Meaningful conversation between a rich man & a fisherman 知足常乐

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.

"Not very long," answered the Mexican.

"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American.

The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"

"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs. I have a full life."

The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."

"And after that?" asked the Mexican.

"With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge new enterprise."

"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.

"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American.

"And after that?"

"Afterwards? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!"

"Millions? Really? And after that?" asked the Mexican.

"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."

And the moral of this story is: ......... Know where you're going in life... you may already be there.

　　一个美国商人曾经在墨西哥海边一个小渔村的码头上，看着一个墨西哥渔夫的小船上有好几条大黄鳍鲔鱼，显然，这是这个渔夫抓来的。这个美国商人对这个渔 夫能抓这么高档的鱼恭维了一番，并且问要多少时间才能抓这么多？渔夫说，不一会儿功夫就抓到了。美国商人再问：“那你为什么不再多抓一会，这样你就能抓更 多的鱼？”

　　渔夫觉得很不以为然：“这些鱼已经足够我一家人生活所需啦！”

　　美国商人又问：“那么你一天剩下来的时间都在干什么，不是会很无聊？”

　　渔夫很惊讶：“不会啊，我呀，每天都会睡到自然醒，然后出海抓几条鱼，回来就跟孩子们玩耍，中午就跟老婆睡个午觉，到了晚上就到村子里喝点小酒，跟朋友们玩玩吉他，唱唱歌，跳跳舞，怎么会无聊呢，我的日子可过得充实又忙碌呢！”

　　这时，美国商人却不以为然，并给这个渔夫出了一个主意说：“我是美国哈佛大学企管硕士，我想我可以帮你的忙！你每天应该多花一些时间去抓鱼，你就会有 更多的收入了，而到时候你就会有足够的钱去买条大一点的船，这样你自然就可以抓更多鱼，然后再买更多渔船。到最后你肯定能拥有一个渔船队。到那时候你就不 必把鱼卖给鱼贩子了，而是直接卖给加工厂，这样你就能挣更多的钱去开一家罐头工厂。并且你还可以到墨西哥城，或者洛杉矶，甚至到纽约，在那里扩充企业。”

　　渔夫笑了笑问：“这又花多少时间呢？”

　　美国商人回答：“十五到二十年。”

　　“然后呢？”

　　美国商人大笑着说：“然后你就可以在家享福啦！只要你愿意，你就可以宣布股票上市，把你的公司股份卖给投资大众。那时候你就发啦！你可以几亿几亿地赚！”

　　“然后呢？”

　　美国商人说：“到那个时候你就可以退休啦！你可以搬到海边的小渔村去住。每天睡到自然醒，出海随便抓几条鱼，跟孩子们玩一玩，再跟老婆睡个午觉，黄昏时，晃到村子里喝点小酒，跟朋友们玩玩吉他啰！”

　　墨西哥渔夫疑惑地说：“我现在不就是这样子吗？”

　　这个故事给我们这样的启发：只要能感受每天生活中的快乐，那这个世界就是美好的。活在当下，才能将快乐最大化。