Wisdom LO783

David E. Birren, MB/5, 608.267.2442 (BIRRED@dnr.state.wi.us)
Fri, 14 Apr 1995 10:09 CST

Several of the participants in the ongoing discussion of change have
discussed it as though it's an academic subject, while others have spoken
with sensitivity and compassion. I, too, approach it (as I do many
subjects) with an often inconsistent mix of logic and emotion. In a
recent conversation about change, someone mentioned wisdom, and in that
respect I'd like to offer something Spock said in "Star Trek IV: The
Undiscovered Country":

Logic is the beginning of wisdom, not the end.

My own view is that logic is the easy part, and only the beginning.
Wisdom consists more of compassion than of logic, and it's truly the hard
part. But if we are to respect and care for those whose lives we change
(as managers, consultants and teachers), we must be above all
compassionate. We may survive faults in thinking, but we cannot survive
without awareness of and sympathy toward others.

David E. Birren | To know, and not to act,
Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources | is to not know.
Bureau of Management & Budget |
Phone: (608)267-2442 | --Wang Yang Ming
Fax: (608)267-3579 | 9th-cent. Chinese general
Internet: birred@dnr.state.wi.us | Chinese general