Inspired by a tweet

You can't solve problems that you don't know you're having. Even after you've been alerted to the problem, you need a plan of action to reach the solution. Since you cannot detect these problems, and, therefore, cannot solve them, you will need someone to do it for you. You likely will not enlist this assistance because you are unaware of your need for it. Every now and then it happens that someone notices a problem you are having, alerts you to it, and has a plan of action to solve it. At the point that you verify that there is, indeed, a problem that needs a solution, it is in your best interest to get it solved. The simplest way to accomplish this is by finding the one who already has a plan and then following that plan.

This method works until someone tells you that the plan you are following is not a perfect plan. You find that, that person is right; this plan will not completely solve your problem, this plan will be difficult to actualize, and it may even cause new problems for others. The one who finds the flaws (the naysayer) now ridicules you for following such an incomplete plan. It now seems that it is in your best interest to abandon that plan. Several do abandon that plan, feeling that all hopes of a solution are futile. They call you a sheep, because you followed absentmindedly. The catch, though, is that your problem still needs a solution, and no one is coming up with a better one.

The ones who abandon the plan are right about you. Metaphorically, you are a sheep. Your old pasture was running out (problem). You found the most expedient shepherd (the one with the plan) and followed him in hopes of finding a new green pasture to graze, only to realize that this shepherd doesn't know the best route to that pasture. What the abandonders have failed to realize is that they, too, are sheep. The only difference is they have chosen the naysayer as their shepherd. This shepherd know's that the other shepherd's route is inadequate, but does not know of a better one, thus he lets his flock stay in the old pasture. In the end, both shepherds will shear their flock for wool. Whether it represents money, time and effort, or just the satisfaction of having someone to agree with them, those shepherds are going to get that wool. I think I'd rather give my wool to the shepherd who is trying to get me to a greener pasture in return.

The tweet that inspired this blog.

Usual points for reading. I know it has holes, so +100 if you understand the point. And if you know what specific situation I'm referring to, you can take home a free month of unlimited existence points (guaranteed not to be unimagined for any reason for a month). Enjoy those.

JOSH, THE SHERM