 |
|
Home
The Value of a Slip Knot The Value of a Slip KnotA story about riskW hile leading three pack horses across a steep slope of loose shale, my Father learned the value of a slip knot. Suddenly one horse lost her footing in the loose rock - her feet slid right out from under her - and she fell. The only thing that stopped her from sliding down the steep mountainside was the big wooden box of cookware he'd strapped to her side that morning. Fortunately he'd tied it on tight - tight enough that it to caught on the ledge of the narrow trail and halted her descent. Seemingly unaware of her close brush with disaster, the old mare patiently shuffled her feet through the loose rock until she regained her footing and clambered back up onto the trail. Dad said that at that moment he realized that if the horse had gone over the side, she would have pulled the other two horses with her. The slope was so steep, a horse's falling momentum would be impossible to stop. She'd pull the second horse down, and then the third one would surely go with them. So he got off his horse, edged over to the pack horses and retied each of them - this time with slip knots. If any one horse went down the mountainside, the slip knot would release, saving the other two horses - and him. From then on, he always tied up the packhorses with slip knots. The next year, another fellow was leading a train of pack horses across the same slope. One horse slipped and fell all the way to the bottom, taking the other two pack horses with her. All three were lost. In my Dad's story I saw a couple of lessons. One, do things right, you never know when a minor detail may prove to be crucial. Dad said that had he tied the dinnerbox on loosely - like some did - it probably would not have stopped the horse from going over the edge. The second lesson had to do with that slip knot. In that simple tactic I see the fundamental rules of survival : Think ahead. Don't assume you can keep or have everything. Set priorities. Know your liabilities. Take steps to preserve and protect what you have, in its appropriate order of priority. There is something raw and timeless in those rules. This happened over 40 years ago but the lessons from this story are directly applicable to risk management in complex projects, business startups, and system security. For me personally, my Dad's lessons are always top of mind in my work. This story was the inspiration for The Value of a Slip Knot which I completed in March 2007. You can order a framed print that features this art. Ralph Perrine
|
|
More art by Ralph Perrine
|
