Two Stonemasons
Consider the story of two stonemasons. you walk up to the first stonemason and ask, ‘Do you like your job?’ He looks up at you and replies, ‘I’ve been building this wall for as long as I can remember. The work is monotonous. I work in the scorching hot sun all day. The stones are heavy and lifting them day after day can be backbreaking. I’m not even sure if this project will be completed in my lifetime. But it’s a job. It pays the bills.’ You thank him for his time and walk on.
About thirty feet away, you walk up to a second stonemason. you ask him the same question, ‘Do you like your job?’ He looks up and replies, ‘I love my job. I’m building a cathedral. Sure, I’ve been working on this wall for as long as I can remember, and yes the work is sometimes monotonous. I work in the scorching hot sun all day. The stones are heavy and lifting them day after day can be backbreaking. I’m not even sure if this project will be completed in my lifetime. But I’m building a cathedral.’
What these two stonemasons are doing is exactly the same; the difference is, one has a sense of purpose. He feels like he belongs. He comes to work to be a part of something bigger than the job he’s doing. Simply having a sense of 'WHY?' changes his entire view of the job.
Excerpted from his book, Start with Why.
SEED QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: How do you relate to the stories of the two stonemasons? Can you share a personal story of a time you had a sense of purpose for your hard work? What helps you find and connect with a sense of purpose in your work?
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21 Past Reflections
On Nov 13, 2022 Samatā wrote :
I all of these stories and analogies we still have to come back to discernment. We have to assess our own experiences and capacities to endure.
Feeling a sense of purpose is much deeper than simply feeling a sense of purpose. I am currently an elementary school teacher and all day long people remind each other of the purpose, the greater good, etc.
Still, I have the responsibility to check in with "myself", and "my" own nervous system, to see if this is working at a fundamental level of health (and certainly not merely in the intellectual and conceptual level).
How does this feel to me day in and day out? Am I nourished, am I healing and growing in a positive direction? I have to develop the capacity to both feel and understand these factors in my life.
Nothing works, or is better, because someone tells us it is so, or believes it to be so. We must understand clearly for ourselves.
Maybe the discontented mason is a budding pianist or painter, maybe accounting is fo... [View Full Comment]
1 reply: David | Post Your Reply
On Nov 9, 2022 Kazuko wrote :
The hard work is sometimes a kind of excercise. It gives me a chance of blood circulation and that pumps up my body.
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On Nov 8, 2022 Pebbles wrote :
Enjoying the scenery on a very long
unplanned detour and not focussing on the destination was something I had to learn
unplanned detour and not focussing on the destination was something I had to learn
1 reply: David | Post Your Reply
On Nov 8, 2022 Neelam ratanjee wrote :
Positivity is the crux of life. A work complete or in process is not so important as the fact that you have been a part of it and have contributed to its future completion. No need to worry about the returns. It will be taken care of by the super power.
1 reply: David | Post Your Reply
On Nov 8, 2022 Oden Hughes wrote :
This is a lovely reminder of the importance of sharing vision/mission with teams. In my work we try to emphasize this through our work with leaders, your teams need to connect to a purpose, it's vital.
For me, I often right down the value I provided at the end of a long day and connect that to my true north and remind myself that it's all connected.
For me, I often right down the value I provided at the end of a long day and connect that to my true north and remind myself that it's all connected.
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On Nov 8, 2022 Kim Mercier wrote :
A Life of Service inspired me to sell my car and simplify my possessions according with the seasons. It is now wintry, one fleece lined pant for moving about, another one for sleep. Securing my only possessions onto an old mountain bicycle which enables me to ride up the mountain or down into town, sometimes in circles. My food sack consists of salad in a bag and lets not forget, assorted nuts and fruits for the grounded and flying friendly neighbors on my path. At times the food load can be cumbersome and a tid bit heavy for my aging bones but I shake off the self serving thought and ride on back up the mountain.
One day, I noticed a family of birds moved into the neighborhood in search of food. The mother, the leader, would sit on the highest rock while her childten walked about seeking out any morsel of highland grains. I prepare my bike, and ride down the mountain to a neighborhood market. I park my bike next to a metal garbage can, walked into the store and noticed the... [View Full Comment]
2 replies: Barbara, David | Post Your Reply
On Nov 8, 2022 Anupam wrote :
It is this deflection that attributes purpose to mindless and mundane work that gives rise to the sheeple that infest the world
1 reply: Bill | Post Your Reply
On Nov 8, 2022 Liliana B wrote :
The reason why is a question I use to ask in hard times only, I admit. When I fell to question my internal refference. When confused. When struggling. And ehat happened many times frightened me even more. Cause the Story in my head was so different(not to say fake) than what inside was feeling. And got scared to dearh. Anxiety, depression. The rest is the recovery😊Yet, when finally reaching the authentic path, it feels so much better!
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On Nov 7, 2022 stan79 wrote :
As each of us encourage positive efforts actions and projects we add a little more thats positive... Never cease doing our best...
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On Nov 7, 2022 Barbara wrote :
I just wanted to say I enjoyed the story of the masons and all the comments here resonate with myself. I have nothing really to add to these wonderful people's reflections other than I agree with each one. Thank you!
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On Nov 7, 2022 Jazzy wrote :
I have found that when I’ve changed my perception around anything I’m doing or experiencing, that is when miracles abound.
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On Nov 5, 2022 David Doane wrote :
For the first stonemason, the purpose of paying the bills does not result in his loving his work. For the second stonemason, the purpose of building a cathedral results in his loving his work. That means to me that to love your work it is important to have a purpose that you love. There were aspects of my career that were hard work and were a drag, but overall I had a sense of worthwhile purpose in my work and often loved it. What helps me find and connect with a sense of purpose in my work is getting into work by way of following my heart and not just following practical considerations, getting into work that at best I am passionate about or at least enjoy and have some excitement in doing, and getting into work in which I learn, grow, and feel some fulfillment in doing.
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On Nov 5, 2022 Ted wrote :
Like our mortal body, we grow into this life with mind, emotions, and ego (sense of *I*, *ME* and *MINE* separate from all else), and all of those can be seen as resulting from prior causes and conditions (karma). Fear based motivation drives ego; lack of survival, keeping job, and paying bills for the first mason, and when those seem endless, life is suffering. The alternative is finding (and appreciating) Love in whatever we do (as the second mason), which is much more satisfactory, though as long as what we love is external, there will still be fears of losing that love (such as cathedral being destroyed by war, abandoned due to finances, failing health preventing working, or dying). Awakening from the dream of ego offers freedom from all fears, while right-action, and boundless loving-kindness continue without limits.
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On Nov 5, 2022 Kristin Pedemonti wrote :
Having a sense of purpose makes all the difference, as we see in the story. Many of us live in societies which do not put priority on purpose or the longview of what we're contributing, but on short term gain. Isn't it wonderful when we can stand up for purpose being the priority rather than simply making money as the goal? Like the Stonemasons, we can find purpose too. When I'm teaching Presentation Skills in translating complex data, I remind myself what I'm actually doing is teaching how to connect more human to human heart to heart. What are the human stories behind the numbers? In each assignment I remind myself to be as loving as possible in my feedback and to find the humanity.
Theres also the "bigger" purposes. In 2005, I stood up to the prevailing ideas of 'success' & 'shoulds' and sold my small home and sold/gave away most of my possessions to found/facilitate a volunteer literacy project. I donated programs for over 30K children and trained over 800 teachers in 75+ vil... [View Full Comment]
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On Nov 5, 2022 Jagdish P. Dave wrote :
I love the story of the two stonemasons. When it comes to choosing and doing a job, my fundamental question is teleological: How the work
I choose to do fulfills the purpose of my life? Do I love to do this work? Does this work fill the cup of my life with joy and happiness? Does this work serve a higher pupose besides paying my bills? Is this work a part of something bigger than the job I am doing? Is my work a labor of love and selfless service?
After I graduated from a college I chose to teach not only for bread butter but my teaching brings a lot of joy and fulfillment in my life. My father's advice was very simple but very profound: Follow your heart. Love what you do. With this attitude work becomes worship. I have been following his adivce and it has brought deep satisfaction and joy.
Listening to my inner voice and following it has created golden light of deep fulfillment, happiness and joy in my life.
May we all find the purpose of living and live our life fully!
Namast... [View Full Comment]