The following excerpt was taken from EDGE, co-authored by Chris Brady and Orrin Woodward.
We once heard the story told of a young man who worked at a sporting goods store. He was in his second year of college and struggling to pay for tuition and room and board. One day, a wealthy older man walked into the store and purchased a large amount of fishing gear for a fly-in fishing trip. The young man helped carry the mountain of purchases out to the parking lot and immediately noticed the expensive luxury car the older man drove. Impressed, the younger man asked a very penetrating question.
“Sir, if you don’t mind, could I ask you a question?”
“Certainly,” replied the elder gentleman.
To which the young man asked, “How do I get to be where you are financially some day?”
Hesitating briefly to ensure the young man was actually sincere, the older gentleman thought for a moment and formulated his answer carefully.
“First, define what you really want in life. Second, find someone who has accomplished that exact lifestyle and learn from that person how he or she did it. Third, go do exactly what he or she did.”
With that, the older man got into his luxury car and drove away.
We first heard this story told by a man who claimed to have been that young man who worked at that sporting goods store and to have used the very advice he received that day to succeed at a very high level. We are not sure, but the story may even be allegorical. That makes no difference. The truth remains that the principle taught by this nice little anecdote is profound.
Think about it. Most of the world has this equation exactly the other way around. Have you ever been asked a question something like this?
“What do you want to DO when you grow up?” or “What are you going to DO after high school?” Of course, we all have. It’s an indication that the person asking the question is using the following equation:
- Determine what you think you would like to DO.
- Then LEARN how to do it.
- And finally, allow it to DEFINE your results in life.
But what the wealthy fisherman taught was exactly the opposite:
- DEFINE the life you would like to have.
- Find someone who has accomplished that life and LEARN from that person how to do it.
- And then DO it.
You see? While most of the world falls into the rut of DO, LEARN, DEFINE, the super successful switch it around backward to DEFINE, LEARN, DO!
What does this mean for you? It means that at ANY AGE, you can run the equation the way the super successful do. You can DEFINE the exact life you’d like to live. Such a definition should be very specific, very exciting, and cover many categories, such as financial rewards and lifestyle, contributions to society
and charity, involvement in community groups and church, family relationships and love, even down to things like where you’d like to live and how you’d like to be remembered. The list is really endless and as individual as each person is unique. However, very few people will take the time to truly define where they want to go in life. But for those who do, it throws the equation of how to live entirely upside down!
Try it and see if it isn’t liberating to do as the late Stephen Covey taught, to “Begin with the end in mind.” DEFINE how you’d like to live right down to the very detail. Be in tune to any calling you feel on your life. Pay attention to any natural affinities or talents you possess. Package these all together, to the best of your ability, into a vision for where you’d like to go with your life. Only then, and we mean ONLY then, should you move on to the next step, which is also profound.
The next step is to find someone who has succeeded in achieving a life much like the one you now envision for yourself. This may be difficult, but don’t give up. Usually, successful people are the type who are constantly on the lookout for people to help, AND they almost always appreciate it when they come across someone who is eager to become like them. So look around and see if you can find mentors in key areas of your life who have achieved the types of results in those categories you’d like to accomplish yourself. Learning from such people is absolutely priceless. This is because they will think and act very differently from “everyone else.” And usually in life, you are forced to spend a lot more time with the “everyone else's” than you are those who have achieved the stellar results of which you are dreaming. Ultimately, you will think and behave a lot like the people you hang around the most. So take the advice of the wealthy fisherman and choose people to be around that are where you want to be in life.
Finally, it is time for the DO step. Take massive action toward your goals and don’t grow weary in the pursuit. Anything worthwhile takes significant time and effort. Expect that. Stay persistent. Keep your eye on the accomplishments you hold dear in your heart. Run for the approval of those you’ve chosen to emulate, NOT of those who don’t understand what you are trying to achieve. Remember, most people will think you’ve got it backwards. But actually, they’ve got it backwards.
So DEFINE your life, LEARN from those who’ve achieved that kind of life already, and DO what they did with all your heart. It will be worth it. We promise! And who knows? You might just become a wealthy fisherman to some future young person, too!
Posted by Kristen Seidl, on behalf of Chris Brady.
