How to Pet a Porcupine

I discovered something new in a staff meeting a few weeks ago, and that is that you can pet a porcupine without getting hurt. I have never actually pet a porcupine, but I was told it is possible without a follow-up trip the hospital, if you do it correctly.

Porcupine

Photo courtesy of © flickr.com/photos/arthur_chapman/3986448936/

If you want to pet a porcupine without getting stuck by a bunch of quills you don’t run up and startle it.  You don’t quickly scoop it up into your hands and give it a big hug.  If you want to pet a porcupine you have to develop trust with it.  First, you hold out your hand to see if it wants to come near and sniff you. Only after it sniffs you can you pet it, but you have to do it a certain way starting at the head and petting down.  To pet a porcupine any other way could potentially hurt…a lot.

Some people are a lot like porcupines. They have quills, and they will stick you if you handle them the wrong way.    You know the kind of people I am talking about, they tend to be a bit grouchy, pessimistic, standoffish and avoid personal contact, have a tendency to complain and point out the bad in a situation, etc…  These people tend to be a lot like porcupines.  If you run up and startle them you’re going to get hurt.  If you try to pressure them into doing something you’re going to get hurt.  If you cross their path in a way they don’t like, start looking for the nearest hospital.

To pet one of these porcupines requires developing trust just like a real porcupine. No, holding out your hand to see if they sniff you is probably not the best way to go about it, but spending time getting to know them is.  Learning about their perspective, their past, their priorities can give you insight in how best to go about working and getting along with them.  Taking the time to building trust with can go a very long way, and save you a lot of pain in the end.  Just as I am sure petting a real porcupine is an amazing experience, I know that getting someone who is a bit prickly on your side can be just as fulfilling.

Also, for those who are pastors of churches and have opportunity to work with porcupines, the reality is that they are also sheep in need of a good shepherd. They can’t simply be dismissed. You can’t just steer clear of them like you might a real porcupine in the wild. You have to learn to pet them.  You have to learn to lead them. So you might as well do it the right way, and save yourself some pain.

Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive or off-topic.

Leave a Reply to canadian pharmaceutical companies Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

5,159 thoughts on “How to Pet a Porcupine

  1. excellent publish, very informative. I wonder why the other specialists of this sector do not realize this. You should continue your writing. I’m sure, you’ve a great readers’ base already!

  2. Can I simply just say what a comfort to find somebody who actually understands what they are discussing on the net. You certainly realize how to bring a problem to light and make it important. A lot more people really need to read this and understand this side of the story. I was surprised that you’re not more popular because you surely possess the gift.

  3. Woah! I’m really loving the template/theme of this blog. It’s simple, yet effective. A lot of times it’s difficult to get that “perfect balance” between usability and visual appearance. I must say you’ve done a fantastic job with this. Also, the blog loads super quick for me on Chrome. Superb Blog!

  4. Wonderful website you have here but I was curious if you knew of any user discussion forums that cover the same topics discussed here? I’d really love to be a part of community where I can get feed-back from other experienced individuals that share the same interest. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Many thanks!

  5. Nice post. I was checking constantly this blog and I’m impressed! Extremely useful info specifically the last part 🙂 I care for such information a lot. I was seeking this certain info for a very long time. Thank you and best of luck.

  6. Hey there just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text in your article seem to be running off the screen in Ie. I’m not sure if this is a format issue or something to do with browser compatibility but I thought I’d post to let you know. The design look great though! Hope you get the issue resolved soon. Kudos

  7. I was wondering if you ever considered changing the structure of your website? Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having 1 or two images. Maybe you could space it out better?

  8. This design is steller! You certainly know how to keep a reader amused. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Excellent job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!

  9. Whats up are using WordPress for your blog platform? I’m new to the blog world but I’m trying to get started and set up my own. Do you need any html coding knowledge to make your own blog? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

  10. I’ve been browsing on-line more than three hours today, but I never discovered any attention-grabbing article like yours. It is lovely value sufficient for me. In my opinion, if all webmasters and bloggers made excellent content material as you did, the internet will probably be a lot more helpful than ever before.

  11. кайт кэмп египет Кайтсёрфинг Кайтсёрфинг – это сплав ветра, воды и мастерства. Этот вид спорта позволяет скользить по водной глади, используя силу ветра, пойманную кайтом. Это динамичный и захватывающий способ провести время на открытом воздухе, требующий определенной физической подготовки и навыков управления кайтом и доской.

  12. кайт египте Обучение кайтсёрфингу Обучение кайтсёрфингу – это следующий шаг после освоения базовых навыков управления кайтом. На этом этапе учатся вставать на доску, контролировать скорость и направление движения, а также выполнять простые трюки. Важно выбирать опытного инструктора и комфортные условия для обучения.

  13. With havin so much written content do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright violation? My website has a lot of completely unique content I’ve either written myself or outsourced but it seems a lot of it is popping it up all over the internet without my agreement. Do you know any solutions to help reduce content from being ripped off? I’d genuinely appreciate it.

  14. Do you mind if I quote a couple of your articles as long as I provide credit and sources back to your website? My website is in the very same area of interest as yours and my visitors would certainly benefit from a lot of the information you present here. Please let me know if this alright with you. Thanks a lot!

  15. Pretty section of content. I just stumbled upon your blog and in accession capital to assert that I acquire actually enjoyed account your blog posts. Anyway I will be subscribing to your feeds and even I achievement you access consistently quickly.

  16. ¡Hola, fanáticos del riesgo !
    casino fuera de espaГ±a sin fronteras – п»їп»їhttps://casinoonlinefueradeespanol.xyz/ casino por fuera
    ¡Que disfrutes de asombrosas movidas brillantes !