Don’t be an idiot, like me.
About a month ago I climbed a ladder, as I have done countless times during my lifetime. I wanted to check on a TV antenna on the roof of our family cabin in the north woods of Wisconsin. The roofline has a gentle slope. I extended the aluminum ladder from the deck to the rooftop and proceeded up. After completing my planned task, I started on my way back down the rungs of the ladder.
Let me stop here and tell you why I was an idiot that day. Over the years I have helped to lead ten youth mission trips across the country and at each site, I would lay down the law to the teenagers in our church group, that if one of them goes up a ladder, another teen was to brace the ladder, holding it in place for their partner. Many times I would ask “where is the person who is supposed to be holding your ladder?”
Sometimes, we think we’re too smart to follow obvious rules; myself included.
Now, let’s return to “my” ladder story. As I was just beginning to descend from the roofline, which was about fourteen to sixteen feet above the deck, the bottom of the ladder gave way and I rode that ladder down to the wood planking in quick one second. Lying on top of the ladder, on top of the deck, I didn’t move, somewhat disoriented on what had just taken place. Slowly, I began to take an inventory: Fingers moved, Toes moved. Then very deliberately I got to my knees and then to my feet. Family came running and before I knew it, I was sitting on a kitchen chair visiting with some very nice EMTs from the local fire station.
What’s the lesson here, after some cracked ribs and some large areas of black and blue? Follow the rules. I should have had someone hold my ladder. This experience could have been much, much worse; but, what about your ladder, your financial ladder? I should stay off of aluminum ladders and focus on being a ‘point-man’ for your financial ladder. That’s what I do best. Don’t maneuver up and down your financial ladder by yourself without having someone to ‘spot’ you. A financial ‘accident’ could be as frightening as a physical accident and it could be just as threating.
Who’s holding your financial ladder?
