A long-standing proverb discusses whether it is better to give or teach, using the metaphor of fishing.

Take 1:

“Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” (Lao Tsu, Chinese Philosopher).

The moral of the proverb is that it is better to teach people how to do things rather than give them the solution.

This is especially important with children or people recovering from an injury.

If people try to do something and fail, they will learn what they did wrong and (hopefully) do better the next time they try. This cycle will repeat until they can act by themselves.

The alternative is to do everything for them, reflected in the phrase “Give a man a fish.”

More and more charities are giving education and guidance on self-sufficiency rather than just giving people food.

Take 2:

“Give a man a fish, and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day. “

Unfortunately, many social welfare programs adopt this approach because it is simply given to people. A lot can be said for a person’s self-worth if they do something in return for support. Modern-day unemployment has moved away from a rigid approach where people were expected to look for employment in exchange for government support.

If we allow people to ‘sit in the boat and drink beer’ without learning how to fish, doesn’t that just set them up to expect everything from nothing for the rest of their lives?

That is the basis of pocket money for children, isn’t it? Do some jobs, and you will get your pocket money. Don’t do them, and you cannot expect to get pocket money.

The same is true in business; there are three types of people:

– Type 1: Those who genuinely want to learn and better themselves by developing their skills,

– Type 2: those who expect you to give them all the solutions, and

– Type 3: those who are lazy and ‘sit in the boat and drink beer’ while everyone else does all the work.

Everyone wants a team of type 1 individuals because they are the future leaders who will, in turn, teach others. Type 2 individuals will always be followers who just do their jobs, and type 3 individuals should be fired (for the benefit of the company!).

Till next time, thanks for reading,

Calvin