Here’s an excerpt from my upcoming book, Automatic Influence…
Recently I heard about a problem between students and leaders at a local junior high school. The girls would go into the bathroom, put on lipstick, then press their lips to the mirrors. Every night the maintenance team spent extra time scrubbing off the kiss marks.
The maintenance workers put up signs, but the girls kept kissing the mirrors.
The principal asked the girls to stop. But the girls ignored her.
She demanded.
The girls ignored her.
She pleaded.
The girls ignored her. No matter what the principal tried, she couldn’t stop them.
Finally, the principal had an idea. She called a few girls into the bathroom and brought in a custodian. “These lipstick marks are causing trouble for us every night,” the principal said. “Look how hard it is to clean the mirrors.” She motioned to the custodian, who took out a squeegee, dipped it in a toilet, and wiped the mirror.
No more lipstick marks. Ever.
Think about how much the staff struggled before the demonstration. They tried and tried, but nothing worked. Then think how little they struggled after. The principal never said a word from that day forward, yet the girls were perfectly compliant.
Wisdom made all the difference.
Wisdom is more than just a way to keep mirrors clean. It’s power to solve big problems. It’s power to change the world.
Unfortunately, wisdom is scarce. When I see how we think, work, and live, I see a lot of unnecessary struggle. There are better ways to solve problems and get things done, but it takes wisdom.