A man wanted to have a suit made. So, he went to the best tailor in town, who was named Zumbach. Zumbach took his measurements and ordered the best material.
The man went in for the final fitting, and he put on the suit. One sleeve was two inches longer than the other. He said, “Zumbach I don’t want to complain. It’s a beautiful suit. But this sleeve is two inches longer than that sleeve.” Zumbach looked affronted. He said, “There’s nothing wrong with the suit. It’s the way you are standing.” And he pushed one of the man’s shoulders down and the other one up, and he said, “See if you stand like that, it fits perfectly.”
The fellow looked in the mirror again, and there was all this loose material behind the collar. He said, “Zumbach what’s all this material sticking out?” Zumbach said, “There is nothing wrong with that suit. It’s the way you are standing.” And he pushed in the man’s chin and made him hunch his shoulders. “See, it’s perfect.”
Finally, the suit fit perfectly, and the man left. He was walking to the bus in his new, perfectly fitting suit, and somebody came up to him and said, “What a beautiful suit! I bet Zumbach, the tailor, made it.”
The man said, “How did you know?”
“Because only a tailor of Zumbach’s skill could make a suit fit so perfectly on somebody as crippled as you are.”
Moral: Like the man in the story, many of us spend our lives twisting ourselves into roles, positions and careers that are unnatural and uncomfortable. We hope to gain acceptance from our parents, friends, spouses, clients, colleagues, and others whose approval we desire. Sometimes, some degree of accommodation is necessary, but if we try to fit into the Zumbach suit too often, eventually, we will damage our integrity and lose our sense of self-worth.
Heed the warning signs. Stop focusing on what you think others expect of you and start recognizing what it is that you deeply desire for yourself and search for the truth within your own heart.