- October 15, 2017
- Posted by: Enrichment Catalyst
- Category: Binding Tales
The Japanese have always loved fresh fish. But the water close to Japan has not held many fish for decades. So to feed the Japanese population, fishing boats got bigger and went farther than ever.The farther the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring the fish. If the return trip took more time, the fish were not fresh.
To solve this problem, fish companies installed freezers on their boats. They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea. Freezers allowed the boats to go farther and stay longer. However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen fish. And they did not like the taste of frozen fish.
The frozen fish brought a lower price. So, fishing companies installed fish tanks. They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin. After a little thrashing around, they were tired, dull, and lost their fresh-fish taste. The fishing industry faced an impending crisis!
But today, they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan. How did they manage? To keep the fish tasting fresh, the Japanese fishing companies still put the fish in the tanks but with a small shark.
The fish are challenged and hence are constantly on the move. The challenge they face keeps them alive and fresh!
The lessons learned from this story are obvious. We are the fish meant to be alive and fresh in our own ocean of life. But when our parents put us in a tank of safe and comfort zone, we lose our freshness and become dull.
Our parents would have succeeded in keeping us “alive” but not “lively”. When there is a barrier to sharks, ie challenges, there is barrier to liveliness and growth and remarkable success. You have to come out of the safety tank and jump into a pond where there is a shark chasing you and pushing you to progress without giving you a choice. You have miles to go with the triggers of challenges and with identifies abilities and skills.