A boat docked in a tiny Greek island.
A tourist complimented the local fishermen on the quality of their
fish and asked how long it took them to catch.
"Not very long." they answered in unison.
"Why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?"
The fishermen explained that their small catches were sufficient
to meet their needs and those of their families.
"But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
"We sleep late, fish a little, play with our children, and take
siestas with our wives. In the afternoons we have a snack at the beach
Or go into the village to see our friends at the Kafenio, (cafe)
have a few drinks and play tavli. (backgammon)
In the evenings we go to a taverna play the bouzouki and sing a
few songs, maybe break a plate or two.
We have a full life."
The tourist 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?"
"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 Athens or even London!
From there you can direct your huge new enterprise."
"How long would that take?"
"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years." replied the tourist.
" And after that?"
" Afterwards? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting, "
answered the tourist, laughing. "When your business gets really big,
you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!"
"Millions? Really? And after that?" asked the fishermen.
" 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."
"With all due respect, that's exactly what we are doing now.
So what's the point wasting twenty-five years?"
asked the Greek fishermen?
And the moral of this story is:
Know where you're going in life....
COZ YOU MAY ALREADY BE THERE!
MBA = Malakies, Bourdes & Anestiti
(You need to be Greek to understand!)
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Μας το έστειλε η Ελένη.
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