A Door Must Be Either Open or Shut…

It is a startling fact that traveling sixty miles an hour means moving eighty-eight feet in a single second. At this speed, think of the tragedies that could occur from only a little wrong turn, from only a little inattention. There are many other phases of this same subject that could be considered, as to the small differences between success and failure, between safety and sorrow.

In business, for example, the differences between solvency and insolvency may be only a very small degree of difference. We all make many decisions and many mistakes, and if a person’s business judgment persistently proves to be percent unprofitable, he will surely end up insolvent. But if his decisions prove to be percent profitable, he will end up solvent and successful. The difference may be only a very thin slice on one side or the other – but it is a difference of considerable consequence.

This may seem oversimplified, but essentially it is just this simple. Either we make more than we spend, or we spend more than we make, and which we do is ultimately the difference between success and failure, between soundness and insolvency.

Now to look a moment at another side of the subject: As an old French proverb puts it, “A door must be either open or shut.” It is an intriguing short sentence. A door that is open just a little way can be opened farther. A little opening is likely to become a larger opening – physically, mentally, and morally. A principle compromised just a little way can be compromised further. “Just a little,” we sometimes say. But just a little of some things often means just a little more. Just a little of some things is often much too much.

The sharp line may seem to be shaded on both sides – but somewhere in this shaded area there is a point beyond which one cannot safely proceed. And not only should we not cross the line that marks the limit of law, but we should not even let ourselves come close to the shady side. “A door must be either open or shut.” And when safety or soundness requires it, we should see that the door is shut.