50 Tools to Coach Your Way to Success?

3 min readJan 21, 2024

“The fool complains of the pebbles in his shoes, but never thinks of removing them.” — Chinese Proverb

In a sun-drenched village nestled amongst olive groves, lived a cobbler named James.

Renowned for his craftsmanship, his shoes were coveted by nobles and peasants alike.

But James harbored a dark secret — a wicked temper that simmered just beneath the surface, ready to boil over at the slightest provocation.

One sweltering afternoon, a duchess entered James’s workshop, requesting a pair of sandals fit for a queen.

He agreed, pride puffing his chest like a bellows.

Days turned into weeks, James meticulously stitching and hammering, fueled by the promise of exorbitant payment. Yet, with each sunrise, his frustration grew. The leather proved stubborn, the buckles refused to cooperate, and every stitch seemed to unravel his patience.

Finally, on the eve of the deadline, James snapped. He hurled the half-finished sandal against the wall, cursing its very existence.

“Cursed leather! Accursed buckles! Why must you conspire against me?” he bellowed, his voice echoing through the cobbled streets.

As if in response, a strange stillness descended upon the workshop. The tools, once obedient extensions of James’s hands, turned cold and heavy.

The needles snapped, the thread unraveled, and the leather hardened to stone. James stared in disbelief, his anger replaced by a gnawing fear. His tools, imbued with the venom of his curse, were now unusable.

His reputation shattered, James became a village pariah. No one dared trust a cobbler whose tools rebelled. Desperate, he sought the wisdom of a wizened hermit who lived on the mountaintop. The hermit listened patiently, then spoke in a voice as dry as the desert wind.

“A skilled craftsman blames not his tools, but his own hand,” he said. “Only by mastering your temper and acknowledging your flaws can you hope to mend both your shoes and your soul.”

Shamefaced, James returned to his workshop. He spent months in quiet contemplation, meditating on his anger and honing his skills. He practiced patience, meticulously carving intricate patterns on scraps of leather until his fingers bled. He learned to appreciate the rhythm of his craft, the dance of needle and thread.

Slowly, miraculously, his tools responded. The needles glided, the thread obeyed, and the leather softened to his touch. With newfound humility, James began crafting again. This time, his shoes were not just works of art, but testaments to his own redemption.

News of James’s transformation spread like wildfire. People from far and wide flocked to his workshop, not for extravagant creations, but for honest, well-made shoes crafted with a master’s touch.

James, once consumed by pride and rage, became a beacon of patience and skill, a living testament to the power of self-mastery over even the most cursed tools.

And so, the cobbler who once cursed his tools became a legend, a reminder that true craftsmanship lies not just in the hands, but in the heart.

His story echoed through the olive groves, a whisper on the wind, a cautionary tale and a hopeful promise — that even the darkest curse can be lifted by the light of self-awareness and hard-earned redemption.