How to Deal with a Porcupine
When I was a kid I lived in rural New Brunswick. We had a dog named Mike– one of the smartest I’ve ever known, with one notable exception– he had a failing for porcupines.
Mike preferred the direct approach. He gave new meaning to the Pyrrhic victory. Thus, every month or two I’d get home from school to find Mike whimpering on the porch, his muzzle a thick and bloody beard of quills. The evening’s work was to extract all of these things, one by one. Mike was stoic, the family not so much.
But this is not just the story of Mike the Dog– it’s a parable told because you and I deal with “porcupine people” every day. You know the type. How do you manage them?
The most basic rule: don’t be Mike the Dog, because biting the porcupine just never ends well for anyone.
In many cases you can simply ignore the beast. But sometimes you have no choice but to work with the porcupine– perhaps the judge, the dissatisfied client, or the supplier of an essential commodity… the list is endless.
With such people you need to call on every ounce of patience and grace you can muster, maintain your good humour and be careful with your words. Such encounters are difficult, often frustrating, but each one gives an opportunity to become a better person and a better communicator.
Finally, in some circumstances, you can actually befriend a porcupine.
Read (http://www.purposeful.ca/blog) full article here… (http://www.purposeful.ca/blog)