Teaching man how to fish

An old Chinese proverb goes:

Give man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

Teaching kids ABC - this way?

With the coming of modernization our everyday and simple lives have suddenly become confusing and often complex. From operating mobile phones to taking pictures to driving cars to listening to music, our lives are no more same. Ever. And that is when we need to run to the experts. More so with the brewing complexities. And time is precious they say. We have to do everything in less time. That calls faster learning. Or else we will be left out of the mad race. Isn't it?

Recently, I realized this while visiting one of the mobile service providers because I was asked to come there with my gadgets. The man at the counter looked at me and asked what was wrong with my phone. Faithfully, I explained the problem like I would do to a physician. He took the phone from me and did something, which I had no idea of. And in no time the guy handed the phone back to me. I couldn't believe what transpired before us. I checked if it was working. It was working! A little embarrassed I walked out. Not sure if some customers thought what an idiot I was!

The man at the counter fed me a fish that day and certainly didn't teach me how to fish. Of course being a vegetarian, I feel uncomfortable using this fishing analogy, but I can't help it. If he taught me how to do it, I would not have bothered him again. But I had to visit him again, a few months later with the same issue. And I am not sure how many trips I would have to make there.

I don't know how it works, but I personally feel that people behind the counters should make efforts to teach their customers and pass on their knowledge. After all we are talking about their services, which they only understand the best. And moreover I don't find how sharing such knowledge with their customers would ever reduce their income. I certainly do not see how it would affect their livelihood either. I only see them finding more time for more important work. I'll completely understand if it is something to do with their trade secrets!

Maybe it is time that our service providers engage their customers instead of continuing to feed them fish.

On a separate note - my friend and I visited a service counter in town (very) recently. Again because we were asked to visit it. But no one in the room could fix our issue - because the only person (the ONLY person) was on leave. That was quite something!

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