Do you remember show and tell when you were a kid at school? You know, when everyone would bring an item in, and then you’d stand in front of the class and talk about the thing you brought in (the ‘tell’ bit), and then you’d pass the thing around so everyone got a look (the ‘show’ part)? I always enjoyed the showing more than the telling. It’s all well and good to have something explained to you, but I always preferred to see the thing for myself.
Fast forward a few decades – recently, I was listening to a recording of a well-known channelled teacher, who was explaining all about life and how to live it in the most fulfilled way. I’m sure many people would enjoy such teachings, but I switched it off after a few minutes. I had no desire to listen to someone telling me how to live my life. You see, I’d much rather be shown than told.
This got me thinking about showing versus telling as a way of life. Governments, teachers, parents, and other various ‘authority’ figures love to tell us how things are and what to do. And sometimes, yes, this can be useful. Go ahead and tell me what the speed limit of a particular stretch of road is or how to spell a tricksy word. But most of the time, I find it more useful to be shown something. Show me how to make that delicious hummus or how to upload that book into Amazon KDP. (Seriously, have you tried figuring out how to publish on Amazon? It was a journey, but worth it in the end.)
There’s an old saying that goes something like, ‘Give a man a fish, and he will eat for a day. But teach a man to fish, and he will sit in a boat drinking beer all day.’
Wait. No, I saw that on a t-shirt somewhere in Florida.
The actual saying is, ‘Teach a man to fish, and he will eat for a lifetime.’ This speaks to the fact that if you give someone something, they sort of become dependent on you for that thing, but if you teach someone to get that thing on their own, they become independent. Empowered. Able to catch all the fish for themselves.
When you’re shown how to do something, you take ownership of the process in a way that would be impossible if you simply took on whatever was told to you. Here’s another way to look at it: when you learned to drive, you first had to study the rules of the road. But when it came time to actually learn the mechanics of driving, you had to get behind the wheel. Sure, someone could tell you how to start the car, how to use the turn signal, and which pedal makes the car go and which one makes it stop, but to truly learn how to safely operate that big hunk of metal on wheels, you needed a driving instructor and hands-on experience. To be shown, as well as told.
Of course, everyone learns differently – some people prefer to watch YouTube videos showing them how to do something, and others prefer to read instructions. There’s no denying that – but what I’m talking about here is bigger than learning skills or how to do practical things.
When it comes to learning about life, the most powerful teachers are the ones who guide you to find the answers yourself, who show you the path but let you walk it on your own or with minimal guidance. By setting an example and showing what is possible, a strong leader can empower someone to find their own path to greatness. And by walking the path yourself once you’re shown the way, you know every step of the journey, each obstacle and each twist and turn, and you are stronger for it.
