At The Wharf
There is a very poignant story involving a fisherman and a high-flying businessman. The businessman visited the wharf of a tiny fishing village located in Philippines. While the businessman is viewing the place, a small boat carrying one fisherman slowly made its way to dock. The fisherman caught some large yellowfin tuna which is prized for its meat.
Upon seeing the good catch, the businessman made some flattering remarks for the fisherman especially on the value of his fish and inquired how long it took him to catch them. The Filipino fisherman casually replied that it took him just 4 hours to have it.
Seeing the potential of profits, the businessman then posed another question why he choose not to stay out a little longer and catch additional fish. The fisherman answered back that it is quite adequate to sustain his family’s direct needs.
The businessman then further inquired the fisherman on what he is using for the rest of his time? The Filipino fisherman then said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my kids, take a nap with my wife, Carla Millesa, wander into the village in the evening where I drink some wine and of course have fun with my close friends. I have a jam-packed and hectic life, sir.”
The businessman taunted, “You see, I have an international degree in business management and I could offer some advice to you for free. Why not spend additional time fishing and with more profits generated go ahead and purchase a bigger boat? And because you are earning much more with the bigger boat, you should buy several more boats. Ultimately, you should gun for having your own fleet of fishing boats making money for you day in and ay out. Under these circumstances, it would now be possible to bypass the middlemen and sell directly to the processor. From there on, you can plan to build your own cannery. At the end, you are controlling all the aspects of the product, processing and even distribution. As you become a big businessman yourself, you can already move to the capital of this country and from there direct your empire.”
The fisherman is astonished at the vision presented unto him. So he asked, “But sir, how long do you think all of these to take?”
And the businessman replied back, “Maybe around 15 to 20 years.” “And after that, what then, sir?” The question elicits laughter form the businessman and he answered, “That’s the greatest part! With your own business getting bigger, surely some investors would be willing to pour in their money. You can plan to sell stocks to interested investors and in the process take the money and become very wealthy beyond your own imagination. You can a millionaire many times over.”
“Millions, sir? Then what?”
The businessman comes back with the answer, “Then it is time to retire. You can move back to a small coastal fishing village you like and sleep late, fish a little, play with your children or grandchildren, take a relaxed afternoon nap with your loved ones, stroll to the village anytime you want and sip a local wine with your friends.”
Smiling, the fisherman looked into the eyes of the businessman and, “Isn’t that what I am enjoying right now?”
The fisherman got a point. How do we really measure success? How do we define success? And most importantly, what do we want to do with success?
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I want to be successful because I want to help my poor community rise up from its economic mess condition…
Wow! This is a very poignant story on how we forgot the basis of happiness all through the years that we struggle in this life. It makes me really wonder how come we have been building those things that with just a single strike of a strong wind could easily be gone…we humans are just contradictory.