I just love old sayings. They seem to have as much application today as they did when someone first coined them. It is interesting to learn the origin of a saying and the changes that occur in the meaning over ever increasing spans of time. “A bird in the hand …”, for instance, came from medieval times when falconry was a method of hunting. A falcon was very valuable and was certainly worth more in the hand than two birds that were prey in the bush. My father used the saying
to impress upon me the need to appreciate what I had possession of and not look longingly at those things I didn’t possess. He reinforced the say by evoking another, “The grass is always greener on the other side”. My father is now long gone but the sayings continue to live on.
While sayings helped my father teach me life lessons as I grew from a child to a man, today the same sayings can help business owners teach their employees lessons that will benefit the company’s bottom line. Think of the value one customer brings to your business. Now think about how much time and money is spent trying to attract new customers. Isn’t the one customer you have better than a couple of prospects that might eventually become your customers? I can think of no better argument for customer service and attention to detail to retaining a current customer. Certainly a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
