Behind the Scenes: The 3 Bricklayers

A story about purpose

Dec 03, 2025

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This is a post for paid subscribers with more background behind some of my favourite sketches. The weekly weekend sketch will be with you as usual.

The Three Bricklayers story, or 3 Bricklayers Parable, is about the meaning, vision, leadership, and motivation of work. Originally about Sir Christopher Wren, the image shows three scenes: a brick layer laying bricks (Task), one building a wall (Goal), and one creating a cathedral on scaffolding (Vision) with a cathedral in the background. — It would be nice to be one of those birds flying above the cathedral

Original post | Prints

I loved the simplicity and concreteness of the story of the three bricklayers. And I can easily relate to it. You might not be surprised to here that it’s one of my most successful sketches were you to judge through sharing on LinkedIn.

It’s not perfect as a parable, and indeed it is a little romantic (I read someone who shared they thought the third bricklayer was rather full of themselves, and I can get that). There’s nothing wrong with doing a job to provide for your family. And to build an enduring cathedral, you have to build sound walls and lay bricks with precision and expertise. But in my experience, purpose does matter.

When I studied

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