Try to forget yourself in the service of others. For when we think too much of ourselves and our own interests we easily become despondent. But when we work for others our efforts return to bless us.

Meaning: Another worker can often find something to improve in work already considered finished. The second barber’s remaining task suggests that completion depends on standards and perspective, without proving that earlier work was careless or endless correction is necessary.

Meaning: People working in the same trade may compete or disagree despite their shared occupation. The proverb highlights rivalry among peers, without establishing that cooperation is rare or that professional differences are personal hostility.