My friend and master storyteller, Abe Walking Bear Sanchez, shared a story recently that I think bears (no pun intended) repeating.
“Whoever shot that arrow must be a fine marksman” said the warrior to himself. He hadn’t gone much further when he saw another bull’s eye, and another, and another – and all of them had arrows right in the center of the target.
He found the village elders and said “Whoever that marksman is I must meet him, ask him to meet me today, in one hours time by river.” He waited by the river but the only other person there was a small child playing on the bank. She came over to where he was standing and asked “Are you waiting for someone sir?”
“Run along little girl, be on your way,” said the warrior. The little girl continued, “ I was told to meet someone here and you look like you are waiting.” The warrior looked at her and said, “It is true I am waiting to meet the great archer who is responsible for shooting all these perfect shots I see all over the village.”
“That would be me,” said the little girl. “I made all those shots.”
The warrior looked down at her and said, “Tell me how exactly you got a perfect shot every time?” That’s easy” replied the girl “I just point my bow very straight and let the arrow fly then I draw a bull’s eye where it lands.”
Do you have a goal or are you just on a walk? Can you measure what matters, or do you just declare victory? As our Principal, Bayard Bookman likes to ask about goals: “Are you getting closer to the goal or just further from the beginning?”
Mitch
