Insight #15:
How many legs does it take to keep an object steady on an uneven surface? Here’s a hint:
“If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it might just be a duck.” (As said by Walter Reuther, US Labor Leader (1907-1970) or James W Riley, a writer (1849-1916). Take your pick.)
If you still don’t know how many legs it takes, then experiment. You will discover that an object with only two legs is likely to fall over, and something with four legs is likely to wobble. But three legs! Now that’s how you stop a wobble. (And recognize a duck.)
If you want something to be balanced and rock-solid, then think in terms of three.
For example, use this trick when giving a talk and you want your message to stay standing even after the audience has left. Your ideas will stick if you use no more and no less than three key points or arguments.
Use fewer than three, and your message will fall flat. Use more than three and it will wobble. But if it looks right, walks right, and quacks right, then your audience might just get the message.
Oh, but when presenting, don’t play the Joan Armatrading song ‘Me, Myself, I’. To any audience, that’s three too many.
Welcome to my side of the nonsense divide.
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