What Are You Worth?

A father said to his son, “this is the watch your grandfather gave me; before I let you keep it, go to the watch shop, say you want to sell it, and see how much they offer”.

The son went, returned, and reported back to his father, “the watchmaker offers to pay $5 because it's old and has a lot of scratches.”

The father said, “now go to the coffee shop, say you want to sell the watch, and see how much they offer.”

The son went, returned, and reported back, “they too offered $5.”

The father said, “now go to the museum, do not tell them the watch is for sale, but simply show what you have.”

The son went, returned, and reported back, “they offered me a million dollars for this.”

The father said, “I wanted to let you know that the right place values you in a right way; don't put yourself in the wrong place and get angry if you get treated like trash - those who know your value are the ones who appreciate you - don't ever stay in a place that doesn't suit you."

​Too often people erroneously connect their worth to how external critics value (or devalue) them or even how they succeed or perform in their current program/location/situation/workspace. The fact of the matter is that even a specialist, a watchmaker, may not be able to know the value of an item within his very specialty. Every person has incredible skills and capabilities given the right landscape and backdrop. Sometimes you’d do better to find the environment where you fit than to contort yourself into a haphazard “fit” for the one in which you currently find yourself.