At a former job on Boss’s Day, my direct reports got together and bought a beautiful small, engraved plaque telling me they appreciated my leadership. At the bottom of the plaque was engraved a scripture reference. I went to the Bible Gateway to look it up.

What they intended was 1 Thess 1:3, “We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

What the engraver put instead was 1 Thess 3:1, which reads “So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens.”

My assistant heard me laughing and I told her what it said.  A few minutes later the red-faced manager who had ordered the plaque came to retrieve it. It was fixed the same day. 

I still laugh every time I think about that one.

One Liner
Experience: The name people give to their mistakes.