The Bath and The Bucket

A group of suppliers were being given a tour of a mental hospital. One of the visitors had made some very insulting remarks about the patients. After the tour the visitors were introduced to various members of staff in the canteen. The rude visitor chatted to one of the security staff, Bill, a kindly and wise ex-policeman. "Are they all raving loonies in here then?" said the rude man. "Only the ones who fail the test," said Bill. "What's the test?" said the man. "Well, we show them a bath full of water, a bucket, a jug and an egg-cup, and we ask them what's the quickest way to empty the bath," said Bill. "Oh I see, simple - the normal ones know it's the bucket, right?" "No actually," said Bill, "the normal ones say pull out the plug. Should I check when there's a bed free for you?"

My Reflection:

We can’t pretend that we don’t ever judge other people - it’s a combination of an 'innate setup’ that all humans posses, and something we develop overtime. We all judge people, there’s no escaping that! What’s really important is to know when you are judging someone and knowing that a bad judgement of someone can be harmful to both your perception of that person and what you tell others. Recognising your judgements can allow you to do it favourably. The judging itself isn’t bad, as you can always spin it to the positive. When you see someone less fortunate than you, or someone who is struggling with challenges, big or small, don’t start judging them as it’s impossible to genuinely help them from a place of judgment. Once you let you go of judgement you will arrive at a place of acceptance, curiosity and empathy and then you can you really help those in need. The added bonus is you’ll be a lot happier in the process too.


Have an awesome week!
Darren Zwiers

“People hasten to judge in order not to be judged themselves.”  ― Albert Camus, The Fall