An investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal village when a
small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several
large yellow fin tuna. The banker complimented the fisherman on the quality of
his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The fisherman replied,
"Only a little while."
The banker then asked why didn't he stay out longer and catch more fish?
The fisherman said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs.
The banker then asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
The fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children,
take a nap with my wife, stroll into the village each evening where I play guitar
and sing with myfriends. I have a full and busy life."
The banker scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and I 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 a big city where you will run your expanding enterprise."
The fisherman asked, "But, how long will this all take?"
To which the banker replied, "15-20 years."
"But what then?"
The banker 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 banker 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 a nap with your wife, stroll to the village in the
evenings where you could play your guitar and sing with your
friends." - Mikey's Funnies
