The Henry household decided to take another trip to our happy place, the beach, for Thanksgiving week. Unlike trips centered around site-seeing, our beach trips always provide a great opportunity to slow down and take a break from our normal routine by doing a whole lot of NOTHING. Well — not nothing I suppose. Reading, watching movies, playing games, poolside with the kids, sunsets at the beach, and generally enjoying time as a family. I even manage to get in an occasional blog post every now and then.
On several occasions this trip, I have been reminded of a parable that I have heard many times over the years. This particular parable, The Businessman and the Fisherman, likely comes to mind of late because I now relate to it much differently than I have in the past.
The Parable of the Businessman and the 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 yellow fin 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, 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.”
The Great Awakening
I have seen a lot of headlines lately concerning Americans leaving their jobs in unprecedented numbers during the COVID-19 pandemic. This phenomenon has been coined “The Great Resignation”. There are a lot of factors at play that I will not debate in this post. However, I will say that I believe that what we are experiencing is in part rooted in something much deeper than baby-boomers opting for early retirement, a historic bull market, stimulus payments, or an employee-friendly job market. The COVID-19 pandemic served as a catalyst for many people including myself to reevaluate life both personally and professionally. What is truly important in life? What drives personal happiness? In relation to the parable above — are you the businessman or the fisherman? If you are like me, the last couple of years have been a “Great Awakening” of sorts. In asking difficult questions, I have come to realize I am both the businessman and the fisherman.
What Is Success
What does it mean to be successful in life? A straightforward question arguably lacking a straight forward answer.
Having a great family? Finding your one true love? Building life-long relationships with friends?
What about professional accolades? Building a successful business? Achieving a high income? Accumulating wealth?
These are only a few potential definitions of success. Of course there are infinite possibilities because personal success in life is exactly that — personal.
All of the above are admirable pursuits that could reasonably define success for anyone. However, I would argue that none of these in isolation will result in a successful life. True success is the aggregate of numerous factors including many of the factors outlined above.
The Relentless Pursuit of More
The unfortunate reality is that we are often taught from an early age that success in life is largely tied to professional success and yes — financial success. Rather than meaningful relationships and the value placed on time with family —starting a successful company, pursuing a lucrative professional career, and/or climbing the corporate ladder end up becoming the benchmarks of success. Our reality becomes that of the businessman constantly in the pursuit of more while the life of the fisherman is relegated to a pipe dream or at best — retirement. I have experienced this first-hand more so in the last six months than ever before. By not continuing to climb the corporate ladder, I have felt a sense of failure of sorts. Despite all the good that has come from having more control of my time, I have often not felt “successful”. I have had consciously work to re-program myself to redefine success both in terms of our small business and life more generally.
A New Paradigm
The discovery of FI and the possibilities inherent in its pursuit introduce a new paradigm. You come to realize it is in the relentless pursuit of more that you can lose ourself, and let the best years of your life pass by while losing track of what is truly important. Spoiler alert — it is likely not more professional success, more money, or more stuff.
The pursuit of FI allows you to take greater and greater control of your time until ultimately you no longer have to trade your time for money. Although achieving FI is still the ultimate goal, it is equally as important to leverage the power of the pursuit of FI to live the life you want to live today because tomorrow is not a guarantee. I realize this more than ever now, and it is has become a new guiding principle in my life.
Conclusion:
Through The Parable of the Businessman and the Fisherman I have come to realize that my approach to life is a combination of both the businessman and the fisherman. That will never change. What has changed is how I no longer view the relationship between the two as a means (Businessman) to an end (Fisherman). There is a place for both in my life, and the balance between the two is the key. I have also come to realize that the relentless pursuit of more with no underlying purpose is an empty pursuit. By asking difficult questions of myself, I have come to better understand MY purpose and MY definition(s) of success. I have come to better understand MY why. In doing so, I am able to remain in the pursuit of more, but with purpose and direction, as I seek to design the life I want both today and in the future.
Regards,
Henry
*** All images courtesy of unsplash.com.