The Turn-Around Fable
The Turn-Around Fable
Paul the Polar Bear skated across the ice. He twirled and dipped, pirouetting across the frigid surface. The other polar bears watched him with admiration.
Paul knew he was good. In fact, he knew he was great. Nobody for miles around could even begin to compete with him. He was the best and he knew it.
“Hey, Paul! Will you teach us how you do that Double-Dive Spin?” the other polar bears pleaded. “Show us, pretty please?”
“Humph, you guys can’t float and twirl like me. I’m the best,” he scoffed to the other bears. “I don’t have time to help you. Forget about it.” Paul flippantly waved his hand at his friends as he glided by.
A little later, Paul overheard the other bears talking excitedly. Patrick the Polar Bear exclaimed, “Yeah, I heard he’s coming to skate on our ice because he needs more room to practice for the Regional Skate-Off next week!”
Peter the Polar Bear added, “And P.J. promised to teach us his spins! He’ll be here any second!”
Paul wondered to himself, ‘Who is this P.J. the Polar Bear? Why is everyone so giddy?’
He shrugged and thought that it didn’t really matter because he was winning the Regional Skate-Off, anyway, hands down. “No one’s as good as me,” Paul convinced himself.
At that moment, a tall, athletic bear emerged from the snow-covered pine trees. His friendly blue eyes gleamed at the other polar bears as they approached him.
The new bear said, “I’m P.J. It’s nice to meet you all.” P.J. smiled and shook paws with everyone. “I’ll practice first. Then, I’ll teach you guys some awesome spins.” The other bears were ecstatic.
As Paul observed P.J.’s kind, yet confident manner and saw his flawless skating, dips, and twirls, he realised he needed to change. He needed a turn-around.
The Turn-Around Fable
Moral: Arrogance pushes others away, while gracious confidence breeds greater success.
Paul the Polar Bear was over-confident in his abilities to the point of arrogance. Paul loved how other bears watched and admired him.
But he had an exaggerated sense of self-importance. He felt he didn’t have to be considerate of others’ feelings.
Even so, the bears respected him and sought his guidance to improve their skills. But Paul wouldn’t help them. Imagine their surprise and pleasure upon learning that another great skater, P.J., would visit. The other bears wanted to learn from the best.
P.J. unselfishly took time to meet everyone and promised to teach them what he knew. He recognised the importance of reaching out to others. He was confident, yet believed in sharing his skills.
Perhaps there’s been a time when you were especially skilled at a task, like Paul. Did you offer to help others when asked? Were you as open and helpful as you could have been? Why or why not?
Sure, we all need to practice and sharpen our skills, but we also can make time to teach and mentor others too, right?
When you generously reach out to help others, both your confidence and success will soar as you become known as the “go to” expert!
Self-Reflection Questions:
- Do you have skills or talents that others have expressed an interest in?
- When opportunities arise to teach others, how do you respond?
- What are the differences between confidence and arrogance?
