My husband just shared a joke with me and it seemed particularly poignant. Now, I’ll warn you that this is kind of a religious joke, but regardless of your particular stance on religion and/or spirituality, the point will still be the same. Here goes:
This man was out to sea when his boat capsized. The boat was destroyed and his crew lost. As the man treaded water, with nothing around him but ocean, he wondered how he would be saved. As a man of faith, he called out to God, “God, please help me! Don’t let me drown!”
Suddenly, his first mate appeared beside him, holding on to a large board. “Grab on to the board, Captain,” the first mate said. “No! God will save me!” the man replied. Unable to convince his captain, the first mate shrugged and swam off, clinging to his board.
The man called out again, “God, please help me! Don’t let me drown!” And suddenly, behind him appeared a boat. “Get in, man!” the crew called out, “We’ll throw you a line!” And the man said, “No! God will save me!” Unable to convince the man to grab the line, the boat eventually sailed away.
The man called out again, “God, please help me! Don’t let me drown!” And suddenly, a helicopter appeared in the sky. “Climb up the ladder!” the crew called down to him. And the man said, “No! God will save me!” Unable to convince the man to climb up on the ladder, the helicopter eventually flew away.
The man became very tired, could no longer tread water, and finally, he drowned.
The man had lived a good life, so he went to Heaven. When he arrived in Heaven, he found God and said, “God, why did you forsake me? Why didn’t you save me when I was treading water and about to drown?”
God looked down at the man, shook his head with pity and said, “Who do you think sent your first mate, the boat and a helicopter for you?”
In this economy, I know so many people are on their knees saying, “God, please don’t let me drown!” I’m all for prayer and meditation and whatever floats your boat. But the real question you need to be asking is, “Are you letting yourself drown?”
Whether you believe in God, Spirit, The Universe, some other deity or no deity at all, the principle remains the same: What opportunities are you ignoring? Are there opportunities that you haven’t taken advantage of? Are there ideas or opportunities that keep cropping up and keep appearing?
If you’re letting opportunities pass you by and you’re not doing absolutely everything that you can do to keep your business afloat, you’re letting yourself drown. Make a list today of opportunities you’ve passed by and find a way to get them back!
