Abraham Lincoln is credited with having said that given 6 hours to cut down a tree he would spend 4 hours sharpening his axe, which seems wise. However, without knowing how big the tree to be felled is, whether it is hardwood or softwood, how long it takes to sharpen the axe, if the axe is even blunt, or any other relevant details about the tree or the axe, or indeed how skilled the person wielding the axe is… without knowing this, maybe sharpening the axe is unnecessary, or maybe you’d be better off with a chainsaw.
We, of course, understand that this is exactly the point that Abraham Lincoln was making with his quote about sharpening his axe, but we have the benefit of living in an age where few people have to fell trees with axes, and these days we can consider alternatives, like chainsaws.
Overall, of course, the sentiment holds true (otherwise the quote wouldn’t be so popular). Gathering all the necessary background on a situation before deciding on a solution means that not only is the solution more likely to be a good one, but it’s also likely to need less resource and time to complete.
helleau® seeks to diagnose client issues fully, before proscribing to a solution.
