The Mexican Fisherman

Many years ago, I read a powerful parable titled The Mexican Fisherman, originally by Heinrich Böll, and it had a major impact on me. It’s an enlightening story about ambition, goals, and life. I’ve paraphrased it below:

“Nice catch. How long did it take to catch them?” 

The fisherman replied, “Thank you señor. Only a little while.” 

The American nodded, then asked, “Why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?” 

“Oh, this is plenty. With this I have more than enough to feed my family and still have leftovers to share with friends,” he replied.

“But…what do you do with the rest of your time?”

“Well I usually wake up late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta in the afternoon with my wife Maria, then stroll into the village each evening where I enjoy a cervesa and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life señor,” he said with a content smile. 

The American scoffed, “Today is your lucky day my friend. I am a Harvard MBA and can help you.”

“First thing: you should spend more time fishing, then sell the extra fish in the marketplace. With the money you make, go buy a boat. That will get you off this wharf and onto the open sea, which will allow you to catch many more fish.”

He continued, “From there, take that money and buy a net and pay someone to help you. That will increase your catch exponentially. And with that money, start building out a full fleet and workforce.”

“Eventually you’ll grow to the point where you can cut out the middleman and sell directly to the consumer. You could open and operate your own warehouse and cannery, and control the entire production line – from product, processing, packaging, and distribution. You’d run it all.” said the American with gleaming pride. 

The American added, “Now, for all this to happen you will have to get out of this little village and relocate to Mexico City, then Los Angeles and eventually New York City. You can’t do it here, there’s no infrastructure.” 

The fisherman asked, “Thank you for your ideas, but how long will all this take?” 

To which the American replied, “Fifteen to twenty years… twenty-five at most.”

“But what then, señor?” asked the Mexican. 

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part of all. When the time is right, you would announce an IPO and sell your company’s stock to the public. You would make millions and be rich!”

“Millions?… Then what?”

Somewhat surprised, the American replied, “Well isn’t it obvious? Then you would retire and move to a small coastal village where you could sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta in the afternoon with your wife, and stroll to the village in the evenings where you could enjoy a cervesa and play your guitar with your amigos.”

Now, I’ll tell you… the first time I read that parable, I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. I realized that I was the American business owner in the story.

I was trying to build an empire and it was consuming every part of my life in the process.

I was either working, thinking about work, or sleeping as little as possible  so that I could get back to work. 

And for what? To live a better life? I was compromising my life rather than enhancing it by my actions, and very few important parts of my life required the money that I was working so hard to make. Here’s what’s really interesting though. I see that parable through a completely different lens now. Yes, the main lesson I previously learned upon my first reading it is still fully valid and applicable, but now I see things from a new perspective: being a true business owner (and not an operator).

Check this out; see, not only was the fisherman a one-man show, but the advice the American businessman gave the fisherman was that of a business operator.  The American was telling him to continue to do the work; fish longer, buy a net, manage his workers. Because all of those things took time, they’d all compromise the currently-enjoyed lifestyle of the Mexican. But what if instead, the American had encouraged him to build a real business? What if, right after the fisherman told the American about his “full and busy life”, filled with fun and time with his friends and family, the conversation went something more like the following? Let’s pick up the revised version here:

“I have a full and busy life señor,” said the fisherman. 

“That sounds amazing. How would you like to do more of that?”, the American responded.

“Wow that would be incredible, but how? I still have to fish to feed my family.”

“Here’s an idea. Take the extra fish you’re catching now – the ones you don’t need – and sell them to the fish market. Use that money and start paying someone to sit out here and fish for you.” 

The American continued, “In the beginning it might only be enough for a couple hours per day, but that’s ok. There’s lots of people who could use the extra work.”

The fisherman nodded his head that he was following along. 

“Now you sell the fish they catch, use that money to cover their cost, and you get to keep the excess. And with that extra money, now you can do whatever you want: keep it, spend it, give it away, or roll it back into the business and grow it.” 

 The fisherman grinned, as if he was just told a forbidden secret.

The American continued, “And we haven’t even talked about some of the other benefits. In addition to supporting your family better, you’d be adding stability to your household. See, right now, if you get sick, can’t, or don’t want to go fishing, your family isn’t eating. That’s stressful and can feel like a heavy burden. This way, there will be both fish and money for your family no matter what. And lastly you’d get to enjoy the rewarding feeling of helping others make an honest living and providing for their family.”

See the difference between the two versions? Pretty powerful, right? That’s the difference between an owner and an operator.