© 1999 VNN
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EDITORIAL July 1, 1999 VNN4201 Comment on this story The Longer Path BY FRANK MORALES EDITORIAL, Jul 1 (VNN) — An American businessman was vacationing in a small coastal Indian village when a man walked past with his bullock and a cart full of mangoes. The American complimented the Indian on the quality of his fruit and asked how long it took to grow and harvest them. The Indian replied that it took only a little while. The business man asked him how many trees he owned. The Indian replied that he only had a small orchard, plus a milk cow and a bullock, and his wife had a garden. The American then asked, "Why don't you buy some more trees and spend a little more time each day harvesting?" The Indian said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs with just a morning's work. The American then asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?" The Indian said, "I wake up early, finish my work by noon, have lunch, play with my children, take an afternoon nap, and stroll into the village each evening where I sip a lassi (a cold, sweet Indian yoghurt drink) and casually visit with my friends. On Fridays I take my wife and children to the temple. On Saturdays I sell my mangos to my neighbor and he takes them to market in Chennai. I have a full and busy life, friend." The American scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA. I could help you. You should spend more time farming and with the proceeds, buy more trees. After a while, you could use the proceeds from the bigger orchard to buy more acres of land, many different kinds of trees, and eventually you would have a big business." The business man's eyes grew bright and he stared off into the distance as he continued, "You could own the whole village and your friends could work for you. Instead of selling your produce to a middleman you would sell directly to the marketplace, eventually opening your grocery business. You could buy a fleet of trucks to ship your produce around the country, or perhaps around the world. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You could start a jam and pickle company and buy out your competitors. You could leave this small coastal village and move to New Delhi, then London and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise." The Indian asked, "But friend , how long will this all take?" The American replied, "15-20 years." "But what then, friend? I will be old by then," the Indian said. The American laughed and said "When the time is right you would sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions." "Millions, friend?" the Indian said, "I cannot count that high. And then . .. . ?" The American said, "That's the best part. You could retire and live a simple life. Move to a small coastal village, play with your grandchildren, take afternoon naps, build a garden for your wife, and stroll to the village in the evenings to sip lassi and casually visit with your friends." Comment on this story | Contact VNN about this story | Send this story to a friend
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