Tag: inspirational

The Businessman and the Fisherman

One of my favorite stories of all time….

The Businessman and the Fisherman

An American businessman took a vacation to a small coastal Mexican village on doctor’s orders. Unable to sleep after an urgent phone call from the office the first morning, he walked out to the pier to clear his head. A small boat with just one fisherman had docked and inside the boat were several large Yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican of the quality of his fish.

“How long it took you to catch them?” The American asked.

“Only a little while.” The Mexican replied.

“Why don’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?” The American then asked.

“I have enough to support my family’s immediate needs and give a few to my friends,.” The Mexican said.

“But,” The American then asked, “What do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos, I have a full and busy life, senor.”

The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds you buy a bigger boat, and with the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats.”

“Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the consumers, eventually opening your own can factory. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The Mexican fisherman asked, “But senor, how long will this all take?”

To which the American replied, “15-20 years.”

“But what then, senor?”

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO (Initial Public Offering) and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions.”

“Millions, senor? Then what?”

The American said slowly, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos…”

The Story of The Businessman and the Fisherman


IF~

If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man how to fish, you ruin a wonderful business opportunity.

If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.

If you win, you will be happy; if you lose, you will be wise. … If one is forever cautious, can one remain a human being?

If you want to succeed sooner, double your failure rate.

If you can dish it, make sure you can take it.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it ’til it is.

If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up too much space.

If in doubt, throw it out (my nutritionist’s rule for food).

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

If you fall seven times, get up eight.

If anything can go wrong, it probably will (Murphy’s Law), have a backup plan ready.

If they can do it, so can you! The only difference is your desire and drive to do so.

If a picture paints a thousand words, then why can’t I paint you….?

If you don’t know – ASK. Now you know.

If you can’t beat ’em, don’t stop trying ’til you do.

If it rains, it pours, but don’t forget about the rainbow soon after.

If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never been in the dark with a mosquito.

If something’s beyond your control, why worry about it?

If you want to look young and thin, hang around old fat people.

If someone else messed up, pretend you didn’t notice.

If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.

If you wish to make a man your enemy, tell him simply, “You are wrong.” This method works every time.

If you can do something today, do it today!

If you fear dying, then you’re already dead.

“If ever there is tomorrow when we’re not together.. there is something you must always remember. you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. but the most important thing is, even if we’re apart… I’ll always be with you.” – Winnie the Pooh Bear

if-they-cant-find-you-they-cant-wash-you1

Cocky Sonofa…

Overconfidence?

Is there such a thing? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?

“Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds”
– Albert Einstein.

This quote has played a very big role in my own self esteem and can really be very positive, while being very egotistical and counter-productive at the same time.

I often reflect back to Bill Gates when he decided to drop out of Harvard in order to pursue his dreams. Imagine what his guidance councilor’s reaction to this was? I have so many different scenarios playing in my head, most of which involves the councilor calling Bill F-ing crazy, insane and absolutely idiotic, not necessarily in that order. Bill Gates, and anyone who walks the halls of Harvard, is pretty much guaranteed a six figure income right off the bat. Yet, Bill decided to take the chance, follow his own heart and do his own thing. Today, he is the most financially secure person in the world, to say the least.

But of course, we have to be realistic. We always hear about the amazing success stories but there are probably 10 (or more) failures for every victory. So how can one balance out between having our heads in the clouds but our feet on the ground?

Personally, I’ve always leaned toward taking the chance. Every mistake you make is one that you will learn from. Every mistake you make is one less mistake you will repeat.

“The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one”
–Elbert Hubbard.

Yes this may sound too aggressive and outlandish, and yes it is so much easier said than done, especially when you consider having to invest your life savings into your new widget. But I’m not talking about gambling when the odds are stacked in the favor of the casino, no, not gambling, but taking calculated risks in life. There are ways to plan things out, to stack the odds in your favor.

The best way to point yourself in the right direction is to do EVERYTHING you can to ensure success. There are so many other factors that are out of your hands, and those are meant to be left alone. However, aspects that you can control should be researched, planned, understood, structured, studied, debated, marinated, contemplated, practiced, innovated, re-contemplated and any other buzzword you could think of! Oh, and do come up with a plans A, B, C and D.

So far, you need to have confidence and believe in yourself then do everything you can to head towards the right direction. What’s next? *Now what?* (*refer back to previous blog post.)

“Now”, you have to listen.

Listening is a virtue. It’s so easily said, so frequently misused and too often forgotten.

Overconfidence only happens, when one forgets to listen. When one tunes out everyone else and only hears what you want to hear. You don’t have to agree or disagree with anyone, but you have to listen.

How do you listen? Well you need to be patient with the people who give you advice, but be careful whose advice you take.

There’s one more really, really important thing I need to tell you, which would pretty much make everything I said make so much more sense… it is the key to balancing your confidence….. it is something that one of my greatest mentors had taught me…. Umm it goes something like….. ummmm….. I can’t really remember it….. ahhhhh I wasn’t really listening….

365 Days of Motivation

Daily Dose of Motivation

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.” – Zig Ziglar

It’s often very difficult to stay motivated day in and day out, but the problem is that if you want to stay ahead of the pack; you’re going to have to put in more sweat, blood and tears than everyone else. This is exactly why, according to the World Institute for Development Economics Research of the United Nations University (these people have not learned how to abbreviate!), 2% of adults in the world own more than half the world’s wealth!

Now what is wealth? Chris Rock clearly states the difference between being rich and being wealthy: “Shaq is rich; the white man who signs his checks is wealthy”.

Yes, I know that a many members of that 2% club probably did something illegal, or political (meaning they did something illegal but made it look legal, like invading other countries and stealing their oil – but that’s a whole different story), but that should not hinder us from finding the right path destined for each of us to succeed. Legal or not, this statistic shows that only 2% of the world has found the path towards the uppermost echelon (with concerns to monetary wealth).

The secret may be as simple as HARD WORK!

“The heights by great men reached and kept, were not attained by sudden flight;
But they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.”

– Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

One of my favorite college professors, Prof. Kevin Cox, once told me that there will always be two ways to accomplish something – the hard way and the easy way. “Always pick the hard way!” he said.

Everyone else is taking the easy path. You really want to stand out from that crowded line and instead, take the road less traveled. It may seem tough and strenuous now, but when you look back, you’ll realize that that challenge probably helped you grow much more than you would, had you taken the easier route.

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”

– Robert Frost

For this thought, I like using the analogy of taking a stroll in the park as compared to climbing a mountain. You don’t get to grow or change much when you take a nice quiet walk in the park. Sure, it’s convenient, nice and relaxing, but there isn’t much room for growth in this. Now climbing a mountain is the total opposite. You have to test every single muscle in your body, not to mention you’d have to prepare yourself mentally to withstand the many obstacles that will hinder your path to the top. Even when doing each of the two tasks with someone else; you’ll learn a lot more about your partner and grow with them if you two climbed the mountain together. You’d have to trust them with your life and ensure that they can trust you with theirs when climbing. As compared to walking in the park where you may learn a thing or two about them, but again, not much room for growth.

So here I am, ready to take on the mountain.

I will be posting motivational thoughts everyday before I begin my daily routines. Hopefully, my efforts to motivate myself will in-turn, help motivate others as well.

“You don’t find yourself;
you MAKE yourself!”


How Not to DIE

Here’s some very important tips on how to avoid dying.

How not to die:

1. Don’t jump off planes, bridges, cliffs or any high places

2. Don’t talk to strangers

3. Don’t try unfamiliar things

4. Don’t forget to brush your teeth

5. Don’t question the way things are

6. Never break the rules

7. Never take risks

8. Do as you’re told

9. Conform

10. If in doubt, don’t do it

How to LIVE:

1. Ignore all of the above

“There was a very cautious man, who never laughed or cried
He never risked, he never lost, he never won nor tried.
And when he one day passed away, his insurance was denied,
For since he never really lived, they claimed he never died”

Top 50 Most Motivational Blogs

Thanks to Presistence Unlimited, you can now enjoy the power of motivation without having to crawl your way around the web.

Here are the top 50 motivational blogs that will unleash your inner drive, in no particular order –

  • Zen Habits
  • Make It Great! with Phil Gerbyshak
  • Today is that day
  • Dumb Little Man
  • Achieve IT!
  • Success Begins Today
  • LifeDev
  • David Seah
  • Productivity501
  • Your Life. Organized.
  • The Cranking Widgets Blog
  • Pick the Brain
  • OkDork
  • Lifehacker
  • 43 Folders
  • Lifehack.org
  • Steve Pavlina
  • Slacker Manager
  • GTD Wannabe
  • Organize IT
  • Matt’s Idea Blog
  • Ian’s Messy Desk
  • Personal Development For A Greater Life
  • The Positivity Blog
  • Change your thoughts
  • Legal Andrew
  • ProductivityGoal
  • Zoli’s Blog
  • the simple dollar
  • Steve-Olson.com
  • Thriftymommy – good for Dads too!
  • Ricky Spears’ Blog
  • My Money Blog
  • Get Rich Slowly
  • Web Worker Daily
  • Life Tips Daily
  • Career Ramblings
  • Wise Bread
  • Life Learning Today
  • Diet Hack
  • Diet Blog
  • Change Your Thoughts
  • Duct Tape Marketing
  • Scott H. Young
  • Penelope Trunk’s Brazen Careerist
  • Instigator Blog
  • Ririan Project
  • D*I*Y Planner
  • LifeSpy
  • Management Craft
  • Life Optimizer
  • Genius Types

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