Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

Regardless of how earnest and sincere the persons, being misinformed at Step 0 dooms any endeavor.

Step 0 is the beginning. Some call it the foundation upon which all things are built. It is important.

In my experience, regardless of how earnest and sincere any person(s) may be, if they are misinformed at Step 0, it just doesn’t matter.

This brings to mind a comedian from decades past who would rant and rave about a topic, then be interrupted and informed about Step 0, then would end with, “Oh, never mind.”

Examples,

• Our mistakes put us in this situation, a tree didn’t fall on us.
• This problem already has effective and inexpensive solutions.
• The “winner” will be declared by fallible persons with prejudices and favorites (just like us).
• We called him. He didn’t call us.

I could continue for a long while. I trust these are sufficient. Notice how many of these Step 0 statements involve us and other persons. It may be disappointing to learn that we laid the foundation no matter how shaky it may be.