Make Your Mark

“If we are to be really great, we must strive in good faith to play a great part in the world. We cannot avoid meeting great issues. All that we can determine for ourselves is whether we shall meet them well or with ill will.”

- Theodore Roosevelt

Do you ever get dumbfounded by the simplicity of an object or its application. I was recently working on something and every ink pen I could find would not write. With a little modern ingenuity from my pocket knife and a lot of luck, I found a pencil stuck in my desk and I was back in business.

As I began to write, I began thinking about the usefulness of pencils and a story I once heard of a Pencil Maker who was preparing to put an important hand crafted pencil into a gift box. Before doing so, he took the pencil aside and to the pencil he said, “There are five things you need to know. If you can remember these five things you will become the best pencil you can be. “First: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in someone else’s hand. Second: Sharpening is painful, but it is critical if you want to become a better pencil. Third: Because you have an eraser, you can correct most mistakes you make, though some may be harder than others to erase. Fourth: You may or may not look all that great on the outside, but remember that it’s what’s inside that’s most important; in fact for you, it’s your most important quality. And Fifth: Whatever surface you are used on, make sure you leave your mark. No matter how hard, rough or easy, you must continue to write.”

Pencils have been around for a long time. In doing some quick research I discovered that pencils were first discovered some time before 1565 (some sources say as early as 1500). An enormous deposit of graphite was discovered in Cumbria, England. The locals found that it was very useful for marking sheep. This particular deposit of graphite was extremely pure and solid, and it could easily be sawn into sticks. This remains the only large-scale deposit of graphite ever found in this solid form.

The value of graphite was soon realized to be enormous, mainly because it could be used to line the moulds for cannonballs, and the mines were taken over by the English Crown and guarded. When sufficient stores of graphite had been accumulated, the mines were flooded to prevent theft until more was required. Graphite had to be smuggled out for use in pencils.

England continued to enjoy a monopoly on the production of pencils until a method of reconstituting the graphite powder was found. The distinctively square English pencils continued to be made with sticks cut from natural graphite into the 1860s.

American colonists imported pencils from Europe until after the American Revolution. Benjamin Franklin advertised pencils for sale in his Pennsylvania Gazette in 1729, and George Washington used a three-inch pencil when he surveyed the Ohio Territory in 1762. It is said that William Munroe, a cabinetmaker in Concord, Massachusetts, made the first American wood pencils in 1812. 

A thing as simple as a pencil, something we take for granted (until our ink pen wont write) has a vast and rich history. Kings and Royals guarded its very existence because its usefulness was so valuable. How much more valuable is our usefulness?

We as individuals are very much like pencils. We as leaders and volunteers in the community need to guard our talents, but we need to sharpen them and put them to use toward the betterment of our community, always striving to leave our mark.

Just as pencils, we must first, be humble: we must often be carefully guided through bosses, mentors and people who care. Second, we must stay sharp: feedback is painful at times, but without it we will become dull. Constantly take the time to sharpen your skills through feedback. Third, it’s okay to make mistakes: In the process of becoming a better leader you will make mistakes, but, embrace those mistakes as opportunities to learn. Learn, erase and become better! Fourth, believe in you: We all come in different shapes, sizes and colors – just like pencils. But it’s what is on the inside that matters the most. You can have an important impact on others by believing in who you are and what your purpose is. And lastly, don’t give up: There will be times you will wonder if it is worth it, but people are depending on you so keep on going. Hold to your vision even when it seems it has dulled.

If you continue to remain focused on these five things, I am sure you will become a better leader and a better pencil in our community, always leaving your mark. And I know our community will be better off because of it.

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* This article was originally printed in the Sunday, April 6, 2014 issue
 of The Chronicle's "Planting Seeds" column.