On a plane trip I was doing work with a documentary running in the background – UP THE YANGTZE, the story of the 3 rivers dam and the flooding which required the relocation of 2M people. The starting quote caught my attention:

By three methods we may learn wisdom:

First by reflection, which is the noblest;

second, by imitation, which is the easiest;

and third, by experience, which is the bitterest.

Confucius