The Horsefly and the Gnat
Sean Moore
Big problems have a way of getting noticed. They hum around lazily, circling in wait until they can bite us in the ass.
We see them immediately – they're loud, and a big target to hit. So we swat and swipe each time they return until – Thwack! – the head of the swatter makes contact.
Little problems often go unnoticed, go unacknowledged. They zip around so quick, there in gone in a moment, that we don't have the time to pay attention. Sure, they buzz and whine, but it's not so loud that it can't be ignored.
But the first little problem is often a sign of more to come. Pretty soon, it's not one, or two little flecks of annoyance, but a dark cloud of them. Suddenly it's a swarm, and that fly swatter you've spent so long getting good at using is mostly useless.
Problems have a way of making sure they get dealt with, sooner or later. We notice the horseflies because they carry the biggest bite, but it's often the gnats that sneak up on is and multiply, until we're drowning in a swarm of a thousand stings. Do you deal with the problem before it becomes one, or do you wait for it to deal with you?