Years ago after I landed my first job, I almost lost it immediately. The reason was not far fetched. I came into the company with the effrontery and paraphernalia of a first class graduate and assumed a condescending demeanour to the directives of my team lead. I had learnt she graduated with a much lower qualification and I therefore assumed a plethora of things on that basis. I had eloquent and bubbling ideas that I believed should take preeminence in the scheme of things without due consideration to savvy and experience embedded in what I have been delegated to do. However, like a boomerang, this backfired and I was eventually summoned by the owner of the company to answer a query.
The owner of the company looked at me intently and muttered these finite words that have been ingrained deep in the embers of my heart for aeons. He said, "It is better you are pruned to grow than be cut to die". These words reverberated in me and gave me a profound sense of self and re-echoed the place of humility in the stride to sublimity.
I genuinely 'repented' and would apologize profusely for my untoward disposition. Less than two weeks later, my team lead would give me what became my biggest break in that office. An opportunity had come forth and she unilaterally elected I do the job. A test of some sort I reckoned. That singular act was the conduit to opulence in many respect. It gave the me keys to my first car in one month.
It has been years since that day and I have transcended seemingly impregnable barriers by leveraging on this trait. Looking back I have learnt the power of 'stooping to conquer'. The lessons learnt from that experience has opened doors in my career in ways I never thought fathomable. I have learnt that it is easy to miss a big stepping stone by standing when we ought be sitting and talking when we should be listening.
Indeed, for a seed to germinate, it must first of all die. Stay humble or you fumble!
