Talkers and Doers - by Hénock Gugsa

Talkers and Doers --------- // ---------
by Hénock Gugsa
[ "The big divide in this country is not between Democrats and Republicans, or
women and men, but between talkers and doers." Thomas Sowell ]
Thru the span of at least the past fifty years, I have naturally had innumerable encounters with fellow human beings in various settings. And the solid outcome for me has been the conclusion that people can essentially be put into one of two categories …
1 – The Talkers
and
2 – The Doers. We can argue about this gem of knowledge until we are blue in the face. But, there is no denying the universal truth: People are either talkers or doers. Just as important as this discovery is the realization that, to a great extent and degree, the two types are mutually exclusive.

Talkers are generally too busy talking … they talk about the work, they talk about themselves, they talk about how busy they are at work. They do everything but work. What little they know about the work [they are supposed to be doing,] they spend a lot of time and effort explaining it instead of doing it. But even worse, sadly, ineptitude and laziness have become the normal realm of talkers. Because they waste a lot of time talking, they accomplish very little. However, they are still very proud even of that, and of-course, they have to talk about it. In situations where they are “working” alone or when others are not listening or talking to them, the talkers are found talking to their work. They would be either saying out loud the steps of their tasks like a child or a novice at work … “Okay, now I do this …. then I go here, and type that, … then go there and check that off. Phew! … This is so much work , … blah, blah,blah ….” And that goes on and on ad-infinitum with several obscenity-filled curse words thrown in here and there in response to problems and difficulties. Undoubtedly, in the grand scheme of things, talkers are like the grasshoppers who only know how to eat.

On the other hand, the doers are usually very quiet by nature. They also tend to be very good at their work. They are knowledgeable, self-reliant, and very productive. And, interestingly, they hardly ever toot their own horn. The best of the doers have confidence in their ability, yet they are very modest and do not care for praise or self-promotion. The work itself is the source of satisfaction especially when it is fraught with challenges. It is then that the doers come into their element. They calmly bring out the resources of their minds to meld knowledge and experience into something called, "skill." The best environment for doers is a solitary one, or one where they are least bothered by co-workers or colleagues. Older and wiser doers find solutions, and efficient methods to do their work. They even document and make their findings available for their co-workers to use, without the expectation of acknowledgment or thanks. In the grand scheme of things, doers are the ants who quietly toil and carry more than their weight of work and are productive.

So, in conclusion, here is a question for you ... are you a talker or a doer? Your reaction no doubt will be to either:

1) question and/or answer that …
or
2) quietly shrug and not respond. But a word of caution. Your response (or non-response) will tell you everything about yourself. Hope it is not too disturbing!