Not long ago I was reading an article in the local newspaper and realized I was more captivated by the underlying lesson than the actual story.
At an IndyCar race in Texas, a driver was involved in a crash that resulted in her car catching on fire. As is always the case at big name races, the first emergency crew was on the scene almost immediately and set out to extinguish the fire.
However, the fire hose had a kink in it and, as a result, the first rescuer on the scene was unable to use his truck to fight the fire. Rather than grabbing one of the pressurized water canisters available, he focused on fixing the kink in the hose. Meanwhile, the driver was slightly burned by the rapidly growing fire before it was extinguished.
Now, the point is not to blame the first responder. He has an extremely tough job and just went on instinct to help the driver in need as fast as he could. But a valuable lesson can be learned from this incident.
How often do we focus on the “kink in the hose” rather than stepping back and figuring out other solutions to our problems that are readily available? Sometimes the big picture is hard to see, especially when times are tough, but the perspective gained can be invaluable.
Ty Gable
President, National Precast Concrete Association
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