The other night I was reading this old child’s tale to my son and even though I’ve heard the story a thousand times before, this time it had a new ring to me.
I thought about how diligently the wise ant had worked and prepared for the winter, and how at every turn the grasshopper chose to blow off any work at all. He did just enough to get by for the day and scoffed at everyone else who chose work over play.
Of course, by the end of the story the grasshopper almost starved and froze to death, and the ant family had to come to his rescue.
What’s ironic about this story is that the grasshopper showed up at the time of year when the ants finally played. Since they had stored up resources for the winter they were able to finally sit back and reap the benefits of their hard summer work.
Which one of these characters best describe your blogging habits?
Are you the grasshopper, posting irregularly whenever you get the notion?
Do you wait until the last minute to finally log in and update your blog? Do you often end up in a panic when you realize your ideas have run cold? Do you run to someone else’s blog to scrape up whatever crumbs of content you can find there – rehashing what they’ve just said?
Or are you the wise ant?
Do you prepare your posts ahead time to allow yourself an opportunity to rest and play? Do you plan for the future so that there’s always something to look ahead to? Are you constantly planting new seed ideas to be harvested when they come to fruition in the form of a finished ebook or product?
Are you open and ready to help when others are in need?
What I think I like most about this story is that in the end they put the grasshopper to work – they made him sing during their time of play. In other words, they gave him the opportunity to use his talent to serve others. When the summer came around again, they all worked together, each of the characters doing what they all did best.
I like this because even if you are a grasshopper blogger, there’s still hope for you. Find a wise ant blogger to partner up and collaborate with and then use your talent to the fullest. There’s no limit to the possibilities.
About Kiesha
