Stirring the Squash

I hated squash as a child. But, my parents always made me take “one bite.” Trouble was, I sometimes gagged and I couldn’t bring myself to even taste the stuff. So, to solve the problem the best way I knew how, I would stir the squash around on my plate and make it look like I had tried it.

Now that I am grown, I have met people who operate with this kind of tactic in their work. They want to appear as competent employees, doing their jobs well, and performing to everyone’s satisfaction. However, like my behavior when I was a child, they have learned to “stir the squash.”

Under pressure from the Board of Education over low test scores, a school superintendant announces he will add 15 minutes to the length of the school day. Trouble was, he only lengthened the day for staff. The students’ schedule was tied to the bus company’s time constraints. He had stirred the squash.

As a secretary, the young woman rushed around the office, the picture of efficiency whenever anyone asked for her help. Yet, she NEVER met deadlines, and made promises to everyone that she never intended to fulfill. She dropped off her work for other secretaries to finish, in her mad rush to get on to something more fun. She learned how to stir the squash.

When we run into these kinds of people, we should let their examples teach us. If all we want is to make a good impression, then we can stir the squash too. However, if we want our work to reflect our character, we need to take our “bite” out of the work and do what we can to remain honest and competent.