The Boilermaker

 

As I mentioned in my recent post about Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats, a significant part of executive coaching is about helping people to make better decisions by encouraging them to think about issues in new ways. A great way to do this is through the use of metaphors, stories and parables.

 

When reading this week’s sales tip from negotiation guru Tom Beasor I was reminded of the story recounted by Steve Andreas in the forward to the neuro-linguistic programming book “Frogs into Princes” by Richard Bandler and John Grinder.

 

In the story, a boilermaker was hired to fix a huge steamship boiler system that had broken down. The shipping company owner was in a real flap because his cargo was delayed and he ran the risk of losing the best price for his shipment. Meanwhile the workers still had to be paid and costs were mounting so the owner hired the boilermaker to fix the problem.

  

The boilermaker listened to the engineer’s description of the problems and asked a few questions then went to the boiler room. He looked at the maze of twisting pipes, listened to the thump of the boiler and the hiss of escaping steam for a few minutes and felt some pipes with his hands. Then he hummed softly to himself, reached into his overalls, took out a small hammer and tapped a bright red valve, once. Immediately the entire system began working perfectly, the boilermaker went home and the ship sailed within the hour.

 

When the steamship owner received a bill for $1,000 he complained that the boilermaker had only been in the engine room for fifteen minutes, and requested an itemized bill. This is what the boilermaker sent him:

 

For tapping with hammer:          $ 0.50

For knowing where to tap:      $ 999.50

Total:                                $1,000.00

 

So…How much would you pay an experienced executive coach who makes a significant difference to your bottom line?

 

Do you know where to tap?