Donkey Logic: Story Building Made Easy

In one of my?previous articles, I Introduced the?S.P.A. Story Building Method. Here's a short recap:

SPA stands for Story - Point - Application.?Each SPA module is about?5-7 minutes?in length depending on the context.??

Here’s another example. I'll title this one,?"Donkey Logic". Yes, I name all my stories for better recall!

Context: I would use this story during a presentation where I'm trying to get people to:

• Overcome their fear of trying something new, or
• Think about what's holding them back from being a star performer.

Story: A farmer was taking three of his donkeys to sell at the local market. On the way, he came across a river and decided to take a dip before reaching the market.

In order to do so he would have to tie the donkeys to a nearby tree.?Unfortunately, he only had two pieces of rope to tie them up, so he was at a loss. He noticed a Sage sitting near the bank of the river and asked him if by chance had a rope he could borrow.

The Sage didn’t have a rope but told the farmer,

“Let the third donkey see you tying the other two donkeys to a tree. Then you pretend to tie this one also”.

The farmer did as he was told and sure enough, the 3rd donkey didn’t move.?He then quickly ran into the river to take his dip.?

Once done and dried off, he thanked the Sage and saw that the donkeys were still standing exactly in the same spots where he had left them. He then untied the two donkeys and patted the third one to get it moving. To his surprise, the 3rd donkey wouldn't move. No matter what he tried, he simply refused to leave the designated spot.?

Confused and frustrated, the farmer went over to Sage, and asked for advice.?The Sage responded, “Simply untie the third donkey”.

"But, but”, protested the farmer, “I never tied him in the first place.”

The Sage quickly responded, “You know that.?I know that.?But the donkey doesn’t know that?”

Open to trying anything, ?the farmer went through the imaginary motions of untying the donkey. The donkey immediately began to move and walked over to join the other two donkeys.

<end of story>

Now, there are several points you can take away from this story. Choose the one that best fits your presentation objective or narrative.

1. Point: Even though nothing was holding the donkey back or stopping him from moving, the donkey was under the impression that it couldn't move (i.e., we hold ourselves back)
2. Point: Only when the farmer pretended to release him, did the donkey move (i.e., waiting for permission)
3. Point: Sometimes we see what happens to others and it paralyzes us from taking action. (i.e., failure of others scare us)

Application: When I use this story, I typically use all three points in rapid succession. When I do it in front of a 'live' audience, I build a conclusion cadence where I crescendo in tone and volume as I progress through the three points.

"If you're thinking this is a silly story; you're right. If you're thinking there's no value in the story; you're wrong. Here are 3 winning lessons from this story:

1) Right now there is nothing stopping you from (fill in the blank) but you! You can start big, you can start small, but you have to start!

2) Also, don't wait for someone to give you permission or 'release you' to do something you believe in. Own the decision! Even if others think it's a bad idea yet you believe you can do it,...do it!

3) Lastly, stop paying attention to what's happened (or happening) to others. Just because they failed, doesn't mean you will.

To be the best, or to simply be better, you have to go beyond donkey logic. Untether your mind from what could go wrong and focus it on the upsides of winning!"

< end of SPA module >

Again, this is a great story module to use when you're a leader trying to motivate your team members to take action.

Another way to use this story is to tell it to your team and have them tell you what lessons can we glean from this story.

Question: How or where would you use this story?

Victor Antonio