Tuesday, January 02, 2007

2007: You Gots To Chill!


An investment banker was taking a few days off near a small coastal Mexican village, where he came upon a fisherman.
The banker complimented the fisherman on his catch, and was astonished to learn that it didn't take long for the fisherman to complete his daily work. The banker then asked the fisherman what he did for the rest of his day.
'I sleep late', the fisherman replied, 'fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, stroll around the village with my friends, sip some wine, play a little guitar. I keep myself occupied, senor'.
The investment banker scoffed. 'I have an MBA from Harvard', he proudly exclaimed. What you need to do is spend more time fishing. With the extra proceeds buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from that boat, buy a few more. Then, instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you would be able to sell directly to a processor. You'll be so successful that you could end up running your empire from New York'.
'But senor,' the fisherman asked, 'how long will all that take'. '15 - 20 years', came the reply. 'And then what, senor ?'. The investment banker laughed. 'Then, my friend, you'd do an IPO, sell stock in your company, and make millions'. 'Millions, senor. Then what ?'.
'Then', said the banker, 'you'd retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village. You'd sleep in late, fish a little, play with your children, take a siesta with your wife, stroll around the village with your friends, sip some wine, play a little guitar'