The Hare and the Fox

An old master was with his disciple, walking in the woods, when they observed a hare being chased by a fox. The student observed that it would not be long before the hare would be caught, and eaten by the faster (and probably smarter) fox.

The master replied that this particular rabbit would get away, and that they should stay and watch. Sure enough, after five-ten minutes of watching, the rabbit did get away, leaving a tired (and probably hungry) fox. The student was impressed with his master's knowledge, and asked him to explain how he knew. The master smiled, and then answered: the fox was running for his dinner, but the rabbit was running for his life.

People will often ask a similar question: why am I not motivated to do one particular thing or another? Or they ask why success eludes them, either personally or professionally. Those who do not achieve success are like the fox: they are running for their dinner, not their life. They have yet to understand the relationship between desire and achievement: if it is really important, it will get done no matter what. The challenge is to find these important things, both at home and at the job.

This week's action item: Look at how you spent your time last week: list all of your activities, and then decide: on balance, are you running for your life, or running for your dinner? If you want to get something done, choose to make it important enough to do - just like the rabbit did.

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Copyright © 2006 Knowledge to Action Press and Randall Craig. All rights reserved.

Publication Date: July 25, 2006