I’d rather be a sparrow than a snail
Yes I would if I could, I surely would
I’d rather be a hammer than a nail
Yes I would if I only could, I surely would
For those of a certain age, those song lyrics may be recognizable. They were written by Paul Simon of the popular folk-rock duo of Simon and Garfunkel. They are the words to the song El Condor Pasa (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pey29CLID3I). This was the second song on the Bridge Over Troubled Water album released over 50 years ago. It became one of the most popular songs of its time.
The melody for the song was created by Daniel Robles, a Peruvian composer. He had crossed the Andes Mountains in search of indigenous music. The original melody was part of an operetta he had composed. The name El Condor Pasa refers to a condor looking down on miners. The condor became a symbol of the freedom the miners were seeking.
Paul Simon heard the melody while in Europe and decided to write his own lyrics to the melody. If I Only Could was his description of the plight of the miners. But has it become a message that is still relevant today? How many of us wish for freedom from dead-end careers but feel more like the snail slugging along rather than having the freedom of the sparrow? We impose our own limits on ourselves by saying “if I only could”.
How many of us find ourselves in toxic situations like a nail being pounded upon? Again, we seem to tolerate our plight by saying “if I only could”.
It’s remarkable how the words “if I only could” have become so self-limiting. Why is that? Do we not believe in ourselves? Are we too wedded to the images that others have of us? Do we accept our circumstances as being unbreakable?
Our society has an unfulfilled talent problem. There is so much more we as a people could achieve if the words “if I only could” were replaced with “I surely would”. How do we raise our talent level as a society?
- Every one of us needs to think of our talent as something we command.
- We need to become talent nurturers for each other.
- We need to rethink education at all levels as one of talent development.
- We need to use knowledge from neuroscience as the guiding force for how we develop an “I surely would” mindset.
And most of all we need those in public leadership roles to inspire us to achieve our fullest potential.
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“Everyone is gifted – but some people never open their package.” – Unknown