In the February edition of The Krehbiel Letter I discuss the contradiction between “done today is better than perfect tomorrow” and “if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.” In today’s podcast I discuss two contradictory proverbs from the King James version of the Bible.
Proverbs 26:4-5
4. Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.
5. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.
Those two were listed in the textbook for my college logic class as an example of a formal contradiction — which misses the point. This pair of proverbs teaches that you can’t win with a fool. No matter what you do, it’s going to turn out badly. It’s like the business version of “Never wrestle with a pig; you both get dirty, and the pig likes it.”
There are a lot of contradictory proverbs. The point is to know when to apply which version. Here are some examples.
“Look before you leap” vs. “He who hesitates is lost”
This highlights the tension between careful planning and decisive action. Each are necessary at different times.
“Many hands make light work” vs. “Too many cooks spoil the broth”
Helping hands make a job easier, unless they insist on meddling.
“The customer is always right” vs. “You can’t please everyone”
You have to focus on the needs of your real customers. Not everyone should be your customer.
“A penny saved is a penny earned” vs. “You have to spend money to make money”
Distinguish wasteful spending from strategic investment.
“Time is money” vs. “Good things come to those who wait”
Not everything can be done now. You have to pick which things are urgent and which things need time to come to fruition.
“Strike while the iron is hot” vs. “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread”
You need to differentiate between taking advantage of an opportunity that may fade vs. going into something for which you are unprepared or unqualified.
“If you want something done right, do it yourself” vs. “Delegate to elevate”
If “doing something right” means “doing it your way,” you may have to do it yourself, but you only have so much time in your day, so to scale your effectiveness, you have to delegate tasks.
