training stories

8/6/2019 Training Stories

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the soldiers and the trench story (leadership)

The story goes that sometime, close to a battlefield over 200 years ago, a man in civilian clothes rode past a small group ofexhausted battle-weary soldiers digging an obviously important defensive position. The section leader, making no effort tohelp, was shouting orders, threatening punishment if the work was not completed within the hour.

"Why are you are not helping?" asked the stranger on horseback.

"I am in charge. The men do as I tell them," said the section leader, adding, "Help them yourself if you feel strongly aboutit."

To the section leader's surprise the stranger dismounted and helped the men until the job was finished.

Before leaving the stranger congratulated the men for their work, and approached the puzzled section leader.

"You should notify top command next time your rank prevents you from supporting your men - and I will provide a morepermanent solution," said the stranger.

Up close, the section leader now recognized General Washington, and also the lesson he'd just been taught.

(This story is allegedly based on truth. Whatever, similar examples are found in history, and arise in modern times too, soplease forgive the mythical possibility of the above attribution; the story's message is more important than its historicalaccuracy.)

the john wayne story (instructions, communications, understanding,confused messages)

It is said that when filming the biblical epic The Greatest Story Ever Told, the director George Stevens was trying toencourage extra passion from John Wayne when delivering the highly significant line, "Truly, this was the Son of God."

"You are talking about Jesus - think about it," said Stevens, "You've got to say it with awe."

For the next take John Wayne duly summoned his most intense feelings. He paused dramatically, and said:

"Aw, truly this was the Son of God."


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the blind men and the road story (stretching, dependency, risk,achievement under pressure)

A blind man had been waiting a while at a busy road for someone to offer to guide him across, when he felt a tap on hisshoulder.

"Excuse me," said the tapper, "I'm blind - would you mind guiding me across the road?"

The first blind man took the arm of the second blind man, and they both crossed the road.

Apparently this is a true story. The first blind man was the jazz pianist George Shearing. He is quoted (in Bartlett'sAnecdotes) as saying after the event, "What could I do? I took him across and it was the biggest thrill of my life."

There are times when we think we cannot do something and so do not stretch or take a risk. Being forced to stretch andtake a risk can often help us to reduce our dependencies (on others, or our own personal safety mechanisms), and todiscover new excitement and capabilities. The poem Come to the Edge is another wonderful perspective on risk andstretching.

the doctor and the thief story (ethical decision making - alsoadaptability, flexibility, accepting what cannot be changed)

A man goes to the doctor and says "Doctor, I've become a compulsive thief."

The doctor prescribes him a course of tablets and says, "If you're not cured in a couple of weeks would you get me awidescreen television?"

This is not a lesson of ideal behaviour, it's a humorous illustration of options - whether to try to change something, toaccept it or to actively support it. Such decisions normally have two main reference points - the difficulty of the change,and the ethical implications of the situation.

The Serenity Prayer is a different and less cynical view of change and choices.

the preacher and the farmer story (understanding the needs of your

people, caring for minorities and individuals, looking deeper than themainstream)
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3/69

An old hill farming crofter trudges several miles through freezing snow to his local and very remote chapel for Sundayservice. No-one else is there, aside from the clergyman.

"I'm not sure it's worth proceeding with the service - might we do better to go back to our warm homes and a hot drink?.."asks the clergyman, inviting a mutually helpful reaction from his audience of one.

"Well, I'm just a simple farmer," says the old crofter, "But when I go to feed my herd, and if only one beast turns up, I suredon't leave it hungry."

So the clergyman, feeling somewhat ashamed, delivers his service - all the bells and whistles, hymns and readings, lastinga good couple of hours - finishing proudly with the fresh observation that no matter how small the need, our duty remains.And he thanks the old farmer for the lesson he has learned.

"Was that okay?" asks the clergyman, as the two set off home.

"Well I'm just a simple farmer," says the old crofter, "But when I go to feed my herd, and if only one beast turns up, I suredon't force it to eat what I brought for the whole herd..."

From which we see the extra lesson, that while our duty remains regardless of the level of need, we have the additionalresponsibility to ensure that we adapt our delivery (of whatever is our stock in trade) according to the requirements of ouraudience.

(Adapted from a suggestion from P Hallinger, and based apparently on a story told by Roland Barth, whom I assume to bethe US educationalist.)

the old lady and the hearing-aid story (assumptions about weaknesses,

underestimating people, tactical advantage)An old lady had a hearing-aid fitted, hidden underneath her hair.

A week later she returned to the doctor for her check-up.

"It's wonderful - I can hear everything now," she reported very happily to the doctor.

"And is your family pleased too?" asked the doctor.

"Oh I haven't told them yet," said the old lady, "And I've changed my will twice already.."


4/69

(Thanks BC. Based on a letter published in the newspaper several years ago, written by the doctor. I suspect variations ofthis story have been told many times elsewhere too.)

the mobile phone story (assumptions, authority, control, the risks ofmodern communications and technology, privacy, security, identity

theft, etc)Several men were in a golf club locker room.

A mobile phone rings.

"Yes I can talk," says the man answering the call, "You're shopping are you? That's nice."

The listening men smile to each other.

"You want to order those new carpets? Okay.. And they'll include the curtains for an extra five thousand?.. Sure, why not?"

More smiles among the listeners.

"You want to book that week on Necker Island?.. They're holding the price at twenty-two thousand?.. Sounds a bargain..You want a fortnight?.. If that's what you want honey, okay by me."

Smiles turn to expressions of mild envy.

"And you want to give the builder the go-ahead for the new conservatory? Seventy-five thousand if we say yes today?Sounds fair.. sure, that's fine."

The listeners exchange glances of amazement.

"Okay sugar, see you later.. Yes, love you too," says the man, ending the call.

He looks at the other men and says, "Whose phone is this anyhow?.."


5/69

the trench-digger story (initiative, self-development, making thingshappen, career advancement, how to get a job requiring experiencewhen you have none)

This is adapted from (apparently) a true story.

An elderly couple retired to the countryside - to a small isolated cottage overlooking some rugged and rocky heathland.

One early morning the woman saw from her window a young man dressed in working clothes walking on the heath, about ahundred yards away. He was carrying a spade and a small case, and he disappeared from view behind a copse of trees.

The woman thought no more about it but around the same time the next day she saw the man again, carrying his spadeand a small case, and again he disappeared behind the copse.

The woman mentioned this to her husband, who said he was probably a farmer or gamekeeper setting traps, or performingsome other country practice that would be perfectly normal, and so not to worry.

However after several more sightings of the young man with the spade over the next two weeks the woman persuaded herhusband to take a stroll - early, before the man tended to arrive - to the copse of trees to investigate what he was doing.

There they found a surprisingly long and deep trench, rough and uneven at one end, becoming much neater and tidiertowards the other end.

"How strange," the old lady said, "Why dig a trench here - and in such difficult rocky ground?" and her husband agreed.

Just then the young man appeared - earlier than his usual time.

"You're early," said the old woman, making light of their obvious curiosity, "We wondered what you were doing - and wealso wondered what was in the case."

"I'm digging a trench," said the man, who continued, realising a bigger explanation was appropriate, "I'm actually learninghow to dig a good trench, because the job I'm being interviewed for later today says that experience is essential - so I'mgetting the experience. And the case - it's got my lunch in it."

He got the job.

(Adapted from a suggestion - thanks R Columbo)


6/69

double-positive story (make your point and then know when to stop,language, communications, lateral thinking, quick-thinking)

On hearing one of his students use the expression, "I don't know nothing about it..." a teacher took the opportunity toexplain about double negatives and correct grammar to the class.

The teacher explained, "In the English language a double negative makes the statement positive, so your assertion that

you 'don't know nothing about it' is actually an admission that you do know something about it."

Encouraged by the interest in this revelation among certain class members, the teacher went on to demonstrate more ofhis knowledge of world languages: "Of course not all languages operate according to the same grammatical rules, forexample, in Russian, a double negative remains negative, although perhaps surprisingly, there is not a single languageanywhere in the world in which a double positive makes a negative.."

At which a voice from the back of the classroom called out ironically "Yeah, right.."

(This is adapted from a story sent to me by M Morris. Apparently the original story was based on a true incident at aModern Language Association meeting in New York in the mid-1970's, reported in the NY Times. The quick-witted responsein the original story, actually "Yeah, yeah..", seemingly came from from Sidney Morganbesser, a professor of philosophywho was noted for his speedy retorts. Thanks M Morris, Apr 2007.)

the bath and the bucket story (lateral thinking, making assumptions,dangers of judging people)

Given the title (on the subject of buckets..) and its quick simple message, this story is a good partner analogy to the rocksin a bucket time management story.

The story illustrates lateral thinking, narrow-mindedness, the risks of making assumptions, and judging people andsituations:

A party of suppliers was being given a tour of a mental hospital.

One of the visitors had made some very insulting remarks about the patients.

After the tour the visitors were introduced to various members of staff in the canteen.
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7/69

The rude visitor chatted to one of the security staff, Bill, a kindly and wise ex-policeman.

"Are they all raving loonies in here then?" said the rude man.

"Only the ones who fail the test," said Bill.

"What's the test?" said the man.

"Well, we show them a bath full of water, a bucket, a jug and an egg-cup, and we ask them what's the quickest way toempty the bath," said Bill.

"Oh I see, simple - the normal ones know it's the bucket, right?"

"No actually," said Bill, "The normal ones say pull out the plug. Should I check when there's a bed free for you?"

the stamp story (customer services, communications, product design,

customer inertia)The staff at an old people's home were puzzled when one of the residents began gargling with TCP. They asked her why butall she would say was that something had happened at the post-office. This is what actually occurred.

The old lady, who rarely ventured out, had visited the post office to post a letter.

She bought a stamp, and since there was a long queue behind her she stepped aside. She put her change in her purse,licked the stamp and put it on her letter. Despite pressing and thumping and licking it again, the stamp failed to stick.

"Excuse me, this stamp won't stick," said the old lady.

"You need to peel the paper off the back," explained the clerk.

The old lady put on her spectacles, fiddled for a few seconds to peel off the backing paper - and then licked the stampagain.

"It still won't stick," interrupted the old lady again.

"It's a self-stick stamp," said the assistant.

"Well this one isn't sticking at all - there's something wrong with it," demanded the old lady.


8/69

"Well it won't stick now because you've licked it."

"Well I'm totally confused now," said the old lady.

"Just give it here and I'll post it for you," said the cashier, and doing her best to explain continued, "These new stamps don'tneed licking. They are self-sticking. They save time. They are already sticky."

The old lady continued to look blankly at the assistant.

"Look," said the well-meaning but desperate post-office clerk, "Just imagine they've already been licked..."

Which sent the old lady scurrying out of the door and across the road to the chemist.

(Thanks Stephen Rafe for the original tale from which the above was adapted. Stephen also provided another example ofconfused customer service communications, in which the customer was convinced for a while that the customer serviceperson was somehow carrying on his work from inside prison, because the bad line was due to him speaking from his cell-phone..)

the shot at dawn campaign story (ethics and culture, leadership integrityand styles, decision-making, policy-making,)

By December 1916 more than 17,000 British troops were officially diagnosed as suffering from nervous or mental disability(we'd say shell-shock or post-traumatic stress disorder these days), despite which the British military authorities continuedto charge and convict sufferers with 'cowardice' and 'desertion', and to sentence to death by firing squad many of thosefound 'guilty'.

On 16 August 2006 the British government announced that it would pardon 308 British soldiers who were shot by firingsquad for 'cowardice' and 'desertion' during the First World War of 1914-18. The decision was ratified by Parliament on 7November 2006, and represented a remarkable u-turn by this and previous governments who had always firmly refutedany evidence and justification for pardoning the victims.

This reversal followed and was largely due to decades of persistent lobbying and campaigning by organisations andindividuals, many being families and descendents of the victims. It is not easy to imagine their suffering, especially of thewidows and parents long since gone, for whom this decision came a lifetime too late.

The story emphasises two things: first, that people in authority have a responsibility to behave with integrity. Second, that

where people in authority fail to act with integrity, the persistence and determination of ordinary people will eventuallyforce them to do so.


9/69

Here is more background about the Shot At Dawn campaign, and the history of this particularly shameful example of Britishinstitutional behaviour.

It provides lessons to us all about doing the right thing, and calling to account those who do not.

See the related discussion ideas for developing awareness and understanding of the issues and how they relate to us all.

N.B. Some people will not agree with this interpretation. This makes it such an interesting subject for debate,especially in transferring the issues and principles to modern challenges in organisations, and the worldbeyond.

direct mail campaign clanger story (human nature, integrity, delegationand training, and advertising is a funny business...)

This is a true story. Some years ago a client engaged a consultant to help with a small postal mailing to the purchasingdepartments of blue chip corporations. The consultant sourced the list (which was provided on MSExcel) and drafted the

letter. Thereafter the client was keen to take control of the project, ie., to run the mail-merge and the fulfilment (basicallyprinting, envelope-stuffing and mailing).

The consultant discovered some weeks later that a junior member of the client's marketing department had sorted the list(changed the order of the listed organisations in the spreadsheet), but had sorted the company name column only, insteadof all columns, with the result that every letter (about 500) was addressed and sent to a blue chip corporation at anotherentirely different corporation's address.

Interestingly the mailing produced a particularly high response, which when investigated seemed to stem from the fact thatan unusually high percentage of letters were opened and read, due apparently to the irresistible temptation of reading

another corporation's mail...

the god and eve story (gender and sexual discrimination, equality, battleof the sexes debates, after-dinner speaking, etc)

"God, I've been thinking.." says Eve one day.

"What's on your mind Eve?" says God.

"Well, I know that you created me and this beautiful garden and all of these wonderful creatures, but lately I've beenfeeling that maybe there's more to life."
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"Go on..." says God.

"Sometimes I get a bit bored - I fancy a bit of fun. And I get a bit fed up with all the heaving lifting and carrying, andwarding off the mammoths and sabre-toothed tigers, not to mention that bloody snake. This garden can be dangerousplace."

"I see," says God, pausing for thought.

"Eve, I have a cunning plan," says God, "I shall create Man for you."

"Man?" asks Eve, "What is Man?"

"Man..." says God, "Is a flawed creature. He will have many weaknesses and disgusting habits. Man will lie, cheat andbehave like an idiot - in fact mostly he'll be a complete pain in the backside. But on the plus side he'll be big and strong,and will be able to protect you, and hunt and kill things, which might be handy sometimes. He will tend to lose control ofmind and body when aroused, but with a bit training can reach an acceptable standard in the bedroom department, if youknow what I mean."

"Hmm," says Eve, "Seems like this Man idea might be worth a try, but tell me God, is there anything else I need to know?"

"Just this," says God, "Man comes with one condition... In keeping with his arrogant, deluded, self-important character, Manwill naturally believe that he was made first, and frankly we all have better things to do than argue, so you must keep allthis a secret between us, if that's okay with you. You know, woman to woman.."

(unknown origin - if you can shed any light on the origin please contact me - thanks CB)

the wrong guy interview story (interviews, preparation, thinking on yourfeet, communications)

This is a true story. It concerned Guy Goma, a lovely cuddly business graduate from the Congo, who on 8th May 2006attended the BBC building in West London for an interview for an IT job. At the same time, the BBC News 24 TV channelwas expecting a Guy Kewney, editor of the website Newswireless.net for a live 10.30am studio interview about the Applecourt case judgement. (Apple Corps, owned by surviving Beatles McCartney and Starr, lost their case against AppleComputers, in which they sought to prevent the Apple name being used in relation to iTunes music downloads.)

Due to failed communications, entirely the BBC's fault (both Guys were blameless in this), the BBC News 24 staff grabbed

the wrong Guy (waiting in a different reception to Guy Kewney), who, being an unassuming, foreign and extremely politefellow, dutifully took his place in the studio, and after declining make-up (really), was introduced on live TV to viewers as
http://www.businessballs.com/contactus.htmhttp://www.businessballs.com/contactus.htm


11/69

Guy Kewney, editor of the technology website 'Newswireless', and then asked three questions by the BBC News 24business presenter Karen Bowerman about the Apple judgements and its implications for internet music downloading.

Meanwhile the real Guy Kewney sat and watched 'himself' on the monitor in the BBC reception. See the interview.

What's so utterly fascinating about this, is:

Guy Goma initially expresses surprise about the interview situation, but, largely due to his broken English and heavy Frenchaccent the interviewer interprets and leads Mr Goma's response to mean that he is surprised about the court judgement. Ifyou listen carefully Guy Goma does actually mention his 'interview' in his first answer. See the transcript below. Howeverthe pressure of the situation is too great and he has little option other than to play out the role that the fates have createdfor him. He actually does quite well, given that he knows little about the subject. Subsequent media reports that Guy Gomawas a taxi driver are false - he's a business graduate. He later attended his IT job interview but regrettably wasunsuccessful. You can read what Guy Kewney thought of it all on his own blog at www.newswireless.net (there are severalentries - read them all to see the full picture).

the wrong guy interview transcript

Karen Bowerman: ...Well, Guy Kewney is editor of the technology website Newswireless.[Camera switches to Guy Goma's face, portraying a mixture of shock, disbelief and impending disaster.]KB: Hello, good morning to you.Guy Goma: Good morning.KB: Were you surprised by this verdict today?GG: I am very surprised to see... this verdict, to come on me because I was not expecting that. When I came they told mesomething else and I am coming. Got an interview... [another word, impossible to discern] .... a big surprise anyway.KB: A big surprise, yes, yes. [seeming a little anxious]GG: Exactly. [growing in confidence]KB: With regard to the costs involved do you think now more people will be downloading online?

GG: Actually, if you go everywhere you are gonna see a lot of people downloading to internet and the website everythingthey want. But I think, is much better for development and to empower people what they want and to get on the easy wayand so faster if they are looking for.KB: This does really seem the way the music industry's progressing now, that people want to go onto the website anddownload music.GG: Exactly. You can go everywhere on the cyber cafe and you can take [maybe 'check'?], you can go easy. It's going to bevery easy way for everyone to get something to the internet.KB: Thank you [actually sounds more like 'Thank Kewney' - as if Ms Bowerman was a little distracted, no wonder]. Thanksvery much indeed.

Lessons from this:

Good clear communications are essential when managing any sort of interview.
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12/69

Pressure situations can easily lead people (especially interviewees) to give false impressions, which are no help toanyone.

The behaviours demonstrated in this incident illustrate the power of suggestion, and NLP, albeit used mostlyinadvertently in this case; the point is that all communications involve a hell of a lot more than just words..

The power of the media to interpret just about anything for their own journalistic purposes is bloody frightening.

At some stage in the future the link to the BBC interview clip might cease working - I don't know how long they keep thesethings. Let me know when and if you can no longer see the video clip and I'll source it elsewhere.

the very old lady story (positive attitude, self-image, ageism)

A very old lady looked in the mirror one morning. She had three remaining hairs on her head, and being a positive soul, shesaid, "I think I'll braid my hair today." So she braided her three hairs, and she had a great day.

Some days later, looking in the mirror one morning, preparing for her day, she saw that she had only two hairs remaining."Hmm, two hairs... I fancy a centre parting today." She duly parted her two hairs, and as ever, she had a great day.

A week or so later, she saw that she had just one hair left on her head. "One hair huh...," she mused, "I know, a pony-tailwill be perfect." And again she had a great day.

The next morning she looked in the mirror. She was completely bald.

"Finally bald huh," she said to herself, "How wonderful! I won't have to waste time doing my hair any more.."

(Ack CB)

the train travellers story (relationships, assumptions, etc)

A wealthy businessman who is used to getting his own way finds himself sharing a sleeper compartment with a beautifulyoung woman as they travel to Brussells on the train. It is winter and the heating is not working so the compartment iscold.

The two settle down to sleep.

"Two strangers, on a train..." says the businessman.

"Yes," says the woman.
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"A man and a woman - away from home - probably never meet again.." Says the businessman.


"It's cold, isn't it?" says the businessman.


"Could you pass me another blanket?" says the businessman, "... Or maybe we could pretend to be man and wife fortonight?.."

"Yes, that would be good," says the woman, "Get your own bloody blanket."

the william pitt story (working creatively to reach agreement, managingsituations and environments, facilitation of agreements)

There is the story of William Pitt, 1759-1806, British statesman and Prime Minister from 1783-1801, who once sought toexpedite a crucial agreement in Parliament for the movement of the British fleet to defend against the French. TheChancellor of the Exchequer, Lord Newcastle, had certain objections, but when Pitt called on the Chancellor endeavouringto resolve the differences, he found the Chancellor distinctly unhappy in bed suffering with gout. The bedroom wasfreezing, and when Pitt remarked on this, Lord Newcastle replied that the cold weather would hinder the fleet movement,but more particularly that the combination of the cold conditions and the gout would prevent any further discussion of theissue at that time, which Pitt quickly judged to be at the root of the problem. Begging the Chancellor's pardon, Pitt calmlyremoved his boots, climbed into bed and drew up the covers (apparently there was another bed in the room..), whereuponthe two were able to discuss the matter and soon agreed a united way forward.

the biscuit factory story (making assumptions, other people'sperspectives, individual needs and motivations)

This is a true story. Some years ago the following exchange was broadcast on an Open University sociology TV programme.

An interviewer was talking to a female production-line worker in a biscuit factory. The dialogue went like this:

Interviewer: How long have you worked here?

Production Lady: Since I left school (probably about 15 years).


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Interviewer: What do you do?

Production Lady: I take packets of biscuits off the conveyor belt and put them into cardboard boxes.

Interviewer: Have you always done the same job?

Production Lady: Yes.

Interviewer: Do you enjoy it?

Production Lady: Oooh Yes, it's great, everyone is so nice and friendly, we have a good laugh.

Interviewer (with a hint of disbelief): Really? Don't you find it a bit boring?

Production Lady: Oh no, sometimes they change the biscuits...

My thanks to Shirley Moon for this lovely story, who also points out the following lessons within it:

Do not impose your own needs and ambitions on to other people who may not share them. Don't assume that things that motivate you will motivate someone else. Recognise that sources of happiness may vary widely between people.

See also the sections on personality styles, multiple intelligence and learning styles, and motivation, which all relate to thisstory.

a short story about eggs (time management, creative thinking andproblem-solving)

A young woman was in her kitchen.

A pan of water was simmering on the stove.

She was making boiled eggs for breakfast.

He walked in.

Their eyes met.
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"Make love to me here, now," she said.

They made love on the kitchen table.

"Couldn't resist me, huh?" he said.

"The egg timer is broken," she replied.

Of course this story is a bit far-fetched given that an egg timer lasts for three whole minutes..

(Ack Detoxman)

the translator story (communications, assumptions, creativity, deceit,language, relationships, just deserts)

The story goes that a prominent, married, philandering, wealthy politician took advantage of a young female Italiantranslator during an overseas visit. Shortly after his return home he received a phone call at his office from the womaninforming him that she was pregnant and that he was definitely the father.

Seemingly experienced at dealing with such situations, the politician instructed the young woman, "I will arrange for youand the child to be provided for. Do not worry about money. I will pay ten times the typical Italian settlement, but this mustbe kept secret."

"I see," said the young woman, a little taken aback, but since she knew the man and his reputation she was not unduly

surprised, and was also entirely happy never to see or speak to him again.

He went on, "Don't ever call me again. Send me a postcard with some sort of coded message confirming date of birth, thatthe child is healthy and whether a boy or girl. Use your imagination - you are a translator after all."

"As you wish," said the young woman, and ended the call.

A little under nine months later the politician's wife (who was also his PA) was opening his mail. When she came to aparticular postcard the politician noticed and suddenly became attentive.

"Here's a postcard..." said his wife.

"Oh yes," said the politician, "What does it say?"


16/69

"Just a silly joke I think," said his wife, continuing, as she watched the colour drain from her husband's face, "It says: 'March12th - Just had three big beautiful bowls of spaghetti - all with meatballs..' "

(Ack SF)

the helpful old lady story (check the facts, false assumptions, etc)

One afternoon, an old lady, laden with shopping, noticed two small boys on the front step of a house. With their bags anduniforms they were obviously going home after school. They were on tip-toe trying to reach the door-bell with a stick.

"Poor little lads, they can't get in," she thought, "Parents these days just don't seem to care."

So she marched up the path, reached over the boys and gave the bell a long firm push.

The surprised boys turned around and screamed "Quick, run!" and promptly disappeared over the garden wall.

the buddha and the abuse story (responding to other people's negativebehaviour; angry customers, disruptive kids, bad-tempered bosses,etc)

A tale is told about the Buddha, Gautama (563-483BC), the Indian prince and spiritual leader whose teachings foundedBuddhism. This short story illustrates that every one of us has the choice whether or not to take personal offence fromanother person's behaviour.

It is said that on an occasion when the Buddha was teaching a group of people, he found himself on the receiving end of afierce outburst of abuse from a bystander, who was for some reason very angry.

The Buddha listened patiently while the stranger vented his rage, and then the Buddha said to the group and to thestranger, "If someone gives a gift to another person, who then chooses to decline it, tell me, who would then own the gift?

The giver or the person who refuses to accept the gift?"

"The giver," said the group after a little thought. "Any fool can see that," added the angry stranger.

"Then it follows, does it not," said the Buddha, "Whenever a person tries to abuse us, or to unload their anger on us, we can

each choose to decline or to accept the abuse; whether to make it ours or not. By our personal response to the abuse fromanother, we can choose who owns and keeps the bad feelings."


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(This is related toTransactional Analysis)

the gandhi shoe story (selfless compassion, generosity without strings)

Mohandas [Mahatma] Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948), the great Indian statesman and spiritual leader is noted for hisunusual humanity and selflessness, which this story epitomises. Gandhi was boarding a train one day with a number ofcompanions and followers, when his shoe fell from his foot and disappeared in the gap between the train and platform.

Unable to retrieve it, he took off his other shoe and threw it down by the first. Responding to the puzzlement of his fellowtravellers, Gandhi explained that a poor person who finds a single shoe is no better off - what's really helpful is finding apair.

Separately, Gandhi was once asked what he thought of Western Civilisation. Gandhi replied: "I think that it would be a verygood idea."

The notion still applies.

(More inspirational and amusing quotes.)

greta garbo negotiation story (negotiation tactics, negotiating position,independence and the power of choice)

Great Garbo (1905-90), the 1930's Swedish-born film star, demonstrated how to negotiate with a bullying adversary, andparticularly the tactic of 'walking away'. After Garbo had become established as a major star, she decided to negotiate acontract that suitably reflected her considerable box-office value to the producers. Accordingly she demanded a weekly feeof $5,000 - compared to the derisory $350 a week she'd previously been paid. When film mogul Louis Mayer heard Garbo's

demand he offered her $2,500. Garbo replied simply, in her Swedish-American accent, "I think I go home.." And off shewent.

Garbo returned to her hotel and stayed there, not budging, while Mayer stewed - for seven months - at which Mayereventually caved in and gave Garbo what she asked for.

(Interestingly Garbo never actually said, "I want to be alone". There phrase was in fact "I want to be left alone," which hercharacter Grusinskaya said in Garbo's 1932 film Grand Hotel. The resonance of the words with Garbo's real life didn't justextend to her negotiating style: she retired in 1941 with the world still at her feet, and lived the rest of her life an obsessiverecluse in New York after becoming a US citizen in 1951.)
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the jesse james story (tactics, morality, good and bad in us all)

The notorious American Wild West bank robber Jesse James (1847-82) was hunted and demonised by the authorities, butwas held in high regard by many ordinary folk. Here's an example of why:

The story goes that Jesse James and his gang had taken refuge for a few days in ramshackle farmhouse after one of theirraids. The old widow who lived there fed the men, and apologised for her modest offerings and the poor state of theaccommodation. While the gang laid low, they learned from the widow that she faced eviction from her landlord and was

expecting a visit from his debt collector any day. Taking pity on the old lady, as they left, the gang gave her some of thespoils of their robbery to settle her debt - several hundred dollars, which was a small fortune in those days. The gangmoved on, but only to a nearby copse, where for a couple more days they watched and waited for the arrival - anddeparture - of the debt collector, whom they promptly held up and robbed.

Of course robbing anyone is bad, but if you've got to rob someone...

the gorilla story (negotiating, understanding communications, agreeing

clear objectives and responsibilities)A zoo had among its animals a female gorilla, whose mood was becoming increasingly difficult. The vet concluded that shewas on heat and that a mate should be found. The vet contacted some other nearby zoos to find a partner for the broodyfemale, but to no avail. The female gorilla's behaviour continued to worsen, but the vet noticed that she grew calmer, andstrangely responsive, whenever a particularly well-built and none-too-handsome keeper entered the enclosure. Being anunprincipled and adventurous fellow, the vet put an outrageous proposition to the keeper: For a fee of five hundred poundswould the keeper consider spending a little 'quality time' with the gorilla, purely in the interests of research of course?....

The keeper, also an unprincipled and adventurous fellow, pondered the suggestion, and after a few minutes agreed to the

offer, subject to three conditions. The vet, intrigued, listened to the keeper's demands:

"First," the keeper said, "No kissing."

"Fine," said the vet.

"Second, no-one must ever know - if this gets out I'll kill you."

"You have my word," said the vet, "And your final condition?"

"It's just," said the keeper a little awkwardly, "Can I have a couple of weeks to raise the five hundred quid?"

(With acknowledgements to Shane and apologies to vets and zoo-keepers everywhere.)


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the priest and the politician story (time management, being late, publicspeaking)

After twenty-five years in the same parish, Father O'Shaunessey was saying his farewells at his retirement dinner. Aneminent member of the congregation - a leading politician - had been asked to make a presentation and a short speech,but was late arriving.

So the priest took it upon himself to fill the time, and stood up to the microphone:

"I remember the first confession I heard here twenty-five years ago and it worried me as to what sort of place I'd come to...That first confession remains the worst I've ever heard. The chap confessed that he'd stolen a TV set from a neighbour andlied to the police when questioned, successfully blaming it on a local scallywag. He said that he'd stolen money from hisparents and from his employer; that he'd had affairs with several of his friends' wives; that he'd taken hard drugs, and hadslept with his sister and given her VD. You can imagine what I thought... However I'm pleased to say that as the dayspassed I soon realised that this sad fellow was a frightful exception and that this parish was indeed a wonderful place full ofkind and decent people..."

At this point the politician arrived and apologised for being late, and keen to take the stage, he immediately stepped up tothe microphone and pulled his speech from his pocket:

"I'll always remember when Father O'Shaunessey first came to our parish," said the politician, "In fact, I'm pretty certainthat I was the first person in the parish that he heard in confession.."

(Ack Stephen Hart)

lipstick kisses on the mirror story (creative thinking, creative problem-solving, creative management techniques, avoiding confrontation)

A school head was alerted by the caretaker to a persistent problem in the girls lavatories: some of the girl students wereleaving lipstick kisses on the mirrors. The caretaker had left notices on the toilet walls asking for the practice to cease, butto no avail; every evening the caretaker would wipe away the kisses, and the next day lots more kisses would be plantedon the mirror. It had become a bit of a game. The head teacher usually took a creative approach to problem solving, and sothe next day she asked a few girl representatives from each class to meet with her in the lavatory.

"Thank you for coming," said the head, "You will see there are several lipstick kisses in the mirrors in this washroom.."

Some of the girls grinned at each other.


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"As you will understand, modern lipstick is cleverly designed to stay on the lips, and so the lipstick is not easy at all to cleanfrom the mirrors. We have therefore had to develop a special cleaning regime, and my hope is that when you see the effortinvolved you will help spread the word that we'd all be better off if those responsible for the kisses use tissue paper insteadof the mirrors in future.."

At this point the caretaker stepped forward with a sponge squeegee, which he took into one of the toilet cubicles, dippedinto the toilet bowl, and then used to clean one of the lipstick-covered mirrors.

The caretaker smiled. The girls departed. And there were no more lipstick kisses on the mirrors.

(Thanks H)

measuring by averages story (analysis, measurement, statistics, etc)

Three statisticians went hunting in the woods. Before long, one of them pointed to a plump pigeon in a tree, and the threeof them stopped and took aim. The first fired, missing the bird by a couple of inches to the left. Immediately afterwards thesecond fired, but also missed, a couple of inches to the right. The third put down his gun exclaiming, "Great shooting lads,

on average I reckon we got it..."

(ack K Hutchinson)

the blind golfers story (an ironic example of lack of empathy, anddifferent people's perspectives)

A clergyman, a doctor and a business consultant were playing golf together one day and were waiting for a particularly

slow group ahead. The business consultant exclaimed, "What's with these people? We've been waiting over half and hour!It's a complete disgrace." The doctor agreed, "They're hopeless, I've never seen such a rabble on a golf course." Theclergyman spotted the approaching greenkeeper and asked him what was going on, "What's happening with that groupahead of us? They're surely too slow and useless to be playing, aren't they?" The greenkeeper replied, "Oh, yes, that's agroup of blind fire-fighters. They lost their sight saving our clubhouse from a fire last year, so we always let them play forfree anytime." The three golfers fell silent for a moment. The clergyman said, "Oh dear, that's so sad. I shall say somespecial prayers for them tonight." The doctor added, rather meekly, "That's a good thought. I'll get in touch with anophthalmic surgeon friend of mine to see if there's anything that can be done for them." After pondering the situation for afew seconds, the business consultant turned to the greenkeeper and asked, "Why can't they play at night?"

(Other job-titles can be substituted instead of business consultant to suit the purpose of the story, for example, governmentadvisor, venture capitalist, engineer, project manager, accountant, finance director, quality manager, etc)


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the sales and marketing rugby analogy story (for teams, motivation,team-building, departmental cooperation, training, public speaking)

I am assured this is a true story. A consultant was asked to give a talk at a sales conference. The CEO asks him to focus onthe importance of cooperation and teamwork between the sales and marketing teams, since neither group has aparticularly high regard for the other, and the lack of cohesion and goodwill is hampering effectiveness and morale. Themarketing staff constantly moan about the sales people 'doing their own thing' and 'failing to follow central strategy'; andthe sales people say that the marketing people are all 'idle theorists who waste their time at exhibitions and agencylunches' and have 'never done a decent day's work in their lives'.

Being a lover of rugby, the consultant decides to use the analogy of a rugby team's forwards and backs working together toachieve the best team performance:

"......So, just as in the game of rugby, the forwards, like the marketing department, do the initial work to create theplatform and to make the opportunities, and then pass the ball out to the backs, the sales department, who then usetheir skills and energy to score the tries. The forwards and the backs, just like marketing and sales, are each good

at what they do: and they work together so that the team wins..." said the consultant, finishing his talk.

The audience seemed to respond positively, and the conference broke for lunch. At the bar the consultant asked one of thetop sales-people what he'd thought of the analogy - had it given him food for thought?

"Yes, I see what you mean," said the salesman, "It does make sense. The sales people - the backs, yes? - the backs needthe marketing department - the forwards, yes? - to make the opportunities for us, so that we, the backs, can go and scorethe tries - to win the business. We work together as a team - each playing our own part - working as a team."

The consultant beamed and nodded enthusiastically, only to be utterly dashed when the salesman added as an

afterthought, "I still think our forwards are a bunch of wankers..."

(with thanks to Martin Deighton)

the lock and key story (kindness and generosity, 'good pebble ripples',memorable customer service experiences)

A British family were on holiday in a rented motor-home in the USA. Travelling through California they visited the Magic

Mountain amusement park close by Los Angeles. Mid-afternoon, halfway through what was turning out to be a mostenjoyable day at the park, Mum, Dad and the three kids came upon a particularly steep plummeting ride. In the queue, the


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ride attendants strongly warned everyone about the risks of losing hats, spectacles, coins and keys, etc., and thesewarnings were echoed by large signs around the ride. During the ride, Dad lost the keys.

Due to the fact that the motor-home was a replacement vehicle resulting from a breakdown earlier in the holiday, therewere no spare keys. And there were six keys on the lost bunch: ignition, front doors, side door, fuel tank, propane tank, andstorage cupboards.

The park attendants drove the family back to the motor-home, suggesting the least damaging ways to break into it.

Fortunately a window had been left slightly open, enabling the middle son to be put in and to open the doors from theinside.

Inside the motor-home Mum and Dad discussed what to do. They were stranded.

Middle son (all of six years old) said he'd got a key - said he'd found it - but no-one was listening properly. "Perhaps it willfit, I'll get it." (The optimism of young children of course knows no bounds.)

Not thinking for one second that little lad's key would fit, Dad tried it. Incredibly the key fitted the ignition - and the driver'sdoor. Middle son is a hero. It seems he'd found the key in a cupboard when packing his clothes soon after the motor-homeswere swapped after the first vehicle broke down.

The next day back at the camp site, Dad called a local locksmith to see what could be done.

"I might be able to make new keys from the locks, if you bring the vehicle to me," said the locksmith, so the family drove tothe locksmith, whose business was in a small shopping centre in the California countryside.

The locksmith looked at the motor-home, and said he'd try. "If you come back in an hour I'll know better what I can do foryou."

The family went to the nearby shops and a coffee bar to pass the time. Dad returned to the locksmith to see how thingswere going. The locksmith says he thought he could make new keys for all the locks, but it would be a long job.

In fact the job took the locksmith most of the day. The family hung around the locksmiths, visited the shops again, andgenerally made a day of being at the little shopping centre. While working on the locks and the keys, the locksmith talkedwith the family about England, about America, about the rides at Las Vegas, about motor-homes, about business, aboutlocks, about families and kids, about lots of things.

Late on in the afternoon the locksmith said that he'd nearly done - "But you have time to go get something to eat if you

want. When you come back I'll be done." So the family went to a burger bar for something to eat.


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An hour later the family returned to the locksmith's shop. It was 4pm and they'd been at the shopping centre since 10.00 inthe morning.

When Dad entered the locksmith's shop the locksmith was smiling. He put two new gleaming bunches of keys on thecounter. "Here you go - a new set of keys for all the locks, and a spare set too," said the locksmith, "And I tell you what I'mgoing to do..."

Dad offered his credit card, gratefully.

"You know, I've had such a great time with you guys today," says the locksmith, "You can have these for free."

This is a true story. It happened over ten years ago. I still tell people about it now, like I'm telling you. The company isNewhall Valencia Lock & Key, in the El Centro Shopping Center, Canyon Country, California. This little company gave meand my family an experience that transcended customer service, and I was delighted when I found their business card inmy kitchen drawer the other day, because it prompted me to share this story and to properly express my thanks.

Just a final note - I'm not suggesting that great customer service is about giving your products and services away.Obviously that's not a particularly sustainable business model. What I'm saying though, is that there are times when you'llsee opportunity to do something really special for a customer, or for another human being, and when you do it, the ripplesof your 'good pebble' can stretch around the world, and last for years and years. So, within the boundaries of what'spossible and viable for you, drop in a good pebble whenever you can and make some ripples of your own.

the stranger and the gingernuts story (making assumptions, thinkbefore you act, different perspectives)

At the airport after a tiring business trip a lady's return flight was delayed. She went to the airport shop, bought a book, acoffee and a small packet containing five gingernut biscuits. The airport was crowded and she found a seat in the lounge,next to a stranger. After a few minutes' reading she became absorbed in her book. She took a biscuit from the packet andbegan to drink her coffee. To her great surprise, the stranger in the next seat calmly took one of the biscuits and ate it.Stunned, she couldn't bring herself to say anything, nor even to look at the stranger. Nervously she continued reading.After a few minutes she slowly picked up and ate the third biscuit. Incredibly, the stranger took the fourth gingernut andate it, then to the woman's amazement, he picked up the packet and offered her the last biscuit. This being too much totolerate, the lady angrily picked up her belongings, gave the stranger an indignant scowl and marched off to the boardinggate, where her flight was now ready. Flustered and enraged, she reached inside her bag for her boarding ticket, and found

her unopened packet of gingernuts...
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(Adapted from a suggestion submitted by S Frost. Apparently the story appears in a variety of urban legends dating from atleast 30 years ago, and is also described in Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, book four, 1984, 'So Long,and Thanks for All the Fish'. Ack L Baldock.)

the new employee stories (importance of induction training for newstarters, initiative and lateral thinking, interpretation, delegation,

rules, checking and monitoring)These (allegedly true) short stories provide amusing examples of lateral thinking and initiative, and staff training (or lackof) at the workplace. It is better to train people properly rather than assume that new starters have the necessary initiativeto work out for themselves what they should be doing..

the new bus driver story

While transporting some unfortunate mental patients from one secure place to another, the newly appointed bus driverstopped at a roadside restaurant for natural break. On his return to the bus, all twenty patients were gone. Being aresourceful fellow and fearing the consequences of his negligence, he drove to the next bus stop, where he claimed to be areplacement for the usual service. Allowing twenty people aboard, the driver made straight for his destination, where hewarned staff at the gates that the 'patients' were deluded and extremely volatile. The angry 'patients' were duly removed,sedated and incarcerated, and remained in detention for three days, until staff were able to check the records and confirmtheir true identities. The actual patients were never found.

the new elevator cleaner story

A new hotel employee was asked to clean the elevators and report back to the supervisor when the task was completed.

When the employee failed to appear at the end of the day the supervisor assumed that like many others he had simply notliked the job and left. However, after four days the supervisor bumped into the new employee. He was cleaning in one ofthe elevators. "You surely haven't been cleaning these elevators for four days, have you?" asked the supervisor, accusingly."Yes sir," said the employee, "This is a big job and I've not finished yet - do you realise there are over forty of them, two oneach floor, and sometimes they are not even there.."

the bedtime story (communications, men and women, communicationsmethods, relationships)

A d hi if h d b i ll i h d b d i h d i h ki h h I


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A man and his wife had been arguing all night, and as bedtime approached neither was speaking to the other. It was notunusual for the pair to continue this war of silence for two or three days, however, on this occasion the man wasconcerned; he needed to be awake at 4:30am the next morning to catch an important flight, and being a very heavysleeper he normally relied on his wife to wake him. Cleverly, so he thought, while his wife was in the bathroom, he wrote ona piece of paper: 'Please wake me at 4:30am - I have an important flight to catch'. He put the note on his wife's pillow, thenturned over and went to sleep.

The man awoke the next morning and looked at the clock. It was 8:00am. Enraged that he'd missed his flight, he was aboutto go in search of his errant wife to give her a piece of his mind, when he spotted a hand-written note on his bedsidecabinet.

The note said: 'It's 4:30am - get up.'

the sergeant major's rude parrot story (examples of management styles)

A retired sergeant major inherited a talking parrot from a recently departed relative who had run a busy dockside pub. Forthe first few days in his new home the normally talkative parrot was distinctly shy. The old major, despite his stern and

disciplined ways, felt sorry for the bird, and gently encouraged it with soft words and pieces of fruit. After a week or so theparrot began to find its voice - a little at first - and then more so. Responding to the kind treatment, the parrot's vocabularycontinued to recover, including particularly the many colourful expressions it had been taught in the dockside pub. The oldsergeant major began to be quite irritated by the parrot's incessant rudeness, and after a few more days of worseningprofanities, decided action was required to bring the bird under control. The sergeant major tried at first to incentivise theparrot with the promise of reward for good behaviour, but to no avail. He next tried to teach the bird a lesson bywithdrawing its privileges, again to no avail; the parrot remained stubbornly rude. Finally the old major flipped intobattleground management mode; he grabbed the bird, clamped his hands around its beak, and thrust the struggling,swearing parrot, into the top drawer of the freezer, slamming the door tightly shut. The swearing and struggling noisescontinued inside the freezer for a few seconds and then abruptly stopped. The sergeant major listened for a while and then,

concerned that the parrot's shock might have been terminal, carefully opened the freezer door and opened the drawer tolook. The parrot slowly clambered out of the drawer and perched on its edge.

"I must apologise for my rude and disrespectful behaviour," said the parrot, "I promise never to use bad language again.And by the way, what did the turkey do?"

the farmer and the boy in the bog story (helping others, inspiration,gratitude and appreciation, good comes from doing good)

Thi id l d t i ft t ld if it' t t It i t t i l t It i b l d b t h th


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This widely used story is often told as if it's a true story. It is most certainly not. It is an urban legend, but even as such, thestory contains great lessons and is very inspirational.

Fleming was a poor Scottish farmer. One day at work in a field he heard a cry for help. Following the sound, Fleming cameto a deep bog, in which a boy was stuck up to his chest, screaming and sinking. Farmer Fleming tied a rope around his ownwaist and the other end to a tree, and waded into the bog. After a mighty struggle in which it seemed they would bothperish, the exhausted farmer pulled himself and the boy to safety. He took the lad back to the farmhouse, where MrsFleming fed him, dried his clothes, and when satisfied he had recovered, sent him on his way home.

The next day a carriage arrived at the Fleming's humble farmhouse. An well-dressed man stepped out and introducedhimself as the father of the boy whom Fleming had saved. "You saved my son's life," said the man to Fleming, "How can Irepay you?"

"I don't want payment," Fleming replied, "Anyone would have done the same."

At that moment, Fleming's own young son appeared at the farmhouse door.

"Is he your son?" the man asked.

"Yes," said Fleming proudly.

"I have an idea. Let me pay for his education. If he's like his father, he'll grow to be a man we'll both be proud of."

And so he did. The farmer's son attended the very best schools, graduated medical college, and later became the world-renowned nobel prize-winning scientist and discoverer of penicillin, Sir Alexander Fleming.

It is said that many years later, the grown man who'd been saved from the bog as a boy, was stricken with pneumonia.

Penicillin saved his life. His name? Sir Winston Churchill.

(I repeat this is an urban legend - it is not a true story - so I recommend you present it as such when you tell it. Ack BMcFarlane)

the brewery story (to challenge belief systems and assumptions, and theneed for questioning pointless routine or policy)

It has been suggested to me that this is a true story: A very old traditional brewery decided to install a new canning line, soas to enable its beer products to be marketed through the supermarket sector. This represented a major change for the

littl d l l di it i d t l i it d t it th fi t i f th i li


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little company, and local dignitaries and past employees were invited to witness the first running of the new canning line,which was followed by an buffet and drinks.

After the new line had been switched on successfully, and the formalities completed, the guests relaxed in small groups tochat and enjoy the buffet. In a quiet corner stood three men discussing trucks and transport and distribution, since one wasthe present distribution manager, and the other two were past holders of the post, having retired many years ago. Thethree men represented three generations of company distribution management, spanning over sixty years.

The present distribution manager confessed that his job was becoming more stressful because company policy required

long deliveries be made on Monday and Tuesday, short deliveries on Fridays, and all other deliveries mid-week.

"It's so difficult to schedule things efficiently - heaven knows what we'll do with these new cans and the tight demands ofthe supermarkets..."

The other two men nodded in agreement.

"It was the same in my day," sympathised the present manager's predecessor, "It always seemed strange to me that trucksreturning early on Mondays and Tuesdays couldn't be used for little local runs, because the local deliveries had to be leftuntil Friday.."

The third man nodded, and was thinking hard, struggling to recall the policy's roots many years ago when he'd have been ajunior in the despatch department. After a pause, the third man smiled and then ventured a suggestion.

"I think I remember now," he said, "It was the horses..... During the Second World War fuel rationing was introduced. So wemothballed the trucks and went back to using the horses. On Mondays the horses were well-rested after the weekend -hence the long deliveries. By Friday the horses so tired they could only handle the short local drops..."

Soon after the opening of the new canning line the company changed its delivery policy.

(Ack R Chagar)

See also the 'we've always done it that way' story and the fish baking story and the monkey story.

the rowing competition story (identifying and managing performanceimprovement, establishing cause and accountability, theory x vstheory y, daft executive judgements)

The boards of the two fiercely competitive companies decided to organize a rowing match to challenge each other'sorganisational and sporting abilities. The first company was strongly 'theory X': ruthless, autocratic, zero staff

empowerment etc The second company was more 'theory y': a culture of developing people devolved responsibility and
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empowerment, etc. The second company was more 'theory y': a culture of developing people, devolved responsibility anddecision-making.

Race day arrived. The Y company's boat appeared from the boat-house first, with its crew: eight rowers and a helmsman(the cox). Next followed the X company boat and its crew - eight helmsmen and a single rower.

Not surprisingly the Y company's boat won an easy victory.

The next day the X company board of directors held an inquest with the crew, to review what had been learned from the

embarrassing defeat, which might be of benefit to the organization as a whole, and any future re-match.

After a long and wearing meeting the X company board finally came came to their decision. They concluded that the rowershould be replaced immediately because clearly he had not listened well enough to the instructions he'd been given.

(Ack JJ Lasseur)

the performance evaluation story (theory x shortcomings, management

myopia)

Following a poor first-half year performance the board of Company X tasked a senior manager to investigate what washappening on the factory floor, since the directors believed poor productivity was at the root of the problem. While walkingaround the plant, the investigating manager came upon a large warehouse area where a man stood next to a pillar. Themanager introduced himself as the person investigating performance on the factory floor, appointed by the board, and thenasked the man by the pillar what he was doing. "It's my job," replied the man, "I was told to stand by this pillar."

The investigator thanked the man for his cooperation and encouraged him to keep up the good work. The investigator nextwalked into a large packing area, where he saw another man standing next to a pillar. The investigator again introducedhimself and asked the man what he was doing. "I've been told to stand by this pillar, so that's what I do." said the man.

Two weeks later the investigator completed his report and duly presented his findings to the board, who held a briefmeeting to decide remedial action. The board called the investigator back into the room, thanked him for his work, andthen instructed him to sack one of the men he'd found standing by pillars, since obviously this was a duplication of effort.

(Ac JJL)

no exit story (different perspectives, viewpoints, how differentperspectives cause one thing to appear as two different things)

A man checked into a hotel for the first time in his life and goes up to his room


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A man checked into a hotel for the first time in his life, and goes up to his room.

Five minutes later he called the reception desk and said: "You've given me a room with no exit. How do I leave?"

The desk clerk said, "Sir, that's absurd. Have you looked for the door?"

The man said, "Well, there's one door that leads to the bathroom. There's a second door that goes into the closet. Andthere's a door I haven't tried, but it has a 'do not disturb' sign on it."

(Ack B McFarlane)

See also the blind men and the elephant story below.

the old couple story (positive/negative outlook, blame, attitude)

An elderly couple, married for sixty years, took a rare vacation. They were not well-off but were in good health, perhapsbecause the wife had insisted on a strict diet of healthy foods, no alcohol, no smoking, and lots of gym exercise for most of

their lives. Sadly their plane crashed however, and duly they both entered heaven, where St Peter escorted them throughthe Pearly Gates, and into a waiting limousine. Driving through beautiful countryside they drew up at a beautiful mansionand were shown inside. It was furnished in gold and fine silks, with a splendid kitchen and a sumptuous lounge stocked withwonderful food and drink - there was even a waterfall in the master bathroom. A maid was hanging beautiful designerclothes in the walk-in wardrobes. They gasped in astonishment when St Peter said, "Welcome to heaven. This will be yourhome now."

The old man asked Peter how much all this was going to cost. "Nothing," Peter replied, "this is your heavenly reward."

The old man looked out of the window and saw a magnificent championship golf course.

"What are the green fees?" he asked suspiciously.

"This is heaven," St Peter replied, "You can play for free whenever you wish."

Next they went to the clubhouse and saw the lavish buffet lunch, with every imaginable cuisine laid out before them.

Anticipating the old man's next question, St Peter said, "Don't ask, this is heaven, it is all free for you to enjoy."

The old man looked around and glanced nervously at his wife. "Well, where are the low fat and low cholesterol foods, and

the decaffeinated tea?" he asked.

"This is heaven. You can eat and drink as much as you like, and you will never get fat or sick."

"I don't need to go to the gym?" the old man pressed
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I don t need to go to the gym? the old man pressed.

"Not unless you want to," St Peter replied.

"No testing my sugar or blood pressure or..."

"Never again. All you do here is enjoy yourself."

The old man glared at his wife, "You and your bloody bran muffins. We could have been here ten years ago!"

(Ack CB)

two brothers and the geese story (initiative, responsibility, thinkingoutside the box, anticipating, strategic anticipation, adding value toservice, value and reward)

Two sons work for their father on the family's farm. The younger brother had for some years been given more responsibilityand reward, and one day the older brother asks his father to explain why.

The father says, "First, go to the Kelly's farm and see if they have any geese for sale - we need to add to our stock."

The brother soon returns with the answer, "Yes they have five geese they can sell to us."

That father then says, "Good, please ask them the price."

The son returns with the answer, "The geese are 10 each."

The father says, "Good, now ask if they can deliver the geese tomorrow."

And duly the sone returns with the answer, "Yes, they can deliver the geese them tomorrow."

The father asks the older brother to wait and listen, and then calls to the younger brother in a nearby field, "Go to theDavidson's Farm and see if they have any geese for sale - we need to add to our stock."

The younger brother soon returns with the answer, "Yes, they have five geese for 10 each, or ten geese for 8 each; andthey can deliver them tomorrow - I asked them to deliver the five unless they heard otherwise from us in the next hour.

And I agreed that if we want the extra five geese we could buy them at 6 each."

The father turned to the older son who nodded his head in appreciation he now realised why his brother was given more


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The father turned to the older son, who nodded his head in appreciation - he now realised why his brother was given moreresponsibility and reward.

(adapted from a suggestion - thanks PI)

the piano story (mentoring, coaching, understanding the other person'sdevelopment needs)

A mother wished to encourage her small girl's interest in the piano and so took her a local concert featuring an excellentpianist. In the entrance foyer the mother met an old friend and the two stopped to talk. The little girl was keen to see insidethe hall and so wandered off, unnoticed by her mother. The girl's mother became concerned when she entered the hall andcould see no sign of her daughter. Staff were notified and an announcement was made asking the audience to look out forthe little lost girl. With the concert due to start, the little girl had still not been found. In preparation for the pianist'sentrance, the curtains drew aside, to reveal the little girl sitting at the great piano, focused in concentration, quietly pickingout the notes of 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star'.

The audience's amusement turned to curiosity when the pianist entered the stage, walked up to the little girl, and said"Keep playing."

The pianist sat down beside her, listened for a few seconds, and whispered some more words of encouragement. He thenbegan quietly to play a bass accompaniment, and then a few bars later reached around the little girl to add moreaccompaniment. At the end of the impromptu performance the audience applauded loudly as the pianist took the little girlback to her seat to be reunited with her mother. The experience was inspirational for everyone, not least the small girl.

It takes just a few moments to make somebody's day, to help someone with their own personal aims and dreams -especially someone who looks up to you for encouragement and support. (Ack PC)

the angry customer story (funny customer service example)

Allegedly a true story from the old airport in Denver: a major airline had cancelled a very busy flight and a lone check-inagent is busy trying to sort out all the displaced passengers. A very angry and aggressive man barges his way to the frontof the queue to confront her. He says says that he is flying first class and demands to go on the flight. The agent politelyexplains the situation and asks that people take their place in the queue. The man bellows at her, "Do you know who I am?"- at which the agent calmly picks up the microphone for the PA system, and announces to the airport, "This is (airlinename) desk 64; we have a gentleman here who does not know who he is. If anyone can come and identify him please do

so." The man, now purple with rage, yells at her, "Well f**k you.." - to which the agent replies, "And you'll have to stand inline for that as well, Sir.."

(Ack MS)


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(Ack MS)

the clap and cheer story (positive attitude, taking pride in whatever youdo)

A small boy was auditioning with his classmates for a school play. His mother knew that he'd set his heart on being in theplay - just like all the other children hoped too - and she feared how he would react if he was not chosen. On the day theparts were awarded, the little boy's mother went to the school gates to collect her son. The little lad rushed up to her, eyesshining with pride and excitement. "Guess what Mum," he shouted, and then said the words that provide a lesson to us all,"I've been chosen to clap and cheer."

(Ack F Laufs)

the bank story (a lesson in customer service, how bad policy encouragespoor service)

I am assured this is a true story from a UK bank. The bank concerned had introduced a charge to be levied when peoplepaid in money to be credited to an account held by a different bank. The charge was 50p and had been in force for about 6months or so. A well to do, upper-class lady enters the bank and presents the cashier a cheque (check) which she asks tobe paid into an account held by a different bank. The cashier duly tells the lady that there will be a charge of 50p.Indignantly, she tells him, "I wasn't charged the last time."

To which the cashier immediately replies, "Well that will be a pound then..."

(Ack MS)

the fish baking story (to challenge belief systems and assumptions, andillustrate pointless routine and the need for questioning)

A little girl was watching her mother prepare a fish for dinner. Her mother cut the head and tail off the fish and then placedit into a baking pan. The little girl asked her mother why she cut the head and tail off the fish. Her mother thought for awhile and then said, "I've always done it that way - that's how babicka (Czech for grandma) did it."

Not satisfied with the answer, the little girl went to visit her grandma to find out why she cut the head and tail off the fishbefore baking it.

Grandma thought for a while and replied "I don't know My mother always did it that way "


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Grandma thought for a while and replied, I don t know. My mother always did it that way.

So the little girl and the grandma went to visit great grandma to find ask if she knew the answer.

Great grandma thought for a while and said, Because my baking pan was too small to fit in the whole fish.

(Ack M Hamanova)

See also: the we've always done it that way story and the monkey story and the brewery story.

the donkey story (positive attitudes, turning problems intoopportunities)

One day a farmer's donkey fell into a well. The farmer frantically thought what to do as the stricken animal cried out to berescued. With no obvious solution, the farmer regretfully concluded that as the donkey was old, and as the well needed tobe filled in anyway, he should give up the idea of rescuing the beast, and simply fill in the well. Hopefully the poor animalwould not suffer too much, he tried to persuade himself.

The farmer asked his neighbours help, and before long they all began to shovel earth quickly into the well. When thedonkey realised what was happening he wailed and struggled, but then, to everyone's relief, the noise stopped.

After a while the farmer looked down into the well and was astonished by what he saw. The donkey was still alive, andprogressing towards the top of the well. The donkey had discovered that by shaking off the dirt instead of letting it coverhim, he could keep stepping on top of the earth as the level rose. Soon the donkey was able to step up over the edge of thewell, and he happily trotted off.

Life tends to shovel dirt on top of each of us from time to time. The trick is to shake it off and take a step up.

(Ack TB)

the shepherd story (IT consultants, business consultancy, knowing yourfacts - ironic example)

A shepherd was tending his flock in a field, when a new sports car screeched to a stop on the road nearby in a cloud of

dust. The driver, a young man in expensive designer clothes and sunglasses, leans out of the window and shouts over tothe shepherd, "If I tell you exactly how many sheep you have here, can I take one?"

The shepherd looks up slowly up at the young man then looks at his peaceful flock and calmly answers "Sure why not?"
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The shepherd looks up slowly up at the young man, then looks at his peaceful flock, and calmly answers, Sure, why not?

The young man steps out of his car holding a state-of-the-art palmtop pda, with which he proceeds to connects to a seriesof websites, first calling up satellite navigation system to pinpoint his location, then keying in the location to generate anultra-high resolution picture of the field. After emailing the photo to an image processing facility, the processed data isreturned, which he then feeds into an online database, and enters the parameters for a report. Within another few secondsa miniature printer in the car produces a full colour report containing several pages of analysis and results. The young manstudies the data for a few more seconds and returns to the shepherd.

"You have exactly one-thousand five-hundred and eighty-six sheep, including three rams, and seven-hundred and twenty-two lambs."

"That's right," says the shepherd, mildly impressed. "Well, I guess that means you get to take one of my sheep."

The young man makes his choice and loads the animal onto the back seat of his car, at which the shepherd says, almost asan afterthought, "Hey there, if I can tell you what your business is, will you give me back my sheep?"

The young man, feeling confident, agrees.

"You're a consultant," says the shepherd.

"Wow, that's right," says the young man, taken aback, "How did you guess that?"

"No guessing required," answers the shepherd, "You showed up here even though nobody called you. You took a fee forgiving me an answer that already know, to a question I never asked, and you know nothing about my business. Now giveme back my dog."

(Ack S Faure)

speed camera story (creative thinking, teamwork, understanding andusing modern technology - do not try this at home....)

This allegedly true story, supposedly leaked by the Australian Department of Transport, concerns four Australian youngmen and a mobile speed camera police van. Three of the four lads engaged the speed camera operators in conversationabout the camera equipment, and the number of cars caught, etc., while the fourth unscrewed the van's front registrationplate. Bidding the police farewell, the lads returned home, screwed the registration plate to their own car and proceeded tocomplete 17 very fast round trips through the speed camera's radar. The traffic penalties department subsequently issued17 speeding tickets to itself.

the three engineers story (different approaches to problem-solving


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the three engineers story (different approaches to problem-solving,modern IT, etc)

A mechanical engineer, a systems engineer, and a software engineer are in a car driving down a steep mountain road whenthe brakes fail. The driver desperately pumps the brake pedal, trying to control the speeding vehicle around cliff-edgebends, while the passengers do their best not to panic. As the car hurtles towards an impossible corner the driver spots anescape route into a hedge and a haystack beyond, where the car eventually grinds to a surprisingly safe stop. The threeengineers all get out, shaken, relieved, and take turns to assess the situation.

'Hmm,' says the mechanical engineer, 'It looks like a brake line was leaking - let's repair the split, bleed the brakes, and weshould be able to get on our way..."

The systems engineer thinks for a while and says, 'Maybe we need to contact the manufacturer and the dealer to confirmexactly what the problem is..."

The software engineer slowly climbs into the driver's seat and, gesturing for the others to join him, says, 'How about we getback on the road and see if it happens again?..'

(An alternative final line, suggested kindly and brilliantly by David Shiell, would be: "How about if we close all the windowsand try again..")

the sweet old couple story (dangers of making assumptions, understandbefore you intervene)

A little old couple walked into a fast food restaurant. The little old man walked up to the counter, ordered the food, paid,and took the tray back to the table where the little old lady sat. On the tray was a hamburger, a small bag of fries and adrink. Carefully the old man cut the hamburger in two, and divided the fries into two neat piles. He sipped the drink andpassed it to the little old lady, who took a sip and passed it back. A young man on a nearby table had watched the oldcouple and felt sorry for them. He offered to buy them another meal, but the old man politely declined, saying that theywere used to sharing everything. The old man began to eat his food, but his wife sat still, not eating. The young continuedto watch the couple. He still felt he should be offering to help. As the little old man finished eating, the old lady had still notstarted on her food. "Ma'am, why aren't you eating?" asked the young man sympathetically.

The old lady looked up and said politely, "I'm waiting for the teeth.."

the men and women differences story (the other person's perspective


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the men and women differences story (the other person s perspective,gender empathy, for weddings, best-man speeches,johari window,empathy, NLP, etc)

Not really a story, more of a silly list that circulates by email from time to time.

Some things that men generally take for granted, and fail to realize that women cannot.

Your last name stays put. The garage is all yours. Wedding plans take care of themselves. Chocolate is just another snack. You can never be pregnant. You can wear a white T-shirt to a water park. Car mechanics tell you the truth. The world is your urinal. You never have to drive to another gas station restroom because this one is just 'too icky'.

You don't have to stop and think of which way to turn a nut on a bolt. Same work, more pay. Wrinkles add character. Wedding dress $5000. Tux rental - $100. People never stare at your chest when you're talking to them. The occasional well-rendered belch is practically expected. New shoes don't cut, blister, or mangle your feet. One mood - all the time. Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat. You know stuff about tanks.

A five-day vacation requires only one suitcase. You can open all your own jars. You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness. If someone forgets to invite you, he or she can still be your friend. Your underwear is $8.95 for a three-pack. Three pairs of shoes are more than enough. You almost never have strap problems in public. You are unable to see wrinkles in your clothes. Everything on your face stays its original color. The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe decades.

You only have to shave your face and neck. You can play with toys all your life. Your belly usually hides your big hips.

One wallet and one pair of shoes one color for all seasons.
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p You can wear shorts no matter how your legs look. You can 'do' your nails with a pocket-knife. You have freedom of choice concerning growing a moustache. You can do Christmas shopping for twenty-five relatives on 24th December in forty-five minutes.

(Ack CB and Tom Robinson - please contact us if you know the author of the original 20 items to which Tom refers in hisexplanation of his own particular input: "... I received the e-mail originally back in 2002, with around 20 reasons why it'sgood to be a bloke... I spent most of the following 3 days making the number up to 50..." )

the aunt karen story (relevance and reliability of lessons, morals andexamples)

A teacher told her young class to ask their parents for a family story with a moral at the end of it, and to return the nextday to tell their stories.

In the classroom the next day, Joe gave his example

training stories

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