The Art of Striking Rocks with Eggs
If you’re like me, you’ve never literally tried to smash eggs against rocks in order to break the rocks, and it’s a good thing you haven’t. Eggs are small, brittle and relatively expensive at around 25¢ per egg. Considering eggs holistically leads to an obvious conclusion — they indeed make rather poor fodder as projectiles against rocks.
Yet, I am quite a fan of throwing metaphorical eggs at metaphorical rocks. The path to achieving a large goal or to conquering a large obstacle is long and winding. Because the lives we live progress step-by-step while the books we read progress highlight-by-highlight, the aspiring rock-breaker may feel foolish while throwing each marginal egg, frustrated at the slow progression towards the goal or even disappointed by how far away the goal still is.
Yet, while each small effort seems to contribute little, the effects of the eggs in aggregate accumulate. Directly, the eggs’ impact marginally chip at the rocks’ outer layer; indirectly, the eggs’ contents marginally erode against the rocks; long-term, the remnants of the eggs’ contents attract organisms that further corrode into the rock. Because the short-term effects are only a fraction of the total impact of the egg, the first eggs thrown may be perceived to be less impactful than expected. Yet, the eggs will exceed expectations in terms of speed to final achievement.
The crux of the problem with repeatedly breaking rocks with eggs is that the final achievement always feels easier than expected, while the initial steps feel more arduous. This discrepancy births an emotional disconnect in those chasing the final exhilarating feeling of accomplishment as they continuously forget about and then struggle with the early, painful feelings of slow progression and low impact with every new rock.
For myself and those I know as friends and colleagues, this disconnect has repeatedly taken a toll on projects, spurring new projects out of excitement for a new goal but then disincentivizing persevering through the project as the first volley of eggs land futilely on the imposing rock. Only a fraction of those affected by this disconnect continue throwing eggs, hundreds of eggs, thousands of eggs until they reach their goals. The fraction gets only smaller when looking at those who consistently persist in their egg throwing across different rocks.
Worry not. There’s a way for you to be part of this small fraction, and here’s the trick: Chase not the feeling at the end of the road but the road itself. Find pleasure in throwing eggs at rocks and hone your ability to throw the right eggs at the right rocks in the right ways. Our lives are about throwing eggs at things. So, find meaning in throwing eggs at the hard things. In the meantime, rocks will break from your eggs and you will move on to ever larger and harder rocks.
A watched pot never boils, and a watched rock never breaks. Find pleasure in egg throwing just as fans of the other metaphor found pleasure in cooking. Just remember. Hone your throwing strategy and your choice of eggs and rocks, and then get lots of practice throwing. Sooner or (most likely) later, the rocks will break.
P. S. Why use eggs and rocks in this metaphor? There’s a Chinese saying — 以卵击石 (literally “Using Egg to Strike Rock”) — which means to attempt the impossible.
