The Story of The Mexican Fisherman
“An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large Yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.
The Mexican replied, “only a little while. The American then asked why didn’t he stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs. The American then asked, “but 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 siestas 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.”
The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. 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 processor, eventually opening your own cannery. 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 New York City, where you will run your expanding enterprise.”
The Mexican fisherman asked, “But, how long will this all take?”
To which the American replied, “15 – 20 years.”
“But what then?” asked the Mexican.
The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions!”
“Millions – then what?”
The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”
As seen on BeMoreWithLess
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“Live Simply”
Amazing words of wisdom here. Living a simple lifestyle does make things so much easier. I am not sure why we choose to complicate our lives by having so much stuff and so many things going on.
Yes to everything you say.
Wow, this is an amazing story.
Reminds me that it is better to live in the PRESENT and with what we need.
We don’t need to have it all
We need to be mindful and to be grateful for all that we have.
What a great reminder of what our priorities should be and how to live.
This is absolutely one of my favorite stories! I first it heard it told by a motivational speaker at a conference about six years ago. It was also a major turning point in my life…not one towards minimalism, but one that truly launched my search for what is most important in life. I’m happy to see you sharing it here and that it resonates with so many others as well.
One of my favorite stories, too. It never gets old. Thanks for sharing it! I just discovered your blog today and am looking forward to browsing your posts.
It is a good one and thanks for stopping by
There’s such an incredible moral here! We easily get entangled by the laces of success, so neatly and consistently tied by society, that we forget what success actually means to us
Agreed!