"So, How Are You Going to Bell the Cat?"

There’s an old fable I think about often. Maybe you’ve heard it:

A group of mice were being terrorized by a cat. Every day was survival. So one day, they called a meeting. And in that meeting, one mouse stood up and offered a brilliant idea:

“Let’s tie a bell around the cat’s neck! That way, we’ll always hear it coming and avoid danger.”

The other mice erupted in praise. “Genius!” “Brilliant!” “This is it!”

But then one older mouse, silent all along, raised a simple question:

“So, who is going to bell the cat?”

Suddenly, the room fell quiet….

LOL! No, but really, who is going to get close and tie a loud bell around a cat that they’re already terrified of…

The idea wasn’t the issue; it was the execution. Because it’s one thing to come up with a solution. It’s another thing entirely to deliver it.

💭…I’ve been thinking about that fable a lot recently.

Right now, I’m deep in a building phase. Vision after vision. Idea after idea. Big dreams. Insane timelines. Big energy…too many moving parts, I don’t know how I am even keeping up. And every week, I have a mentorship session with someone I deeply respect…let’s call him UV (that’s actually what I call him :)).

Week after week, I’ll pour out my heart to him. Tell him about all the brilliant things I want to create or plan to do, want to bring to life, and he listens quietly, nodding. No interruption. No applause. Just silence (P.S. I hated this before, but I am now used to it)

Then he hits me with one of his classic questions:

“So… how is this going to make money?”

“How are you realistically going to bring this to life?”

“Is that even feasible in your timeline?”

To anyone listening, it may sound like criticism. Like he’s doubting the dream. But I’ve come to understand what he’s really doing.

He’s asking: HOW are you going to bell the cat?

Every time he sternly asks me how I’m going to execute, I feel slightly attacked. It stings a little. Sometimes I even get frustrated…It leaves me sitting with my thoughts, thinking, and I am so grateful for him.

Because he’s right.

Because dreaming is beautiful. Yes, it is inspiring. And I get it, it’s necessary. But at some point, someone has to ask you how you’re going to pull it off and who is going to get it done.

It’s not to crush your spirit. It’s to help you build a bridge between vision and action. At first, I feel deflated. But then, I get to work. Because that question allows you build a bridge from the clouds to reality. Every builder needs someone bold enough to say, “Let’s talk execution.” Realists who challenge the plan, because they believe in the vision, and they want to see it live.

Contrast is not always a critique or opposition; it is a powerful tool to awaken your spirit.

Every team needs a “bell the cat” person. Every founder needs someone who looks past the excitement and into the mechanics. Every dream needs someone willing to ask the questions that turn castles in the air into architectural blueprints on the ground.

We all need that person in our lives who doesn’t just applaud our dreams but asks us how we’re going to build them. Someone who dares to interrupt the “yes’s” of the crowd and say, “Okay, great idea… now how are you going to bring it to life?”

UV doesn’t hate my ideas. Funny thing is, he’s the best guy to have my crazy idea conversations with. He believes in them. He is my biggest believer. But belief isn’t enough.

What he gives me is strategy. Fire. Urgency. He sends me back into the lab, forcing me to think, plan, and sharpen. Here I stand, now a deadly executor because of it.

So if you have someone like that in your corner, don’t dismiss them. They may not clap for every dream, but they’ll help you build the ones that matter.

Because big vision with no execution is just noise.

And someone…has to bell the cat.