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The Apple Don’t Fall

Over the years I have been a sucker for the slick sales pitch. I guess I am habitually  looking for the good in people and often don’t notice the ‘evil’ until it’s too late and… by then I have bought the faulty product or signed the dodgy contract.

My friend Al has been telling me for years. “If a guy says he’s an apple tree make sure there are plenty of apples on the ground beneath him”

Of course I usually remember this piece of wisdom after the fact and it’s then that I discover that there’s no apples but plenty of lemons.

A good test when considering deals, contracts, promises etc is to look over the track record of the one with the amazing offer.

e.g. Has the guy promising to sell one trillion records had any success in distribution?

“Yes it’s true that my last two companies went bankrupt but we had some bad luck, my previous partner was divisive and went and started his own company, the board didn’t get behind my vision, the artists failed to deliver product on time. But now, all that’s behind me… and with my contacts and your music we going to do something special”

Believe it or not I fell for this more than once. Why? Because I really wanted to believe the hype. I am a hopeful person… a dreamer… and though I doubt that I could ever be described as ‘innocent as a dove’… I have been the easy mark for those cunning serpentine sales people.

I know someone who has fallen for the same kind of pitch with marriages. The fact that one suitor had 6 (successful) previous marriages was brushed aside . “He’s been unlucky in love”… or even better…  “I know I can change him”…. that’s my favorite.

And it’s how most of us feel about something… a deal… an opportunity… a person we know. No matter how street smart we are there is a lemon tree posing as an apple tree somewhere in our orchard.

Of course people can change.

But real change doesn’t take place in an instant. And just because we say “I’m changed” doesn’t mean a thing.

Once bitten twice shy we say. I could multiply that out many times over. I guess I am just learning that it’s okay to be shy.

For the last year or so I have been measuring everything up to this principle and… life has become a whole lot  less stressful.

I still want to believe that people are who they say they are… but I’m looking under every tree. You’d be surprised what gets caught under all those dead leaves.

And as much as I want to ‘fall in love again’ and believe in the offer or the mission statement… I’m sorry but I am going to do some due diligence before I go on a second date. (This is a metaphor… I am still happily married)

Sometimes I am pleasantly surprised… there are actually apples under the occasional tree.

Of course the same rules must apply to me… but am I  willing to put myself to this same test?

Am I really who I say I am?

It’s one thing to have an image of yourself or a desire to develop your character or overcome bad habits. But real change is hard work. It’s made easier when you are honest with yourself… and or if you have friends who can call you on your BS. (Initials for the american readers).

Sometimes we need a good friend to tell us who we really are. Maybe we’ve lost confidence in ourselves or perhaps we have endured an upbringing or a season of unbelief… meaning that no one believed in us. I think that’s what happened to the snake oil salesmen.

Al has another great saying (I better be careful or this will go to his head and he’ll start calling himself a philosopher). A young man once said to him “I don’t believe in God”

That’s okay” Al replied “God believes in you and that’s all that matters”

Years ago, when I came to the conclusion that there was a God who believed in me, I started believing in myself. It’s a process that is ever unfolding.