2 Kinds of People

There are many ways to separate people into groups. Historically, race and religion have been the two biggies, forming lines that have justified wars and wreaked havoc with people's lives.

My husband thinks that there are two kinds of people in the world -- those who are Italian and those who wish they were. He might have something with that... however for me, there is an even more profound distinction between people than the color of their skin, what nationality they are or the god(s) they worship. It is more profound because it actually affects how people interact with me personally.

I believe there are two kinds of people also. But my categories are a bit different -- there are people who will get something done no matter the obstacles and people who will give you excuses for why it can't be done. The "Get 'Er Done" group vs. the "Here's Why It Can't be Done" group. I believe I fall into the former.

Here's a small example. My son, who is 4 years old, wanted to play with a Thomas Lego set. The set included pieces to make a station, a few signs and an oval track. Normally we build it as it appears on the box and all is well. This past weekend he decided he wanted to build a really tall tower instead of the regular station, piling lego on top of lego on top of lego. He asked my brother to help. My brother ( a card carrying member of the "excuses" group") started to explain why it couldn't be done... and he was right.. mostly. If we built it very high it wouldn't be able to stand on its own; the balance of the station would be off and the whole thing would crash. My son listened for a minute and then turned to me and asked me to help him instead. It was as if he was saying "Ok, Uncle Bill, I hear you... but I still want to make this happen so you can stop talking now."

I jumped in and created a big platform halfway up with tower and then started building on the other side of the platform so the pieces were balanced. We achieved the height goal and still managed to keep things in balance. Was it pretty? NO. Was it perfect? NO. But did we get it done? Absolutely yes.

Now I don't look down upon the excuses group. No, not at all. They have their standards. If it can't be done the way it is SUPPOSED to be done, then it is not worth doing. You have to admire them for keeping their standards. For them, the emphasis is on the "right way" vs. "the wrong way." For us "get 'er done" folks, it's all about the achievement itself.

Some folks call me a pitbull. Or headstrong. I lilke to think of it in more positive terms... when it comes to reaching my goals, there is nothing that can stop me. Even if the end result is a little ugly.
So what kind of person are you?