Drowning Out the Noise [A Career and Life Allegory]

Posted on July 14, 2010 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA

A Man Lived by the Side of the Road
By Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA, CMP™

The “Quiet” 

An old man lived by the side of the road and sold hot dogs. He was hard of hearing, so he had no radio. He had trouble with his eyes, so he had no newspaper.

But, he sold really – really good hot dogs. He put up a sign on the highway telling how good they were. He stood by the side of the road and cried, “Buy a hot dog, mister.” And people bought. He increased his meat and bun orders and he bought a bigger stove to take care of his trade.

The “Noise”

Soon, his son came home from college to help him. But, then something happened. His son said, “Father, haven’t you been listening to the radio? There’s a big depression on. The international situation is terrible and the domestic situation is even worse.”

Whereupon the father thought, “Well, my son has been to college. He listens to the radio and reads the papers, so he ought to know.” So, the father cut down his bun order, took down his advertising signs, and no longer bothered to stand on the highway to sell hot dogs. His hot dog sales fell almost overnight. “You were right, son,” the father said to the boy. “We are certainly in the middle of a great depression.”

-Author Unknown

Assessment

As a physician, professor or entrepreneur, how do you feel about this story? Does the managed care situation, PP-ACA and new healthcare reform focus, depress you? Do you feel alienated from your patients, profession or self?

What about you, financial advisors? Do layoffs in the industry affect your earning capacity? Or, does the market situation just hurt your self esteem? Which is worse; a real or psychologically negative impact?  What about failed mortgage derivative products, collapsed banks, and related ethical scandals? Demoralizing!

And so, are you an optimist or pessimist about life and career? Is it really “different this time?”

Conclusion

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3 Responses

  1. Pam, on July 22, 2010 at 11:34 AM said:

    Crumbling Relationships

    Despite ongoing health care reform efforts, one thing does not appear to be changing: the physician-patient relationship. The unique relationship that physicians originally shared with their patients was severed when third-party entities took control of the transactions between parties.

    http://www.hhnmag.com/hhnmag_app/jsp/articledisplay.jsp?dcrpath=HHNMAG/Article/data/06JUN2010/062810HHN_Weekly_Jackson&domain=HHNMAG

    Today, we are attempting to “reform” a fragmented health care system that isn’t designed to reward healthy lifestyles and high-quality, low-cost medical care.

    Pam

    Like

  3. Beverly RN, on April 24, 2014 at 6:59 PM said:

    Kudos,

    A marvelous ME-P, Dr. Marcinko.

    Beverly RN

    Like

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