Many years back while in secondary school, I visited the technical laboratory. On one of the walls hung this large poster titled ‘The 17 Laws of the Workshop’—or so I recall it.
Of the 17, only one really caught my eye and it has stayed with me to this day. The exact wording cannot be transcribed to detail but it went along the lines of: “When a screw drops in the workshop, it will stray to the part of the workshop that is least accessible.”
I have scoured the web to find these laws and I’ve not seen them anywhere. In the years gone by I have cogitated on those words and have settled on a rather philosophical take on them.
I like to think of the workshop, the screw and the hammer allegorically. The workshop being life in its generality and the screw representing the little tools we use into making meaning of life. Then there’s the hammer which is also a tool but not one you would classify in the ‘little’ category.
The carpenter who wants to fashion out a piece of furniture will almost certainly use the hammer and the screws. If the hammer drops, s/he must by all means stop work and pick up the hammer before continuing work.
If a screw drops, it is much more practical to use a spare screw from the ones available than to stop work in search of an elusive screw hiding in a remote part of the workshop. I hear the cynic asking—what if that was the only screw? To which my response would be: what kind of workman worth their salt has no spare screw?
The point I hope should become clear namely that in the workshop of life we are presented with tools at our disposal to make the most of our existence. Some tools are hammers, while some are screws.
A paradox I have observed is how easily humans mistake hammers for screws and vice-versa. There are some uncomfortable truths here but if you press on reading I believe you will gain clarity.
A basic example is the work-life balance. No matter how lucrative a job is, it will never substitute for good health. In this context health is a hammer, while the job is a screw. A job is replaceable; same cannot be said for good health.
If you work yourself to the ground in a bid to impress your boss, sure you might get a raise. But the day you collapse and can no longer cope with the pressures of work due to a stress-induced condition, all that money will be for nought.
The sad twist? Your boss will replace you. Easily too. Because he knows you are a screw—waiting to get screwed (Ha!). Good health which involves eating right, sleeping right and exercising is a hammer, taking it for a screw will come at great cost to no one but you.
Another example involves the relationships we keep. Not all ‘friends’ should be called that. At best they may be acquaintances. A good friend is a hammer, the rest are screws. When mix-ups happen as they often do, they may have dire consequences.
I have in my personal life had cause to drop some ‘friends’ who I found out to be screws. You may have encountered them. Useful in very limited context, always taking, rarely ever giving.
The sensible thing would be to count losses and just move on from them. However, psychologists describe a phenomenon known as the escalation of commitment where people who have invested time and effort in a relationship cannot let go because they think only in terms of the sunk cost.
They do not think of the greater losses ahead. They forget that old Turkish proverb: “No matter how far you have gone on the wrong road, turn back.”
So that’s my take on that law of the workshop which is the ability to recognize that screws are dispensable and when they drop it is best to move on than to expend effort on them. They distract from the greater goal at hand and are rarely ever worth it.
I am not conceited enough to presume that there are no exceptions to this law. My understanding of this law is not from the viewpoint of an absolute truth but as a general rule of thumb. Perhaps some screws are worth saving and maybe you can tell me about them in the comments below.
Still, it might be worthwhile to remember: A good friend is a hammer, the rest are screws.
Screw the screws. As always, I throughly enjoyed reading this
The "escalation of commitment" struck home for me. Plus the old Turkish saying. An insightful read. Thank you.