The Starfish Story

A Buddhist monk was walking along the beach one morning with one of his disciple.

Thousands of starfish had been washed up onto the shore after a fierce storm. Stooping down, the monk lifted a single creature and returned it to its home in the sea. The disciple asked why the master did this when it made so little difference to the mass of stranded starfish. As the monk lifted another single starfish he replied,

"It makes a difference to this one."
And he tossed it back into the sea.

I was recently reminded of this story while visiting the Starfish Project in Cambodia and its relevance to a help desk function. Electronically smile and personalize your answers. The requester will appreciate receiving a little positive karma in the electronic empty space of the internet. We strive to do this at Zendesk.

The Starfish Project is making a difference - consider helping them.

Comments

[Jeffery Parks]

Thanks for this entry Michael. It has reminded me to change the tone of my replies already. Also, I've slapped a note on the front of my cabinet that reads, "Electronically Smile ... Give Good Karma".

Good thought to live by!