Teaching a Pig to Sing
Some time ago I heard a story of an old farmer walking with his grandson out to feed the pigs. On their short walk, the grandfather gave this boy some advice designed to help him on his life’s journey. His advice was simple, “Son, you can’t teach a pig to sing because it wastes your time and it irritates the Hell out of the pig”.
This boy was confused but he loved his grandfather and believed that this was good although he had no idea what it meant. Over the years, as he pondered and thought about this philosophical gem, he eventually realized what his grandfather was telling him.
In his unique way, this concerned grandfather was teaching his grandson an important lesson in life. He was pointing out that it didn’t matter how much time and effort he put into teaching a pig to sing, the pig would never learn and the boy would be wasting his time. This grandfather was teaching his grandson to use his time on those things that would help him succeed in life. Time is precious and setting our life goals and working towards them is always more productive than trying to teach the figurative pig to sing.
Let’s help our children navigate through their challenges by teaching them to use their time constructively and focus on what is really important.
Happy Failing Forward,
Calvert
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