Conversations in Management
Who
would have thought that a guy named “Stingy Jack,” could have
launched a $100 million industry? But it’s true—Stingy Jack is
responsible for the Jack-O-Lantern, which, in turn, is
responsible for making the pumpkin America’s most popular
seasonal fruit. This year, growers will put over 998 million
pounds of these tasty orbs on the market just in time to work
their scary magic on Halloween. And all because of Jack!
Jack’s
story is a simple one as legends go. He was a conniving,
miserly, drunk who enjoyed putting one over on folks. One night
he met the devil in a pub. The two drank together amiably until
it was time to pay the bill. Jack suggested that the devil turn
himself into a coin to pay for the drinks. Seeing the humor in
this, the devil readily assented. But when the devil became a
coin, Jack slipped him in his pocket along with a silver cross.
Trapped, the devil yielded to Jack’s demand that his soul be
spared for ten years. Ten years later the devil returned to
collect Jack’s soul. Jack suggested that the devil climb an
apple tree and retrieve some fruit before returning to the
underworld. As soon as the devil was in the tree, Jack carved a
large cross in the bark—once again trapping the gullible denizen
of the dark. This time Jack demanded that the devil never take
his soul and the bargain was struck. Years later, Jack died a
happy man. He believed he’d been spared from hell and welcomed
in heaven. But his Maker would have nothing to do with such a
miserable character. In desperation he turned to the devil for a
home, but the devil honored the deal and sent him off with only
an ember to light his spectral way through the world. To keep it
from going out, Jack carved out a turnip and made a lantern of
it. Since then, folks have carved similar lanterns to keep
Jack-of-the-lantern away on Halloween—the night when spirits
roam.
In the
end, Stingy Jack made a common mistake. He confused appearance
with reality and lost sight of the things that really mattered.
To himself, he appeared clever and artfully cunning. He thought
he’d saved his soul through wily legalisms. The reality, of
course, was much different. He was, in actuality, a deceitful
and mean-spirited man who was concerned only for himself. He
discovered too late that he would be judged on the quality of
his character rather than on the novelty of his stratagems.
Ironically, he would come to appreciate that even the devil
possessed a stronger character.
Halloween is the time of year
when appearance and reality are most on display. On that
fanciful evening, frightful ghosts, goblins and witches prowl
our neighborhoods malevolently chanting, “trick or treat!” But
the reality isn’t scary at all—unless you count Halloween and
its eight sequels or the fact that as a nation we’re spending
$12 billion on the day. The ghosts tend to be friendly and the
goblins benign. It’s on the other 364 days of the year that we
run into trouble. On those days we often make decisions based on
appearances—or jackets as Gracián put it—rather than on the
truth of a situation. If something goes missing we assume it’s
been stolen. If two co-workers are whispering, we assume they’re
talking about us. If the boss is in foul spirits, we feel
attacked and become defensive. Most of the time, we turn out to
be wrong about such things. Unfortunately, by the time we figure
this out, we’ve burned way too much emotional energy on the
issue. So keep Halloween in mind all year long. Don’t let
yourself become a Stingy Jack—confusing the illusory with the
real. And like a happy jack-o-lantern, keep smiling!
—Ebert
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