Can you tell me what you do - in a word?

My brother’s been out in the rain all day, herding his sheep so he can scan the ewes for the number of lambs they’re carrying.

He then labels the ewes carrying two or three young, so he knows to give them extra food.

He’s a farmer.

I don’t tell him what I do. He wouldn’t understand and he wouldn’t care.

My colleague Mark says you should have a job that you can describe in one word.

• Farmer
• Lawyer
• Writer
• Nurse
• Hairdresser

What am I?

• Consultant

Hmmm. Once (when I was ‘writer’) I would have shivered at the thought. But you know, I’m inspired – not a lot – but inspired nonetheless by David’s defence of consultants.

 

Published 06 March 2007 18:37 by Phil Turner

Comments

• 

  David Ferrabee said:

  Baker, plumber, killer, spy...  You rarely read a book in which a character is a Process Re-alignment Engineer, do you?  But you walk into any company and you'll get business cards from Executive Vice President, Systems, Supply, Process & Marketing, or Senior Counsel, Middle East & North Africa.  
  We add words to make ourselves more important.  And take them away to try to make sense of it all.
  I'm a consultant, like Phil.
  /df
  March 7, 2007 03:57
• 

  Phil Turner said:

  
  This business of being able to describe what you do in a word. I had my thinking challenged by a rock...
  March 8, 2007 14:00