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Image: jupiterimages.comA few years ago I came across this nice story, in a forwarded e-mail, which left a strong impression on thoughts about my future. As I re-visit this story today, it brings forth some interesting thoughts that I would like to discuss with you.
First, the story that I am referring to. If you have read this earlier, you might want to jump to the next section.
The Mexican fisherman
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. 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 Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge enterprise.”
“How long would that take?” asked the Mexican.
“Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years,” replied the American.
“And after that?”
“Afterwards? That’s when it gets really interesting,” answered the American, laughing. “When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!”
“Millions? Really? And after that?”
“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, and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends!”
First impressions
This story resonates well especially with those who have come up the hard way and have a soft corner for life’s simple (and, dare I say, true) pleasures. The immediate realization after reading this story is, when the ultimate goal is to be happy, why should one waste a lifetime in order to get to a point where one could otherwise reach without sacrificing all those precious years in the first place?
Having said that, besides the point that one might as well enjoy life without wasting it on activities that seem to be promising but whose worth is questionable, there is one hidden message that I would like you to take from this story.
The two extremes
Many people focus on the extremes. They would either just prefer to live in their current circumstances and be content with enjoying life’s little pleasures, or they would run in search of greener pastures and get so engrossed with achieving success that they waste the best part of their life with hopes that they would live better… someday!
Our education and experience usually drives us in pursuit of success, while complacence, fear and/or lack of knowledge makes us feel satisfied with our present circumstances.
While it is good to be happy with our present circumstances, which is really the ultimate goal, there is one thing that needs to be addressed – financial security.
Financial security goes a long way towards achieving true happiness and peace of mind. Without that, you might enjoy temporary happiness that is cut short everytime any unforeseen circumstances show up.
Two sides of the equation
So the message I wanted you to take home today is that we need to be careful not to be on either side of the above-mentioned two extremes.
First and foremost, you should not be like the Mexican fisherman who lives each day as it comes. Because, one must always plan for rainy days. Well, in this case that holds true even literally because fishermen are warned not to venture into the sea when it is rough. The advice that the businessman gives the fisherman needs to be paid attention to, as it helps the fisherman achieve financial security and, in turn, true happiness.
Secondly, it is important to strike a good balance between complacence and the pursuit of success. The advice of the business should be taken upto the point where he tells the fisherman to leave his village with the promise that he can come back and live the life of his dreams someday far into the future. It is a mistake to totally postpone the things that you would like to do with the hopes that you would do them someday when the time is right. You should always enjoy life, and never let your pursuit of success rob you of happiness in your day-to-day life.
Knowing where to draw the line between the pursuit of success and living a happy (and successful) life could make all the difference between a life successfully wasted and a life successfully lived.
Different opinions?
These are just my thoughts, and I’m sure you would have something to add to this analysis of the story. It would be a pleasure to hear your inputs, so please go ahead and leave a comment to express your opinion.
So, what do you think? Was the Mexican fisherman successful? Could he have been [more?] successful if he followed all of the advice that he received from the businessman?
Mark,
Before you even got to the analysis I was thinking along the same lines as you. On one hand I agree with the fisherman. He seems to understand that the really important things in life are family and enjoyment.
ON the other hand he is doing himself and his family a disservice by not even attempting to build some sort of security.
What happens if they fish die off? What happens if his boat is swamped and destroyed.
I am all for the relaxed lifestyle…but there also needs to be some sort of security or fallback plan.
Not saying that the hyper-agressive business approach is right (or wrong). -It takes many types of people to make the world go round’. – But there should always be thought to some growth and squirreling something away for those dark times.
Steve,
I’m glad to have your consensus on the analysis. Risks are always all around us, and it’s best to be prepared for the rainy days.
I like your point that it takes many types of people for things to be moving around the way they are. I’m not sure whether that is a good thing though. I might be getting a little off topic here, but I can’t help thinking of the current global economic situation that is based on money/gold that in reality doesn’t exist, and wonder how the world has come to accept such a system.
In this economic age, it would seem like there’s nothing better than owning physical gold. But I think nothing beats having the skills to be able to arrange for your own food when chaos hits and markets start ceasing to exist.
Cheers,
Mark
Hi Mark,
Thanks for sharing this great story. We chase our tails to come to the point of sitting back and enjoying. I say you need to find that point of enjoyment and joy along the way. You might not make it till that ‘end’ point {of accumulation} when you can finally take it easy. We have to examine our means and ends. Do we go for that high education, job etc. to get more money so that we have more to spend on enjoyment and pleasure? And then we work so hard we forget what the whole point is. Balance is the name of the game and keeping sight of your goals and values; and most importantly, not waiting until…. until I have more money, more time, more…..Later may never come. The time is now to build in what’s important to us.
Harriet,
A warm welcome to Secrets of Success!
Very true, one might never make it to that “end” point. Most often people never even know what that end point will be for themselves and they just keep moving on until they are gone. Like you said, we tend to work so hard and forget what the whole point is.
Thanks for dropping by and adding value to the discussion! Much appreciated!
Cheers,
Mark
That’s a famous story — I read it in the 4-Hour Work Week — and it makes a good point. However, I think its important to note that the fisherman doesn’t have choices. He can’t fly to Italy, afford a major surgery, or pay tuition for his kids to attend a college abroad. I think the true value in making money isn’t the siestas in Mexico, it’s the choices / options at your fingertips.
Paula @ Afford Anything recently posted… Escape Your Office Job!
Hi Paula,
I didn’t know that this story is featured in The 4 Hour Workweek; I haven’t read the book. Was it Tim Ferris who wrote this story by any chance? As far as I researched, the author of this story is unknown.
What you mentioned is exactly the point I am making in this article. While it is good to be happy with our present circumstances, which is really the ultimate goal, financial security goes a long way towards achieving true happiness and peace of mind.
Cheers,
Mark
Mark of Success recently posted… You will not get any bigger than you think
Tim Ferriss didn’t originally write the story; he also quoted it as an anonymous story.
Paula @ Afford Anything recently posted… Escape Your Office Job!
Great! It’s been a nice conversing with you today. Thanks for engaging. It’s a little late into the night and I can’t stop working on the new site (I just love what I’m doing here). But I think I’ll kick myself into bed and grab some sleep
. You have a nice one! I’ll see you around…
Mark of Success recently posted… The law of Inertia applied to Success
RT @mark_my_tweets: Do you think the Mexican fisherman was successful? http://t.co/Cm0yBqE6
I love your blog. Nice job.
“Fail Harder” – Mark Zuckerberg
Hi Andrew,
Welcome to Secrets of Success! Thanks for the compliment, and I look forward to seeing you here again.
The “Fail Harder” quote is a nice one, and it would be more apt for the article “Have you really tried to succeed?“.
By the way, I visited your blog and read about you. Typed a comment in response to your latest post, but didn’t find the option to post it using the Name & URL option. I guess you have disabled or not enabled that, and unfortunately I do not use any of the others available there. I suggest that you enable that option as its absence may turn off some people who would otherwise leave you a comment.
See you around…
Cheers,
Mark
Mark of Success recently posted… Today is the first day of the rest of your life