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Why You Should Read Ancient Greek Fables Again
Timeless lessons before self-help was a “thing”
A young twenty-four-year-old hotshot had just put the finishing touches on his presentation. It was replete with errors and dubious conclusions. It was an ambitious task for an inexperienced guy, and we credited him with having the guts to tackle such a challenge. It was analogous to saying, “it sucks, but you’re brave for trying.”
That wasn’t enough for the young hotshot. He pressed further, dissatisfied with the lack of fireworks behind our subdued praise.
“Won’t my conclusion from this data blow them away?” he asked.
Nobody lied and told him it would, but nor were we keen on crushing his soul with the hard truth.
He asked again. “How awesome is this presentation? Is it unusual for someone my age to do something like this?
Finally, someone leveled with him.
“It’s about as amateurish as it gets. I’ll be doing some serious edits before I let you present it to another department. “
The young hotshot forgot (or never learned) the moral from one of Aesop’s Fables.
He who seeks a compliment sometimes discovers the truth —Aesop’s Fable, Mercury and…
