the chinese farmer’s lesson

hey friend,

have you heard the parable of the Chinese farmer?

it goes like this…

a Chinese farmer’s horse runs away.
his neighbors say, “Such bad luck!”
he replies, “Maybe.”

the next day, the horse returns with wild horses.
“how wonderful!” the neighbors say.
“maybe,” says the farmer.

his son breaks his leg trying to tame a wild horse.
“how terrible,” say the neighbors.
“maybe,” says the farmer.

then the army comes to draft young men, but spares his injured son.
“such good fortune!” the neighbors say.
“maybe,” says the farmer.

the lesson?
you can’t judge events in the moment.
good or bad, it’s all unfolding.

when I launched my first book, the garage gym athlete, it did okay.
not the blockbuster I’d hoped for.
we sold copies, but those buyers didn’t turn into the customers I expected.
bummer.

but that very book led me to meeting my current business partner.
we’ve built multi-million-dollar businesses together since.
I’ve also had big wins that led to complacency…
you just never know.

so keep swinging.
today’s misfortune might be tomorrow’s big win.
today’s win could be tomorrow’s misfortune.

not every setback is a failure.
not every win is a real victory.
don’t get attached to outcomes.
keep showing up.

try harder,
JM