best friend will always love you but he might not possess the wisdom to advise you on your career transformation. Your parents are those who love you the most in this world, but they maybe incompetent in advising you the field you must choose for a better future. Your fiancée may love you to the core but she may not have the necessary knowledge to advise you on your investments.
At times we are so emotional in our relationships, so much so that we tend to meet a carpenter to seek advice about our haircut. Time and time again we all need to take a close look at our associates. Just as our houses need a full clean up every year, so do our associates need a cleaning every year, as there might be resource gluttons, confidence decliners, peace breakers, demotivators and pain infusers amongst our associates. Even though we are vigilant of our physical surroundings and we constantly organise it and remove any unproductive items and toss it into a garbage bin, we forget to focus and take a keen and deep look at our friendships, associates, affiliations and our advisors.
In 2022 I did a thorough clean up, and trust me the peace I gained by removing certain people from my life is absolutely amazing. I understood that all this time I have been wasting my valuable fertilizer on weed whereas I could have used them to cultivate a fruitful crop.
We all must mainly focus on three major areas during our journey in life. Namely- Direction, Protection and Correction. If we choose the wrong sources whilst seeking for direction, protection and correction, our lives will be ill directed and vague. We are passing through one of the most challenging times in our lives thus we cannot afford to take the pills we take for a headache at the moment we get a heart attack.
In case I need to find a location which I cannot find through the google map, I always make it a point to ask two particular people as there is always the risk of relying on one source. I have faced many instances where I have been misled or given false directions when sought from only one source either due to their ego or their wickedness. Assume that I get lost even after asking from two people then I should learn to ask from three parties. The more challenging life becomes the more you need to be well focused on the exact source that you seek for direction, protection and correction. Failing to do so can lead you towards serious accidents that can be irreplaceable.
Similarly, just because a medical representative is aware of different types of medicine, we must never ask them to prescribe medicine for us. Medicine for a sickness should be prescribed after an appropriate diagnosis. Likewise, when we seek direction from another, apart from the capacity that person beholds he should also have a sound knowledge about us. In conclusion, do not seek advice from the carpenter about the haircut that suits you the most.
For comments: e-mail – philipnehri@chandanalepa.lk / voice – 0779 526 496
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