Today I want to talk to you about a classic fable that I used to listen to as a child – The fox and the crow fable. Although this story is short, it tells a very profound truth that is especially inspiring for growing children.
What is the story about?
A crow flew hard for a long time and finally found a piece of meat.It couldn’t eat it right away and wanted to find a quiet place to enjoy it.So he took the meat in his mouth and landed on a tree to rest.
At this time, a hungry fox passed under the tree, and saw the meat in the crow’s mouth, so greedy that his mouth was almost watering.
The fox’s mind whirled and came up with an idea.Instead of going straight to grab it, it put on a polite face and said to the crow, “Hey, big brother crow, how have you been?”
The crow ignored it.
The fox went on to say, “I heard there’s going to be a singing contest in the forest, and a lot of birds have signed up for it, so why don’t you go join in?”
The crow was a little tempted, but still held his tongue.
The fox continued, “The little squirrel said the other day that the larks were the best singers and the worst was the crows.I think it’s time for you to go and prove yourself and show everyone that you actually have a great singing voice.”
Hearing these words, crow heart beautiful, can not help but open his mouth to respond to a sentence: “that of course la ……” The result of the words have not finished, the mouth of the meat fell down, was a fox bite to catch, carried away.
The crow then reacted, the original fox is not sincere praise it, just to cheat away that piece of meat only.
What is the truth behind this story?
On the surface, this is a short story about animals, as if it’s just about how a fox tricked a piece of meat with nice words.But if we think about it carefully, we will realize that this story actually reflects many real-life problems.
For example:
Some people say nice things with their mouths, but they actually have other purposes.
Sometimes we are so concerned about what others say that we forget the most important things.
If a person is suddenly very enthusiastic about you, he may not really care about you.
It’s like the crow that was on the verge of safely eating its meat, but because it got carried away by a few words of flattery, it lost the meat.
So, what does this story tell us?
1. Don’t believe what people say so easily.
In life, there are always some people who are very sweet-talking and always say things you like to hear.But we need to be able to tell the difference: are they really complimenting you, or are they just trying to get you to let your guard down?
Just like the fox in the story, it didn’t really think the crow sang well, it just wanted the crow to open its mouth and drop its meat.So, when faced with other people’s compliments, we have to stay calm and don’t get carried away all of a sudden.
2. To recognize our own strengths and weaknesses
Everyone has his or her own strengths and weaknesses.For example, the crow knows that he can’t sing very well, but the fox says he can sing very well and lets him go to the competition.At this time if the crow had stuck to its judgment, it would not have been cheated.
It is the same with us in life.Don’t deny yourself just because of someone else’s words, and don’t be blindly confident just because of someone else’s praise.Learn to look at yourself objectively and be clear about what you are really good at and what you are not.
3. Focus on the important things
The most important thing the crow should have done at that moment was to protect that piece of meat in its mouth properly.But it was distracted by the fox’s words and forgot its most important task.
We also encounter similar situations in our work or study.For example, someone suddenly comes to you and praises you for your intelligence and ability, and then asks you to help with something.If you agree without thinking, you may delay your own business or even be taken advantage of.
So, no matter what, you should prioritize and do the most important thing first before dealing with other things.
This story can be found in life as well
I’ve encountered something similar myself.
There was a time when I was in charge of a project at my company, and it was quite stressful.One day, a colleague came to me and said that he had done similar projects before and was experienced, and was willing to help me finish it together.
When I heard that, I thought it would be great to have someone to help me, and I immediately handed over part of the key work to him.
What happened?What he did was so full of holes that not only did it not help, but it also took me a lot of time to remedy.
Later I realized that he was not really a professional and only offered to help in order to show himself.I was so happy that I didn’t give it much thought and took him at his word.
This incident made me realize that in the workplace, there are indeed “fox-like” characters.They appear to be enthusiastic, but in fact they are looking for opportunities to profit themselves or shift the responsibility to others.
How did I change?
After that experience, I began to reflect on my approach and learned a few lessons:
1. Be wary of sudden “kindness”.
Nowadays, if someone is suddenly very kind to me, I will ask myself a few questions:
Why does he want to help me?
Does he have a hidden agenda?
Do I have the ability to do this on my own?
Only when I am sure that the person is genuinely interested in helping me will I accept the cooperation.
2. Pay more attention to my own ability and value
I am no longer easily swayed by other people’s comments.Even if someone says I am not doing a good job, I will calmly analyze it to see if there is really something wrong; similarly, even if someone says I am doing a good job, I will not be complacent.
I believe that true recognition comes from sustained effort and continuous improvement, not from a few words.
3. Focus on solving the problem itself
I now focus more on the actual results of what I do rather than what anyone says.As long as I can get things done, I don’t have to care too much about what others think.
For example, in teamwork, I will listen carefully to suggestions, but ultimately make decisions based on my own judgment.This respects others and protects my own position.
Closing Words
The Fox and the Crow is a seemingly simple fable, but the truth it reveals is very realistic.It reminds us that we should learn to recognize truth from falsehood in life, keep our wits about us, and not be easily swayed by the words of others.
Perhaps we have all been the “crow” who was fooled by a few good words and made a wrong decision.But the important thing is that we can learn from our mistakes and become wiser and more assertive.
I hope that everyone who reads this article will gain some inspiration from it and become a more rational, confident and independent person.
Remember the saying: Not all the people who say nice things about you are trustworthy, and not all the people who criticize you are enemies.
May you become wiser and more determined on the road of life!
