A few weeks ago I was at Berrysweet getting frozen yogurt with my family. We were waiting in line and I lost my balance and fell into this guy (probably because I was acting like a spaz). Anyway, he helped me regain my balance and we went on about our business. This was on a Sunday night...
Wednesday night my family and I are at church registering for Awana for our daughter and I bump into the same guy. Again we go about our business without any introduction.
On Friday, we are at lunch for my wife's birthday and wouldn't you know it - the same guy! Three times in one week is too much, so I walk up to him and introduce myself. He is a mortgage officer and we exchange cards.
A couple of weeks later he calls me and tells me that he wants me to look into Mona Vie - I guess he is a distributor of the fruity beverage. A long story short, he and I met this morning for a cup of tea at a local coffee shop so he can share the story of Mona Vie.
It really was a pleasant time. Stephen is a great guy and we talked for about an hour. He gave me a bottle of Mona Vie and shared the following proverb - and I can't stop thinking about it.
Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up and knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up and knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve.
It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle; when the sun comes up, you better start running.
- African Proverb
As someone who is in business for himself - and someone whose wife is about to be in business for herself (visit her site at Hanssie Trainor Photography)...this is a valuable (albeit cliche) lesson. Successful people are not standing around waiting. They are moving. They are making things happen.
My grandfather spent the last 30 years of his life as a Chaplain. I remember going to work with him and barely being able to keep up. He was in his sixties and I was a teenager. He was a great example to me.
Just a thought - good luck today!
