Sharpen the Axe
“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I’ll spend the first four sharpening the axe.” - Abraham Lincoln
As I get older the more I realize that the biggest factor which will decide if you succeed or fail at a certain task is if you have the right tools. It doesn’t matter how much willpower you have, if you don’t have an axe, chopping down a tree is going to be nearly impossible.
This past week I moved cities. I am now officially a “city boy.” With this move, it required a lot of furniture to be disassembled, packed up, and reassembled. Even with the correct tools, it is not a fun time. But, do you know what makes it even worse? Forgetting to bring your tools. It makes a simple task like unscrewing a bolt impossible. So, not only do you have to have the correct tools, you have to remember to bring the tools.
I want to first start by describing what a tool is. According to google a tool is defined as “a device or implement, especially one held in the hand, used to carry out a particular function.” Basically, a tool is a means to an end. A tool can be both the hammer you are using to drive the nail into the wall or your niche knowledge of an obscure topic. A tool can be both physical and non-physical. Additionally, tools can be both general, think a hammer, or specialized, think an underwater welder mask. Tools take many different shapes and sizes.
So how can you acquire tools? If you are looking to buy physical tools, I recommend Ace Hardware, but if you are looking for non-physical tools, I will share my framework for how I try to approach expanding my metaphorical toolbox.
Identify that you are missing a tool. If you went back in time before the wheel was invented and asked pre-historic man what they wanted chances are high none of them would have said “the wheel” they probably would’ve just been confused by who you are. Before you can go out and add a tool to your tool belt, you have to understand what is missing. Sometimes it is obvious. Think computer programming, it is very obvious that you either know it or you don’t. But, it isn’t always as obvious But sometimes it is less obvious, think about avoiding closing your posture when you are giving a presentation. Unless you know it you won’t know you are missing it. The way I try to identify tools I’m missing are books, podcasts, and talking with people I deem as successful. You can learn a surprising amount from this.
Compare the amount of effort required to become skilled versus the benefit that will come out of it. Let’s say I want to make a copy of my house key, I could learn how to make copies of keys, spend 1000s of dollars on a key cutting machine, and spend months of my life learning the trade, or… I could spend $1.99 for a copy at home depot. Some tools are just not worth the effort. You should try to identify the benefit that arises from certain tools and use that as the basis of deciding whether or not it is worth it for you to pursue.
Sharpen the Axe. Once you decide the tools or skills you want to pursue focus on continuously improving them. It is not enough to dabble once in a great while, if you want to be an expert on something you have to train. If you want to get better at public speaking you have to practice. If you want to get better at hammering nails you have to practice swinging. But, remember you do not have to go at this alone. By having a mentor (whether virtual or IRL) you can learn a lot from people who have already “been there and done that.”
That’s it. Find the tools you are missing, decide if it’s worth the investment and if it is get good at using it.
So go out there and sharpen that axe.