Article: The Shoemaker and the Elves

The Shoemaker and the Elves

by John Colanzi

Remember the story of the Shoemaker and The Elves?

The shoemaker would go to sleep and the elves would
finish any shoes he hadn't gotten around to.

Our minds function in much the same way.

Our conscious, logical mind is the shoemaker. Our
subconscious is the elves.

Give your conscious mind a goal, gather all the facts
and let the elves do their work.

Many of our greatest inventions and discoveries have
come after the scientist or researcher had given up and
the elves took over.

The structure of DNA had baffled researchers for years.

Finally, the double helix was revealed in a dream about
intertwined snakes.

Around four years ago, I gave my little friends the task
of providing me with an ezine article a week.

I gathered the ideas and they wrote the articles.

They've written around 100 articles.

It makes my life so easy.

They do the work.

I get the credit.

When I sit down at the keyboard, the articles write
themselves.

The next time you're stumped for an answer, gather the
facts and move out of the way. The elves will be more
than happy to do the work.

They're tireless.