![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 7 of 7. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Phil on April 30, 2002, at 7:12:56
The irony of the rat race explained....
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.
"Well, 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.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 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 enterprise.""How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.
"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American.
"And after that?"
"Afterwards? That's when it gets really interesting," answered the American,
laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks
and make millions!""Millions? Really? And after that?"
"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 siestas with your
wife, and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."
Posted by Ron Hill on April 30, 2002, at 9:05:56
In reply to The irony of the rat race, posted by Phil on April 30, 2002, at 7:12:56
Posted by Ritch on April 30, 2002, at 10:30:12
In reply to The irony of the rat race, posted by Phil on April 30, 2002, at 7:12:56
Phil,
Very cool parable indeed. I have been "working" on an economic theory that ties economic boom/bust cycles with elements of affective disorders. You have different phases of economic activity through the boom/bust cycle. Right now we are in a slowly lifting fog from a recession. Nobody knows what the future holds and they are uncertain and hesitant. Many are burnt out from the last few years of working 60hrs a week to buy all their toys (that everyone spent all their time making and selling). Time to go fishing. So we "fish" for a while until we get a little *greedy*. Usually, somebody stumbles on an *idea* and starts making some decent cash from it and then everybody else chimes in to do the same thing. We work a little more, a little more, a little more, buy more stuff, make more stuff, get all excited about the process-get a little manic. Spend a lot of money, make kooky, unwise decisions. Then WHAM!, there's a scandal (Enron, i.e.), sudden reappraisal of what we were enthusiasic about (investments-economic and psychic), and we get BURNT OUT, and don't want to work 60hr weeks anymore, and a recession hits. Time to go fishing again.
Mitch
Posted by Chris A. on April 30, 2002, at 19:07:24
In reply to The irony of the rat race, posted by Phil on April 30, 2002, at 7:12:56
Posted by JohnX2 on May 1, 2002, at 1:27:26
In reply to The irony of the rat race, posted by Phil on April 30, 2002, at 7:12:56
Posted by cmcdougall on May 2, 2002, at 12:32:54
In reply to The irony of the rat race, posted by Phil on April 30, 2002, at 7:12:56
Posted by xlandria on May 7, 2002, at 16:42:57
In reply to The irony of the rat race, posted by Phil on April 30, 2002, at 7:12:56
How true is that. Sometimes its so hard not to get caught up in everything you think you need, but then somehow everything and everyone important gets thrown to the side. Little man Mexican has the right idea.
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Social | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.