Following up on yesterday’s post, I’m currently reading a book called Discussion Based Online Teaching To Enhance Student Learning by Tisha Bender.  This year we’re adding a distance learning component to our immersion programs, and I’m educating myself as to how to do it effectively.  More on this later.  Bender relays a story on page 38 about how a positive attitude effects the outcome by framing the job being done with the bigger picture.

         3 Bricklayers

Once there were three bricklayers.

Each one of them was asked what they were doing.

The first man answered gruffly,

“I’m laying bricks.”

The second man replied,

“I’m putting up a wall.”

But the third man said enthusiastically and with pride,

“I’m building a cathedral.”

                                – Author unknown

Which of the three bricklayers do you think would be most likely to maintain his motivation and to work hard to do the best job he could? 

Every great endeavor is made up of a wide variety of tasks, some of which are neither glamorous or fun.  The lesson I take from this story is to keep the big picture in the back of your mind when you’re doing them, as it allows you to put whatever task you’re doing in perspective with regard to the whole and helps to keep you motivated.