BUSINESS MATTERS (BEYOND THE BOTTOM LINE) By Francis J. Kong
(The Philippine Star) Updated June 11, 2011 12:00 AM
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Two pilots are trying to land an airplane. As they touch the ground, one pilot screams, “Pull up! The runway is ending!”
The second pilot swiftly gets the plane back
up in the air. They make a big turn and prepare to descend again. But
the moment they touch ground, the pilot screams again, “Get the plane up
the runway is ending!!!” This goes on for another round.
On their fourth descent, the first pilot says, “This is so dumb. They
built this huge and expensive airport, but made such a short runway.”
“I know,” answers the second pilot, “But look how wide they made it...”
Some people think that by pulling rank, bullying people or throwing
their weight around, they can get others to admire them, fear them and
follow them. This is so dumb as dumb as the pilots in the story. Those
pilots are certainly not very competent or very know-ledgeable in flying
an aircraft.
Competence and knowledge is there a difference (apart from the spelling, of course)?
Yes, there is. Knowing is not the same as doing. Competence means one
has progressed beyond knowing what to do to doing what one knows.
There are four levels of competence:
1. Unconscious Incompetence You do not know that you do not know.
2. Conscious Incompetence You know that you do not know.
3. Conscious Competence You know that you do know.
4. Unconscious Competence What you know is already automatic with you.
If you want to gain people’s respect, enchant people and inspire
them, you need to be knowledgeable in what you do and be competent at
it.
I have met people who pretend to be knowledgeable, when in fact what
they do is just echo others’ ideas and opinions. They read a book and
suddenly become experts at the subject matter. But once you get to know
them and work with them, they fall awfully short of expectations.
There are others who may know what they’re talking about but are not
really competent at it.
They’re the Talkers. They talk a lot.
Yakitty-yakitty-yakitty-yak they go, but when it’s time to act on the
things they speak oh-so-well of, they do a poor job. That’s why I feel a
little awkward when people introduce me as a person who practices what I
preach. I’d rather be known as someone who preaches what I’m already
practicing.
Two persons were having a conversation. One said, “I don’t think
success has gone to her head.” “No, just to her mouth,” the other said.
In a different conversation, a church member boasts, “My pastor is so
good, he can talk on any subject for an hour.” A member of a different
church responded, “That’s nothing! My pastor can talk for an hour
without a subject!”
Don’t just talk without knowing. And don’t just know without being competent at it.
Learn. Do. Act. Correct. Be humble and speak less. You make less
mistakes that way. But when you do open your mouth, speak of what you
know and you’re competent at. People will not only listen to you they
will believe you.
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