Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Engineers vs. management executives

A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She reduced altitude
and spotted a man below. She descended a bit more and shouted, "Excuse me,
can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago but I
don't know where I am."


The man below replied, "You're in a hot air balloon hovering approximately
30 feet above the ground. You're between 40 and 41 degrees north latitude
and between 59 and 60 degrees west longitude."


"You must be an
engineer ," said the balloonist.


"I am", replied the man. "How did you know?"
"Well, answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically
correct, but I've no idea what to make of your information, and the fact is
I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help at all. If anything
you've delayed my trip even more."


The man below responded, "You must be in
management ."
"I am," replied the balloonist, "but how did you know?"
"Well," said the man, "You don't know where you are or where you're going.
You have risen to where you are due to a large quantity of hot air. You
made a promise which you've no idea how to keep, and you expect people
beneath you to solve your problems."