During the past decade, I’ve seen several dozen variations of the following urban legend posted online:

A large oceangoing ship stalled at sea when its engine broke down. None of the shipboard maintenance crew could repair it, so the shipping company helicoptered a consultant out to the stranded ship. The grizzled old ship mechanic with 40 years experience carefully inspected the engine from top to bottom. He then took a small hammer from his tool bag and gently tapped the engine, which immediately roared back to life. He then told the ship’s captain, “That will be $20,000.” “What?!” cried the captain, “You hardly did anything. I demand a detailed bill.” The mechanic jotted briefly on a scrap of paper and handed it to him. It read: Tap with a hammer: $2; knowing where to tap: $19,998.

I believe this story is so popular because it resonates with people who are still paying their dues and looking forward to the day when they, too, will have mastered the skill set necessary to do a job with ease and aplomb while receiving the big bucks.

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