A man in a hot air balloon realized he was lost. He lowered his altitude and
spotted a fisherman in a boat below. He shouted to him, 'Excuse me, can you
help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know
where I am.'
The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, 'You're in a hot air
balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above
sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.9720 minutes north latitude and 100
degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.'
The balloonist rolled his eyes and said, 'You must be a Contracting
Officer.'
'I am,' replied the man. 'How did you know?'
'Well,' answered the balloonist, 'everything you told me is technically
correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm still
lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me.'
The man smiled and responded, 'You must be a Program Manager.'
'I am,' replied the balloonist. 'How did you know?'
'Well,' said the man, 'you don't know where you are or where you're going.
You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made
a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your
problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but,
somehow, now it's my fault.'