Businessman: Nice catch! how long did it take to catch all this nice tuna?
Fisherman: Not very long.
Businessman: But then, why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more?
Fisherman: This catch is sufficient to meet my needs and those of my family.
Businessman: But what do you do with the rest of your time?
Fisherman: I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a nap with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs…I have a full life.”
Businessman: I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middleman, you can negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Los Angeles or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge enterprise.
Fisherman: How long would that take?
Businessman: Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years.
Fisherman: And after that?
Businessman: Afterwards? That’s when it gets really interesting. When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!
Fisherman: Millions? Really? And after that?
Businessman: After that you’ll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a nap, and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends!
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1 comment:
Once a Western explorer was blazing a trail deep into an African forest, to areas never seen by human eyes. He heard strange voices ahead and slowed his pace. Cautiously ne approached a clearing, where he saw a ring of gorillas. They were lazing about, preening each other, doing the things gorillas do, but they were also talking to each other. They were discussing the temperature, and who the top gorilla was, and how the previous top gorilla was better in some ways and worse in others, and what was good to eat. The explorer was so astonished he let out a gasp. The gorillas all looked his way and charged, grunting and hooting. "Look, I heard you guys talking already" the explorer said, and the gorillas stopped their charge. "Why have you never let humans know you can talk?" "Because" one of the gorillas said "you would have made us work."
- The Bishop of Portland
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