Watch Out For H.P.S.

"For the Scripture says, you shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain, and again, the laborer is worthy of his hire." - I Timothy 5:18 AMP

I remember reading a children's story called Henny Penny many years ago.  It teaches a valuable lesson we can all learn.

As the story goes, Henny Penny wanted to plant some wheat so she could bake bread. She asked her friends to help her. They refused. Her request (Who will help me..?) was always met with the same answer:

Not I! Not I! Not I!

To which she said, Fine, I'll do it myself, which she did...every step of the way:

Buying the seed...
Tilling the ground...
Planting the seed...
Watering the seed...
Digging up the weeds...
Cultivating and harvesting the crop...
Grinding the wheat into flour...
Taking the flour home to bake the bread...

Every step of the way, she asked the same question (Who will help me..?) and got the same answer (Not I! Not I! Not I!)...

...that is until the bread was baked, and she took it out of the oven to cool. One last time she asked (don't know why she did, but that's how the story goes...)

Who will help me eat the bread..?

All of a sudden, everybody changed their tune...

I will..!  I will..!  I will..!

But Henny Penny didn't change HER tune!

She said, No! I will do it myself... and that's what she did.

This seems like nothing more than a cute bedtime story, but there's more to it than that. It makes a valid point.  This story demonstrates human nature, most specifically what I like to call H.P.S. or Henny Penny Syndrome. Let me explain.

Though there are exceptions, anytime someone rolls up their sleeves to get something done, it is next to impossible to find friends, family, or anyone in your immediate circle to help. 

Everyone runs for the hills, so you wind up doing much of the heavy lifting on your own. If that wasn't already bad enough, the ones who won't support you will also do their best to discourage you, drag you off course, find a way to make you give up. 

When you do something different it upsets the apple cart, so to speak, and anything that disturbs their peace of mind must be stopped.

But let them find out you're starting to enjoy some success, and that your hard work is being recognized as something special, and what do you suppose will happen..?

They'll come running out of the woodwork so they can join you in the spotlight, that's what!

"I'm so proud of you!"
"I knew you could do it!"
"I always had your back...you know that, right?"

And who could forget the classic line they always use to steal your thunder...

"Now I KNOW you won't forget all the people that helped you get where you are today..."

This is the Henny Penny Syndrome in full effect...

When the time comes to work, nobody wants to get in the flow...

But when the time comes for the rewards, everybody wants to bask in your glow...

But as I said before, it's human nature. That's what people do.

With all this being said, there is something you should know. This is how you overcome H.P.S. :

Just like Henny Penny, you get to decide who joins you when its time to celebrate your success. You get to choose who shares in your moment of triumph. Nobody gets to walk with you in the sunshine, or rain on your parade just because they say so.

Your success is your reward for all your hard work. Remember that. You earned the applause and the accolades; nobody can take them away.

Nobody has the right to make you feel guilty for working when they decided not to, or for the triumph you achieved without them. You didn't succeed at their expense, and you're celebrating at their expense either. 

If you gave them a chance to work beside you and they turned it down, then you have no reason to feel ashamed about celebrating any success you achieved for the work you did. They had the same opportunity to succeed that you had, and passed it by.  That's their problem, not yours.

So keep this in mind the next time you're confronted with a bunch of Not I's (or Not Interested's) who won't work with you, leaving you on your own to figure things out. Don't be surprised when they "suddenly" transform into I will's that pretend they helped you get your hands on the prize you sought once they see you got the ball rolling without them.

When that happens, you can smile in the midst of all that pretense and say in your heart,

No, I did it myself...

...because that's just what you did.

That's all for now, gotta run.

Until next time...

Keep it simple... See ya!