Beyond Business: On Making A Living And Living A Life
Posted by
eli
on 9/13/09• Categorized as Business Advice
That life isn’t all about business, career, jobs, work, is too obvious. For there’s more to life than making a living.
Recently I came across a good story on the net, written by an unknown author, which clearly illustrates this all too important lesson. Here goes:
A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.
“Not very long,” answered the Mexican.
“But then, why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more?” asked the American.
The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.
The American asked, “But what do you do with the rest of your time?”
“I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta 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.”
The American interrupted, “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.”
“And after that?” asked the Mexican.
“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 middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge new enterprise.”
“How long would that take?” asked the Mexican.
“Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years,” replied the American.
“And after that?”
“Afterwards? Well my friend, that’s when it gets really interesting,” answered the American, laughing. “When your business gets really big, you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!”
“Millions? Really? And after that?” asked the Mexican.
“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 siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends.”
Wonderful story! Good lesson about life. So that only illustrates that success is not all about material wealth, but also happiness that money cannot buy.
Will always remember this particular article when I ponder about my life. Thanks for posting.
I agree to the lessons. As you said, there is more to life than making a living. So true.
But I have observed that we are too obsessed with making a living that we forget how to live our life. That sums up, I think, the lesson here. — Vilma, one of your constant readers, not a blogger.
Atty. Eli, I appreciate this article. So simple, but meaningful. It makes a good reflection.
Off topic, Atty., congrats for your new baby.
It is said that the most important things in life are free.
While most of us are too engrossed making money, working our asses off to survive, we tend to forget that happiness can’t actually be bought.
I remember while me and my Prince are still on the “getting to know stage”. He once asked me to describe myself and I told him: ” I am just a simple girl with simple dreams. I am not aspiring for material wealth and luxury. I just want to have my own family, live a simple life, raise my children glorifying the Lord”. That’s when we started to hit it off.
@ Guy, I agree with your ideas. You’re a perceptive person. Thanks for commenting.
@ Vilma, thanks for your comment. I share the same observation, that many of us are always striving to make a living but we forget to enjoy our life.
@ Karen, your comment is not really off-topic–having a new baby is part of making a living or living a life, or both.
@ Lainy, your comment is, as always, very good as it adds embellishment to the article.
I do hope you and your Prince will soon bridge the distance of your separation, compress space and time, fulfill your cherished desires and begin your journey together to forever.